Warontherocks
Jul 21, 08:00
Rebuilding America’s Critical Minerals Base
There’s a clear consensus that America hollowed out its critical minerals base. How to rebuild it is less settled. Alex Grant of Magrathea Metals and Wes Spurlock of Principal Mineral join Jonathan to discuss the processing technology, labor force, and how government can catalyze private capital investment in the sector rather than replace it.Image: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission via Wikimedia Commons. The post Rebuilding America’s Critical Minerals Base appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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There’s a clear consensus that America hollowed out its critical minerals base. Alex Grant of Magrathea Metals and Wes Spurlock of Principal Mineral join Jonathan to discuss the processing technology, labor force, and how government can catalyze private capital investment in the sector rather than replace it.Image: U.S.
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The post Rebuilding America’s Critical Minerals Base appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 21, 07:30
Learning from the ‘Voyage of the Damned’: The Making of a Russian Naval Disaster
Editorial Note: The dates cited in Eugene Politovsky’s account are from the old Russian Orthodox calendar, which is 13 days behind that of the (Gregorian) calendar system used in this article.A recent War on the Rocks article on the failure of the Spanish Reserve Fleet to prepare for war with the United States in 1898 offers a useful point of entry into what may be the most significant issue of poor fleet readiness ahead of a major battle. Fought on May 27, 1905, the Battle of Tsushima ended in the destruction or capture of nearly the entire Russian Baltic Fleet, The post Learning from the ‘Voyage of the Damned’: The Making of a Russian Naval Disaster appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Learning from the ‘Voyage of the Damned’: The Making of a Russian Naval Disaster. Editorial Note: The dates cited in Eugene Politovsky’s account are from the old Russian Orthodox calendar, which is 13 days behind that of the (Gregorian) calendar system used in this article.
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Fought on May 27, 1905, the Battle of Tsushima ended in the destruction or capture of nearly the entire Russian Baltic Fleet, The post Learning from the ‘Voyage of the Damned’: The Making of a Russian Naval Disaster appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 21, 06:29
Man of his word: Pope Leo speeches declared human-authored by Australian AI detection tool
Maps of Hope has been certified by Proudly Human, a company led by former chief scientist, Dr Alan Finkel A collection of speeches and writings by Pope Leo XIV has been certified as human-authored less than two months after Leo declared artificial intelligence the greatest threat to humanity. Proudly Human, the Australian company spearheaded by Australia’s former chief scientist, Dr Alan Finkel, undertook a review of a collection of writings and speeches by the Pope, in collaboration with the publisher, the Australian Catholic University and cardinals in the Vatican. Continue reading...
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Maps of Hope has been certified by Proudly Human, a company led by former chief scientist, Dr Alan Finkel A collection of speeches and writings by Pope Leo XIV has been certified as human-authored less than two months after Leo declared artificial intelligence the greatest threat to humanity.
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Maps of Hope has been certified by Proudly Human, a company led by former chief scientist, Dr Alan Finkel A collection of speeches and writings by Pope Leo XIV has been certified as human-authored less than two months after Leo declared artificial intelligence the greatest threat to humanity.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 06:00
Gaza celebrates World Cup victory of Spanish team they took into their hearts
People gather at cafes and outdoor screenings to support team after Spain’s backing for Palestinian rights The Spanish football team’s World Cup win has been celebrated in the streets of Gaza, where Spain’s support for Palestinian rights and Israel’s backing for the Argentinian team turned the competition into more than a football showdown. Gathered at cafes and outdoor screenings, Palestinians defied the risk of Israeli attacks to cheer on a team they had taken to their hearts. Continue reading...
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People gather at cafes and outdoor screenings to support team after Spain’s backing for Palestinian rights The Spanish football team’s World Cup win has been celebrated in the streets of Gaza, where Spain’s support for Palestinian rights and Israel’s backing for the Argentinian team turned the competition into more than a football showdown.
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People gather at cafes and outdoor screenings to support team after Spain’s backing for Palestinian rights The Spanish football team’s World Cup win has been celebrated in the streets of Gaza, where Spain’s support for Palestinian rights and Israel’s backing for the Argentinian team turned the competition into more than a football showdown.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 06:00
UK military ‘eyes innovative electric flying taxi’ as 2029 launch planned
Vertical Aerospace says government has given £10m backing, taking its total investment in the project to £48m British flying taxi startup Vertical Aerospace has said the UK government has expressed interest in buying a military variant of its aircraft as it races to gain approval for flights with paying passengers. Vertical also welcomed another £10m grant from the government, taking its total UK state funding to £48m . Continue reading...
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UK military ‘eyes innovative electric flying taxi’ as 2029 launch planned. Vertical Aerospace says government has given £10m backing, taking its total investment in the project to £48m British flying taxi startup Vertical Aerospace has said the UK government has expressed interest in buying a military variant of its aircraft as it races to gain approval for flights with paying…
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Vertical also welcomed another £10m grant from the government, taking its total UK state funding to £48m .
Theguardian
Jul 21, 05:57
‘Disturbing parallels’: Holocaust survivors president says exclusion of Jews from public life similar to Nazi Germany
George Foster tells royal commision Australia’s democratic institutions fundamentally different ‘but I can’t ignore certain disturbing parallels in the social atmosphere’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A rise in antisemitism across Australia has “disturbing parallels” with the social climate of Nazi Germany, the president of the Australian Holocaust survivors association says. George Foster, the president of Australian Association of Jewish Holocaust Survivors and Descendants, told the antisemitism royal commission that he did not believe Australia was “becoming another Germany in the 1930s”. Continue reading...
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George Foster tells royal commision Australia’s democratic institutions fundamentally different ‘but I can’t ignore certain disturbing parallels in the social atmosphere’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A rise in antisemitism across Australia has “disturbing parallels” with the social climate o…
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George Foster tells royal commision Australia’s democratic institutions fundamentally different ‘but I can’t ignore certain disturbing parallels in the social atmosphere’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A rise in antisemitism across Australia has “disturbing parallels” with the social climate of Nazi Germany, the president of the Australian Holocaust survivors association says.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 05:45
Tuesday briefing: Inside Andy Burnham’s first day
In today’s newsletter: As the new prime minister enters No 10, our journalists take you through what it was like covering his first hours in power Good morning, and let’s abandon all conditional tenses because finally Andy Burnham is UK prime minister and, on a day of ceremony and celebration, he pledged his government would be “a circuit breaker for Britain”. A defining characteristic of Team Burnham thus far has been the concentrated silence at its heart – a vacuum filled by increasingly frenzied speculation in recent days about his cabinet picks and policy priorities. As the black box finally cracked open on Monday, with his first instruction as prime minister – to end rough sleeping – and his surprise choice of chancellor, I was at the Guardian’s head office in London, speaking to editors and correspondents covering the early hours of Burnham’s premiership about what they might reveal for the country. UK news | A 28-year-old man from Rotherham has been charged with the murder of the former MP and Reform UK party spokesperson Ann Widdecombe. Technology | Cases of predators coercing children into harming themselves or producing sexual photos and videos of themselves have surged globally in the past year , child safety experts and law enforcement officials warn. Iran | Nearly 100 US service members have been injured over the last two weeks of escalating strikes on Iran, the Pentagon has said, as Tehran launched a wave of reprisals to the tenth consecutive night of attacks. Ryanair | The airline has reassured travellers that its planes are safe after a passenger was almost sucked out of a window mid-flight this month, and have reported strong summer bookings after a profits slump. UK politics | Reform UK MP, Sarah Pochin, has complained that the standards system investigating Nigel Farage over undeclared gifts is a “kangaroo court” and that “the media, the British state and the old parties have mounted a vicious and desperate campaign to stop Reform UK”. Continue reading...
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Tuesday briefing: Inside Andy Burnham’s first day. In today’s newsletter: As the new prime minister enters No 10, our journalists take you through what it was like covering his first hours in power Good morning, and let’s abandon all conditional tenses because finally Andy Burnham is UK prime minister and, on a day of ceremony and celebration, he pledged his government would b…
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UK news | A 28-year-old man from Rotherham has been charged with the murder of the former MP and Reform UK party spokesperson Ann Widdecombe.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 05:26
Iran claims attacks in strait of Hormuz; Houthis announce blockade of Red Sea shipping route – Middle East crisis live
Revolutionary Guard claims attack on oil tanker and two other ships; Houthis in Yemen say they are imposing an immediate maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea Full report: Almost 100 troops injured in recent weeks, Pentagon admits, as Iran launches reprisals on US allies Welcome to our live coverage of the latest developments in the Middle East crisis. Iran attacked a tanker in the strait of Hormuz early on Tuesday, forcing its crew to abandon the ship, as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis announced they were imposing an immediate maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea after the two sides traded fire last week for the first time in years. The latest US strikes came hours after Donald Trump said Iran would pay “many times over” for killing US soldiers after multiple service members were killed in action over the weekend. A tanker came under attack early Tuesday in the Hormuz strait off Oman , forcing the crew to abandon the vessel, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed the attack as well as two other attacks on ships in the waterway on Monday. The US military’s Central Command said its latest airstrikes were to “degrade” Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping in the strait and included hitting military command centres and missile and drone launch sites. Iranian media reported strikes in parts of the country including Bandar Abbas, Tabriz and Bushehr , home to the country’s only operational civilian nuclear power. Iran’s launched attacks in response against Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, which all host US forces. Oil prices softened after hitting their highest levels in more than a month in the previous session. Brent crude futures eased 0.4% to $88.87 a barrel by 0052 GMT on Tuesday while US West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery was steady at $82.47 a barrel. Democrats have seized on the deaths of three US troops killed in Iranian strikes to urge Trump to urgently reverse his resumption of the war with Iran amid widespread anxiety over climbing casualties. The Lebanese army began taking charge of security in three southern villages , the US said, as a deal to secure an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah faced its first test on the ground. Continue reading...
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Iran claims attacks in strait of Hormuz; Houthis announce blockade of Red Sea shipping route – Middle East crisis live. The US military’s Central Command said its latest airstrikes were to “degrade” Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping in the strait and included hitting military command centres and missile and drone launch sites.
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The latest US strikes came hours after Donald Trump said Iran would pay “many times over” for killing US soldiers after multiple service members were killed in action over the weekend.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 05:00
UK surrogacy law ‘creaking at seams’ as demand rises sharply
Experts urge ministers to update legislation to prevent intended parents resorting to riskier arrangements abroad Surrogates, parents and children are being failed by the UK’s archaic laws, which are “creaking at the seams” as demand for surrogacy grows rapidly, experts have said. Figures obtained by the Guardian show there were just under 1,000 children born to surrogates in 2025, double the number in 2015. The rise has been driven by a rise in the number of gay couples seeking to be parents, increasing infertility and shifting cultural attitudes. Continue reading...
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UK surrogacy law ‘creaking at seams’ as demand rises sharply. Figures obtained by the Guardian show there were just under 1,000 children born to surrogates in 2025, double the number in 2015. The rise has been driven by a rise in the number of gay couples seeking to be parents, increasing infertility and shifting cultural attitudes.
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Experts urge ministers to update legislation to prevent intended parents resorting to riskier arrangements abroad Surrogates, parents and children are being failed by the UK’s archaic laws, which are “creaking at the seams” as demand for surrogacy grows rapidly, experts have said.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 05:00
Election voting advice from AI chatbots ‘inaccurate and unreliable’
Research during Hungary election shows AI recommended parties not running and gave highly volatile answers to identical prompts AI chatbots provide inaccurate, inconsistent and unreliable guidance to voters asking which party they should back, a study suggests, often recommending the wrong party, not mentioning the right one, or listing parties not even running. “The results raise serious concerns about the reliability of general-purpose AI systems in electoral contexts,” the study , published by the civil liberties group Liberties and based on research during this year’s Hungarian parliamentary elections, concluded. Continue reading...
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Research during Hungary election shows AI recommended parties not running and gave highly volatile answers to identical prompts AI chatbots provide inaccurate, inconsistent and unreliable guidance to voters asking which party they should back, a study suggests, often recommending the wrong party, not mentioning the right one, or listing parties not even running.
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Research during Hungary election shows AI recommended parties not running and gave highly volatile answers to identical prompts AI chatbots provide inaccurate, inconsistent and unreliable guidance to voters asking which party they should back, a study suggests, often recommending the wrong party, not mentioning the right one, or listing parties not even running.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 05:00
Gruel and graft: museum asks if you could survive a Victorian workhouse
Revamped Ripon attraction reopens as a more immersive experience telling ‘national story’ of poverty and welfare Visitors to one of Britain’s most complete surviving Victorian workhouses won’t have to strip and bathe in someone else’s bath water. But they might get some gruel, they can sweep the yard and there are “schoolmaster” volunteers happy to tell children how to behave. “You are literally going to walk in the footsteps of people who have experienced this place,” said the director of the Ripon Museums Trust, Alexa Vernon. Continue reading...
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Gruel and graft: museum asks if you could survive a Victorian workhouse. But they might get some gruel, they can sweep the yard and there are “schoolmaster” volunteers happy to tell children how to behave. “You are literally going to walk in the footsteps of people who have experienced this place,” said the director of the Ripon Museums Trust, Alexa Vernon.
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Revamped Ripon attraction reopens as a more immersive experience telling ‘national story’ of poverty and welfare Visitors to one of Britain’s most complete surviving Victorian workhouses won’t have to strip and bathe in someone else’s bath water.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 05:00
Wealth tax on UK’s super-rich could raise £10bn a year, Andy Burnham told
New prime minister urged to introduce 2% minimum charge on households with more than £100m in wealth A wealth tax on the UK’s super-rich households could raise £10bn a year, according to academics who urged Andy Burnham to include the measure in his plans to “make tax fairer” and pay for better public services. The sum could be raised through a 2% minimum charge on households with more than £100m in wealth and would affect fewer than 1,000 of the richest UK households, according to the study by Gabriel Zucman , a professor of economics at the Paris School of Economics, and Ben Tippet, a lecturer in economics and wealth inequality at King’s College London. Continue reading...
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New prime minister urged to introduce 2% minimum charge on households with more than £100m in wealth A wealth tax on the UK’s super-rich households could raise £10bn a year, according to academics who urged Andy Burnham to include the measure in his plans to “make tax fairer” and pay for better public services.
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New prime minister urged to introduce 2% minimum charge on households with more than £100m in wealth A wealth tax on the UK’s super-rich households could raise £10bn a year, according to academics who urged Andy Burnham to include the measure in his plans to “make tax fairer” and pay for better public services.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 04:55
Kumanjayi Little Baby’s mother was not supported to protect her children while escaping domestic violence, review finds
Interim report not able to draw ‘nexus’ between matters referred to child protection and circumstances leading to five-year-old’s alleged murder •Warning: This story contains references to Indigenous Australians who have died Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Kumanjayi Little Baby’s mother was “effectively” left alone to protect her children while also experiencing domestic violence, because child protection authorities failed to adequately assess multiple threats to her safety, a draft review has found. But the interim report, tabled in parliament on Tuesday, found that despite those conclusions, the review was unable to draw a link between the child protection referrals and the five-year-old Warlpiri girl’s death. Continue reading...
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Interim report not able to draw ‘nexus’ between matters referred to child protection and circumstances leading to five-year-old’s alleged murder •Warning: This story contains references to Indigenous Australians who have died Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Kumanjayi Little Baby’s mother was “e…
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Interim report not able to draw ‘nexus’ between matters referred to child protection and circumstances leading to five-year-old’s alleged murder •Warning: This story contains references to Indigenous Australians who have died Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Kumanjayi Little Baby’s mother was “effectively” left alone to protect her children while also experiencing domestic violence, because child protection authorities failed to adequately assess multiple threats to her safety, a draft review has found.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 21, 04:19
Trump Needs to Defy History to End the Iran War
This issue is preventing our website from loading properly. Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . When U.S.
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President Donald Trump agreed to the memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Iran in mid-June, he promised to broker a final deal that will “bring peace and security to the whole region.” Since then, however, negotiations have stalled , fighting has resumed , U.S. This all raises an important question: Can Trump bring the peace he’s promised?
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presidents are virtually never able to end the stalemated wars they start.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 04:09
Almost 100 troops injured in recent weeks, Pentagon admits, as Iran launches reprisals on US allies
Iran has attacked a tanker in the strait of Hormuz, forcing its crew to abandon the ship, after the US launched a tenth consecutive night of strikes Middle East crisis live: follow latest updates Nearly 100 US service members have been injured over the last two weeks of escalating strikes on Iran, the Pentagon has said, as Tehran launched a wave of reprisals to the tenth consecutive night of attacks. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday they had targeted US military sites including air defence systems and a radar installation in Bahrain and Kuwait, while a tanker in the strait of Hormuz reported being struck by an unknown projectile, forcing its crew to abandon the vessel and board a lifeboat. Continue reading...
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Iran has attacked a tanker in the strait of Hormuz, forcing its crew to abandon the ship, after the US launched a tenth consecutive night of strikes Middle East crisis live: follow latest updates Nearly 100 US service members have been injured over the last two weeks of escalating strikes on Iran, the Pentagon has said, as Tehran launched a wave of reprisals to the tenth conse…
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Iran has attacked a tanker in the strait of Hormuz, forcing its crew to abandon the ship, after the US launched a tenth consecutive night of strikes Middle East crisis live: follow latest updates Nearly 100 US service members have been injured over the last two weeks of escalating strikes on Iran, the Pentagon has said, as Tehran launched a wave of reprisals to the tenth consecutive night of attacks.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 04:09
NSW land-clearing up 16% in 2024 as conservation groups say Minns government failing to rein in habitat loss
Decline in clearing of trees and shrubs offset by sharp jump in clearing of non-woody vegetation Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Almost 90 rugby league fields’ worth of woody habitat were bulldozed in New South Wales every day in 2024, according to new government data which shows the state has failed to rein in high rates of clearing. Clearing of vegetation across the state increased by 16% in 2024, reaching 81,293 hectares (200,879 acres) in total – an area more than 275 times the size of the Sydney CBD. The increase was due to a sharp jump in clearing of non-woody vegetation, up 70% on the previous year. Continue reading...
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NSW land-clearing up 16% in 2024 as conservation groups say Minns government failing to rein in habitat loss. Clearing of vegetation across the state increased by 16% in 2024, reaching 81,293 hectares (200,879 acres) in total – an area more than 275 times the size of the Sydney CBD.
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Decline in clearing of trees and shrubs offset by sharp jump in clearing of non-woody vegetation Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Almost 90 rugby league fields’ worth of woody habitat were bulldozed in New South Wales every day in 2024, according to new government data which shows the state has failed to rein in high rates of clearing.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 21, 04:05
Israel is sabotaging Trump’s peace plan for Gaza
The U.S. war with Iran continues to be a major distraction, diverting attention from other problems even within the Middle East. The Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would not want it any other way. An image of Iran as a regional bête noire has long served Israel’s objective of drawing international attention away from Israeli conduct. This is a major reason Israel has promoted unending confrontation with Iran, including the starting and continuation of the current war. This also helps explain why Israel opposes and often seeks to sabotage diplomacy with Tehran. Netanyahu’s government is using the current preoccupation with a rekindled U.S.-Iranian war to intensify its violent subjugation of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. While President Donald Trump has said little about Gaza in recent weeks, Israel’s actions there are undermining the president’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza , which he proposed last October. To the extent the president is thinking about peace agreements in the Middle East, he is unsurprisingly focused on the conflict with Iran. If he tries to influence Netanyahu, it probably will be to avoid any Israeli sabotage of a new ceasefire with Iran, rather than to make progress on Palestinian matters. Israel has treated the Gaza ceasefire , to which Hamas agreed and which supposedly went into effect last October, the way it has treated other ceasefires; it has not ended offensive military operations but merely reduced their tempo somewhat. Israel has killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and injured more than 3,000 since the start of this “ceasefire.” The tempo of Israeli operations has not lessened since the start of the current war with Iran. In fact, it may have increased. Within the past week, Israel attacked a police station in the Jabalia displacement camp, killing at least eight people, including the station’s chief and several other police officers, whose job was to maintain order in a marketplace at the camp. The attack continued an Israeli campaign of destroying the human and physical infrastructure needed for some semblance of normal civilian life in Gaza. The targets have included hospitals and medical personnel, schools and teachers, and other police officers. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has recorded at least twelve Israeli attacks on police in Gaza since the start of this year, killing at least 53 people. The killed officers were conducting such mundane but necessary tasks as directing traffic or, like the officers at Jabalia, ensuring order in a crowded marketplace. The Israeli military customarily claims , without offering evidence, that at least some of the police officers it has killed were Hamas militants. It is not only the ceasefire that remains largely unimplemented. Most of Trump’s 20-point plan is stalled , and Israeli resistance is the chief reason. No progress is being made toward Israeli withdrawal from the territory. Israeli forces have erected fortifications along the “yellow line,” literally cementing indefinite Israeli occupation of more than half the Gaza Strip. In recent months, Israeli forces have only expanded the area they control, from 53% to 60% of the Gaza Strip. The Trump plan states that aid to residents of the Gaza Strip “will proceed without interference from the two parties.” But the humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire , chiefly because of extensive Israeli interference. Israel has barred numerous international aid organizations from operating in Gaza. It also has restricted entry of an extremely long list of items, from sleeping bags to portable toilets, that it has labeled “dual-use” on grounds that they conceivably could serve a military purpose. The Trump plan calls for temporary administration of the Gaza Strip by a body of apolitical Palestinian technocrats, which in fact has been formed with the name National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG) . Hamas has made official its acceptance of this part of the plan with its recent announcement of the dissolution of its own “Emergency Committee” for administering Gaza and its “full readiness” to transfer authority to NCAG. But Israel has been barring NCAG from entering Gaza, and the committee remains stuck in a hotel in Cairo. Reconstruction of the devastated Gaza Strip is stalled as well, in part because Israel applies the “dual-use” label to things like construction equipment. Even clearance of the rubble has barely begun . Trump’s “Board of Peace,” which was supposed to supervise the peace process but has accomplished little , has abandoned a vision of reconstructing the entire Gaza Strip in favor of a pilot program that would affect only a tiny fraction of the Strip’s population, and even that is unlikely to materialize before the end of the year. Israel and the Board of Peace habitually blame all lack of progress on Hamas for not disarming. Hamas has expressed its willingness to give up weapons und...
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Israel is sabotaging Trump’s peace plan for Gaza. While President Donald Trump has said little about Gaza in recent weeks, Israel’s actions there are undermining the president’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza , which he proposed last October. Israel has killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and injured more than 3,000 since the start of this “ceasefire.
TL;DR:
war with Iran continues to be a major distraction, diverting attention from other problems even within the Middle East.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 21, 04:05
The Houthi blockade puts Trump in a serious bind
On Monday, Yemen’s Houthis announced a blockade of Saudi Arabia, marking a major escalation that could ratchet up pressure on global oil markets at a time when U.S. and global oil stockpiles are dangerously depleted . A Houthi blockade could also subject Saudi Arabia to the same broad-based economic warfare the U.S. has waged by blockading Iran. The Red Sea, bordered by Yemen to the southeast, has emerged not only as a crucial outlet for oil rerouted from the Strait of Hormuz to global markets, but also as an important conduit for grain and other crucial imports to Saudi Arabia and other GCC countries. Thus the blockade, if enacted, could pressure President Donald Trump to scale back his strikes on Iran in two major ways: by threatening economic calamity through skyrocketing oil prices, and by pressuring the Saudis to disallow the use of their bases and airspace for attacks against Iran. Recall that Saudi disapproval prompted Trump to suspend Project Freedom , the U.S. initiative to guide shipping through the Strait of Hormuz in early May, barely two days after it began. The Houthis’ leverage is substantial. Houthi attacks could jeopardize global access to the roughly 4.6 million barrels per day that Saudi Arabia currently exports through the Red Sea port of Yanbu. The Houthis could suppress these exports by targeting Yanbu directly or by attacking shipping through the Bab-el-Mandeb waterway that connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and greater Indian Ocean. Yanbu, located on the northern end of the Red Sea, is more difficult for the Houthis to reach because of its distance from Yemen and the presence of Saudi air defenses capable of intercepting Houthi attacks. But Yanbu is within the demonstrated range of Houthi missiles and drones, which have hit targets in Israel , several hundred miles to the north. And the Houthis might not have to completely disable Yanbu to effectively suppress commercial traffic flowing through it. Attacking shipping through the Bab-el-Mandeb is much easier for the Houthis to accomplish because of its proximity to Houthi strongholds in Yemen. From late November 2023 through mid-2024, sustained Houthi anti-ship missile and drone attacks, conducted in protest of Israel’s war in Gaza, drove Bab el-Mandeb vessel transits down by 60%. Choking the Bab-el-Mandeb, even if Yanbu remains operational, could significantly constrain daily oil throughput to world markets. Instead of using the Bab-el-Mandeb, oil destined for Asia would have to reroute through the Suez Canal to the Mediterranean Sea and onward around the Cape of Good Hope – adding roughly 2-3 weeks of transit time and increasing fuel and insurance costs. The constrained capacity of the Suez Canal represents an additional bottleneck. Unlike the Bab-el-Mandeb, Suez cannot accommodate fully-laden Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), the largest oil tankers that carry up to 2 million barrels. If tanker traffic from Yanbu was forced northward through the Suez Canal, that would necessitate a switch to smaller-capacity Suezmax tankers, which can only hold 1 million barrels. In principle, some Red Sea oil could bypass Suez using the SUMED pipeline across Egypt, but that route is already running at its full nameplate capacity of 2.5 million barrels per day. The U.S. Navy has helped to covertly shuttle oil through Hormuz since early May, and it is possible Trump could use military power to deal with the Houthi threat, too. But the U.S. capability to protect shipping has clear limits. Running both missions simultaneously would further strain U.S. capabilities and risk the lives of U.S. servicemembers. The U.S. Apache downed by Iran in early June was apparently participating in the U.S. smuggling mission – an episode that underlines the risks involved. It is also uncertain how well the U.S. shuttling effort has weathered the latest round of escalation between the U.S. and Iran. Private data suggests that crossings tied to the shuttle program were at a standstill last week, though Energy Secretary Chris Wright has disputed such reports, claiming that two-thirds of prewar oil flows through Hormuz have been restored. Even if the U.S. Navy runs commerce protection efforts against the Houthi threat, it still might not effectively reopen the Bab el Mandeb. Unfortunately, there are no good military options for neutralizing the Houthi threat to shipping, just like there is little the U.S. can do to deny Iran the capabilities to attack the Persian Gulf. In early 2025, the U.S. spent an estimated $7 billion bombing the Houthis with little to show for it. The U.S. burned through munitions but never even established air superiority , and the Houthis continued to fire at vessels in the Red Sea. The 2025 U.S.-Houthi conflict ultimately ended with Trump cutting a face-saving deal with the Houthis to desist attacks on U.S. vessels. We can only hope that Trump has the pragmatism to negotiate a similar deal with Iran to reopen shipping through Hormuz, eve...
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The Houthi blockade puts Trump in a serious bind. Navy has helped to covertly shuttle oil through Hormuz since early May, and it is possible Trump could use military power to deal with the Houthi threat, too. The 2025 U.S.-Houthi conflict ultimately ended with Trump cutting a face-saving deal with the Houthis to desist attacks on U.S.
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We can only hope that Trump has the pragmatism to negotiate a similar deal with Iran to reopen shipping through Hormuz, eve...
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 21, 04:05
France's nuclear expansion risks destabilizing European security
Europe’s security fears are real and legitimate. But deploying nuclear-capable aircraft to Russia's doorstep is not the answer, and Washington's contradictions are making things worse. On March 2, French President Emmanuel Macron announced major changes to France’s nuclear deterrence doctrine: an increase for the first time since 1992 in France's nuclear stockpile. France will also stop publishing the size of its nuclear stockpile altogether. This opacity makes verification and arms control dialogue functionally impossible. Macron announced that France would adopt a policy of “forward deterrence,” which could include “the temporary deployment of elements of our strategic air forces to allied countries” and the involvement of allies in support of French nuclear forces. Nine European countries have already signed on. On May 27, Norway officially joined the initiative through the Narvik Arrangement. Finland is now evaluating its participation in the initiative, as well as moving to lift its long-held ban on hosting nuclear weapons. At first glance, this is Europe finally taking its own defense seriously in the face of an unpredictable Trump administration. However, for those who believe that durable security is built through diplomacy, arms control, and risk reduction , this is something else entirely. France extending its nuclear weapons to Northern Europe is a cascading nuclear escalation. It could make things a whole lot less stable and wreck the chances for arms control down the line. At the same time, Washington itself appears to be joining the nuclear rush. The U.S. is reportedly in talks to expand nuclear weapons deployments to additional European NATO states, beyond the six countries currently hosting nuclear-capable aircraft, to countries on NATO’s eastern flank, including Poland and some Baltic states. Those “highly confidential” discussions, as the Financial Times described them, come even as the Trump administration has withdrawn troops and cancelled planned weapons deployments in Europe. From Moscow, the message is clear: wherever you look from the Kremlin, nuclear-capable aircraft are getting closer. French defense analysts have pointed out that a base like Norway’s Bardufoss would permit French Rafale B jets to quickly reach Murmansk, Russia’s Northern Fleet, and their early-warning radars — in as little as 15 minutes. Some Russian targets would be reachable from within Norwegian airspace itself, without a need for refueling. If Finland joins, suddenly all of Scandinavia turns into a new front of French nuclear operations. Russia will need to rethink its air and missile defenses across its entire northern flank. This shift becomes even starker if you remember Finland’s past neutrality. Helsinki joined NATO only in 2023, prompted by the 2022 Ukraine War. A base for French nuclear-armed aircraft in Finland, which shares an 833-mile border with Russia, completely changes the nuclear equation in the north. Unsurprisingly, Russia is not taking these developments lightly. Moscow already slammed France’s nuclear buildup as “highly destabilizing” and demanded that French and British nuclear weapons be included in any future arms control talks. The Russian Embassy in Norway called Oslo’s new nuclear cooperation an immediate threat and promised a response. Finland’s moves to lift its legal ban on hosting nuclear weapons would likewise increase tensions in Europe. Following Helsinki's announcement of plans to revise its law, Moscow warned that such a move would make Finland more vulnerable and that deploying nuclear weapons there would also trigger a response. The Nordic embrace of French nuclear weapons is contributing to a wider normalization that could spread even farther. While France’s current partnership is primarily focused on Northern and Central Europe, this could encourage Eastern European governments, such as the Baltic states, to ask to be included. Lithuania is already moving to lift a constitutional ban on nuclear weapons and foreign military bases. What happens in northern Europe, therefore, could presage the entire continent’s potential nuclear future. These moves do not make Europe safer. Shrinking warning times and raising the stakes just makes any possible crisis that much more difficult to control. Even France’s own commitment to the project may prove to be short-lived and, therefore, needlessly hostile. Macron has less than one year left as president, and his potential successors are unlikely to follow through with Macron’s project. Marine Le Pen, who is likely to win the first round of the upcoming presidential election, has warned that “sharing [French] deterrence means abolishing it.” Similarly, her protégé and potential prime minister Jordan Bardella, has criticized the potential Europeanization of the French nuclear arsenal. Meanwhile, Le Pen’s potential opponent in the second round of the election, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, is a longtime critic of rearmament . He has pledged to with...
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France's nuclear expansion risks destabilizing European security. At first glance, this is Europe finally taking its own defense seriously in the face of an unpredictable Trump administration. Helsinki joined NATO only in 2023, prompted by the 2022 Ukraine War.
TL;DR:
France extending its nuclear weapons to Northern Europe is a cascading nuclear escalation.
Theguardian
Jul 21, 04:00
Not enough water for UK’s datacentre plans, trade body says
Industry says government’s failure to address cooling demands means AI growth plans are ‘fatally flawed’ The UK will not have enough water for future datacentres, the water industry has said in stark criticism of the government’s AI growth plans. Datacentres rely on large amounts of water to manage the heat generated by densely packed servers. Cooling towers, chillers and humidification systems make direct use of this water, with large volumes also consumed indirectly through high electrical power needs. Continue reading...
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Not enough water for UK’s datacentre plans, trade body says. Datacentres rely on large amounts of water to manage the heat generated by densely packed servers. Cooling towers, chillers and humidification systems make direct use of this water, with large volumes also consumed indirectly through high electrical power needs.
TL;DR:
Industry says government’s failure to address cooling demands means AI growth plans are ‘fatally flawed’ The UK will not have enough water for future datacentres, the water industry has said in stark criticism of the government’s AI growth plans.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 22:50
‘Front groups and fellow travelers’: state department attacks US left over Cuba
New report denounces Havana and claims ‘campaign of subversion’ has infiltrated highest levels of US government As part of the Trump administration’s continuing attack on left-leaning groups, the US state department has listed several activists and organizations as “front groups and fellow travelers” for Cuba, including Hasan Piker and Amazon Labor Union founder Chris Smalls. In a 100-page report released on Monday, the state department denounces Cuba as the “capital of 21st-century communism”, accusing the Cuban government of carrying out a “campaign of subversion” that has “infiltrated the highest reaches of the US government, recruited and cultivated generations of American activists [and] backed an unprecedented wave of leftwing terrorism on American soil”. Continue reading...
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New report denounces Havana and claims ‘campaign of subversion’ has infiltrated highest levels of US government As part of the Trump administration’s continuing attack on left-leaning groups, the US state department has listed several activists and organizations as “front groups and fellow travelers” for Cuba, including Hasan Piker and Amazon Labor Union founder Chris Smalls.
TL;DR:
New report denounces Havana and claims ‘campaign of subversion’ has infiltrated highest levels of US government As part of the Trump administration’s continuing attack on left-leaning groups, the US state department has listed several activists and organizations as “front groups and fellow travelers” for Cuba, including Hasan Piker and Amazon Labor Union founder Chris Smalls.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 22:40
United Airlines says it will ‘look into’ worker’s threat to call ICE in viral video
United staffer told customer ‘you don’t act like at a citizen’ during incident over wait time at San Francisco airport United Airlines is “looking into” a viral video showing a United Airlines employee threatening to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) on Mexican American man at San Francisco international Airport last week. The scene erupted after Julio Varela of San Ramon grew upset at United Airlines staff for taking a long time to correct an error his family made when entering his daughter’s name to buy a ticket for flight to Canada, according to NBC News . Continue reading...
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United staffer told customer ‘you don’t act like at a citizen’ during incident over wait time at San Francisco airport United Airlines is “looking into” a viral video showing a United Airlines employee threatening to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) on Mexican American man at San Francisco international Airport last week.
TL;DR:
United staffer told customer ‘you don’t act like at a citizen’ during incident over wait time at San Francisco airport United Airlines is “looking into” a viral video showing a United Airlines employee threatening to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) on Mexican American man at San Francisco international Airport last week.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 22:31
Five people die in attempt to save struggling swimmer in Ohio river
Rescue crews find two women, pronounced dead at hospital, and the bodies of three men after motorist calls 911 Five people have died in a river in Ohio after several of them went into the water to help another person who was struggling to swim, authorities said Monday. A motorist called 911 after spotting a frightened child who had been with the group and was running on a nearby road, Delaware county sheriff Jeffrey Balzer said at a news conference on Monday. Continue reading...
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Rescue crews find two women, pronounced dead at hospital, and the bodies of three men after motorist calls 911 Five people have died in a river in Ohio after several of them went into the water to help another person who was struggling to swim, authorities said Monday.
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Rescue crews find two women, pronounced dead at hospital, and the bodies of three men after motorist calls 911 Five people have died in a river in Ohio after several of them went into the water to help another person who was struggling to swim, authorities said Monday.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 21:45
‘It needs to end now’: Democrats urge Trump to halt Iran war after US troop deaths
President accused of having ‘lost control of this war’ as deaths of trio in Iranian military strikes fuel rising concern Democrats have seized on the deaths of three US troops killed in Iranian strikes to urge Donald Trump to urgently reverse his resumption of the war with Iran amid widespread anxiety over climbing casualties. Even as US forces launched a 10th consecutive wave of attacks against Iranian targets, concern over the deaths of American service personnel threatened to complicate moves to escalate the conflict, which has reignited after he last week walked away from a memorandum of understanding agreed with Iran in June. Continue reading...
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President accused of having ‘lost control of this war’ as deaths of trio in Iranian military strikes fuel rising concern Democrats have seized on the deaths of three US troops killed in Iranian strikes to urge Donald Trump to urgently reverse his resumption of the war with Iran amid widespread anxiety over climbing casualties.
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President accused of having ‘lost control of this war’ as deaths of trio in Iranian military strikes fuel rising concern Democrats have seized on the deaths of three US troops killed in Iranian strikes to urge Donald Trump to urgently reverse his resumption of the war with Iran amid widespread anxiety over climbing casualties.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 21:36
Nicaragua’s president says country will not hold any more elections
Daniel Ortega, the 80-year-old authoritarian leader, says move will ‘build a wall’ against the opposition Nicaragua’s long-serving president, Daniel Ortega, has said the country will hold no further elections to prevent the opposition from coming to power. The 80-year-old authoritarian leader, who has been in office since 2007, also said he would work with the congress he controls to pass new laws that would “build a wall” against the opposition. Continue reading...
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Daniel Ortega, the 80-year-old authoritarian leader, says move will ‘build a wall’ against the opposition Nicaragua’s long-serving president, Daniel Ortega, has said the country will hold no further elections to prevent the opposition from coming to power.
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Daniel Ortega, the 80-year-old authoritarian leader, says move will ‘build a wall’ against the opposition Nicaragua’s long-serving president, Daniel Ortega, has said the country will hold no further elections to prevent the opposition from coming to power.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 21:12
Australia news live: Barnaby Joyce dogged by Tommy Robinson questions – and also by a dog – in spiky ABC interview
One Nation MP grilled in 7.30 interview about Pauline Hanson’s podcast interview by far-right activist. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce has tried to defend party leader Pauline Hanson’s decision to meet far-right convicted criminal Tommy Robinson during a recent visit to the UK. Hanson and her colleagues have spent recent days clarifying, explaining or walking back headline-grabbing parts of the One Nation leader’s trip to Europe, including a podcast interview with Robinson. My question to you, Barnaby Joyce, is: is that not a red line? I believe that there is not a condoning of every action of Tommy Robinson. I don’t think that was ever said. Continue reading...
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Australia news live: Barnaby Joyce dogged by Tommy Robinson questions – and also by a dog – in spiky ABC interview. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce has tried to defend party leader Pauline Hanson’s decision to meet far-right convicted criminal Tommy Robinson during a recent visit to the UK.
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One Nation MP grilled in 7.30 interview about Pauline Hanson’s podcast interview by far-right activist.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 21:10
Darline Graham, Lindsey Graham’s sister, to run for full Senate term
Interim senator appointed after Lindsey Graham’s death endorsed by Trump ‘for the Good of our Nation’ Darline Graham, the South Carolina interim senator and sister of the late Lindsey Graham, said she plans to run for a full Senate term after Donald Trump endorsed her last week. In an interview with Sean Hannity that will air in full on Monday, Graham – who was appointed by Governor Henry McMaster to finish the remainder of her brother’s term – said she had “made a decision”. Continue reading...
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Interim senator appointed after Lindsey Graham’s death endorsed by Trump ‘for the Good of our Nation’ Darline Graham, the South Carolina interim senator and sister of the late Lindsey Graham, said she plans to run for a full Senate term after Donald Trump endorsed her last week.
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Interim senator appointed after Lindsey Graham’s death endorsed by Trump ‘for the Good of our Nation’ Darline Graham, the South Carolina interim senator and sister of the late Lindsey Graham, said she plans to run for a full Senate term after Donald Trump endorsed her last week.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 21:08
Trump says Benjamin Netanyahu ‘will not be arrested’ if he visits the US
Israeli prime minister is subject of an arrest warrant issued by international criminal court over alleged war crimes in Gaza Donald Trump has said Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, “will not be arrested” if he visits the US. His comments came days after Zohran Mamdani, the New York City mayor, said he was exploring whether his administration could arrest Netanyahu if he visits the city during the UN general assembly in September. Continue reading...
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Israeli prime minister is subject of an arrest warrant issued by international criminal court over alleged war crimes in Gaza Donald Trump has said Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, “will not be arrested” if he visits the US.
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Israeli prime minister is subject of an arrest warrant issued by international criminal court over alleged war crimes in Gaza Donald Trump has said Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, “will not be arrested” if he visits the US.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 20:31
Small dog missing for weeks rescued while swimming in San Francisco Bay
A team of firefighters saved the pup from the water in a mission that utilized boats, trucks and a drone Firefighters rescued a small dog that had been missing for weeks after finding it swimming into the San Francisco Bay. The dog had gone missing over the Fourth of July weekend, according to the Menlo Park fire protection district. But someone called 911 on 16 July to say they had seen a dog enter the bay near the Dumbarton Bridge in East Palo Alto. Continue reading...
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Small dog missing for weeks rescued while swimming in San Francisco Bay. The dog had gone missing over the Fourth of July weekend, according to the Menlo Park fire protection district. But someone called 911 on 16 July to say they had seen a dog enter the bay near the Dumbarton Bridge in East Palo Alto.
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A team of firefighters saved the pup from the water in a mission that utilized boats, trucks and a drone Firefighters rescued a small dog that had been missing for weeks after finding it swimming into the San Francisco Bay.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 19:51
Andy Burnham vows to ‘bring back hope’ as he unveils his cabinet
New prime minister says government must ‘do better’ to deliver change but promises prudent approach to economy UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has said his arrival in power will “bring back hope” to Britain as he launched his premiership with the surprise appointment of John Healey as chancellor and a promise to repair the damage caused to communities during the Thatcher era. The new UK prime minister acknowledged people were “fed up” with politics as he addressed the country after taking over from Keir Starmer in Downing Street, saying the government needed to “do better” to deliver real change. Continue reading...
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Andy Burnham vows to ‘bring back hope’ as he unveils his cabinet. New prime minister says government must ‘do better’ to deliver change but promises prudent approach to economy UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has said his arrival in power will “bring back hope” to Britain as he launched his premiership with the surprise appointment of John Healey as chancellor a…
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The new UK prime minister acknowledged people were “fed up” with politics as he addressed the country after taking over from Keir Starmer in Downing Street, saying the government needed to “do better” to deliver real change.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 19:16
Nolan Wells remembered at memorial as community demands truth about his death
The 18-year-old was found dead after a 4 July boat trip with his friends to an island in the Gulf coast Family and supporters of Nolan Xavier Wells gathered in a Mississippi church on Monday to mourn and celebrate the 18-year-old, whose death following a 4 July boat trip with friends has captured national attention and prompted calls for an independent investigation. The ceremony began with tearful remarks from Wells’s parents, who described their son as a warm and gentle presence, a gifted athlete and a role model to his younger siblings. Continue reading...
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The 18-year-old was found dead after a 4 July boat trip with his friends to an island in the Gulf coast Family and supporters of Nolan Xavier Wells gathered in a Mississippi church on Monday to mourn and celebrate the 18-year-old, whose death following a 4 July boat trip with friends has captured national attention and prompted calls for an independent investigation.
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The 18-year-old was found dead after a 4 July boat trip with his friends to an island in the Gulf coast Family and supporters of Nolan Xavier Wells gathered in a Mississippi church on Monday to mourn and celebrate the 18-year-old, whose death following a 4 July boat trip with friends has captured national attention and prompted calls for an independent investigation.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 19:09
‘One in 15 million’: Brisbane woman gives birth to identical quadruplets
Jenitar Na’amoana’s already had four children when she learned of surprise pregnancy ‘unheard of’ in Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A 34-year-old woman from Brisbane has defied the odds and delivered four naturally conceived, identical quadruplets in what is believed to be an Australian first. Jenitar Na’amoana, who already had four children, was not planning having another but the quadruplets emerged from a “one in 15 million” pregnancy, splitting into four from a single fertilised egg. Continue reading...
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Jenitar Na’amoana’s already had four children when she learned of surprise pregnancy ‘unheard of’ in Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A 34-year-old woman from Brisbane has defied the odds and delivered four naturally conceived, identical quadruplets in what is believed to be an Australian first.
TL;DR:
Jenitar Na’amoana’s already had four children when she learned of surprise pregnancy ‘unheard of’ in Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A 34-year-old woman from Brisbane has defied the odds and delivered four naturally conceived, identical quadruplets in what is believed to be an Australian first.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 19:01
Tate brothers fight extradition to UK over rape and sex-trafficking charges
Polarizing social media influencers are being held in federal detention in Miami as district judge considers extradition Social media influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate will fight extradition to the United Kingdom, their lawyer told a US magistrate in Miami on Monday after the brothers were arrested to face rape and sex-trafficking charges. The Tates appeared in federal court for the first time since their arrest on Saturday and are being held in federal detention. In the coming weeks, a US district judge will consider whether they meet the conditions for extradition. Continue reading...
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Tate brothers fight extradition to UK over rape and sex-trafficking charges. Polarizing social media influencers are being held in federal detention in Miami as district judge considers extradition Social media influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate will fight extradition to the United Kingdom, their lawyer told a US magistrate in Miami on Monday after the brothers were arrested…
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The Tates appeared in federal court for the first time since their arrest on Saturday and are being held in federal detention.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 18:51
‘We need to be careful’: Andy Burnham’s team keenly aware of fiscal tightrope
Chancellor appointment and early policies avoid market meltdown but next week remains ‘moment of real peril’ UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has not quite gone for Keir Starmer’s extreme caution in the run-up to entering No 10 – but he is certainly aware that any early wrong moves would cost him. Back in 2024, Starmer was criticised for his “Ming vase” strategy, where the leader treads very carefully so as not to drop a valuable metaphorical piece of china being carried across the room. Continue reading...
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Chancellor appointment and early policies avoid market meltdown but next week remains ‘moment of real peril’ UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has not quite gone for Keir Starmer’s extreme caution in the run-up to entering No 10 – but he is certainly aware that any early wrong moves would cost him.
TL;DR:
Chancellor appointment and early policies avoid market meltdown but next week remains ‘moment of real peril’ UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has not quite gone for Keir Starmer’s extreme caution in the run-up to entering No 10 – but he is certainly aware that any early wrong moves would cost him.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 18:27
Andy Burnham’s first Labour cabinet: who’s in and who’s out?
From the Treasury to the Home Office, we look at who is heading up key departments in new PM’s government UK politics live – latest updates Burnham vows his arrival in power will be ‘circuit breaker’ moment for UK Six highlights from Andy Burnham’s first Downing Street speech Andy Burnham has appointed his first cabinet, with the new prime minister rewarding those who have been loyal to his takeover efforts. He had promised to pick his top team from all wings of the party in an effort to show he is trying to run a more inclusive administration. But at the same time, his decision to have a brutal clearout of Starmer allies resulted in many considered to be on the right of the party or close to the former prime minister losing their jobs. These are the key announcements so far: Continue reading...
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Andy Burnham’s first Labour cabinet: who’s in and who’s out?. He had promised to pick his top team from all wings of the party in an effort to show he is trying to run a more inclusive administration. These are the key announcements so far: Continue reading...
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From the Treasury to the Home Office, we look at who is heading up key departments in new PM’s government UK politics live – latest updates Burnham vows his arrival in power will be ‘circuit breaker’ moment for UK Six highlights from Andy Burnham’s first Downing Street speech Andy Burnham has appointed his first cabinet, with the new prime minister rewarding those who have been loyal to his takeover efforts.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 18:10
Man, 28, charged with murder of former MP Ann Widdecombe
Joshua Kerry from Rotherham charged over killing of politician whose body was found at her Devon home A 28-year-old man from Rotherham has been charged with the murder of the former MP and Reform party spokesperson Ann Widdecombe. Joshua Kerry has been charged with Widdecombe’s murder and will appear at Westminster magistrates court on Tuesday, the Crown Prosecution Service said. Continue reading...
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Joshua Kerry from Rotherham charged over killing of politician whose body was found at her Devon home A 28-year-old man from Rotherham has been charged with the murder of the former MP and Reform party spokesperson Ann Widdecombe.
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Joshua Kerry from Rotherham charged over killing of politician whose body was found at her Devon home A 28-year-old man from Rotherham has been charged with the murder of the former MP and Reform party spokesperson Ann Widdecombe.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 17:53
‘Israeli settlers are in partnership with the army,’ say Palestinians after two shot dead in West Bank
Residents of Deir Jarir say series of raids late on Sunday, also involving security forces, is part of a pattern of violence Even by the brutal standards of militant settler violence in the West Bank, the raid on Deir Jarir late on Sunday night that killed two Palestinians and left another in hospital with a gunshot wound was extreme. Palestinians in the town said settlers from a nearby outpost arrived after 9pm on Sunday claiming that they were searching for stolen livestock. Israeli soldiers and police soon joined them, protecting them as they sought to take several villagers’ sheep by force. Continue reading...
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‘Israeli settlers are in partnership with the army,’ say Palestinians after two shot dead in West Bank. Palestinians in the town said settlers from a nearby outpost arrived after 9pm on Sunday claiming that they were searching for stolen livestock. Israeli soldiers and police soon joined them, protecting them as they sought to take several villagers’ sheep by force.
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Residents of Deir Jarir say series of raids late on Sunday, also involving security forces, is part of a pattern of violence Even by the brutal standards of militant settler violence in the West Bank, the raid on Deir Jarir late on Sunday night that killed two Palestinians and left another in hospital with a gunshot wound was extreme.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 20, 17:51
The Slow Death of the Global Commons
Hormuz is a sign of worse things to come.
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The Slow Death of the Global Commons. Hormuz is a sign of worse things to come.
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Hormuz is a sign of worse things to come.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 20, 17:49
John Esposito, 86, showed how Islamophobia warped US policy
My former Georgetown professor, John Esposito, passed away on July 15, 2026, just as the military campaign between the U.S. and Iran reignited in what is becoming America’s “Third Gulf War.” It was America’s first Gulf War in 1991 that led me to read Esposito’s 1992 book , “The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality?” I read that work to understand why the Western media portrayed my ancestral Iraq as part of a greater Muslim threat to the United States, as if America needed to create a civilizational enemy to replace the Soviet Union and Red Scare. Indeed, in that influential book, Esposito argued that Western representations of the Islamic world — and the tragic foreign policy decisions that resulted — were in part the distorted products of Islamophobia. Esposito was one of the foremost scholars of a pre-9/11 Islamophobia that I personally experienced, emerging as a result of the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, the 1991 Gulf War, the 1993 World Trade Center bombings, as well as the 1996 Oklahoma City bombings, for which Muslim Americans were initially blamed even though it was the work of Timothy McVeigh, a member of a right-wing militia. His 1992 work proved prescient. He rejected the term “Islamic fundamentalism,” for him a construct that emerged as part of the post-Cold War anxiety seeking a replacement for Communism. Reading the book now, one can draw enduring lessons about the path to America’s two-decade-long “War on Terror,” and its current conflict with Iran. Esposito’s clash with the “clash” Danny Postel, in an obituary for New Lines Magazine, argues that Esposito’s academic legacy served as a repudiation of that of the Princeton scholar Bernard Lewis , who claimed to explain “the roots of Muslim rage” and “what went wrong” in the Islamic world. Lewis was also responsible for coining a viral academic meme, “The Clash of Civilizations,” in his 1991 essay in response to Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990. The term would later be adopted by Harvard political scientist Samuel Huntington in his 1993 article and 1996 book of the same name. Esposito’s 1992 book, “ The Islamic Threat ,” was followed in 1993 by his role in establishing the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University. What emerged on the East Coast was two intellectual currents that would compete in a post-Cold War world, particularly after 9/11. One focused on an essentialist reading of Islam and its inevitable conflict with the “West,” and another sought to deconstruct that very narrative. Studying with Esposito My father gifted me Esposito’s 1988 book, “ Islam: The Straight Path .” As with everything he gifted me, he had used it before and raved about it. My father, born in the predominantly Muslim island of Zanzibar in 1935, had learned about his faith from Esposito, a man born in 1940 into a working-class Italian-American family in Brooklyn. Influenced by his devout Catholic mother and his father’s commitment to social justice — his household essentially embraced liberation theology — Esposito aspired to become a Catholic priest. He joined the Capuchin Franciscan Order as a youth, the same order whose distinctive white headdress gives us the name “cappuccino” because of its resemblance to the coffee’s white froth. He left seminary before ordination and went to graduate school, earning a doctorate in religious studies at Temple University under the Palestinian scholar Ismail al-Faruqi. His books inspired me to apply to Georgetown University to study under him during my master’s program, and I eventually became his research assistant. I will never forget one conversation in 1996, when I ranted in his office about how nobody inside the Washington Beltway was paying attention to the threat of a terrorist named Osama bin Laden, who had forged an alliance with another obscure group, the Taliban, in Afghanistan. I lamented that there were few institutions in Washington, whether in the State Department or at the university level, focused on or offering courses on Afghanistan that year. The ramifications of that lack of institutional knowledge would become apparent years later. When I graduated in 1998, my father’s dream was to meet Esposito. My father was the son of an ayatollah who was prominent among the Khoja Shi’a community of East Africa. My father lived up the street in Zanzibar’s Stone Town from Farrokh Bolsara, who later moved to the U.K. and changed his name to Freddie Mercury. Yet, for my father, it was Esposito who was his pop star. There, I gave Esposito a graduation gift: a necktie my mother made from a red-and-white kafiyya, the same style worn by Prince Waleed, the Saudi businessman and supporter of Esposito’s center at Georgetown. Just three years later, our field and lives were changed by the 9/11 attacks, followed by the war in Afghanistan, the 2003 Iraq War, the civil wars that followed the Arab Spring in 2011, the rise of the Islamic State in 2014, Israel’s 2023 wars, a...
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John Esposito, 86, showed how Islamophobia warped US policy. What emerged on the East Coast was two intellectual currents that would compete in a post-Cold War world, particularly after 9/11.
TL;DR:
Reading the book now, one can draw enduring lessons about the path to America’s two-decade-long “War on Terror,” and its current conflict with Iran.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 17:21
Ukraine’s army chief expected to lose job after week of protests
Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff hints government may be about to sack Oleksandr Syrskyi Ukraine’s commander in chief Oleksandr Syrskyi is widely expected to lose his job amid signs that Volodymyr Zelenskyy has bowed to pressure from protesters and will reshuffle the army’s top leadership. Over the past five days, thousands of demonstrators have gathered outside the presidential office in Kyiv, chanting: “Syrskyi out”. Some have waved cheese graters – a pun on the commander name, which sounds like cheese in Ukrainian. Continue reading...
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Ukraine’s army chief expected to lose job after week of protests. Over the past five days, thousands of demonstrators have gathered outside the presidential office in Kyiv, chanting: “Syrskyi out”. Some have waved cheese graters – a pun on the commander name, which sounds like cheese in Ukrainian.
TL;DR:
Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff hints government may be about to sack Oleksandr Syrskyi Ukraine’s commander in chief Oleksandr Syrskyi is widely expected to lose his job amid signs that Volodymyr Zelenskyy has bowed to pressure from protesters and will reshuffle the army’s top leadership.
Warontherocks
Jul 20, 17:00
Corruption Takes Center Stage in Ukraine’s National Conversation
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.American coverage often narrows the view to the battlefield — these pieces widen it, revealing the texture of daily life, politics, and public argument in a nation at war. The perspectives gathered here are varied, candid, and often surprising, together forming a more complete picture of Ukraine as it really is.Frontline and StrategyУкраїнська правда The post Corruption Takes Center Stage in Ukraine’s National Conversation appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Corruption Takes Center Stage in Ukraine’s National Conversation. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.
TL;DR:
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 16:55
Weather warnings as tropical depression develops along US Gulf coast
Depression set to become tropical storm later on Monday as separate storm strengthens off Mexico’s Pacific coast A tropical depression was continuing to develop along the US Gulf coast on Monday as Tropical Storm Fausto strengthened off Mexico ’s south-west Pacific coast. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami said that the depression was expected to become a tropical storm later on Monday, prompting new watches for portions of the Gulf region. Continue reading...
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Depression set to become tropical storm later on Monday as separate storm strengthens off Mexico’s Pacific coast A tropical depression was continuing to develop along the US Gulf coast on Monday as Tropical Storm Fausto strengthened off Mexico ’s south-west Pacific coast.
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Depression set to become tropical storm later on Monday as separate storm strengthens off Mexico’s Pacific coast A tropical depression was continuing to develop along the US Gulf coast on Monday as Tropical Storm Fausto strengthened off Mexico ’s south-west Pacific coast.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 16:40
Troy Jackson poised to replace Graham Platner as Democratic nominee in Maine Senate race
Ex-Maine senate president is frontrunner to replace Platner, who ended his campaign after sexual assault allegations Troy Jackson – a logger, longtime legislator and former president of the Maine senate – is now poised to become the Democratic nominee in Maine’s US Senate race. His rise comes after the party’s previous nominee, Graham Platner, abruptly ended his campaign earlier this month following allegations of sexual assault from a former partner. Platner’s withdrawal set off a frantic scramble inside the Maine Democratic party. Several contenders filed paperwork to be considered at a 25 July special convention of 601 delegates tasked with selecting a new nominee. But over the weekend, Jackson’s serious challengers dropped out one after another, clearing a swift and unobstructed path for him. Jackson, who lost the Democratic gubernatorial primary earlier this year, is now the presumptive choice. Continue reading...
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His rise comes after the party’s previous nominee, Graham Platner, abruptly ended his campaign earlier this month following allegations of sexual assault from a former partner. Platner’s withdrawal set off a frantic scramble inside the Maine Democratic party. Jackson, who lost the Democratic gubernatorial primary earlier this year, is now the presumptive choice.
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Ex-Maine senate president is frontrunner to replace Platner, who ended his campaign after sexual assault allegations Troy Jackson – a logger, longtime legislator and former president of the Maine senate – is now poised to become the Democratic nominee in Maine’s US Senate race.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 16:00
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria increasingly leaving children vulnerable to common infections, global study finds
Exclusive: Research spanning 82 countries finds antibiotic resistance increased in every region between 2004 and 2022 Harry Booth has had a rough run through Australia’s coldest months. The 13-year-old has been in and out of hospital with a range of common chest and urinary tract infections that his doctors find challenging to treat. Harry was born with kidney failure and began dialysis at six months old, before receiving a kidney transplant from his father at age four. The surgery saved his life but comes with a trade-off: he now needs to take medications that suppress his immune system to prevent his body from rejecting the kidney. Continue reading...
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Antibiotic-resistant bacteria increasingly leaving children vulnerable to common infections, global study finds. The 13-year-old has been in and out of hospital with a range of common chest and urinary tract infections that his doctors find challenging to treat.
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Exclusive: Research spanning 82 countries finds antibiotic resistance increased in every region between 2004 and 2022 Harry Booth has had a rough run through Australia’s coldest months.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 16:00
Civil rights groups sue Trump administration over childcare funding restrictions
HHS failed to respond to Foia request following claims of fraud against Somali childcare providers and Democrats Civil rights groups have sued the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) after the agency failed to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request regarding the Trump administration’s restrictions on federal childcare and family assistance following claims of fraud against Somali childcare providers and Democratic state officials. The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Illinois, the ACLU of Colorado, the National Women’s Law Center, and the National Center for Law and Economic Justice, are seeking correspondence between federal officials and far right social media influencer Nick Shirley. Continue reading...
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HHS failed to respond to Foia request following claims of fraud against Somali childcare providers and Democrats Civil rights groups have sued the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) after the agency failed to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request regarding the Trump administration’s restrictions on federal childcare and family assistance following claim…
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HHS failed to respond to Foia request following claims of fraud against Somali childcare providers and Democrats Civil rights groups have sued the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) after the agency failed to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request regarding the Trump administration’s restrictions on federal childcare and family assistance following claims of fraud against Somali childcare providers and Democratic state officials.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 15:58
Mexican drug lord ‘El Mayo’ sentenced to life in prison in US federal court
Case against Ismael Zambada García, who helped co-found and lead the violent Sinaloa cartel, unfolded in New York The Mexican drug kingpin, Ismael Zambada García, known as “El Mayo”, was sentenced in a US federal court on Monday to life in prison, after a plea deal last year in which he admitted to shipping vast amounts of cocaine and other substances as leader of the violent Sinaloa cartel. Zambada is 76 and one of the most high-profile Mexican drug traffickers to be sentenced in a US court since his fellow Sinaloa leader Joaquín “ El Chapo ” Guzmán was sentenced to life in prison in 2019. The case unfolded in federal court in Brooklyn, New York . Continue reading...
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Mexican drug lord ‘El Mayo’ sentenced to life in prison in US federal court. Zambada is 76 and one of the most high-profile Mexican drug traffickers to be sentenced in a US court since his fellow Sinaloa leader Joaquín “ El Chapo ” Guzmán was sentenced to life in prison in 2019. The case unfolded in federal court in Brooklyn, New York .
TL;DR:
Case against Ismael Zambada García, who helped co-found and lead the violent Sinaloa cartel, unfolded in New York The Mexican drug kingpin, Ismael Zambada García, known as “El Mayo”, was sentenced in a US federal court on Monday to life in prison, after a plea deal last year in which he admitted to shipping vast amounts of cocaine and other substances as leader of the violent Sinaloa cartel.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 15:55
Burnham pledges to end rough sleeping in England in first speech as prime minister
Additional £340mn over three years allocated to get people off the streets ‘at the earliest opportunity’ UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has promised to end rough sleeping in England in his first pledge as prime minister, allocating an additional £340mn over three years as he looks to replicate the homelessness schemes he rolled out in Greater Manchester. Speaking in front of Downing Street immediately after becoming prime minister, Burnham said he would look to get people off the streets “at the earliest opportunity”. Continue reading...
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Additional £340mn over three years allocated to get people off the streets ‘at the earliest opportunity’ UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has promised to end rough sleeping in England in his first pledge as prime minister, allocating an additional £340mn over three years as he looks to replicate the homelessness schemes he rolled out in Greater Manchester.
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Additional £340mn over three years allocated to get people off the streets ‘at the earliest opportunity’ UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has promised to end rough sleeping in England in his first pledge as prime minister, allocating an additional £340mn over three years as he looks to replicate the homelessness schemes he rolled out in Greater Manchester.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 15:52
Canada issues air quality warnings over US wildfire smoke after Trump tariff threat
Officials say smoke from US fires has crossed border days after US president accused Canada of improper fire management After days of acrid smoke from northern wildfires choking major US cities and inspiring Donald Trump to threaten Canada with tariffs, officials now say the reverse is also happening as parts of Canada issue air quality warnings caused by American fires to the south. Officials in the Canadian province of British Columbia warned in an alert on Saturday evening that smoke from US fires, spurred on by thousands of lightning strikes in the north-east, was creating smoky conditions as polluted air drifted north. Continue reading...
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Officials say smoke from US fires has crossed border days after US president accused Canada of improper fire management After days of acrid smoke from northern wildfires choking major US cities and inspiring Donald Trump to threaten Canada with tariffs, officials now say the reverse is also happening as parts of Canada issue air quality warnings caused by American fires to the…
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Officials say smoke from US fires has crossed border days after US president accused Canada of improper fire management After days of acrid smoke from northern wildfires choking major US cities and inspiring Donald Trump to threaten Canada with tariffs, officials now say the reverse is also happening as parts of Canada issue air quality warnings caused by American fires to the south.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 15:46
Suspect held after explosion at FBI building in New York City
Three people reported injured after incendiary device allegedly thrown at building also housing ICE field office Authorities in New York City are investigating an explosion on Monday morning outside an FBI building in lower Manhattan that reportedly injured three people. Investigators said a person who allegedly threw an incendiary device at the scene was taken into custody. Continue reading...
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Three people reported injured after incendiary device allegedly thrown at building also housing ICE field office Authorities in New York City are investigating an explosion on Monday morning outside an FBI building in lower Manhattan that reportedly injured three people. Investigators said a person who allegedly threw an incendiary device at the scene was taken into custody.
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Three people reported injured after incendiary device allegedly thrown at building also housing ICE field office Authorities in New York City are investigating an explosion on Monday morning outside an FBI building in lower Manhattan that reportedly injured three people.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 15:05
GB News will not be investigated over ‘no riot in Belfast’ claim
Media regulator to take no action despite receiving 446 complaints about comments by Bev Turner GB News will not be investigated by the media regulator after a presenter insisted there was no riot in Belfast last month , despite cars and houses being set alight, attacks on police and families fleeing their homes. Ofcom received more than 400 complaints following the comments by Bev Turner, presenter of the broadcaster’s Late Show Live, who said there “weren’t riots” and that no houses had been burnt in the violent disorder. Continue reading...
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Media regulator to take no action despite receiving 446 complaints about comments by Bev Turner GB News will not be investigated by the media regulator after a presenter insisted there was no riot in Belfast last month , despite cars and houses being set alight, attacks on police and families fleeing their homes.
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Media regulator to take no action despite receiving 446 complaints about comments by Bev Turner GB News will not be investigated by the media regulator after a presenter insisted there was no riot in Belfast last month , despite cars and houses being set alight, attacks on police and families fleeing their homes.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 20, 15:01
Europe Is Back in 1952
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When I recently asked a high-ranking European diplomat what, to him, was the most important takeaway from the meeting of NATO leaders in Ankara, Turkey, on July 7 and 8, he said without hesitation: “This was the first time all European leaders acted as one group, without some of them breaking ranks and bending over backward trying to please Donald Trump.
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France and Germany again locked into military rivalry is bad news for the rest of Europe.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 15:00
Manufacturing union says Australia’s tax system is ‘rigged’ in bold manifesto ahead of Labor conference
AMWU calls for wealth and inheritance taxes, free education and more revenue from gas companies as it outlines ‘working-class agenda’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A new tax rate for the highest income earners, introducing wealth and inheritance taxes and extracting more revenue from gas companies form part of a new leftwing manifesto circulating ahead of the Labor party’s national conference . The extra tax revenue could help raise the jobseeker rate, make education – including university – free, and nationalise aged care under what the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) calls a blueprint for a “working-class agenda”. Continue reading...
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AMWU calls for wealth and inheritance taxes, free education and more revenue from gas companies as it outlines ‘working-class agenda’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A new tax rate for the highest income earners, introducing wealth and inheritance taxes and extracting more revenue from gas companies form part of a new leftwing manifesto circulating…
TL;DR:
AMWU calls for wealth and inheritance taxes, free education and more revenue from gas companies as it outlines ‘working-class agenda’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A new tax rate for the highest income earners, introducing wealth and inheritance taxes and extracting more revenue from gas companies form part of a new leftwing manifesto circulating ahead of the Labor party’s national conference .
Theguardian
Jul 20, 15:00
Pauline Hanson shares Seven pitch for Spotlight special that says program would highlight ‘uncontrolled immigration’
One Nation leader posts network’s proposal to travel to UK to explore what Australia faces ‘if we don’t take back control of who comes to our country’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Seven producer urged Pauline Hanson to travel to Britain to meet Nigel Farage and film a Spotlight special highlighting so-called “uncontrolled immigration”, according to a pitch posted to social media by the One Nation leader. The pitch also suggested that Seven might cover some of the travel costs for the One Nation leader and her team and that the program wanted the Reform UK leader to “invite Ms Hanson to Britain”. Continue reading...
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One Nation leader posts network’s proposal to travel to UK to explore what Australia faces ‘if we don’t take back control of who comes to our country’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Seven producer urged Pauline Hanson to travel to Britain to meet Nigel Farage and film a Spotlight special highlighting so-called “uncontrolled immigration”, accordi…
TL;DR:
One Nation leader posts network’s proposal to travel to UK to explore what Australia faces ‘if we don’t take back control of who comes to our country’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Seven producer urged Pauline Hanson to travel to Britain to meet Nigel Farage and film a Spotlight special highlighting so-called “uncontrolled immigration”, according to a pitch posted to social media by the One Nation leader.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 15:00
At-home STI test pulled from Australian shelves after failing to detect infections
Exclusive: TGA finds Touch Biotechnology test for chlamydia and gonorrhoea ‘is not reliable’ and has affected an unspecified number of people Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s only approved home test for chlamydia and gonorrhoea has been pulled from shelves after it failed to detect infections for an unspecified number of patients. Touch Biotechnology has been handed a six‑month suspension by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) after a review of the company’s self‑testing kit found “the device is not reliable … and poses a high risk for false negative results for users”. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: TGA finds Touch Biotechnology test for chlamydia and gonorrhoea ‘is not reliable’ and has affected an unspecified number of people Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s only approved home test for chlamydia and gonorrhoea has been pulled from shelves after it failed to detect infections for an unspecified number of patients.
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Exclusive: TGA finds Touch Biotechnology test for chlamydia and gonorrhoea ‘is not reliable’ and has affected an unspecified number of people Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s only approved home test for chlamydia and gonorrhoea has been pulled from shelves after it failed to detect infections for an unspecified number of patients.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 14:36
Big Bear’s missing bald eagle believed to have been found alive but injured
Bald eagle found hurt in California after fight with other birds, says group, as eagle called Jackie not seen on cameras A beloved female bald eagle missing for several days in California ’s Big Bear Lake is believed to have been found alive but injured after a fight with other birds, according to the advocacy group that operates a live, viral nestcam. Friends of Bear Valley said on Facebook on Sunday that observers first spotted the eagle on the ground last Thursday, then witnessed it involved a “short ground altercation with two other subadult eagles” on Friday. Continue reading...
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Bald eagle found hurt in California after fight with other birds, says group, as eagle called Jackie not seen on cameras A beloved female bald eagle missing for several days in California ’s Big Bear Lake is believed to have been found alive but injured after a fight with other birds, according to the advocacy group that operates a live, viral nestcam.
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Bald eagle found hurt in California after fight with other birds, says group, as eagle called Jackie not seen on cameras A beloved female bald eagle missing for several days in California ’s Big Bear Lake is believed to have been found alive but injured after a fight with other birds, according to the advocacy group that operates a live, viral nestcam.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 14:31
Trump acknowledges that jet from Qatar lacks defensive systems of Air Force One
US president says $400m plane will be ‘maxed out’ with appropriate protections but doesn’t give further details Donald Trump acknowledged on Sunday that the Boeing jet given to him by Qatar cannot match the defensive armor of a true presidential aircraft, telling reporters it will soon be grounded so engineers can “max it out” with the protections it was never built with. The admission came as Trump touched down in Washington on the jet, fresh off a trip to MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, where he handed the World Cup trophy to Spain alongside Gianni Infantino, the Fifa president, after the tournament’s climactic final . Continue reading...
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US president says $400m plane will be ‘maxed out’ with appropriate protections but doesn’t give further details Donald Trump acknowledged on Sunday that the Boeing jet given to him by Qatar cannot match the defensive armor of a true presidential aircraft, telling reporters it will soon be grounded so engineers can “max it out” with the protections it was never built with.
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US president says $400m plane will be ‘maxed out’ with appropriate protections but doesn’t give further details Donald Trump acknowledged on Sunday that the Boeing jet given to him by Qatar cannot match the defensive armor of a true presidential aircraft, telling reporters it will soon be grounded so engineers can “max it out” with the protections it was never built with.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 14:19
Double murder accused strangled his Devon cellmate while awaiting trial
Jury in Winchester is told James Desborough was convicted in March of murdering Steven Kempster A fan of a TV show about serial killers strangled a cellmate in prison while awaiting trial for allegedly murdering two men and hiding their remains in Cornish woodland, a jury has heard. James Desborough, 40, is accused of killing Claudio Aquilino and Daniel Coleman and concealing parts of their bodies in the dense undergrowth close to his cabin near St Austell. Continue reading...
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Jury in Winchester is told James Desborough was convicted in March of murdering Steven Kempster A fan of a TV show about serial killers strangled a cellmate in prison while awaiting trial for allegedly murdering two men and hiding their remains in Cornish woodland, a jury has heard.
TL;DR:
Jury in Winchester is told James Desborough was convicted in March of murdering Steven Kempster A fan of a TV show about serial killers strangled a cellmate in prison while awaiting trial for allegedly murdering two men and hiding their remains in Cornish woodland, a jury has heard.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 14:19
Russian attack on Odesa kills three after Ukraine targets Moscow with drones overnight – Europe live
Moscow targets southern city after the Russian capital was hit by 400 drones in response to one of the war’s biggest attacks on Kyiv at the weekend There is also a bit more from Reuters on the context – and the significance – of these continued strikes on ships: “ Both Russia and Ukraine are major grain exporters, and the renewed violence on this route has raised concerns about supply. Ukraine, which in recent seasons accounted for about 6% of global wheat exports and about 11% of global corn exports, has lost about a third of its capacity to export grain via its Black Sea ports due to Russian missile and drone attacks, traders and analysts have said. “Upon prime minister @KoretskyiUA’s instructions, @MFA_Ukraine is already informing the International Maritime Organization and our international partners about Russia’s latest attacks on civilian shipping, as well as the governments of the states whose citizens were killed or injured. During president @ZelenskyyUa‘s recent visit to London, I discussed this issue with the IMO leadership and called for the deployment of an international monitoring mission to Ukraine’s ports. We expect this mission to begin its work as planned in the fall and help document every act of Russia’s maritime terror, paving the way for accountability.” Continue reading...
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Russian attack on Odesa kills three after Ukraine targets Moscow with drones overnight – Europe live. During president @ZelenskyyUa‘s recent visit to London, I discussed this issue with the IMO leadership and called for the deployment of an international monitoring mission to Ukraine’s ports.
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Moscow targets southern city after the Russian capital was hit by 400 drones in response to one of the war’s biggest attacks on Kyiv at the weekend There is also a bit more from Reuters on the context – and the significance – of these continued strikes on ships: “ Both Russia and Ukraine are major grain exporters, and the renewed violence on this route has raised concerns about supply.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 14:17
Avengers: Doomsday trailer reveals star-packed Marvel adventure
The first full look at the big-budget December tentpole features returning heroes such as Chris Hemsworth, Patrick Stewart, Florence Pugh and Chris Evans The first full trailer for Avengers: Doomsday has been released online offering a look at Marvel’s big-budget big hope. “Something’s coming, something we may not be able to deter,” is the first line heard in the new preview which proceeds to bring back multiple characters from various Marvel movies and universes. Continue reading...
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The first full look at the big-budget December tentpole features returning heroes such as Chris Hemsworth, Patrick Stewart, Florence Pugh and Chris Evans The first full trailer for Avengers: Doomsday has been released online offering a look at Marvel’s big-budget big hope.
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The first full look at the big-budget December tentpole features returning heroes such as Chris Hemsworth, Patrick Stewart, Florence Pugh and Chris Evans The first full trailer for Avengers: Doomsday has been released online offering a look at Marvel’s big-budget big hope.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 14:00
Toronto film festival: Helen Mirren, Chris Rock and Seth Rogen lead lineup
The 51st edition of the Canadian festival will also feature world premieres starring Taron Egerton, Amanda Seyfried and Chase Infiniti World premieres of films led by Helen Mirren, Seth Rogen and Chris Rock lead the lineup for this year’s Toronto film festival. The September festival, taking place after the Venice film festival, has previously seen the premieres of Oscar-winning movies such as Green Book, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Still Alice, Dallas Buyers Club and Silver Linings Playbook. Continue reading...
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The 51st edition of the Canadian festival will also feature world premieres starring Taron Egerton, Amanda Seyfried and Chase Infiniti World premieres of films led by Helen Mirren, Seth Rogen and Chris Rock lead the lineup for this year’s Toronto film festival.
TL;DR:
The 51st edition of the Canadian festival will also feature world premieres starring Taron Egerton, Amanda Seyfried and Chase Infiniti World premieres of films led by Helen Mirren, Seth Rogen and Chris Rock lead the lineup for this year’s Toronto film festival.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 13:39
First Thing: US continues attacks on Iran ‘in honor’ of dead service members | Martin Belam
The US launches a ninth night of strikes targeting Iran. Plus, the glorious art deco LA Central Library celebrates 100 years Good morning. The US launched a ninth night of strikes targeting Iran early Monday, after announcing the death of another American service member – the third in recent days. Donald Trump said the new attacks were “in honor” of the dead. Iranian supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned of “unforgettable lessons” if the US kept attacking. Trump has threatened to target Iran’s power stations and bridges to try to compel Tehran to loosen its hold on the strait of Hormuz. Last week the US reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports. On Saturday, the military said it had redirected six ships and disabled one since then. Oil prices rose at the opening of trading in Asia on Monday, with the price of Brent crude climbing 2.72% to $90.50 a barrel. Where have US service personnel been killed? The service member was killed on Saturday in northern Iraq during a controlled detonation of what was called unexploded ordnance on a downed Iranian attack drone. It was the third US death in recent days, after two military service personnel were killed in an Iranian attack on a Jordanian airbase on Friday, with a third missing in action. Since the war began, 17 US service members have been killed. What is the US mission against Iran? The war was started in February when the former Iranian supreme leader was killed in joint US-Israeli strikes. Trump has indicated several motives for the war, including preventing Tehran from gaining nuclear weapons and trying to force regime change. On Sunday, the US energy secretary, Chris Wright, argued the mission has shifted toward ensuring oil shipments can move through Hormuz, after the US-Iran ceasefire has faltered. What did Mamdani say? “I believe that Netanyahu belongs in The Hague. He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the ICC, and what you will find is that is an opinion that is held by many, purely because of what his actions have wrought over these past many years. Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that’s what we will do.” What is Netanyahu accused of by the ICC? The warrant which the ICC issued for the arrest of Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders accused them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, including “starvation as a method of warfare, and … murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts”. Continue reading...
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First Thing: US continues attacks on Iran ‘in honor’ of dead service members | Martin Belam. Since the war began, 17 US service members have been killed. The war was started in February when the former Iranian supreme leader was killed in joint US-Israeli strikes.
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What is the US mission against Iran?
Foreignpolicy
Jul 20, 13:00
Fixing U.S. Security Assistance
This issue is preventing our website from loading properly. Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . U.S. Democratic Rep.
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security assistance to the quality of a partner country’s security sector governance—potentially incentivizing improvement by rewarding progress with higher levels of support. security assistance to the quality of a partner country’s security sector governance—potentially incentivizing improvement by rewarding progress with higher levels of support.
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A new bill aims to stop the United States from “funding abuse.”
Theguardian
Jul 20, 12:42
Strategic move by Magyar as he picks chess prodigy for president
Judit Polgár to discuss role with prime minister, who says Hungary needs someone the whole nation is proud of Hungary’s prime minister, Péter Magyar, has announced plans to ask Judit Polgár, widely considered the greatest female chess player of all time , to take on the largely ceremonial role of president. Magyar said he would meet Polgár on Monday to discuss the matter. “Our country needs unity, peace and a president that all Hungarians can be proud of,” he wrote on social media. “Judit Polgár’s name has been synonymous with talent and perseverance for decades.” Continue reading...
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Strategic move by Magyar as he picks chess prodigy for president. Judit Polgár to discuss role with prime minister, who says Hungary needs someone the whole nation is proud of Hungary’s prime minister, Péter Magyar, has announced plans to ask Judit Polgár, widely considered the greatest female chess player of all time , to take on the largely ceremonial role of president.
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“Judit Polgár’s name has been synonymous with talent and perseverance for decades.” Continue reading...
Theguardian
Jul 20, 12:36
US military identifies two soldiers killed in Iranian attack on Jordan
Defense department says 1Lt Tyler James Feehan of Hawaii and Pvt Isabella Gonzales of Texas were killed The US military on Monday identified two soldiers killed in action recently as part of the war with Iran. The defense department said in a statement that 1Lt Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, were killed in Jordan, where they were supporting a US mission against the Islamic State group. It’s unclear how they were killed. Continue reading...
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Defense department says 1Lt Tyler James Feehan of Hawaii and Pvt Isabella Gonzales of Texas were killed The US military on Monday identified two soldiers killed in action recently as part of the war with Iran.
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Defense department says 1Lt Tyler James Feehan of Hawaii and Pvt Isabella Gonzales of Texas were killed The US military on Monday identified two soldiers killed in action recently as part of the war with Iran.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 20, 12:35
Britain’s New Prime Minister Must Stand Up to Trump
Keir Starmer allowed his country to be humiliated by Washington. Burnham should learn from his mistakes.
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Britain’s New Prime Minister Must Stand Up to Trump. Keir Starmer allowed his country to be humiliated by Washington. Burnham should learn from his mistakes.
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Keir Starmer allowed his country to be humiliated by Washington.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 20, 12:30
Flamingos Against Autocrats
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Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, and has won the support of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, and has won the support of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama.
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How a Gen Z-led protest movement in Albania is calling out corruption and global oligarchy.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 12:20
FDA says review of Taylor Farms lettuce shows cyclospora finding was false positive
Spokesperson for Taylor Fresh Foods told Reuters that the company was informed FDA made a mistake What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea? How to properly clean produce to help avoid the parasite cyclospora The US Food and Drug Administration said on Sunday that laboratory experts re-checked lettuce sample results from Taylor Farms in an investigation into an outbreak of the cyclospora parasite and concluded the finding should be considered a false positive. As of Sunday, there were no confirmed positive sample results for cyclospora, the FDA added. The FDA on Saturday had said that a sample of shredded iceberg lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms tested positive for the parasitic illness that has sickened thousands of people in the US. Guardian staff contributed Continue reading...
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FDA says review of Taylor Farms lettuce shows cyclospora finding was false positive. The FDA on Saturday had said that a sample of shredded iceberg lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms tested positive for the parasitic illness that has sickened thousands of people in the US. Guardian staff contributed Continue reading...
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As of Sunday, there were no confirmed positive sample results for cyclospora, the FDA added.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 12:00
Trump officials kill proposed rules for Pfas-contaminated sewage fertilizer
EPA tosses out scientific research carried out under Biden and says toxic sludge not a significant threat to public The Trump administration has killed proposed regulations for sewage sludge contaminated with Pfas and spread on farmland as fertilizer, a practice that has sickened farmers , destroyed their livelihoods , killed livestock , polluted water supplies , and poisoned meat and food products sold to the public. The proposed regulations would largely have ended the use of sludge, also called biosolids , in the nation’s food system. But the Environmental Protection Agency tossed out its scientific research from less than two years ago that formed the basis of the proposed regulations. It justified the decision by declaring that sludge was not a wide threat to the public because it is mostly used on farms, and only a small percentage of cropland. Continue reading...
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Trump officials kill proposed rules for Pfas-contaminated sewage fertilizer. The proposed regulations would largely have ended the use of sludge, also called biosolids , in the nation’s food system. But the Environmental Protection Agency tossed out its scientific research from less than two years ago that formed the basis of the proposed regulations.
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EPA tosses out scientific research carried out under Biden and says toxic sludge not a significant threat to public The Trump administration has killed proposed regulations for sewage sludge contaminated with Pfas and spread on farmland as fertilizer, a practice that has sickened farmers , destroyed their livelihoods , killed livestock , polluted water supplies , and poisoned meat and food products sold to the public.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 11:37
Investigation of Nigel Farage over undeclared gifts is ‘kangaroo court’, says Reform MP
Runcorn MP Sarah Pochin says parliament mounting ‘vicious and desperate campaign to stop Reform UK’ A Reform UK MP has complained that the standards system investigating Nigel Farage over undeclared gifts is a “kangaroo court”. Sarah Pochin, the Runcorn MP, said Farage had called a byelection in his Clacton seat so voters could decide whether they backed him or not, and argued that “the media, the British state and the old parties have mounted a vicious and desperate campaign to stop Reform UK”. Continue reading...
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Runcorn MP Sarah Pochin says parliament mounting ‘vicious and desperate campaign to stop Reform UK’ A Reform UK MP has complained that the standards system investigating Nigel Farage over undeclared gifts is a “kangaroo court”.
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Runcorn MP Sarah Pochin says parliament mounting ‘vicious and desperate campaign to stop Reform UK’ A Reform UK MP has complained that the standards system investigating Nigel Farage over undeclared gifts is a “kangaroo court”.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 11:19
Andy Burnham becomes UK prime minister after meeting King Charles
New Labour leader takes over from Keir Starmer and will head to Downing Street to appoint his cabinet UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has formally become the UK prime minister after meeting King Charles at Buckingham Palace, the fourth person to hold the role in less than four years and the sixth within a decade. Burnham, who took over from Keir Starmer as leader of the Labour party on Friday , accepted the appointment as prime minister shortly after Starmer had gone to the palace to resign to the monarch. Continue reading...
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New Labour leader takes over from Keir Starmer and will head to Downing Street to appoint his cabinet UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has formally become the UK prime minister after meeting King Charles at Buckingham Palace, the fourth person to hold the role in less than four years and the sixth within a decade.
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New Labour leader takes over from Keir Starmer and will head to Downing Street to appoint his cabinet UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham has formally become the UK prime minister after meeting King Charles at Buckingham Palace, the fourth person to hold the role in less than four years and the sixth within a decade.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 11:01
Mother pleads for return of body of Indian woman killed as she slept in London
Man charged with murder after Kirandeep Kaur was allegedly stabbed while in bed with husband and baby The family of a woman who was killed as she slept in bed with her husband and three-month-old baby have said they want justice, and for her body to be returned to India. A man has been charged with murder over the attack on Kirandeep Kaur in her home in Hayes, west London, on the morning of 12 July. Kaur, who had reportedly been living in the UK since 2024 on a student visa, allegedly suffered a stab wound to the chest and was pronounced dead at 8.26am. Continue reading...
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Mother pleads for return of body of Indian woman killed as she slept in London. A man has been charged with murder over the attack on Kirandeep Kaur in her home in Hayes, west London, on the morning of 12 July. Kaur, who had reportedly been living in the UK since 2024 on a student visa, allegedly suffered a stab wound to the chest and was pronounced dead at 8.26am.
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Man charged with murder after Kirandeep Kaur was allegedly stabbed while in bed with husband and baby The family of a woman who was killed as she slept in bed with her husband and three-month-old baby have said they want justice, and for her body to be returned to India.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 11:00
Experts warn of rise in sadistic online exploitation of vulnerable children
Global increase in cases of predators coercing children to harm themselves or produce child sexual abuse material Cases of predators coercing children into producing sexual photos and videos of themselves have surged globally in the past year, a cruel phenomenon known as “sadistic online exploitation”, child safety experts and law enforcement officials warn. In cases of sadistic online exploitation, perpetrators target vulnerable teens on social media platforms and online games. These predators then compel their victims into producing child sexual abuse material (CSAM), harming themselves and others, or, in extreme cases, attempting suicide. In the US, call or text the Childhelp abuse hotline on 800-422-4453 or visit their website for more resources and to report child abuse or DM for help. For adult survivors of child abuse, help is available at ascasupport.org . In the UK, the NSPCC offers support to children on 0800 1111, and adults concerned about a child on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood ( Napac ) offers support for adult survivors on 0808 801 0331. In Australia, children, young adults, parents and teachers can contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800, or Bravehearts on 1800 272 831, and adult survivors can contact Blue Knot Foundation on 1300 657 380. Other sources of help can be found at Child Helplines International Continue reading...
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Experts warn of rise in sadistic online exploitation of vulnerable children. In cases of sadistic online exploitation, perpetrators target vulnerable teens on social media platforms and online games. For adult survivors of child abuse, help is available at ascasupport.org .
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Other sources of help can be found at Child Helplines International Continue reading...
Theguardian
Jul 20, 11:00
‘Complete shock and dismay’: scientists unite against Trump’s $1tn grant attack
OMB proposal would upend entire grant-making system – and put vast sums into hands of political appointees It was a late Friday afternoon in Boston when Harvard School of Public Health professor Nancy Krieger, a social epidemiologist, received an email that would reshape the next year of her life. It was from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) – her nearly $1m grant to study how discrimination affects population health was canceled. Continue reading...
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OMB proposal would upend entire grant-making system – and put vast sums into hands of political appointees It was a late Friday afternoon in Boston when Harvard School of Public Health professor Nancy Krieger, a social epidemiologist, received an email that would reshape the next year of her life.
TL;DR:
OMB proposal would upend entire grant-making system – and put vast sums into hands of political appointees It was a late Friday afternoon in Boston when Harvard School of Public Health professor Nancy Krieger, a social epidemiologist, received an email that would reshape the next year of her life.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 10:56
AliExpress fined record €550m by EU for failing to stop sale of illegal and fake goods
Chinese retail platform handed penalty over listings for items such as counterfeit products and unsafe toys Business live – latest updates AliExpress, the Chinese online retail platform, has been fined a record €550m (£470m) by the EU over its failure to stop illegal goods including harmful clothing, cosmetics and kitchen gadgets being sold through its site. The European Commission fine is the biggest yet exacted by the bloc under the Digital Services Act (DSA), legislation that came into force in 2024, to protect consumers from illegal goods, deceptive or addictive marketing techniques. Continue reading...
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Chinese retail platform handed penalty over listings for items such as counterfeit products and unsafe toys Business live – latest updates AliExpress, the Chinese online retail platform, has been fined a record €550m (£470m) by the EU over its failure to stop illegal goods including harmful clothing, cosmetics and kitchen gadgets being sold through its site.
TL;DR:
Chinese retail platform handed penalty over listings for items such as counterfeit products and unsafe toys Business live – latest updates AliExpress, the Chinese online retail platform, has been fined a record €550m (£470m) by the EU over its failure to stop illegal goods including harmful clothing, cosmetics and kitchen gadgets being sold through its site.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 10:14
Thousands of Cockroach party protesters defy police by marching in Delhi
Youth-led movement calls on education minister to quit in one of India’s largest anti-government rallies in years Thousands of protesters defied police orders and descended on Delhi to demand the resignation of India’s education minister in one of the largest anti-government demonstrations in years. A huge crowd, largely made up of students and gen Zs, filled the streets in the heart of India’s capital from early Monday morning shouting anti-government slogans, while hundreds had already camped out overnight. Continue reading...
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Youth-led movement calls on education minister to quit in one of India’s largest anti-government rallies in years Thousands of protesters defied police orders and descended on Delhi to demand the resignation of India’s education minister in one of the largest anti-government demonstrations in years.
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Youth-led movement calls on education minister to quit in one of India’s largest anti-government rallies in years Thousands of protesters defied police orders and descended on Delhi to demand the resignation of India’s education minister in one of the largest anti-government demonstrations in years.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 10:00
New York sculptor spent $100,000 to make a Charlie Kirk statue no one wants to buy
Sergio Furnari said he thought the lifesize sculpture – which no one commissioned – would raise ‘millions’ of dollars A New York sculptor has been left furious after spending $100,000 of his own money to build a lifesize statue of Charlie Kirk, only to find that no one wants to buy it. Sergio Furnari, originally from Italy, had hoped the statue of the deceased far-right activist, which he intends to display in Times Square, would raise “millions” of dollars. Instead, he said he has been inundated by messages from people saying they intend to urinate on the sculpture. Continue reading...
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New York sculptor spent $100,000 to make a Charlie Kirk statue no one wants to buy. Sergio Furnari, originally from Italy, had hoped the statue of the deceased far-right activist, which he intends to display in Times Square, would raise “millions” of dollars. Instead, he said he has been inundated by messages from people saying they intend to urinate on the sculpture.
TL;DR:
Sergio Furnari said he thought the lifesize sculpture – which no one commissioned – would raise ‘millions’ of dollars A New York sculptor has been left furious after spending $100,000 of his own money to build a lifesize statue of Charlie Kirk, only to find that no one wants to buy it.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 09:47
Maine Democrats rally around Troy Jackson to replace Graham Platner in crucial Senate race – US politics live
Former state legislator in strong position to become Democratic candidate after several appointments drop out over the weekend Troy Jackson, a former state legislator, moved into a strong position to replace Graham Platner as the Democratic candidate in the crucial Maine Senate race after several of his opponents dropped out over the weekend. Maine’s secretary of state, Shenna Bellows, withdrew yesterday morning, saying Democrats didn’t have “a day to waste in unifying” around the goal of defeating the state’s longtime Republican Senator Susan Collins in the November midterm elections. Continue reading...
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Former state legislator in strong position to become Democratic candidate after several appointments drop out over the weekend Troy Jackson, a former state legislator, moved into a strong position to replace Graham Platner as the Democratic candidate in the crucial Maine Senate race after several of his opponents dropped out over the weekend.
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Former state legislator in strong position to become Democratic candidate after several appointments drop out over the weekend Troy Jackson, a former state legislator, moved into a strong position to replace Graham Platner as the Democratic candidate in the crucial Maine Senate race after several of his opponents dropped out over the weekend.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 09:00
Trump could ‘do something positive’ rather than fixate on 2020 loss, Fetterman says
Senator says Trump revisiting failed run against Biden ‘distracts from important things’ such as Iran war Rather than continue fixating on the 2020 election defeat that ended his first presidency, Donald Trump could instead “do something positive”, including resolving the US war in Iran , Pennsylvania senator John Fetterman said in an interview on Sunday. “I don’t know why the president is dragging up all this stuff,” Fetterman remarked on CNN’s State of the Union, three days after Trump dedicated a televised, primetime address to claims about Chinese meddling in the 2020 White House race that he lost to Joe Biden. “You’re the president. Do something positive – and you are talking about 2020; that’s been settled over six years ago. Continue reading...
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Trump could ‘do something positive’ rather than fixate on 2020 loss, Fetterman says. “I don’t know why the president is dragging up all this stuff,” Fetterman remarked on CNN’s State of the Union, three days after Trump dedicated a televised, primetime address to claims about Chinese meddling in the 2020 White House race that he lost to Joe Biden.
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Senator says Trump revisiting failed run against Biden ‘distracts from important things’ such as Iran war Rather than continue fixating on the 2020 election defeat that ended his first presidency, Donald Trump could instead “do something positive”, including resolving the US war in Iran , Pennsylvania senator John Fetterman said in an interview on Sunday.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 08:59
Israel criticises Labor’s draft Palestine policy in rare foreign intervention ahead of party conference
Statement by Israeli embassy in Canberra challenges proposed positions on settler violence and annexation of Palestinian territory Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Israel has made an intervention into the Labor party’s internal processes, publicly criticising a draft policy platform that it claims risks blaming Israel for the Gaza conflict while giving “insufficient attention” to the role of Hamas. The Israeli embassy in Canberra issued a four-page statement on Monday challenging the proposed positions on Palestine, Hamas and settler violence in the West Bank, due to be debated at this week’s Labor national conference. Continue reading...
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Statement by Israeli embassy in Canberra challenges proposed positions on settler violence and annexation of Palestinian territory Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Israel has made an intervention into the Labor party’s internal processes, publicly criticising a draft policy platform that it claims risks blaming Israel for the Gaza conflict while giv…
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Statement by Israeli embassy in Canberra challenges proposed positions on settler violence and annexation of Palestinian territory Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Israel has made an intervention into the Labor party’s internal processes, publicly criticising a draft policy platform that it claims risks blaming Israel for the Gaza conflict while giving “insufficient attention” to the role of Hamas.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 08:37
Jeff Bezos and UK government invest in £2bn British startup CuspAI
Company aims to develop AI software that cuts research times and use of rare metals in chipmakers’ supply chains Business live – latest updates Amazon’s founder, Jeff Bezos, and the UK government have invested in a £2bn British artificial intelligence startup that is aiming to become the “search engine for rare materials” that accelerates the next wave of technological breakthroughs. The Cambridge-based CuspAI has raised $450m (£330m) in funding from investors including Bezos and the government’s sovereign AI fund, valuing the two-year old business at $2.6bn. Continue reading...
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Company aims to develop AI software that cuts research times and use of rare metals in chipmakers’ supply chains Business live – latest updates Amazon’s founder, Jeff Bezos, and the UK government have invested in a £2bn British artificial intelligence startup that is aiming to become the “search engine for rare materials” that accelerates the next wave of technological breakth…
TL;DR:
Company aims to develop AI software that cuts research times and use of rare metals in chipmakers’ supply chains Business live – latest updates Amazon’s founder, Jeff Bezos, and the UK government have invested in a £2bn British artificial intelligence startup that is aiming to become the “search engine for rare materials” that accelerates the next wave of technological breakthroughs.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 08:00
‘We need to talk about how difficult it is’: why one couple are pinning surrogacy hopes on Mexico
Jules Von Hep and Mark Beverlo, who have been trying to become parents since 2020, are now seeking help abroad Rise in overseas surrogates ‘increases risk of stateless babies’ Why Mexico is at the heart of ethical debate over global surrogacy Jules Von Hep has wanted a baby ever since he can remember. For many people that dream is straightforward to realise – but, as a gay man, he has always known it would take years of saving and searching. The only way he can have a biological child is to use a surrogate, which costs tens of thousands of pounds, and it often takes years of searching to find the right match. For Von Hep, it has been an “incredibly painful, incredibly expensive” process. Continue reading...
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‘We need to talk about how difficult it is’: why one couple are pinning surrogacy hopes on Mexico. For many people that dream is straightforward to realise – but, as a gay man, he has always known it would take years of saving and searching.
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Jules Von Hep and Mark Beverlo, who have been trying to become parents since 2020, are now seeking help abroad Rise in overseas surrogates ‘increases risk of stateless babies’ Why Mexico is at the heart of ethical debate over global surrogacy Jules Von Hep has wanted a baby ever since he can remember.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 08:00
BBC broadcaster Edward Stourton dies aged 68
Corporation pays tribute to ‘outstanding’ journalist who presented shows including Today and One O’Clock News The broadcaster and journalist Edward Stourton has died aged 68, the BBC has said. He died on Saturday surrounded by his family after being diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2014, the BBC announced in a statement. Continue reading...
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BBC broadcaster Edward Stourton dies aged 68. Corporation pays tribute to ‘outstanding’ journalist who presented shows including Today and One O’Clock News The broadcaster and journalist Edward Stourton has died aged 68, the BBC has said. He died on Saturday surrounded by his family after being diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2014, the BBC announced in a statement.
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Corporation pays tribute to ‘outstanding’ journalist who presented shows including Today and One O’Clock News The broadcaster and journalist Edward Stourton has died aged 68, the BBC has said.
Warontherocks
Jul 20, 08:00
Before Q-Day: The Race to Quantum First
Somewhere, a hard drive is filling up with secrets no one can read yet, and its owner is waiting for the machine that opens them all at once. On March 30, 2026, that wait got shorter.Two independent research teams lowered the public estimates for breaking the encryption that secures banking, communications, and classified traffic. One showed that Shor’s algorithm, the quantum method for factoring the large numbers behind public-key encryption, could run at cryptographically relevant scale with as few as 10,000 reconfigurable neutral-atom qubits. Google Quantum AI, with the Ethereum Foundation and Stanford, put the threshold for breaking elliptic-curve encryption The post Before Q-Day: The Race to Quantum First appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Somewhere, a hard drive is filling up with secrets no one can read yet, and its owner is waiting for the machine that opens them all at once. On March 30, 2026, that wait got shorter.Two independent research teams lowered the public estimates for breaking the encryption that secures banking, communications, and classified traffic.
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Google Quantum AI, with the Ethereum Foundation and Stanford, put the threshold for breaking elliptic-curve encryption The post Before Q-Day: The Race to Quantum First appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 20, 07:43
Andy Burnham to become new prime minister and lay out ‘10-year plan’ for the UK in No 10 speech - UK politics live
Keir Starmer will give his final speech from Downing Street before Burnham arrives and is appointed as new PM Good morning. Today we are getting a new PM. It is the sixth time this has happened in just over a decade (Theresa May replaced David Cameron on 13 July 2016), and so in some respects there is nothing very new or surprising about this. Yet the process has been unusual. In the past, when parties in power have replaced a PM, generally they have opted for someone popular with their own MPs, but less popular than their predecessor with the public at large (Liz Truss, Theresa May, Gordon Brown), or for someone more popular with the public, but less liked by their own activists (John Major, Rishi Sunak). At the start of the year, anyone looking at polling would have concluded that the logical choice for Labour would have been to replace Keir Starmer with Andy Burnham. Labour is not always noted for taking decisions that will be electorally beneficial, but in this case that is what it has achieved. It has replaced a PM who had become an electoral millstone with one of the most admired politicians in the country, and with someone – for the moment at least – with his whole party behind him. That may not be the case by the end of the day, after Burnham has named his cabinet. We’ll have to see. Here is Rowena Mason ’s overnight story about what to expect today. This week [Burnham] will tell us of his “ten-year plan for the country”. Perhaps his premiership won’t last that long, he conceded. “I’m not saying that means I’m setting out to say I’m going to be here for ten years … it’s more that we’re not in the right place structurally, we’re not in the right place as a country. I think people can feel that.” One thing I heard most on the doorsteps in Makerfield was frustration about the personal allowance , frozen at £12,570 … [That complaint] lodged in my mind. They’re just characterising me as a tax raiser. Well, again, it’s never that simplistic, is it? Continue reading...
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Andy Burnham to become new prime minister and lay out ‘10-year plan’ for the UK in No 10 speech - UK politics live. It has replaced a PM who had become an electoral millstone with one of the most admired politicians in the country, and with someone – for the moment at least – with his whole party behind him.
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Keir Starmer will give his final speech from Downing Street before Burnham arrives and is appointed as new PM Good morning.
Warontherocks
Jul 20, 07:30
The Make-or-Buy Line has Moved
The secretary of defense’s November announcement on acquisition reform laid out an unprecedented vision across the entire acquisition spectrum to improve the delivery speed of critical capabilities to our warfighters. One foundational pillar is the implementation of a commercial first policy, which laid out several initiatives: leveraging existing but less often used acquisition authorities, maximizing non-traditional contract vehicles, and increasing the use of more flexible solicitations. Most critically, it drives a commercial solution-first paradigm. If the immediate commercial solution isn’t sufficient, acquisition officers then find ways to modify it. If that approach does not work, then and only then do The post The Make-or-Buy Line has Moved appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The secretary of defense’s November announcement on acquisition reform laid out an unprecedented vision across the entire acquisition spectrum to improve the delivery speed of critical capabilities to our warfighters.
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If that approach does not work, then and only then do The post The Make-or-Buy Line has Moved appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 20, 07:19
Taxpayers could pay millions to abuse survivors if Christian Brothers goes bankrupt, court documents reveal
Catholic order with a record of child abuse could be subject to hundreds of redress claims worth up to $65m Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australian taxpayers could be forced to cover up to $65m in payouts to hundreds of abuse victims when a failing arm of the Catholic church disappears, new court documents reveal. Last month, the Christian Brothers, a Catholic order with a shocking record of child abuse, informed a court it was going broke and would not be able to afford to pay out survivors. Continue reading...
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Catholic order with a record of child abuse could be subject to hundreds of redress claims worth up to $65m Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australian taxpayers could be forced to cover up to $65m in payouts to hundreds of abuse victims when a failing arm of the Catholic church disappears, new…
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Catholic order with a record of child abuse could be subject to hundreds of redress claims worth up to $65m Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australian taxpayers could be forced to cover up to $65m in payouts to hundreds of abuse victims when a failing arm of the Catholic church disappears, new court documents reveal.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 06:46
British YouTuber Yung Filly fronts Australian court over rape allegations
Rapper pleads not guilty to six counts of sexually penetrating a 20-year-old woman without consent after a gig in Perth A British YouTuber and musician bit and slapped a young female fan while he was raping her after a gig in Western Australia, a court has been told. Rapper Yung Filly, 30, has pleaded not guilty to six counts of sexually penetrating a 20-year-old woman without consent in a Perth hotel room in September 2024. Continue reading...
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Rapper Yung Filly, 30, has pleaded not guilty to six counts of sexually penetrating a 20-year-old woman without consent in a Perth hotel room in September 2024.
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Rapper pleads not guilty to six counts of sexually penetrating a 20-year-old woman without consent after a gig in Perth A British YouTuber and musician bit and slapped a young female fan while he was raping her after a gig in Western Australia, a court has been told.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 05:00
Rising numbers of younger midwives quitting NHS in England, data shows
Exclusive: Maternity staffing shortages worsen as more and more under-35s quit because of burnout More and more midwives are leaving the NHS before they reach 35 because of burnout, worsening the staffing problems that are affecting maternity units. The growing trend of early career quitting has sparked fears it poses a threat to the quality and safety of care that mothers and babies receive from already-understaffed childbirth services. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Maternity staffing shortages worsen as more and more under-35s quit because of burnout More and more midwives are leaving the NHS before they reach 35 because of burnout, worsening the staffing problems that are affecting maternity units.
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Exclusive: Maternity staffing shortages worsen as more and more under-35s quit because of burnout More and more midwives are leaving the NHS before they reach 35 because of burnout, worsening the staffing problems that are affecting maternity units.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 05:00
Andy Burnham says he will go ‘faster’ than Starmer. Why is that so hard?
Is the machinery of state jammed, or is the reason for the slow pace of change more personal than institutional? Eighteen months into the 24 it turned out he would last in No 10, Keir Starmer was a man in a hurry. The biggest frustration with the job, he told MPs , concerned “speed and the ability to get things done”. The underlying problem, he thought, was that every time something had gone wrong in the past, “successive governments have put in place another procedure or another body or another consultation to try to stop ourselves ever making a mistake again”. In airing his impatience, if little else, Starmer is in tune with the country he has become too unpopular to lead. Julian Gallie, a pollster at Merlin Strategy, says voters have been “crying out for change for a decade”, even if they have sent inconsistent signs about what sort of change it should be. The Brexit vote, the Corbyn surge of 2017, the Johnson majority of 2019 and the Tory rout of 2024 can all be seen as “a desperate roll of the dice against a status quo” that somehow feels impossible to shift. Continue reading...
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Andy Burnham says he will go ‘faster’ than Starmer. Eighteen months into the 24 it turned out he would last in No 10, Keir Starmer was a man in a hurry. In airing his impatience, if little else, Starmer is in tune with the country he has become too unpopular to lead.
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Is the machinery of state jammed, or is the reason for the slow pace of change more personal than institutional?
Theguardian
Jul 20, 05:00
‘It’s total devastation’: inside the Amazonian war against illegal gold mining
The Guardian goes on the ground with Brazilian forces fighting to eradicate mining that has destroyed protected areas of Indigenous land The jerry-built bordello at the foot of Vila Cururu, an illegal gold-mining settlement at the heart of Brazil’s most desecrated Indigenous territory, was a hive of depravity until just a few weeks ago. Inebriated prospectors huddled around wooden tables, swigging beer and Scotch whisky, and ogling pole-dancing sex workers before going with them to shacks behind the brothel. Continue reading...
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The Guardian goes on the ground with Brazilian forces fighting to eradicate mining that has destroyed protected areas of Indigenous land The jerry-built bordello at the foot of Vila Cururu, an illegal gold-mining settlement at the heart of Brazil’s most desecrated Indigenous territory, was a hive of depravity until just a few weeks ago.
TL;DR:
The Guardian goes on the ground with Brazilian forces fighting to eradicate mining that has destroyed protected areas of Indigenous land The jerry-built bordello at the foot of Vila Cururu, an illegal gold-mining settlement at the heart of Brazil’s most desecrated Indigenous territory, was a hive of depravity until just a few weeks ago.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 05:00
Retired UK civil servants failed by pension outsourcing, government says
Chaos of Capita-run scheme has left some people waiting up to a year for payments and in financial hardship Retired civil servants have been failed by the decision to outsource their pension scheme, the government has admitted, and the maladministration meant some were left waiting up to a year for payments. Multiple members of the civil service pension scheme, run by the private company Capita since December, have come forward to say they are unable to afford rent and have been forced to use food banks after being left without an income. Continue reading...
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Chaos of Capita-run scheme has left some people waiting up to a year for payments and in financial hardship Retired civil servants have been failed by the decision to outsource their pension scheme, the government has admitted, and the maladministration meant some were left waiting up to a year for payments.
TL;DR:
Chaos of Capita-run scheme has left some people waiting up to a year for payments and in financial hardship Retired civil servants have been failed by the decision to outsource their pension scheme, the government has admitted, and the maladministration meant some were left waiting up to a year for payments.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 05:00
Ban on protests outside synagogues and Jewish schools should be considered, Dreyfus tells royal commission
Former attorney general also describes receiving antisemitic abuse, saying he was labelled a ‘genocidal Zionist’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Former attorney general Mark Dreyfus has called on governments to consider banning protests outside synagogues and Jewish schools, invoking a high court decision allowing restrictions outside abortion clinics. The federal Labor backbencher has told the royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion the laws should be considered in the light of a 2019 high court decision which upheld safe access zone laws in Victoria and Tasmania which prohibit protests within 150 metres of clinics. Continue reading...
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Former attorney general also describes receiving antisemitic abuse, saying he was labelled a ‘genocidal Zionist’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Former attorney general Mark Dreyfus has called on governments to consider banning protests outside synagogues and Jewish schools, invoking a high cou…
TL;DR:
Former attorney general also describes receiving antisemitic abuse, saying he was labelled a ‘genocidal Zionist’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Former attorney general Mark Dreyfus has called on governments to consider banning protests outside synagogues and Jewish schools, invoking a high court decision allowing restrictions outside abortion clinics.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 04:43
Australia spent more than $9m for each asylum seeker held on Nauru last year – so why can’t they afford to buy food?
Many of the more than 100 people awaiting processing on the tiny Pacific island are skipping meals to make ends meet, a new survey has found Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Most refugees and asylum seekers held in Nauru’s detention centres says they cannot afford to buy enough food or access clean drinking water, despite the Australian government spending the equivalent of more than $9m per person last financial year. The group of more than 100 people have been sent indefinitely to the tiny Pacific island while they wait for their asylum claims to be processed. Many of the cohort say they are skipping meals to make ends meet, according to a new survey by the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC) advocacy group. Continue reading...
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Australia spent more than $9m for each asylum seeker held on Nauru last year – so why can’t they afford to buy food?. The group of more than 100 people have been sent indefinitely to the tiny Pacific island while they wait for their asylum claims to be processed.
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Many of the more than 100 people awaiting processing on the tiny Pacific island are skipping meals to make ends meet, a new survey has found Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Most refugees and asylum seekers held in Nauru’s detention centres says they cannot afford to buy enough food or access clean drinking water, despite the Australian government spending the equivalent of more than $9m per person last financial year.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 20, 04:37
Banning AI Models Doesn’t Add Up to a Policy
What is needed is an actionable agenda that ensures safe release and stable access.
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Banning AI Models Doesn’t Add Up to a Policy. What is needed is an actionable agenda that ensures safe release and stable access.
TL;DR:
What is needed is an actionable agenda that ensures safe release and stable access.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 20, 04:05
Pro-Israel GOP donors fueling Rep. Stevens' Dem primary in Michigan
The August 4th Democratic primary for Michigan’s open Senate seat pits Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.), backed by nearly $15 million (to-date) in support from a super PAC controlled by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), against Abdul El-Sayed, a candidate who characterized Israel’s war in Gaza as a “genocide” and blamed “the impact of AIPAC in our politics” for the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran. Stevens and the AIPAC-backed United Democracy Project (UDP) find themselves in an expensive battle against the Democratic Party’s own voters. (Pew found that 80% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents nationally hold an unfavorable view of Israel.) To underwrite this costly effort to stifle Democratic criticism of Israel, UDP is turning to Republican and out-of-state megadonors. By outward appearances, AIPAC is badly losing the public opinion battle, particularly within the Democratic Party; this rank-and-file dissatisfaction is starting to transmit into votes on the House floor. Legislation introduced by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) to cut aid to Israel garnered unprecedented support from Congressional Democrats in a vote last Wednesday. The legislation, an amendment to a broad national security bill, lost 104-314, but the support from roughly half of House Democrats is strong evidence of the Democratic Party’s growing unease with U.S. assistance to Israel. Stevens, who voted against the amendment to cut aid, is receiving support from some of the Republican Party’s biggest donors. The largest individual donor to UDP is billionaire Paul Singer, who served on the board of directors of the Republican Jewish Coalition and, after expressing initial reservations about Donald Trump’s candidacy in 2016, came around to offer his support. “I voted for [Trump],” Singer told Bloomberg TV in 2017 . “I was not going to vote for Hillary Clinton as some of my Republican friends did.” Singer, whose political giving is almost entirely to Republicans, contributed $2.5 million to UDP in this election cycle. WhatsApp cofounder Jan Koum, another Republican billionaire, contributed $1.6 million to UDP via Manzanita Action Fund, a group linked to him via FEC records. Koum, who rarely speaks about his politics, contributed $5 million of Meta stock (the company that bought WhatsApp and made Koum a billionaire in 2014) to Trump’s super-PAC in 2024. Excluding $30 million in contributions made directly from AIPAC to UDP, a review of large ($50,000 and greater) donations to UDP reveals that 36% of large contributions came from donors with visible a trend of giving to Democrats while 22% came from those who exhibited a trend of giving to Republicans; 26% had a mixed record, and 15% were indeterminate. (The total value of these individual contributions was $57 million.) That balance is surprising considering that 87.5% of UDP’s spending in this election cycle has been in Democratic primaries, compared to only 12.5% in Republican primaries. And while UDP has made the Michigan Democratic primary contest a top priority in its overall spending, only 1.7% of the super PAC’s money comes from donors in Michigan. In short, UDP is intervening in a Michigan Democratic primary contest utilizing resources flooding in from members of a different party and by donors outside the state. The anomalies don’t stop there. While UDP’s website describes the group’s missions as “help[ing] elect candidates that share our vision and will be strong supporters of the U.S.-Israel relationship in Congress,” its political ads are noticeably devoid of any mention of the foreign country 6,000 miles from Detroit. In fact, a review of UDP’s ads on Facebook reveals that the AIPAC affiliated super PAC avoided mentioning Israel in ads in this election cycle. Instead, UDP has recently focused its advertisements on tying Stevens to former President Barack Obama via misleading ads that strongly implied Obama had endorsed her ( he had not ) and suggesting that El-Sayed had a “history of disrespecting women,” pointing to his characterization of former First Lady Michelle Obama as “uninspiring.” Given the toxicity of AIPAC and Israel in the Democratic Party, UDP’s decision to talk about anything other than the unpopular foreign country whose interests it promotes may be a shrewd decision. However, the group’s ads shifted into outright hypocrisy when it accused El-Sayed of receiving help from Republican donors. “Republicans are helping Abdul El-Sayed in the Democratic Primary, because they know he can’t win in November,” said the UDP, a particularly audacious claim from a group that’s received at least $12.76 million in large donations from Republican-aligned donors and is now trying to use those funds to deliver Haley Stevens a victory over Abdul El-Sayed.
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Stevens and the AIPAC-backed United Democracy Project (UDP) find themselves in an expensive battle against the Democratic Party’s own voters. Stevens, who voted against the amendment to cut aid, is receiving support from some of the Republican Party’s biggest donors.
TL;DR:
and Israeli war against Iran.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 20, 04:05
State violence in Bolivia is ramping up. The US is helping.
In May and June, Bolivian police violently dispersed massive demonstrations in La Paz, detaining hundreds of protesters and injuring many more. The crackdown, capping over 50 days of protests demanding President Rodrigo Paz’s resignation, marked the sharpest escalation yet in a standoff between the government that took office late last year and the mostly Indigenous social movements that have long shaped Bolivian politics. The crisis convulsing Bolivia did not begin with the 2025 election, or with the 2019 coup to deny Evo Morales , Bolivia’s first Indigenous president, a fourth term after a disputed election. Its roots go back to at least 2016 when Morales, who came to prominence in the 1990s as the leader of the coca-growers’ union and later founder of the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) party, lost a referendum that would have removed presidential term limits. Backed by a friendly constitutional court, however, Morales ran anyway three years later and claimed a razor-thin first-round victory. The opposition, encouraged by a flawed initial report by the Organization of American States, claimed fraud. Weeks of violent unrest ensued, followed by the military’s “ suggestion ” that Morales resign as president, and his exile to Mexico . A repressive , right-wing interim government under Jeanine Áñez subsequently oversaw extrajudicial killings of unarmed Indigenous protesters at Sacaba and Senkata, massacres that still cast a shadow over Bolivian politics. Morales’s ouster, which was supported by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, was the latest turn in a centuries-old struggle between Bolivia’s Indigenous and peasant majority and its predominantly white European elite , which has controlled the country’s resources and government since the Spanish conquest. Morales’s rise in the 1990s and 2000s was the high-water mark of a decades-long push to force that elite to share power. His fall in 2019 , and Áñez’s talk of restoring “Christian civilization” to government – a phrase used by U.S.-backed dictator Hugo Banzer during the Cold War – was widely understood as a restoration of the old order. Since then the pendulum has swung again, though unevenly. MAS regained the presidency in 2020 under Luis Arce, but his term ended in economic crisis, fuel shortages, and an open rupture with Morales , splitting the party’s base. Barred from the 2025 election by a court-ordered term-limit ruling, Morales urged his followers to spoil their ballots, and the election became a contest among a badly weakened left , a market-friendly Christian Democrat in Rodrigo Paz , and Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga , Banzer’s former vice-president and a right-wing hardliner. Facing that choice, much of the MAS backed Paz as the least-bad option. Since he took office, however, much of his Indigenous voter base feel, as protesters in La Paz put it, “betrayed” by the government’s inability to solve longstanding economic problems , its right-wing policies inconsistent with Paz’s campaign as a moderate , and his sidelining of his populist vice-president . In early June, Paz called on citizens to confront blockaders themselves, setting off clashes between anti-riot police and protesters. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has denounced the police’s excessive use of force, in some cases coordinated with right-wing vigilante groups. After seven weeks of paralyzing protests and road blockades that worsened an already ongoing economic and energy crisis, Paz declared a 90-day state of exception , granting security forces broad new powers, though the blockades had already begun to fade before the declaration. The last time a Bolivian president invoked emergency powers, in 2019, soldiers killed at least 23 people and injured over 230 with impunity, incidents the IACHR called “ massacres .” Thomas Becker, the Legal and Policy Director at the University Network for Human Rights who led a successful prosecution against a former Bolivian president for human rights abuses, calls the pattern familiar and alarming: rising violent clashes, arbitrary detentions, and abuse by police alongside illegal paramilitaries , compounded by branding demonstrators as “narco-terrorists,” a term echoed by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other Trump officials . New U.S. Chief of Mission Erik Martini has also called for more counter-narcotics work, echoing Reagan-era policy by saying “the U.S. is worried, coca comes from cocaine.” For Becker, the atmosphere recalls the volatile months before 2019 and the killings that followed under Áñez. Violeta Tamayo was injured in May while covering the protests for the leftist news site La Izquierda Diario . Tamayo says police, without warning, “fired tear gas point-blank, aiming right at waist-height into the crowd.” She was hit at short range in the arm by what she believes was a tear gas canister, leaving a wound that exposed bone. Underlying the crackdown is the rapid militarization of Bolivia’s drug wa...
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State violence in Bolivia is ramping up. The crisis convulsing Bolivia did not begin with the 2025 election, or with the 2019 coup to deny Evo Morales , Bolivia’s first Indigenous president, a fourth term after a disputed election. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other Trump officials .
TL;DR:
In May and June, Bolivian police violently dispersed massive demonstrations in La Paz, detaining hundreds of protesters and injuring many more.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 20, 04:05
Trump's Brazil tariffs could boomerang on Flavio Bolsonaro
Late last week, the Trump administration imposed what Brazilian officials had spent weeks bracing for: a fresh 25% tariff on most Brazilian exports, set to take effect July 22. The United States Trade Representative (USTR) framed the move as the conclusion of a Section 301 investigation. This provision of the Trade Act of 1974 empowers USTR to investigate a country’s trade practices and recommend tariffs if it finds them unreasonable or discriminatory. USTR cited Brazil’s digital-payments system Pix, its ethanol tariffs, deforestation, and Brasília's refusal to bend to U.S. tech platforms on content moderation as reasons for the new punitive measures. Although these levies apply to a relatively small portion of everything Brazil sells abroad, they stand on firm legal ground and will likely be harder to reverse than last year’s blanket 50% tariff, which was struck down by the Supreme Court in February. In a nod to the domestic political cost of Trump’s trade wars, staples like coffee, beef, and orange juice were notably excluded from new tariffs, but apparel, steel, sugar, and paper were not. The White House says Brazil has rigged the game against American companies. Brazilian officials tell a different story. Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira said American negotiators wanted the “total, unrestricted, and exclusive opening” of entire sectors of the Brazilian economy with no reciprocal benefit for Brazilian businesses. Vieira also noted that 76% of American imports enter Brazil tariff-free and that the United States runs a trade surplus with Brazil. What actually irritated Washington, Brazil’s chief diplomat claimed, was the fact that his country “did not bow” to demands that would have amounted to “capitulation.” Indeed, trade balances are not plausibly what this spat is really about. It has to do with something closer to what Secretary of State Marco Rubio all but admitted when he accused President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of putting “his own ego” ahead of a deal, framing the tariffs as “the price” Brazil must pay for failing to negotiate “in good faith.” For this administration, any other country’s assertion of its own interest, be it over payment infrastructure, biofuel policy, or environmental regulation, is an affront requiring punishment. Trump may have been reined in by the Supreme Court in last year’s trade war against Brazil, and the U.S. president may have since established a personal rapport with Lula, but the new round of tariffs makes clear that the administration has not rethought its fundamentally hostile policy toward Latin America’s largest nation. There’s an irony in Washington’s chosen target, Pix. The payment system, which the Trump administration frames as a protectionist plot against Visa and Mastercard, is in reality a wildly successful piece of free public infrastructure that has rapidly expanded financial access to Brazil’s poor and informal workers. Washington’s objection to it is nakedly about market access for American financial firms, dressed up as a fairness complaint. Ethanol is much the same: Washington complains about Brazil’s 18% tariff on American ethanol even as the U.S. taxes sugar imported above quota — the tier covering most Brazilian sugar — at an effective rate near 100%, roughly five times steeper. That’s no small detail, since Brazilian mills can shift the same cane crop toward whichever product pays better; squeeze ethanol, and sugar is the natural fallback, except when Washington taxes it even harder. These tariffs have entered force despitedozens of reported attempts by Brasília to reach members of the Trump administration to forestall them and enter serious trade negotiations. From Brazil’s perspective, the U.S. is refusing to even acknowledge the country’s legitimate trade interests. The Trump administration’s trade war is inherently politicized, aiming less at correcting specific commercial grievances than at disciplining a government Washington has never been fully comfortable with — because it is led by a progressive elder statesman; because it has resisted American pressure over the criminal prosecution of its most recent former president, Jair Bolsonaro; and because it insists on an independent foreign policy that includes deepening ties with China and the BRICS bloc. Speaking of Bolsonaro, there’s a reason Washington’s tariffs and the Brazilian presidential race have become inseparable. Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of the convicted former president and Lula’s likely opponent in the October election, visited Trump, Rubio, and other senior officials in Washington in May. He returned to lobby USTR directly again in July, this time asking for a 180-day delay so the tariffs wouldn’t land before Brazilians voted. His argument was candid about the politics involved: imposing the tariffs now, he told American officials, would hand Lula “precisely the political victory” the president’s campaign has been “engineering.” Lula, for his part, has accused the senat...
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Trump's Brazil tariffs could boomerang on Flavio Bolsonaro. Ethanol is much the same: Washington complains about Brazil’s 18% tariff on American ethanol even as the U.S. His argument was candid about the politics involved: imposing the tariffs now, he told American officials, would hand Lula “precisely the political victory” the president’s campaign has been “engineering.
TL;DR:
Trump may have been reined in by the Supreme Court in last year’s trade war against Brazil, and the U.S.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 20, 04:01
The Liberal Origins of the War Against the Deep State
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Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . In his national address on voting and elections last week, Trump claimed the deep state had kept evidence of election fraud from him in 2020.
TL;DR:
In the 1970s, fears of an out-of-control executive branch emanated from Democrats, not Republicans.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 03:12
Barnaby Joyce says One Nation doesn’t want return of White Australia policy but backs Pauline Hanson on mass deportations
Lee Hanson claims her mother’s comments on Tommy Robinson podcast were ‘misinterpreted’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Barnaby Joyce says Pauline Hanson does not support the White Australia policy but he has backed her support for “mass deportations” of those overstaying their visas. Hanson and her colleagues have spent days clarifying, explaining or walking back headline-grabbing parts of the One Nation leader’s trip to Europe , including a podcast interview with the far-right convicted criminal Tommy Robinson, her attendance at a Dolce & Gabbana fashion show and downtime by a hotel pool in Italy with the mining billionaire Gina Rinehart. Continue reading...
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Lee Hanson claims her mother’s comments on Tommy Robinson podcast were ‘misinterpreted’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Barnaby Joyce says Pauline Hanson does not support the White Australia policy but he has backed her support for “mass deportations” of those overstaying their visas.
TL;DR:
Lee Hanson claims her mother’s comments on Tommy Robinson podcast were ‘misinterpreted’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Barnaby Joyce says Pauline Hanson does not support the White Australia policy but he has backed her support for “mass deportations” of those overstaying their visas.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 03:00
‘When I get home, my whole body aches’: extreme heat saps health and wages of India’s poorest workers
Exclusive: Outdoor workers losing up to 9% of income as weather becomes ‘poverty multiplier’, research says Extreme heat is pushing some of India’s poorest workers further into poverty, with income losses of up to 9% for outdoor workers, new research has found. Analysis done by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), and shared exclusively with the Guardian, found that extreme heat is acting as a “poverty multiplier” for hundreds of millions of workers in India’s informal sector. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Outdoor workers losing up to 9% of income as weather becomes ‘poverty multiplier’, research says Extreme heat is pushing some of India’s poorest workers further into poverty, with income losses of up to 9% for outdoor workers, new research has found.
TL;DR:
Exclusive: Outdoor workers losing up to 9% of income as weather becomes ‘poverty multiplier’, research says Extreme heat is pushing some of India’s poorest workers further into poverty, with income losses of up to 9% for outdoor workers, new research has found.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 02:01
US launches ninth night of Iran strikes as strait of Hormuz standoff sees oil price pass $90 a barrel
After the US military confirmed that a service member had been killed in Iraq – the third in recent days – Donald Trump said the new attacks were ‘in honour’ of the dead Middle East crisis live: follow latest updates The US launched a ninth night of strikes targeting Iran early Monday, after announcing the death of another American service member, as the price of Brent crude oil climbed above $90 a barrel, the highest level since June. The US military said the service member was killed on Saturday in northern Iraq, where the US has military bases, during a controlled detonation of what was called unexploded ordnance on a downed Iranian attack drone. Continue reading...
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US launches ninth night of Iran strikes as strait of Hormuz standoff sees oil price pass $90 a barrel. After the US military confirmed that a service member had been killed in Iraq – the third in recent days – Donald Trump said the new attacks were ‘in honour’ of the dead Middle East crisis live: follow latest updates The US launched a ninth night of strikes targeting Iran ear…
TL;DR:
The US military said the service member was killed on Saturday in northern Iraq, where the US has military bases, during a controlled detonation of what was called unexploded ordnance on a downed Iranian attack drone.
Theguardian
Jul 20, 00:03
US targets Iran in ninth night of strikes in wake of US troop deaths – Middle East crisis live
Preliminary deal aimed at ending the war has collapsed as US and Iran fight to break deadlock over strait of Hormuz US says another service member killed as Israel warns Tehran’s attacks coming close Hello and welcome to our live coverage of developments in the Middle East. The US military says it is beginning its ninth night of strikes on Iran , with an interim deal aimed at ending the war appearing to have all but collapsed. Bahrain’s interior ministry said overnight to Monday that its air raid sirens had sounded . “Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place,” it said on X. Bahrain, host of the US Fifth Fleet, has been targeted by Iranian strikes in recent days. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Monday it launched a “surprise attack” on an enemy command centre in Syria , in a statement reported by state news agency Irna. They attack was “in revenge for the blood of martyred soldiers of Iranshahr”, a city in south-east Iran, Irna said on Telegram. Iran said it targeted two US bases in Kuwait in response to more than a week of intensifying attacks , which Tehran says have hit transport and infrastructure sites, including an under-construction nuclear power plant. Kuwait and Bahrain have borne the brunt of attacks by Iran on its Gulf neighbours since hostilities resumed this month despite a ceasefire and memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran. Jordan also reported intercepting missiles , a day after the US military said the two service members were killed there Friday and another had gone missing in action as they “defended against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks”. US Central Command’s announcement that a service member died in northern Iraq during the controlled detonation of an unexploded ordnance from a downed Iranian drone brought to 17 the confirmed number of American military fatalities since the war began . Iran’s health ministry said on Saturday that 50 people had been killed and more than 500 injured in US strikes on the country over the past three weeks. Continue reading...
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US targets Iran in ninth night of strikes in wake of US troop deaths – Middle East crisis live. Iran said it targeted two US bases in Kuwait in response to more than a week of intensifying attacks , which Tehran says have hit transport and infrastructure sites, including an under-construction nuclear power plant.
TL;DR:
The US military says it is beginning its ninth night of strikes on Iran , with an interim deal aimed at ending the war appearing to have all but collapsed.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 23:01
Pay gap widens as UK bosses get 130 times average worker’s salary
In its final report the High Pay Centre says the median remuneration of a FTSE 100 CEO has risen to a record £5.06m The bosses of Britain’s largest listed companies received record pay last year, fuelling the widest earnings gap with workers in eight years. Median pay for FTSE 100 chief executives hit £5.06m in the last financial year, according to data released by the High Pay Centre, an 8.6% increase on £4.66m the previous year and the highest level on record. Continue reading...
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In its final report the High Pay Centre says the median remuneration of a FTSE 100 CEO has risen to a record £5.06m The bosses of Britain’s largest listed companies received record pay last year, fuelling the widest earnings gap with workers in eight years. Median pay for FTSE 100 chief executives hit £5.
TL;DR:
In its final report the High Pay Centre says the median remuneration of a FTSE 100 CEO has risen to a record £5.06m The bosses of Britain’s largest listed companies received record pay last year, fuelling the widest earnings gap with workers in eight years.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 23:00
JD and Usha Vance welcome baby boy, first child born to sitting VP in 156 years
Vice-president and second lady announced birth of Alec Neel Vance, their fourth child, in social media statement Vice-President JD Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, on Sunday announced the birth of their fourth child, the first born to a sitting vice-president in more than 150 years. Born on Sunday, Alec Neel Vance joins older siblings Ewan, nine; Vivek, six; and Mirabel, four. Continue reading...
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Vice-president and second lady announced birth of Alec Neel Vance, their fourth child, in social media statement Vice-President JD Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, on Sunday announced the birth of their fourth child, the first born to a sitting vice-president in more than 150 years.
TL;DR:
Vice-president and second lady announced birth of Alec Neel Vance, their fourth child, in social media statement Vice-President JD Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, on Sunday announced the birth of their fourth child, the first born to a sitting vice-president in more than 150 years.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 22:24
Five family members found dead after flash flood in Utah canyon, police say
Victims were Provo’s fire captain, his wife and their three sons, who were hiking in Bicknell amid heavy rains Five family members who had set out for a day of hiking were killed after a flash flood swept through canyons of southern Utah on Friday, law enforcement officials said. The victims were a captain in the Provo fire department, his wife and their sons, according to fire officials. A daughter who was not on the trip survived. Continue reading...
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Five family members found dead after flash flood in Utah canyon, police say. Victims were Provo’s fire captain, his wife and their three sons, who were hiking in Bicknell amid heavy rains Five family members who had set out for a day of hiking were killed after a flash flood swept through canyons of southern Utah on Friday, law enforcement officials said.
TL;DR:
The victims were a captain in the Provo fire department, his wife and their sons, according to fire officials.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 21:29
News live: PM says Hanson should not ‘talk Australia down’ overseas; private schools cry poor in new ad campaign
Albanese’s comments come as One Nation leader nears end of UK tour. Follow today’s news live Independent Schools Australia, the peak body for private schools, is launching a campaign today to increase government funding, targeting key Labor and Teal seats across the country. The body will rollout out digital advertising, billboards as well as posters on buses in inner-city federal seats including the Labor held Brisbane and Griffith in Queensland, Melbourne, as well key teal seats including Mackellar and Wentworth in Sydney, and Curtin in Perth. It will also target Goldstein, won by Liberal Tim Wilson who was previously ousted by the Teals. Independent school families have been stereotyped for too long. They are parents and taxpayers making careful decisions about their children’s education, often under real financial pressure. They deserve to be seen, they deserve to be heard, and they deserve policy settings that recognise the choices they are already making. Australia is strongest when we work closely with our partners. Exercise Pitch Black strengthens those partnerships and demonstrates Australia’s commitment to working closely across our region to support peace, stability and security. Continue reading...
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News live: PM says Hanson should not ‘talk Australia down’ overseas; private schools cry poor in new ad campaign. Follow today’s news live Independent Schools Australia, the peak body for private schools, is launching a campaign today to increase government funding, targeting key Labor and Teal seats across the country.
TL;DR:
Albanese’s comments come as One Nation leader nears end of UK tour.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 20:16
US says another troop killed as Israel warns Tehran’s attacks coming close
US military says service member was killed in Iraq during ‘controlled detonation’ as it launches more airstrikes at Iran The US military announced another death of a service member as it launched more airstrikes at Iran on Sunday in response to the killing of American troops , and Iran fired missiles toward Jordan that risked widening the conflict into neighboring Israel. The US military said the service member was killed in Iraq on Saturday during the “controlled detonation” of a downed Iranian drone. Continue reading...
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The US military said the service member was killed in Iraq on Saturday during the “controlled detonation” of a downed Iranian drone.
TL;DR:
US military says service member was killed in Iraq during ‘controlled detonation’ as it launches more airstrikes at Iran The US military announced another death of a service member as it launched more airstrikes at Iran on Sunday in response to the killing of American troops , and Iran fired missiles toward Jordan that risked widening the conflict into neighboring Israel.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 19:39
Dozens missing after passenger ferry sinks off coast of Guyana
Emergency response has rescued 67 people, including 15 children, from one of the country’s worst maritime disasters A ferry carrying 116 passengers and crew sank off the coast of Guyana in South America late Saturday, with 67 people, including 15 children, rescued so far, according to Guyana authorities. A massive search-and-rescue operation continues for dozens of missing passengers in what has been described by officials as one of the country’s worst maritime disasters. Continue reading...
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Emergency response has rescued 67 people, including 15 children, from one of the country’s worst maritime disasters A ferry carrying 116 passengers and crew sank off the coast of Guyana in South America late Saturday, with 67 people, including 15 children, rescued so far, according to Guyana authorities.
TL;DR:
Emergency response has rescued 67 people, including 15 children, from one of the country’s worst maritime disasters A ferry carrying 116 passengers and crew sank off the coast of Guyana in South America late Saturday, with 67 people, including 15 children, rescued so far, according to Guyana authorities.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 19:16
Donald Trump arrives by helicopter to attend World Cup final alongside Gianni Infantino
US president watches Spain v Argentina match World Cup final: live coverage of the match Donald Trump took his place at the World Cup final at the New York New Jersey Stadium on Sunday. Trump arrived at the stadium on Marine One, with the president’s helicopter first flying over the stadium around 45 minutes before kickoff. There was little reaction from the crowd as the aircraft flew over the stadium, with Marine One landing nearby a few minutes later. The president was seated in a glassed-in section of luxury seats on the west side of the stadium shortly before kickoff, along with the Fifa president, Gianni Infantino. Other dignitaries and former players sat nearby, including Spain’s king, Felipe VI, and Fifa’s head of technical development, Arsène Wenger. Continue reading...
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Donald Trump arrives by helicopter to attend World Cup final alongside Gianni Infantino. Trump arrived at the stadium on Marine One, with the president’s helicopter first flying over the stadium around 45 minutes before kickoff.
TL;DR:
US president watches Spain v Argentina match World Cup final: live coverage of the match Donald Trump took his place at the World Cup final at the New York New Jersey Stadium on Sunday.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 18:48
Mission in Iran war has pivoted toward ensuring oil flow, Trump official says
Energy secretary grapples with mounting criticism over length of US war as Democrat calls conflict ‘war of choice’ A Trump administration official on Sunday grappled with mounting criticism over the length of the US war with Iran after months of promised diplomatic breakthroughs, short-lived ceasefires, and the deaths of two more American troops in Jordan bringing the total number of American military members killed in the conflict to 16. Appearing on ABC’s This Week, US energy secretary Chris Wright defended the Trump administration’s strategy after being confronted with his earlier claims that the war which began in February would have ended by now. Continue reading...
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Energy secretary grapples with mounting criticism over length of US war as Democrat calls conflict ‘war of choice’ A Trump administration official on Sunday grappled with mounting criticism over the length of the US war with Iran after months of promised diplomatic breakthroughs, short-lived ceasefires, and the deaths of two more American troops in Jordan bringing the total nu…
TL;DR:
Energy secretary grapples with mounting criticism over length of US war as Democrat calls conflict ‘war of choice’ A Trump administration official on Sunday grappled with mounting criticism over the length of the US war with Iran after months of promised diplomatic breakthroughs, short-lived ceasefires, and the deaths of two more American troops in Jordan bringing the total number of American military members killed in the conflict to 16.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 18:00
Burnham’s vow to end Labour briefing wars will test his grip on the party
Tensions between his aims are already there, including disputes over key appointments such as chancellor Andy Burnham’s vision for cleaning up Westminster politics is a utopian one: ending the dominance of the whipping system, Whitehall power hoarding and the “insidious briefing culture” of the bubble. In his first speech on becoming Labour leader, he warned his party it “won’t beat Britain’s new right if we are consumed by infighting and pulling in different directions”. Continue reading...
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Tensions between his aims are already there, including disputes over key appointments such as chancellor Andy Burnham’s vision for cleaning up Westminster politics is a utopian one: ending the dominance of the whipping system, Whitehall power hoarding and the “insidious briefing culture” of the bubble.
TL;DR:
Tensions between his aims are already there, including disputes over key appointments such as chancellor Andy Burnham’s vision for cleaning up Westminster politics is a utopian one: ending the dominance of the whipping system, Whitehall power hoarding and the “insidious briefing culture” of the bubble.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 17:54
ICE officers to use body cameras during vehicle stops, Trump ‘border czar’ says
Tom Homan’s comments come amid scrutiny over federal immigration agents’ fatal shooting of two men in six days US Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) will require its officers to record vehicle stops with at least one body camera, said Tom Homan, the Trump administration “border czar”, on Sunday. The action comes as the agency is under renewed scrutiny after ICE officers fatally shot two men earlier this month. “They exonerate more law enforcement than they convict, and I want officers to wear body cameras because I want the American people to see what the officers saw when they took that action,” Homan said on the Fox & Friends Weekend program. Continue reading...
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ICE officers to use body cameras during vehicle stops, Trump ‘border czar’ says. The action comes as the agency is under renewed scrutiny after ICE officers fatally shot two men earlier this month.
TL;DR:
Tom Homan’s comments come amid scrutiny over federal immigration agents’ fatal shooting of two men in six days US Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) will require its officers to record vehicle stops with at least one body camera, said Tom Homan, the Trump administration “border czar”, on Sunday.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 17:12
5.5-magnitude earthquake hits Peru's Andes region and kills at least 5 people
More than 20 people were injured and 300 have been displaced by Saturday’s quake, while the total number of missing is still unknown A 5.5-magnitude earthquake shook the Andes region of Peru, killing at least five people, authorities said Sunday. More than 20 people were injured and 300 have been displaced. The US Geological Survey reported the quake struck on Saturday at 9.24pm, with its epicentre located 2km (1.24 miles) west-south-west of the city of Sicaya in Huancayo province. It was 10 km (6.21 miles) deep. Continue reading...
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5.5-magnitude earthquake hits Peru's Andes region and kills at least 5 people. The US Geological Survey reported the quake struck on Saturday at 9.24pm, with its epicentre located 2km (1.24 miles) west-south-west of the city of Sicaya in Huancayo province. It was 10 km (6.21 miles) deep.
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More than 20 people were injured and 300 have been displaced by Saturday’s quake, while the total number of missing is still unknown A 5.5-magnitude earthquake shook the Andes region of Peru, killing at least five people, authorities said Sunday.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 17:08
Burnham to warn UK must be honest about its challenges as he prepares to become PM
Labour leader will visit king to accept role on Monday and will start making cabinet appointments that afternoon Andy Burnham will warn that Britain must be honest about the challenges it faces as he becomes its sixth prime minister in a decade and prepares to appoint his first cabinet. The Labour leader is set to start making appointments in the afternoon on Monday after going to Buckingham Palace to accept the role of prime minister from the king. Continue reading...
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Burnham to warn UK must be honest about its challenges as he prepares to become PM. Labour leader will visit king to accept role on Monday and will start making cabinet appointments that afternoon Andy Burnham will warn that Britain must be honest about the challenges it faces as he becomes its sixth prime minister in a decade and prepares to appoint his first cabinet.
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The Labour leader is set to start making appointments in the afternoon on Monday after going to Buckingham Palace to accept the role of prime minister from the king.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 16:51
Second person dies in legionnaires’ disease outbreak in New York City
Outbreak has sickened dozens in the city but officials say they believe source of outbreak ‘has likely been eliminated’ A second person has died amid a legionnaires’ disease outbreak that has sickened dozens of people in New York City , according to officials, who also say there is evidence that the source of the outbreak “has likely been eliminated”. New York City’s health department served notice of the second death in a statement on Saturday. The statement didn’t have any information about that person’s identity, age, or details on when and how they fell ill, as was the case when city officials on Friday announced the first death in the outbreak on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Continue reading...
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Second person dies in legionnaires’ disease outbreak in New York City. New York City’s health department served notice of the second death in a statement on Saturday. The statement didn’t have any information about that person’s identity, age, or details on when and how they fell ill, as was the case when city officials on Friday announced the first death in the outbreak on Ma…
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Outbreak has sickened dozens in the city but officials say they believe source of outbreak ‘has likely been eliminated’ A second person has died amid a legionnaires’ disease outbreak that has sickened dozens of people in New York City , according to officials, who also say there is evidence that the source of the outbreak “has likely been eliminated”.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 16:17
Thames Water creditors prepare for legal fight over possible nationalisation
Investors say they will work with Andy Burnham but hire litigation specialists amid reports the firm could enter temporary public ownership The group of investors pursuing a rescue bid for Thames Water have said they are willing to discuss greater public control, but are also preparing for a potential multi-billion pound legal battle amid reports Andy Burnham could temporarily nationalise Britain’s biggest water company. London & Valley Water (L&VW), a consortium of 100 institutional investors that hold £17bn of the water company’s £21bn debt, has said it is open to government involvement with Thames Water, but indicated that this does not include public ownership in the struggling company. Continue reading...
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Investors say they will work with Andy Burnham but hire litigation specialists amid reports the firm could enter temporary public ownership The group of investors pursuing a rescue bid for Thames Water have said they are willing to discuss greater public control, but are also preparing for a potential multi-billion pound legal battle amid reports Andy Burnham could temporarily…
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Investors say they will work with Andy Burnham but hire litigation specialists amid reports the firm could enter temporary public ownership The group of investors pursuing a rescue bid for Thames Water have said they are willing to discuss greater public control, but are also preparing for a potential multi-billion pound legal battle amid reports Andy Burnham could temporarily nationalise Britain’s biggest water company.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 16:02
‘What has the BBC ever done for me?’ Romesh Ranganathan reboots corporation’s 1985 licence fee plea
As with the John Cleese original, comedian is supported by famous faces from Claudia Winkelman to David Jason John Cleese’s 1985s advert for the BBC in which he asks a pub full of stars, “ What has the BBC ever given us? ” is one of the most famous examples of the corporation making the case to the public for the value of paying the licence fee. In the advert , Cleese is complaining to the bartender that he has just bought his TV licence. “Fifty-eight quid for the privilege of sitting in your own home, watching your own television set. It’s diabolical. I mean, what’s the BBC ever given us for 58 quid?” he says, before being put right by a string of punters, ranging from David Attenborough and John Humphrys to Terry Wogan and David Jason. Continue reading...
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‘What has the BBC ever done for me?’ Romesh Ranganathan reboots corporation’s 1985 licence fee plea. ” is one of the most famous examples of the corporation making the case to the public for the value of paying the licence fee. I mean, what’s the BBC ever given us for 58 quid?
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As with the John Cleese original, comedian is supported by famous faces from Claudia Winkelman to David Jason John Cleese’s 1985s advert for the BBC in which he asks a pub full of stars, “ What has the BBC ever given us?
Theguardian
Jul 19, 15:25
‘He’s a war criminal’: Mamdani exploring whether he can arrest Netanyahu if he visit New York
NYC mayor says in Times interview that’s he’s in ‘active conversation’ with city’s law department about the matter New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani has said he was reviewing whether his administration could arrest Benjamin Netanyahu if as expected the Israeli prime minister visits the city for the UN general assembly in September. Mamdani’s comments on Saturday’s episode of the New York Times’s the Interview podcast echoed ones he had made to the publication as he successfully ran for mayor last fall. Continue reading...
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NYC mayor says in Times interview that’s he’s in ‘active conversation’ with city’s law department about the matter New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani has said he was reviewing whether his administration could arrest Benjamin Netanyahu if as expected the Israeli prime minister visits the city for the UN general assembly in September.
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NYC mayor says in Times interview that’s he’s in ‘active conversation’ with city’s law department about the matter New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani has said he was reviewing whether his administration could arrest Benjamin Netanyahu if as expected the Israeli prime minister visits the city for the UN general assembly in September.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 15:00
Australia’s life dissatisfaction levels double as ‘wellbeing poverty’ reaches new highs
ABS data show one in 10 people are not satisfied with life – but community cohesion and trust lift happiness scores Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Nearly 2.2 million Australians 15 years and older are living below the wellbeing poverty line, with the share of people reporting very low life satisfaction doubling over the past decade. In 2025, 9.7%, or about one in 10 Australians, rated their general satisfaction with life at four or below out of 10, according to Guardian Australia’s analysis of the Australian Bureau of Statistics’s (ABS) general social survey. Continue reading...
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Australia’s life dissatisfaction levels double as ‘wellbeing poverty’ reaches new highs. ABS data show one in 10 people are not satisfied with life – but community cohesion and trust lift happiness scores Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Nearly 2.
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ABS data show one in 10 people are not satisfied with life – but community cohesion and trust lift happiness scores Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Nearly 2.2 million Australians 15 years and older are living below the wellbeing poverty line, with the share of people reporting very low life satisfaction doubling over the past decade.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 15:00
Australian and NZ safety assurances about asbestos in play sand were based on supplier’s own assessment
ACCC updates some recall notices to say products ‘may cause risk to health’, contrary to previous claims Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Schools, retailers and government agencies assured parents that asbestos-contaminated play sand posed a low risk to their children’s health based on a supplier’s own assessment which was not independently verified, the Guardian can reveal. The now-contested public messaging spread quickly after a range of Educational Colours children’s sand products were pulled from shelves in November 2025 after samples were found to contain asbestos , which was followed by more than 20 similar recalls across different brands and retailers. Continue reading...
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ACCC updates some recall notices to say products ‘may cause risk to health’, contrary to previous claims Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Schools, retailers and government agencies assured parents that asbestos-contaminated play sand posed a low risk to their children’s health based on a supplier’s own assessment which was not independently verified…
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ACCC updates some recall notices to say products ‘may cause risk to health’, contrary to previous claims Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Schools, retailers and government agencies assured parents that asbestos-contaminated play sand posed a low risk to their children’s health based on a supplier’s own assessment which was not independently verified, the Guardian can reveal.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 15:00
Rise in overseas surrogates ‘increases risk of stateless babies’
Calls grow for global regulation as rising numbers of westerners use surrogates in countries with different laws Why Mexico is at the heart of ethical debate over global surrogacy Why one couple are pinning their surrogacy hopes on Mexico The rise in the use of surrogates abroad is leaving more babies at risk of becoming stateless, experts have said, amid growing calls for urgent global regulation of the practice. The warning follows the suspension of a 15-year effort by The Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) to establish a global surrogacy convention, which was paused due to divisions among member states. Continue reading...
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Calls grow for global regulation as rising numbers of westerners use surrogates in countries with different laws Why Mexico is at the heart of ethical debate over global surrogacy Why one couple are pinning their surrogacy hopes on Mexico The rise in the use of surrogates abroad is leaving more babies at risk of becoming stateless, experts have said, amid growing calls for urg…
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Calls grow for global regulation as rising numbers of westerners use surrogates in countries with different laws Why Mexico is at the heart of ethical debate over global surrogacy Why one couple are pinning their surrogacy hopes on Mexico The rise in the use of surrogates abroad is leaving more babies at risk of becoming stateless, experts have said, amid growing calls for urgent global regulation of the practice.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 14:15
US boxer Hannah Rapp dies after being struck by car while cycling in Texas
Investigators arrest 31-year-old man identified as Charles Medina in connection with death of Rapp who was 26 US boxer Hannah Rapp, who in June fought for the World Boxing Council women’s featherweight championship, was killed on Saturday while she bicycled in Texas after a motorist struck her with his car, according to authorities. Rapp was 26, and investigators arrested a 31-year-old man identified as Charles Medina in connection with her death, the sheriff’s office of Brazos county, Texas, said in a statement. Continue reading...
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Rapp was 26, and investigators arrested a 31-year-old man identified as Charles Medina in connection with her death, the sheriff’s office of Brazos county, Texas, said in a statement.
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Investigators arrest 31-year-old man identified as Charles Medina in connection with death of Rapp who was 26 US boxer Hannah Rapp, who in June fought for the World Boxing Council women’s featherweight championship, was killed on Saturday while she bicycled in Texas after a motorist struck her with his car, according to authorities.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 14:00
As Andy Burnham enters No 10, what of his ‘bezzie mate’ Steve Rotheram?
A longstanding bromance means the Liverpool regional major very much has the ear of the soon-to-be PM When a new prime minister enters Downing Street, observers usually look to those around the cabinet table to see where influence lies. With Andy Burnham, they should look 200 miles north – not to Manchester, but Liverpool. Steve Rotheram, the mayor of Liverpool city region, may not have a formal role in government but he has a strong claim to having the closest personal bond to the incoming prime minister, a man he calls his “bezzie mate”. Continue reading...
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As Andy Burnham enters No 10, what of his ‘bezzie mate’ Steve Rotheram?. With Andy Burnham, they should look 200 miles north – not to Manchester, but Liverpool. Steve Rotheram, the mayor of Liverpool city region, may not have a formal role in government but he has a strong claim to having the closest personal bond to the incoming prime minister, a man he calls his “bezzie mate…
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A longstanding bromance means the Liverpool regional major very much has the ear of the soon-to-be PM When a new prime minister enters Downing Street, observers usually look to those around the cabinet table to see where influence lies.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 13:00
What happened to Nolan Wells? Family seeks answers two weeks after 18-year-old’s death
Investigation continues after college freshman was found dead on Mississippi island after 4 July boat trip with friends Two weeks after Nolan Xavier Wells was found dead, his family is still searching for answers. On 4 July, Wells, an 18-year-old Mississippi college freshman, and a group of friends took a boat out to Horn Island, a barrier island a few miles off the Mississippi Gulf coast. Continue reading...
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What happened to Nolan Wells? Family seeks answers two weeks after 18-year-old’s death. On 4 July, Wells, an 18-year-old Mississippi college freshman, and a group of friends took a boat out to Horn Island, a barrier island a few miles off the Mississippi Gulf coast.
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Investigation continues after college freshman was found dead on Mississippi island after 4 July boat trip with friends Two weeks after Nolan Xavier Wells was found dead, his family is still searching for answers.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 13:00
From leftwing voters to unions: can Burnham win back Labour bases lost by Starmer? – visualised
As Andy Burnham enters No 10, Guardian data analysis reveals the fissures with Labour’s traditional supporters, and the traps the new PM will want to avoid Keir Starmer entered 10 Downing St on a wave of optimism after a landslide victory in the 2024 general election. His Labour party had overturned a defeat in 2019 in which the party crashed to its worst result since 1935. Labour won 412 seats, just a few shy of the 418 won by Tony Blair in 1997, a result that gave Labour a leader in office for a decade. But a little more than two years after he came to power, Starmer’s tenure is over. Over the past 24 months the popularity of the human-rights lawyer turned prime minister has plummeted, from a net approval rating of -3 when he took office, to -66 by September 2025 – the lowest net approval rating recorded by Ipsos for any prime minister since 1977. Continue reading...
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From leftwing voters to unions: can Burnham win back Labour bases lost by Starmer? Labour won 412 seats, just a few shy of the 418 won by Tony Blair in 1997, a result that gave Labour a leader in office for a decade. But a little more than two years after he came to power, Starmer’s tenure is over.
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His Labour party had overturned a defeat in 2019 in which the party crashed to its worst result since 1935.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 12:21
Nigel Farage admits George Cottrell paid for filming and let him use his home
Reform leader says support from fraudster before last election is ‘totally undeclarable in every single way’ Nigel Farage has admitted his close friend the fraudster George Cottrell let him use one of his London homes and paid for social media filming before the last election but insisted it was “totally undeclarable in every single way”. The Reform UK leader spoke in depth for the first time about his support from Cottrell and the £5m gift from the Thailand-based businessman Christopher Harborne in an interview with the anti-woke Triggernometry podcast. Continue reading...
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Reform leader says support from fraudster before last election is ‘totally undeclarable in every single way’ Nigel Farage has admitted his close friend the fraudster George Cottrell let him use one of his London homes and paid for social media filming before the last election but insisted it was “totally undeclarable in every single way”.
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Reform leader says support from fraudster before last election is ‘totally undeclarable in every single way’ Nigel Farage has admitted his close friend the fraudster George Cottrell let him use one of his London homes and paid for social media filming before the last election but insisted it was “totally undeclarable in every single way”.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 12:00
Government use of automated AI decision-making to be curbed under new Australian rules
New national plan accompanied by Labor push for digital duty of care legislation Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The use of AI in automated decision-making by government departments and agencies will be subject to tough rules under a new national plan, expected to extend to consumer protections, workplace safety and privacy. As the Albanese government grapples with the rapid growth in the use of artificial intelligence and a boom in datacentre construction, senior ministers have begun work to draw up new rules to ensure safety is built into AI processes inside government, prioritising fairness, accuracy and transparency. Continue reading...
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New national plan accompanied by Labor push for digital duty of care legislation Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The use of AI in automated decision-making by government departments and agencies will be subject to tough rules under a new national plan, expected to extend to consumer protections, workplace safety and privacy.
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New national plan accompanied by Labor push for digital duty of care legislation Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The use of AI in automated decision-making by government departments and agencies will be subject to tough rules under a new national plan, expected to extend to consumer protections, workplace safety and privacy.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 12:00
Trump’s rebranding of Palm Beach airport hasn’t taken off as he planned
Changes inside the Florida international airport are hardly evident as state and county hold back funds for full remodel One of Donald Trump ’s most grandiose vanity projects, a multimillion-dollar makeover of Florida ’s Palm Beach international airport into a self-aggrandizing , gold-plated transportation hub, is running into turbulence, barely a week after the first plane’s wheels touched the runway. At first glance, the rebranding of the airport less than 5 miles from his opulent Mar-a-Lago resort appears to be complete. Its website bears the name and oversized logo of the President Donald J Trump international airport, and state transportation workers were quick to erect highway signs leaving drivers in no doubt where they were heading. Continue reading...
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Trump’s rebranding of Palm Beach airport hasn’t taken off as he planned. At first glance, the rebranding of the airport less than 5 miles from his opulent Mar-a-Lago resort appears to be complete.
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Changes inside the Florida international airport are hardly evident as state and county hold back funds for full remodel One of Donald Trump ’s most grandiose vanity projects, a multimillion-dollar makeover of Florida ’s Palm Beach international airport into a self-aggrandizing , gold-plated transportation hub, is running into turbulence, barely a week after the first plane’s wheels touched the runway.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 11:46
South East Water supply disruption hits thousands of properties in Kent
People in Tunbridge Wells area face lower pressure, intermittent supply or no water after ‘instrument failure’ Thousands of homes and businesses in Kent are facing water supply problems for a second day, including a “complete lack of water” in some cases, South East Water said. About 7,000 properties in the Tunbridge Wells area could face low pressure, intermittent supply or no water, after an “instrument failure” at a nearby water treatment works, SEW said. Continue reading...
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People in Tunbridge Wells area face lower pressure, intermittent supply or no water after ‘instrument failure’ Thousands of homes and businesses in Kent are facing water supply problems for a second day, including a “complete lack of water” in some cases, South East Water said.
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People in Tunbridge Wells area face lower pressure, intermittent supply or no water after ‘instrument failure’ Thousands of homes and businesses in Kent are facing water supply problems for a second day, including a “complete lack of water” in some cases, South East Water said.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 11:00
Majority of US voters link extreme weather to climate crisis, study finds
Top Democrat says findings show public ‘way ahead of the politicians’ as Trump dismisses global heating as ‘hoax’ Amid a summer of dangerous heat , drought and floods , a majority of Americans are connecting increasingly severe weather to the climate crisis, new polling shows, despite efforts by Donald Trump to dismiss global heating as a “con job” and a “hoax”. It’s a sign that attempts to suppress polarize climate concerns may not be seeing full success, said Grace Adcox, senior climate strategist at Data for Progress. Continue reading...
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Top Democrat says findings show public ‘way ahead of the politicians’ as Trump dismisses global heating as ‘hoax’ Amid a summer of dangerous heat , drought and floods , a majority of Americans are connecting increasingly severe weather to the climate crisis, new polling shows, despite efforts by Donald Trump to dismiss global heating as a “con job” and a “hoax”.
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Top Democrat says findings show public ‘way ahead of the politicians’ as Trump dismisses global heating as ‘hoax’ Amid a summer of dangerous heat , drought and floods , a majority of Americans are connecting increasingly severe weather to the climate crisis, new polling shows, despite efforts by Donald Trump to dismiss global heating as a “con job” and a “hoax”.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 11:00
How Trump and his administration have mired the US in multiple crises
From manufactured election insecurity to an outbreak of ‘explosive’ diarrhea, Americans are bearing the brunt of harmful policies Between widespread cuts to vital government agencies, various disease and illness outbreaks, and new environmental disaster vulnerabilities, the United States is facing a convergence of crises with widespread repercussions. Yet the Trump administration has hamstrung the federal government from addressing these crises – and in some cases is actively fanning them. Over the past year, the administration has moved to shrink the federal workforce , roll back environmental protections and policies intended to fight the climate crisis , reduced funding for scientific research and is seeking to advance legislation that would impose new voting restrictions. Continue reading...
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How Trump and his administration have mired the US in multiple crises. From manufactured election insecurity to an outbreak of ‘explosive’ diarrhea, Americans are bearing the brunt of harmful policies Between widespread cuts to vital government agencies, various disease and illness outbreaks, and new environmental disaster vulnerabilities, the United States is facing a converg…
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Yet the Trump administration has hamstrung the federal government from addressing these crises – and in some cases is actively fanning them.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 09:57
Bad Bunny concert in Milan abandoned due to hailstorm
Fans evacuated from sold-out open-air show as organisers promise full refunds An open-air show by Puerto Rican music star Bad Bunny in Milan on Saturday night was abandoned due to a violent hailstorm, but the organiser said tickets would be reimbursed. Videos posted on social media showed large hailstones hitting concertgoers at the sold-out show, along with strong winds and driving rain, after the star began his set at Milan’s Snai La Maura Hippodrome. Continue reading...
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Fans evacuated from sold-out open-air show as organisers promise full refunds An open-air show by Puerto Rican music star Bad Bunny in Milan on Saturday night was abandoned due to a violent hailstorm, but the organiser said tickets would be reimbursed.
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Fans evacuated from sold-out open-air show as organisers promise full refunds An open-air show by Puerto Rican music star Bad Bunny in Milan on Saturday night was abandoned due to a violent hailstorm, but the organiser said tickets would be reimbursed.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 07:47
Middle East crisis live: US launches new round of airstrikes to ‘swiftly punish’ Iran after American troops killed
Fresh attack comes after Iran’s supreme leader warned Washington would pay for ‘seeking to escalate’ the conflict Two US troops killed and one missing in Jordan after Iranian attacks The US military said it launched new airstrikes against Iran to “swiftly punish” the country’s Revolutionary Guard for an attack in Jordan that killed two American service members , left one missing and four requiring hospitalisation. Speaking to the New York Post , the US president, Donald Trump, described the deaths as a “shame”. “They did it because they don’t want to see Iran have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said of the troops. “And it just shows you how bad (the Iranians) are,” he added. The two US troop deaths on Friday were its first from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war . US defence secretary Pete Hegseth posted on X: “Their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve.” Iran appeared to target Saudi Arabia as well as other US Gulf allies and Jordan on Saturday after US attacks on Iranian bridges, power facilities and other infrastructure. Mojtaba Khamenei said US actions had shown that Trump’s signature was “utterly worthless and devoid of credibility”, warning of “even heavier costs and further humiliation” for the US , in a statement carried by the official social media accounts of Iran’s supreme leader and state media. The American deaths brought the number of US service members killed since the war began to 16 , while more than 430 have been injured. Iran’s health ministry said on Saturday that 50 people had been killed and more than 500 injured in US strikes on the country over the past three weeks. In Iraq, a base near Irbil of the Kurdistan Freedom party, an Iranian Kurdish dissident group, was struck by a drone early on Sunday, wounding eight of its members, according to a military official with the group. The most significant damage from Iranian strikes on Saturday occurred in Kuwait, where a water desalination plant and an oil facility were hit , according to the Kuwait authorities and the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation. It was the second attack against a desalination plant in two days in the tiny nation that depends on desalination for 90% of its drinking water. Continue reading...
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Middle East crisis live: US launches new round of airstrikes to ‘swiftly punish’ Iran after American troops killed. The two US troop deaths on Friday were its first from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war . The American deaths brought the number of US service members killed since the war began to 16 , while more than 430 have been injured.
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Speaking to the New York Post , the US president, Donald Trump, described the deaths as a “shame”.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 06:11
Victoria announces new social media ‘demasking’ powers for accounts accused of vilification
New laws would give Vcat power to force social and AI platforms to identify anonymous users in move premier says will protect children Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Social media companies could be forced to identify anonymous accounts accused of online vilification, under new laws being proposed in Victoria. The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, announced a suite of social media reforms on Sunday, saying families needed new ways to protect their children online. Continue reading...
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New laws would give Vcat power to force social and AI platforms to identify anonymous users in move premier says will protect children Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Social media companies could be forced to identify anonymous accounts accused of online vilification, under new laws being proposed in Victoria.
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New laws would give Vcat power to force social and AI platforms to identify anonymous users in move premier says will protect children Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Social media companies could be forced to identify anonymous accounts accused of online vilification, under new laws being proposed in Victoria.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 05:49
Dozens of Russian missiles pound Kyiv in major attack
At least one death with authorities reporting fires and damage to offices and homes, while Ukraine’s forces earlier hit logistics warehouses in Russia Russia has carried out one of its biggest ever ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv, launching a five-hour raid that left at least one person dead and seven injured, with fires and damage across the city. Ukrainian officials said the capital was hit with about 40 Iskander-M and hypersonic Zircon missiles. Residents heard an air raid siren sound at 1.30am. There was the sound of air defences followed minutes later by a series of booms and explosions. Continue reading...
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Dozens of Russian missiles pound Kyiv in major attack. Ukrainian officials said the capital was hit with about 40 Iskander-M and hypersonic Zircon missiles. There was the sound of air defences followed minutes later by a series of booms and explosions.
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At least one death with authorities reporting fires and damage to offices and homes, while Ukraine’s forces earlier hit logistics warehouses in Russia Russia has carried out one of its biggest ever ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv, launching a five-hour raid that left at least one person dead and seven injured, with fires and damage across the city.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 05:00
One week, two killings: Trump’s immigration crackdown turns deadly – again
The fatal shootings of two men, both killed in their vehicles by ICE agents, have rekindled anger over the US’s militarized deportation push Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, 52, was driving to work with his brother and two other passengers in Houston, Texas , when immigration agents began tailing his car. They pulled him over and fired a fatal shot through the open passenger-side window. Six days later in Biddeford, Maine , Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, 26, was driving around his neighborhood when agents stopped him at an intersection – right outside the laundromat where he’d often go with his three-year-old daughter – and shot him dead. Continue reading...
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One week, two killings: Trump’s immigration crackdown turns deadly – again. They pulled him over and fired a fatal shot through the open passenger-side window. Six days later in Biddeford, Maine , Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, 26, was driving around his neighborhood when agents stopped him at an intersection – right outside the laundromat where he’d often go with his three-ye…
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The fatal shootings of two men, both killed in their vehicles by ICE agents, have rekindled anger over the US’s militarized deportation push Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, 52, was driving to work with his brother and two other passengers in Houston, Texas , when immigration agents began tailing his car.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 04:00
São Tomé and Príncipe heads to polls in tense presidential election
Incumbent Carlos Vila Nova hopes to defeat his former party and secure second term as independent Voters in São Tomé and Príncipe go to the polls for a presidential election on Sunday as one of Africa’s least populous countries seeks to burnish its democratic credentials. According to the National Election Commission, about 142,000 people are registered to vote in the tiny African state’s elections, approximately 15% of whom live in the diaspora. Continue reading...
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São Tomé and Príncipe heads to polls in tense presidential election. Incumbent Carlos Vila Nova hopes to defeat his former party and secure second term as independent Voters in São Tomé and Príncipe go to the polls for a presidential election on Sunday as one of Africa’s least populous countries seeks to burnish its democratic credentials.
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According to the National Election Commission, about 142,000 people are registered to vote in the tiny African state’s elections, approximately 15% of whom live in the diaspora.
Theguardian
Jul 19, 02:46
Man dies after cross-border police pursuit ends in NSW northern rivers
Car chase began in Queensland after report of armed man on Gold Coast late on Saturday, police say Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast New South Wales police have declared a “critical incident” after a man died following a police pursuit in the northern rivers area, hours after the same man allegedly evaded Queensland police while armed with a gun. The 25-year-old from Queensland was found unconscious at the wheel of a vehicle, which had driven down an embankment south of Murwillumbah, about 2am on Sunday, NSW police said. Continue reading...
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Car chase began in Queensland after report of armed man on Gold Coast late on Saturday, police say Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast New South Wales police have declared a “critical incident” after a man died following a police pursuit in the northern rivers area, hours after the same man alleged…
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Car chase began in Queensland after report of armed man on Gold Coast late on Saturday, police say Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast New South Wales police have declared a “critical incident” after a man died following a police pursuit in the northern rivers area, hours after the same man allegedly evaded Queensland police while armed with a gun.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 23:57
Andrew and Tristan Tate arrested in Miami on charges of rape and sex trafficking
UK to seek extradition over sexual exploitation, ‘extreme pornography’ and assault and indecent images of a child Andrew and Tristan Tate, brothers who are social media influencers, were arrested by federal authorities Saturday in Miami, the US Marshals Service said. The charges against the pair were not immediately announced. Brady McCarron, a spokesperson for the marshals, said the warrant was sealed. Continue reading...
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Andrew and Tristan Tate arrested in Miami on charges of rape and sex trafficking. The charges against the pair were not immediately announced. Brady McCarron, a spokesperson for the marshals, said the warrant was sealed.
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UK to seek extradition over sexual exploitation, ‘extreme pornography’ and assault and indecent images of a child Andrew and Tristan Tate, brothers who are social media influencers, were arrested by federal authorities Saturday in Miami, the US Marshals Service said.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 23:37
Conservatives around world are ‘at war against leftwing globalists’, Bridget McKenzie tells CPAC London event
Nationals senator echoes comments by Pauline Hanson as Labor criticises One Nation leader’s divisive stance Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The National party’s Senate leader, Bridget McKenzie, has used an appearance at a conference of the populist right in London to declare that conservatives are “in a war” against mass immigration, “leftwing globalists” and “woke” institutions, and to urge rightwing movements across the English-speaking world to unite and fight back. McKenzie was speaking at the inaugural CPAC GB in London, a British spinoff of the influential US Conservative Political Action Conference , organised by the former British prime minister Liz Truss. She gave a speech on Saturday morning before appearing on a panel chaired by Truss, alongside other rightwing figures. Continue reading...
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Conservatives around world are ‘at war against leftwing globalists’, Bridget McKenzie tells CPAC London event. McKenzie was speaking at the inaugural CPAC GB in London, a British spinoff of the influential US Conservative Political Action Conference , organised by the former British prime minister Liz Truss.
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Nationals senator echoes comments by Pauline Hanson as Labor criticises One Nation leader’s divisive stance Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The National party’s Senate leader, Bridget McKenzie, has used an appearance at a conference of the populist right in London to declare that conservatives are “in a war” against mass immigration, “leftwing globalists” and “woke” institutions, and to urge rightwing movements across the English-speaking world to unite and fight back.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 22:54
Pauline Hanson tells London CPAC crowd she is ‘sick of hearing about white privilege’ and ‘fears for England’
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage compares One Nation leader’s polling rise to Donald Trump’s victory in the US Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Pauline Hanson has told a political conference in London that Australia is following Britain down a path of cultural decline, blaming mass immigration, multiculturalism, Islam, net zero policies and “woke” ideology such as support for trans rights. The One Nation leader has been in the UK to speak at the inaugural British spin-off from America’s influential Conservative Political Action Conference, alongside Nigel Farage and Liz Truss, the former British prime minister. Continue reading...
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Reform UK leader Nigel Farage compares One Nation leader’s polling rise to Donald Trump’s victory in the US Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Pauline Hanson has told a political conference in London that Australia is following Britain down a path of cultural decline, blaming mass immigration, mul…
TL;DR:
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage compares One Nation leader’s polling rise to Donald Trump’s victory in the US Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Pauline Hanson has told a political conference in London that Australia is following Britain down a path of cultural decline, blaming mass immigration, multiculturalism, Islam, net zero policies and “woke” ideology such as support for trans rights.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 22:41
Australia news live: ski fields reach July temperature high; diesel prices surge
Follow the latest updates live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Diesel prices rise 15 cents in five days Diesel prices have risen 15 cents a litre in five days as Donald Trump’s war in Iran lifts global oil prices. Continue reading...
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Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Key events 22m ago Ski fields reach temperature July highs on Saturday Key events 22m ago Ski fields reach temperature July highs on Saturday Hanson ‘taking us nowhere’ on divisive race debate: Labor Pauline Hanson ’s appearances with far-right activist Tommy Robinson and at a conservative political conference in Lon…
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Follow the latest updates live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Diesel prices rise 15 cents in five days Diesel prices have risen 15 cents a litre in five days as Donald Trump’s war in Iran lifts global oil prices.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 22:17
Hungary’s president agrees to stand down after law change ends his term
Tamás Sulyok signed the constitutional amendment that cited ‘serious loss of confidence’ in him as leader Hungary’s president Tamás Sulyok has agreed to step down after signing a constitutional amendment passed by prime minister Péter Magyar’s ruling Tisza party. The amendment will end Sulyok’s term immediately, citing society’s “serious loss of confidence” in a leader elected in early 2024 by lawmakers from former prime minister Viktor Orbán’s nationalist Fidesz party. Continue reading...
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Tamás Sulyok signed the constitutional amendment that cited ‘serious loss of confidence’ in him as leader Hungary’s president Tamás Sulyok has agreed to step down after signing a constitutional amendment passed by prime minister Péter Magyar’s ruling Tisza party.
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Tamás Sulyok signed the constitutional amendment that cited ‘serious loss of confidence’ in him as leader Hungary’s president Tamás Sulyok has agreed to step down after signing a constitutional amendment passed by prime minister Péter Magyar’s ruling Tisza party.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 21:25
Cyclospora: iceberg lettuce recalled in 27 states and more products may follow
Taylor Farms does not specify where products were served or sold, as US braces for weeks more of outbreak Taylor Farms recalled potentially contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce in 27 states on Friday, including lettuce distributed as recently as Thursday, as cases of cyclosporiasis continue rising in the US. The US is likely to see at least another two weeks of possible cases, since infections may have happened in recent days. And the expanding outbreak investigation could point to other products in coming days. Continue reading...
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Cyclospora: iceberg lettuce recalled in 27 states and more products may follow. The US is likely to see at least another two weeks of possible cases, since infections may have happened in recent days. And the expanding outbreak investigation could point to other products in coming days.
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Taylor Farms does not specify where products were served or sold, as US braces for weeks more of outbreak Taylor Farms recalled potentially contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce in 27 states on Friday, including lettuce distributed as recently as Thursday, as cases of cyclosporiasis continue rising in the US.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 20:00
ANU accused of ‘hysterical’ response to students using AI to cheat as unis scramble to ‘secure’ assessments
Australia risks ‘shipping’ intellectual capability overseas if educational rigour not restored, experts warn Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast An academic at the Australian National University has accused it of a “hysterical” response to students using AI to cheat, as tertiary institutions rush to shore up the credibility of assessments. But a colleague warned Australia is in danger of “shipping our national intellectual capability” to companies in California and China if educational rigour is not restored. Continue reading...
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But a colleague warned Australia is in danger of “shipping our national intellectual capability” to companies in California and China if educational rigour is not restored.
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Australia risks ‘shipping’ intellectual capability overseas if educational rigour not restored, experts warn Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast An academic at the Australian National University has accused it of a “hysterical” response to students using AI to cheat, as tertiary institutions rush to shore up the credibility of assessments.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 20:00
Burnham to scrap Starmer’s digital ID scheme in ‘reset of priorities’
Incoming PM will reallocate unspecified resources from unpopular plan to helping with cost of living Andy Burnham is expected to scrap Keir Starmer’s plans for digital ID cards in a “reset of priorities” when he enters Downing Street on Monday. The new Labour leader plans to redirect the resources earmarked for the scheme towards tackling the cost of living, his team indicated on Saturday. Continue reading...
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Incoming PM will reallocate unspecified resources from unpopular plan to helping with cost of living Andy Burnham is expected to scrap Keir Starmer’s plans for digital ID cards in a “reset of priorities” when he enters Downing Street on Monday.
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Incoming PM will reallocate unspecified resources from unpopular plan to helping with cost of living Andy Burnham is expected to scrap Keir Starmer’s plans for digital ID cards in a “reset of priorities” when he enters Downing Street on Monday.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 19:14
Republican lawmaker Ralph Norman to join race to succeed Lindsey Graham in South Carolina
Congressman to run for seat despite Donald Trump backing Graham’s sister Darline, should she choose to run Republican representative Ralph Norman, of South Carolina, has announced he will join the race to succeed the late senator Lindsey Graham, despite Donald Trump backing Graham’s sister, Darline, should she choose to run. Announcing the launch of his bid on Saturday, Norman wrote on X: “I’m running to represent the people of South Carolina in the US Senate because we need a fighter who will stand with President Trump and carry on Lindsey Graham’s legacy!” Continue reading...
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Congressman to run for seat despite Donald Trump backing Graham’s sister Darline, should she choose to run Republican representative Ralph Norman, of South Carolina, has announced he will join the race to succeed the late senator Lindsey Graham, despite Donald Trump backing Graham’s sister, Darline, should she choose to run.
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Congressman to run for seat despite Donald Trump backing Graham’s sister Darline, should she choose to run Republican representative Ralph Norman, of South Carolina, has announced he will join the race to succeed the late senator Lindsey Graham, despite Donald Trump backing Graham’s sister, Darline, should she choose to run.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 19:11
Flash flood warnings strike north-east US amid wildfire smoke from Canada
Poor air quality from wildfires continues to plague New York City as neighborhoods hit by thunderstorms Saturday is delivering a double dose of dangerous weather across the north-eastern US, with smoky skies from Canadian wildfires giving way to severe thunderstorms that have already triggered a flash flood warning as torrential rain pounds parts of the region. After a brief break on Friday, smoke from the wildfires moved back into New York City and surrounding communities on Saturday, sending air quality back into unhealthy levels . Continue reading...
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Flash flood warnings strike north-east US amid wildfire smoke from Canada. Poor air quality from wildfires continues to plague New York City as neighborhoods hit by thunderstorms Saturday is delivering a double dose of dangerous weather across the north-eastern US, with smoky skies from Canadian wildfires giving way to severe thunderstorms that have already triggered a flash f…
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After a brief break on Friday, smoke from the wildfires moved back into New York City and surrounding communities on Saturday, sending air quality back into unhealthy levels .
Theguardian
Jul 18, 16:24
Iran attacks US allies in Middle East as renewed conflict enters second week
Kuwait says civilian sites and infrastructure targeted, Jordan downs missiles and sirens sound in Bahrain as Iran responds to US strikes Iran launched a wave of attacks against US allies in the Middle East, as the renewal of US strikes on Iran entered a second week and fighting escalated over the strait of Hormuz. Kuwait has accused Iran of targeting civilian sites and vital infrastructure in the country, such as a power and water desalination plant. Kuwait, which is extremely arid, relies on desalinated water for about 90% of its drinking water. Continue reading...
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Iran attacks US allies in Middle East as renewed conflict enters second week. Kuwait has accused Iran of targeting civilian sites and vital infrastructure in the country, such as a power and water desalination plant. Kuwait, which is extremely arid, relies on desalinated water for about 90% of its drinking water.
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Kuwait says civilian sites and infrastructure targeted, Jordan downs missiles and sirens sound in Bahrain as Iran responds to US strikes Iran launched a wave of attacks against US allies in the Middle East, as the renewal of US strikes on Iran entered a second week and fighting escalated over the strait of Hormuz.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 16:23
North Dakota men who discover they were switched as newborns sue hospital
Kyle Bylin and Jeremy Morrison uncovered the truth after Bylin received an at-home DNA test as Christmas gift A DNA discovery has led two families to accuse a North Dakota hospital of changing the course of their lives after learning two newborns were allegedly switched at birth nearly four decades ago. Kyle Bylin uncovered the truth after receiving an at-home DNA test during a Christmas gift exchange. The test connected him with his biological aunt through a genealogy platform, prompting her nephew, Jeremy Morrison, to take his own DNA test. The results confirmed the two men had been raised by each other’s biological families. Continue reading...
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North Dakota men who discover they were switched as newborns sue hospital. The test connected him with his biological aunt through a genealogy platform, prompting her nephew, Jeremy Morrison, to take his own DNA test. The results confirmed the two men had been raised by each other’s biological families.
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Kyle Bylin and Jeremy Morrison uncovered the truth after Bylin received an at-home DNA test as Christmas gift A DNA discovery has led two families to accuse a North Dakota hospital of changing the course of their lives after learning two newborns were allegedly switched at birth nearly four decades ago.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 15:03
Doctors question evidence behind Pentagon plan for testosterone screening
Pete Hegseth announced that soldiers aged 30 and older in the US military will be screened for low testosterone The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, this week ordered annual testosterone-deficiency screening for active-duty and reserve service members aged 30 and older, which he says will help to maintain military readiness. But many medical professionals warn it might do nothing of the sort and instead could increase service members’ risk of infertility or other consequences if testosterone is prescribed inappropriately. Continue reading...
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Pete Hegseth announced that soldiers aged 30 and older in the US military will be screened for low testosterone The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, this week ordered annual testosterone-deficiency screening for active-duty and reserve service members aged 30 and older, which he says will help to maintain military readiness.
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Pete Hegseth announced that soldiers aged 30 and older in the US military will be screened for low testosterone The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, this week ordered annual testosterone-deficiency screening for active-duty and reserve service members aged 30 and older, which he says will help to maintain military readiness.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 15:00
Scores of carers overpaid more than £20,000 last year despite reforms
DWP brought in measures to tackle carer’s allowance scandal yet in 2025-26 there were 32,559 overpayments Scores of unpaid carers were hit with demands to repay sums of more than £20,000 and hundreds more put at risk of prosecution last year as a result of official failures in what appear to be continuing problems with carer’s allowance. New figures showed carers were asked to repay £33m in 2025-26 as a result of 32,559 overpayments, despite the introduction of measures over a year ago designed specifically to prevent carers falling foul of the system. Continue reading...
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DWP brought in measures to tackle carer’s allowance scandal yet in 2025-26 there were 32,559 overpayments Scores of unpaid carers were hit with demands to repay sums of more than £20,000 and hundreds more put at risk of prosecution last year as a result of official failures in what appear to be continuing problems with carer’s allowance.
TL;DR:
DWP brought in measures to tackle carer’s allowance scandal yet in 2025-26 there were 32,559 overpayments Scores of unpaid carers were hit with demands to repay sums of more than £20,000 and hundreds more put at risk of prosecution last year as a result of official failures in what appear to be continuing problems with carer’s allowance.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 14:29
Germany’s CDU party chair resigns after using surrogacy to become parent
Jens Spahn had criticised ‘rented wombs’ and his party is strongly opposed to surrogacy, which is banned in Germany A senior German politician and key ally of chancellor Friedrich Merz has resigned as chair of the Christian Democrat (CDU) party after he and his husband used a surrogate mother to become parents, a practice he has criticised in the past and his party is vehemently opposed to. Surrogacy is banned in Germany, a policy Jens Spahn refused to relax when he was health minister in 2020, so he and his husband, Daniel Funke, used a surrogate mother in the US. Continue reading...
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Jens Spahn had criticised ‘rented wombs’ and his party is strongly opposed to surrogacy, which is banned in Germany A senior German politician and key ally of chancellor Friedrich Merz has resigned as chair of the Christian Democrat (CDU) party after he and his husband used a surrogate mother to become parents, a practice he has criticised in the past and his party is vehement…
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Jens Spahn had criticised ‘rented wombs’ and his party is strongly opposed to surrogacy, which is banned in Germany A senior German politician and key ally of chancellor Friedrich Merz has resigned as chair of the Christian Democrat (CDU) party after he and his husband used a surrogate mother to become parents, a practice he has criticised in the past and his party is vehemently opposed to.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 14:13
Air quality warnings remain in place across US as wildfire smoke continues to swathe country
Rain could alleviate conditions in mid-Atlantic and north-east, with World Cup final expected to go ahead on Sunday Warnings of dangerous conditions are expected to remain in place on Saturday across swathes of the US, amid uncertainty about where the heavy wildfire smoke swirling from the Canadian province of Ontario and the US state of Minnesota will head next. Some parts of the US mid-Atlantic and north-east regions will continue to endure poor air quality until Saturday afternoon, where there is a high chance of thunderstorms , which could bring some reprieve from the poor air but come with other risks like flash flooding and high winds. Meanwhile, parts of the midwest and Great Lakes regions will continue to see dangerous air quality. Continue reading...
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Air quality warnings remain in place across US as wildfire smoke continues to swathe country. Rain could alleviate conditions in mid-Atlantic and north-east, with World Cup final expected to go ahead on Sunday Warnings of dangerous conditions are expected to remain in place on Saturday across swathes of the US, amid uncertainty about where the heavy wildfire smoke swirling fro…
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Meanwhile, parts of the midwest and Great Lakes regions will continue to see dangerous air quality.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 13:42
Andy Burnham’s plan to scrap technology department triggers backlash
MPs and industry experts warn incoming PM reorganisation would waste time at a critical moment for AI and economic growth Andy Burnham’s plan to scrap the government’s technology department has triggered an angry backlash from MPs, Whitehall officials and tech experts. The incoming prime minister has asked officials to draw up plans to abolish the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology as part of a wider Whitehall shake-up. Continue reading...
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MPs and industry experts warn incoming PM reorganisation would waste time at a critical moment for AI and economic growth Andy Burnham’s plan to scrap the government’s technology department has triggered an angry backlash from MPs, Whitehall officials and tech experts.
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MPs and industry experts warn incoming PM reorganisation would waste time at a critical moment for AI and economic growth Andy Burnham’s plan to scrap the government’s technology department has triggered an angry backlash from MPs, Whitehall officials and tech experts.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 13:14
Cuba edges toward breakdown as power cuts and US meddling push society to brink
As Cuba swelters under six-month oil blockade imposed by US, tempers are fraying and unrest is growing When Cuba’s national grid collapses, as it did for the third time in 10 days on Tuesday, a collective groan spreads across its cities and people wonder, again, whether the island’s antiquated electricity system may soon become unrecoverable. The 777-mile Caribbean island of 9.5 million people has been sweltering under a six-month-long oil blockade imposed by the US, part of a pressure campaign to bring down its communist government. But the parlous state of Cuba’s infrastructure goes far further back. Continue reading...
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Cuba edges toward breakdown as power cuts and US meddling push society to brink. As Cuba swelters under six-month oil blockade imposed by US, tempers are fraying and unrest is growing When Cuba’s national grid collapses, as it did for the third time in 10 days on Tuesday, a collective groan spreads across its cities and people wonder, again, whether the island’s antiquated ele…
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The 777-mile Caribbean island of 9.5 million people has been sweltering under a six-month-long oil blockade imposed by the US, part of a pressure campaign to bring down its communist government.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 11:00
What will Keir Starmer do next?
Outgoing PM has joked about cookery classes and cutting hedges, but does the international stage beckon? As his time in Downing Street comes to an end, Keir Starmer has been joking with friends about what he might do after he stands down as prime minister. He has teased that he might take a cookery course. “He needs it, he only makes two meals,” one friend said. Another not entirely serious suggestion was cutting his father-in-law’s hedge in the expectation that if he did well, he could graduate to lawns. Continue reading...
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What will Keir Starmer do next?. As his time in Downing Street comes to an end, Keir Starmer has been joking with friends about what he might do after he stands down as prime minister. “He needs it, he only makes two meals,” one friend said.
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Outgoing PM has joked about cookery classes and cutting hedges, but does the international stage beckon?
Theguardian
Jul 18, 10:54
White House backs Argentina players over Falklands banner in World Cup semi-final
White House Fifa taskforce chief defends Argentina footballers, saying US believes in free speech The White House has backed Argentina’s footballers who displayed a banner supporting their country’s claim to the Falklands Islands after their World Cup semi-final victory against England. In a fractious match in Atlanta on Wednesday, some players held up a banner after Argentina’s 2-1 win that said: “ Las Malvinas son Argentinas ” – using the country’s term for the South Atlantic islands. Continue reading...
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White House Fifa taskforce chief defends Argentina footballers, saying US believes in free speech The White House has backed Argentina’s footballers who displayed a banner supporting their country’s claim to the Falklands Islands after their World Cup semi-final victory against England.
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White House Fifa taskforce chief defends Argentina footballers, saying US believes in free speech The White House has backed Argentina’s footballers who displayed a banner supporting their country’s claim to the Falklands Islands after their World Cup semi-final victory against England.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 10:45
Andy Burnham considers radical shake-up to cut energy bills
Labour leader examining proposals to overhaul gas standing charges and make heat pumps cheaper to run than boilers Andy Burnham is considering radical plans that could cut household energy bills by £130 a year and make running a heat pump cheaper than a gas boiler. In his speech on Friday as he became the new Labour leader , Burnham promised to reduce the price of “essentials”, and a cost of living package is expected to be one of his first announcements in Downing Street. Continue reading...
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Labour leader examining proposals to overhaul gas standing charges and make heat pumps cheaper to run than boilers Andy Burnham is considering radical plans that could cut household energy bills by £130 a year and make running a heat pump cheaper than a gas boiler.
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Labour leader examining proposals to overhaul gas standing charges and make heat pumps cheaper to run than boilers Andy Burnham is considering radical plans that could cut household energy bills by £130 a year and make running a heat pump cheaper than a gas boiler.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 10:00
Poultry sector growth plan risks UK national security, campaigners warn
Government’s food security push is said to rely on animal feed imports with vulnerability to supply chain shocks The government’s planned poultry sector growth plan is a risk to national security, campaigners have warned. Earlier this month, the environment secretary, Emma Reynolds , told the Groundswell agriculture festival that the key to improving food security was consuming more homegrown produce, and said this was why the government had set up the Farming and Food Partnership Board, whose members include industry leaders such as the president of the National Farmers’ Union and the chief executive of the Food & Drink Federation. Continue reading...
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Government’s food security push is said to rely on animal feed imports with vulnerability to supply chain shocks The government’s planned poultry sector growth plan is a risk to national security, campaigners have warned.
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Government’s food security push is said to rely on animal feed imports with vulnerability to supply chain shocks The government’s planned poultry sector growth plan is a risk to national security, campaigners have warned.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 10:00
ICE, datacenters, voter suppression: key issues expected to draw thousands in US to protests
Demonstrations planned across the US this weekend will focus on three issues likely to define the midterm elections Thousands of Americans are expected to take to the streets this weekend in mass protests around issues likely to define the midterm elections: widespread violence from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, voter suppression and datacenter construction. The protests – some recently planned in response to last week’s ICE shootings, others an annual event with new urgency – will take place not just in big cities and progressive towns, but also in rural and red areas. Continue reading...
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Demonstrations planned across the US this weekend will focus on three issues likely to define the midterm elections Thousands of Americans are expected to take to the streets this weekend in mass protests around issues likely to define the midterm elections: widespread violence from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, voter suppression and datacenter construct…
TL;DR:
Demonstrations planned across the US this weekend will focus on three issues likely to define the midterm elections Thousands of Americans are expected to take to the streets this weekend in mass protests around issues likely to define the midterm elections: widespread violence from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, voter suppression and datacenter construction.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 09:00
Why is Trump risking midterm disaster by resuming an already unpopular war with Iran?
Less than a month after hailing a ceasefire, Trump resumed strikes on Iran, a move experts warn could prolong the war and hurt Republicans ahead of midterms For half a century, Donald Trump has performed a public high-wire act based on high-stakes risks and shattering time-honored norms to get what he wants. The approach has paid off handsomely, helping him survive multiple bankruptcies to reach billionaire status and numerous legal and political scandals to be elected US president twice. Continue reading...
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Less than a month after hailing a ceasefire, Trump resumed strikes on Iran, a move experts warn could prolong the war and hurt Republicans ahead of midterms For half a century, Donald Trump has performed a public high-wire act based on high-stakes risks and shattering time-honored norms to get what he wants.
TL;DR:
Less than a month after hailing a ceasefire, Trump resumed strikes on Iran, a move experts warn could prolong the war and hurt Republicans ahead of midterms For half a century, Donald Trump has performed a public high-wire act based on high-stakes risks and shattering time-honored norms to get what he wants.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 09:00
Burnham must shift UK mood on racism, chair of Operation Black Vote says
Incoming PM must seize chance to stop race discourse deflecting from class inequalities, says David Weaver Andy Burnham has a historic opportunity to shift the national mood on racism, the chair of Operation Black Vote has said. In an interview marking the 30th anniversary of the influential nonpartisan civil rights organisation, David Weaver, the chair of Operation Black Vote (OBV), said Burnham must seize the chance to change a UK political culture where race and migration discourse is used to deflect from class inequalities and ineffective leadership. Continue reading...
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Incoming PM must seize chance to stop race discourse deflecting from class inequalities, says David Weaver Andy Burnham has a historic opportunity to shift the national mood on racism, the chair of Operation Black Vote has said.
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Incoming PM must seize chance to stop race discourse deflecting from class inequalities, says David Weaver Andy Burnham has a historic opportunity to shift the national mood on racism, the chair of Operation Black Vote has said.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 07:00
Wessex Water chief pockets above-inflation pay rise despite bonus ban over sewage spills
CEO’s pay packet surges to £791,000 as union says public ‘sick of obscene pay’ and bosses ‘feathering own nests’ Wessex Water awarded its chief executive an above-inflation pay increase even as the company was banned from paying bonuses because of sewage spills, it has emerged. Ruth Jefferson received a 14% base salary increase in October, from £590,000 to £670,000, before other benefits, according to accounts published this month. It was far above the 3.5% given to workers, and put her pay at 18 times that of the company’s median employee. Continue reading...
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Wessex Water chief pockets above-inflation pay rise despite bonus ban over sewage spills. Ruth Jefferson received a 14% base salary increase in October, from £590,000 to £670,000, before other benefits, according to accounts published this month. It was far above the 3.5% given to workers, and put her pay at 18 times that of the company’s median employee.
TL;DR:
CEO’s pay packet surges to £791,000 as union says public ‘sick of obscene pay’ and bosses ‘feathering own nests’ Wessex Water awarded its chief executive an above-inflation pay increase even as the company was banned from paying bonuses because of sewage spills, it has emerged.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 06:58
London Underground users should know about toxic dust risk, whistleblower says
Former tube network cleaner says tribunal vindicated his health concerns, including about asbestos, that could affect public A London Underground worker who was unfairly sacked after whistleblowing about his concerns over exposure to asbestos and other toxic dust has said he wants all tube passengers to know about the potential hazards his case has revealed. Micky Steeds, a former professional boxer from Aveley in Essex, started working for London Underground in 2018 cleaning up decades of dust from vents, lift shafts and inverts – confined channels underneath station platforms for cabling. Continue reading...
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Former tube network cleaner says tribunal vindicated his health concerns, including about asbestos, that could affect public A London Underground worker who was unfairly sacked after whistleblowing about his concerns over exposure to asbestos and other toxic dust has said he wants all tube passengers to know about the potential hazards his case has revealed.
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Former tube network cleaner says tribunal vindicated his health concerns, including about asbestos, that could affect public A London Underground worker who was unfairly sacked after whistleblowing about his concerns over exposure to asbestos and other toxic dust has said he wants all tube passengers to know about the potential hazards his case has revealed.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 06:00
Farage’s furious clash with Times editor stuns figures close to him
‘Strong confrontation’ comes at fragile moment for Reform’s relations with rightwing media as coverage turns negative Nigel Farage is no stranger to expressing his ire at what he regards as the liberal establishment, but even figures close to him were surprised at the tirade of anger he unleashed upon the editor of the Times. The exchange, which is said to have included an expletive aimed at Tony Gallagher, was triggered by the Reform UK leader’s outrage that the paper was planning to run a story about his houses, which he said endangered his family. Continue reading...
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‘Strong confrontation’ comes at fragile moment for Reform’s relations with rightwing media as coverage turns negative Nigel Farage is no stranger to expressing his ire at what he regards as the liberal establishment, but even figures close to him were surprised at the tirade of anger he unleashed upon the editor of the Times.
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‘Strong confrontation’ comes at fragile moment for Reform’s relations with rightwing media as coverage turns negative Nigel Farage is no stranger to expressing his ire at what he regards as the liberal establishment, but even figures close to him were surprised at the tirade of anger he unleashed upon the editor of the Times.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 06:00
Israeli ministers announce plan for new illegal settlements in Gaza and West Bank
Netanyahu coalition seeks to extend control with ‘Nahal’ outposts in Gaza and over $400m in West Bank funding Israel’s defence and finance ministers announced plans for three illegal settlements in Gaza and more than $400m (£300m) in funding to expand construction in the occupied West Bank, as Israel’s military commander for the region celebrated violent outposts as his “security partners”. With national elections scheduled for 27 October, Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition is racing to expand control of land in occupied Palestine and drive out Palestinians before its mandate expires. Continue reading...
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Netanyahu coalition seeks to extend control with ‘Nahal’ outposts in Gaza and over $400m in West Bank funding Israel’s defence and finance ministers announced plans for three illegal settlements in Gaza and more than $400m (£300m) in funding to expand construction in the occupied West Bank, as Israel’s military commander for the region celebrated violent outposts as his “secur…
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Netanyahu coalition seeks to extend control with ‘Nahal’ outposts in Gaza and over $400m in West Bank funding Israel’s defence and finance ministers announced plans for three illegal settlements in Gaza and more than $400m (£300m) in funding to expand construction in the occupied West Bank, as Israel’s military commander for the region celebrated violent outposts as his “security partners”.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 04:00
‘We are preserving a tradition’: how Ghana’s sensationalist film posters became collectible art
Hand-painted works are often wildly unfaithful to the movies they portray – reinterpretations that sometimes resulted in threats, insults and even physical attacks from viewers who felt duped Sitting on his porch in Teshie near Accra, Heavy J dipped a brush into red oil paint and dabbed it carefully on to his canvas – a flour sack – adding blood to a knife being wielded by a man. Higher on the canvas, he had started on an outline of a skull. Heavy J was creating a poster, but not as you might have expected for a horror film. Instead, it was for the animated fairytale The Little Mermaid. The man with the knife wasn’t a killer but the film’s kind-hearted prince, Eric. The skull was also unrelated to the story. “We add more to make people interested,” said Heavy J, whose real name is Jeaurs Affutu. Continue reading...
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‘We are preserving a tradition’: how Ghana’s sensationalist film posters became collectible art. Heavy J was creating a poster, but not as you might have expected for a horror film. “We add more to make people interested,” said Heavy J, whose real name is Jeaurs Affutu.
TL;DR:
Hand-painted works are often wildly unfaithful to the movies they portray – reinterpretations that sometimes resulted in threats, insults and even physical attacks from viewers who felt duped Sitting on his porch in Teshie near Accra, Heavy J dipped a brush into red oil paint and dabbed it carefully on to his canvas – a flour sack – adding blood to a knife being wielded by a man.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 02:18
Memphis rallies for progressive Democrat after four fatal shootings by taskforce: ‘Fight of our lives’
Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley join rally to support Justin Pearson’s bid for a seat in Congress More than a thousand people rallied for Justin Pearson, a Democratic state representative running for Congress, in the wake of four fatal shootings by members of the Memphis Safe Task Force over the last two months. Crowds packed New Direction Christian Church in the city’s Hickory Hill neighborhood in support of Pearson, who is running in the now-fractured ninth congressional district’s Democratic primary. Continue reading...
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Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley join rally to support Justin Pearson’s bid for a seat in Congress More than a thousand people rallied for Justin Pearson, a Democratic state representative running for Congress, in the wake of four fatal shootings by members of the Memphis Safe Task Force over the last two months.
TL;DR:
Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley join rally to support Justin Pearson’s bid for a seat in Congress More than a thousand people rallied for Justin Pearson, a Democratic state representative running for Congress, in the wake of four fatal shootings by members of the Memphis Safe Task Force over the last two months.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 00:39
San Francisco police find wreckage of boat that sank as body identified
Tondra Madruga named as second victim in deadly capsizing as police continue search for two missing people Police on Friday discovered the wreckage of a boat that sank this week in the San Francisco Bay after recovering the body of a missing person the day before. The body was identified as Tondra Madruga, 58, also known as Tondra Miller, the San Francisco medical examiner said. She was one of three people missing after the Volare, a 49ft (15m) cabin cruiser, sank on Wednesday afternoon with 20 people onboard after being hit by a wave and capsizing. The group was on the boat to scatter the ashes of a loved one. Continue reading...
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San Francisco police find wreckage of boat that sank as body identified. The body was identified as Tondra Madruga, 58, also known as Tondra Miller, the San Francisco medical examiner said. She was one of three people missing after the Volare, a 49ft (15m) cabin cruiser, sank on Wednesday afternoon with 20 people onboard after being hit by a wave and capsizing.
TL;DR:
Tondra Madruga named as second victim in deadly capsizing as police continue search for two missing people Police on Friday discovered the wreckage of a boat that sank this week in the San Francisco Bay after recovering the body of a missing person the day before.
Theguardian
Jul 18, 00:12
Paul Pelosi faces hit-and-run charge after he allegedly crashed into parked vehicle
Husband of Nancy Pelosi has traffic infractions in California stretching back at least to 2011, according to public records Paul Pelosi, husband of US congresswoman and former House speaker Nancy Pelosi, is facing a misdemeanor hit-and-run charge after he allegedly crashed into a parked vehicle and left the scene in early July, the Napa county district attorney announced on Friday. No passengers were in the struck car, authorities said, but the vehicle was left with “major” damage. A spokesperson for the Pelosi family told several outlets in a statement that Paul Pelosi apologized to the owner of the vehicle and was assuming responsibility for the damage. Continue reading...
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Paul Pelosi faces hit-and-run charge after he allegedly crashed into parked vehicle. No passengers were in the struck car, authorities said, but the vehicle was left with “major” damage. A spokesperson for the Pelosi family told several outlets in a statement that Paul Pelosi apologized to the owner of the vehicle and was assuming responsibility for the damage.
TL;DR:
Husband of Nancy Pelosi has traffic infractions in California stretching back at least to 2011, according to public records Paul Pelosi, husband of US congresswoman and former House speaker Nancy Pelosi, is facing a misdemeanor hit-and-run charge after he allegedly crashed into a parked vehicle and left the scene in early July, the Napa county district attorney announced on Friday.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 23:40
One person dies amid legionnaires’ disease outbreak in New York City
Officials haven’t released additional information about the person’s identity, age or details on when and how they fell ill A legionnaires’ disease outbreak that has sickened dozens of people in New York City has claimed its first life, health officials said Friday. Officials didn’t release additional information about the person’s identity, age or details on when and how they fell ill. Continue reading...
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Officials didn’t release additional information about the person’s identity, age or details on when and how they fell ill.
TL;DR:
Officials haven’t released additional information about the person’s identity, age or details on when and how they fell ill A legionnaires’ disease outbreak that has sickened dozens of people in New York City has claimed its first life, health officials said Friday.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 22:51
Democrats call for investigation into ICE officer shooting in Maine after new reports emerge
Lawmakers press for review of hiring practices amid a spate of ICE-related deaths within the same week Democratic lawmakers are pressing for a review of Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) hiring practices and continuing calls for an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the killing of an immigrant in Maine by one of the agency’s officers after news media reported allegations of past violent and threatening behavior by the officer, according to his family members. The Associated Press , the Portland Press Herald and National Public Radio ( NPR ) all identified the officer in question as David Brouillette, information that the publications attributed to his family. The outlets also reported allegations that Brouillette had a history of mental health issues and had purportedly subjected his ex-wife to violent, threatening behavior. Continue reading...
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Democrats call for investigation into ICE officer shooting in Maine after new reports emerge. The Associated Press , the Portland Press Herald and National Public Radio ( NPR ) all identified the officer in question as David Brouillette, information that the publications attributed to his family.
TL;DR:
Lawmakers press for review of hiring practices amid a spate of ICE-related deaths within the same week Democratic lawmakers are pressing for a review of Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) hiring practices and continuing calls for an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the killing of an immigrant in Maine by one of the agency’s officers after news media reported allegations of past violent and threatening behavior by the officer, according to his family members.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 22:32
Republicans threaten Canada with sanctions over drifting wildfire smoke
Fires are also blazing across the US and the Trump administration has repealed several climate protections US Republicans are threatening to sanction Canada and Canadian government officials after smoke from devastating wildfires has drifted across huge swathes of the US, creating hazy conditions and dangerous air quality for tens of millions of Americans. Donald Trump on Friday blamed his country’s northern neighbor for the smoke spreading from wildfires and said he planned to call Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, to ask about Ottawa’s plans for dealing with the blazes. Continue reading...
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Fires are also blazing across the US and the Trump administration has repealed several climate protections US Republicans are threatening to sanction Canada and Canadian government officials after smoke from devastating wildfires has drifted across huge swathes of the US, creating hazy conditions and dangerous air quality for tens of millions of Americans.
TL;DR:
Fires are also blazing across the US and the Trump administration has repealed several climate protections US Republicans are threatening to sanction Canada and Canadian government officials after smoke from devastating wildfires has drifted across huge swathes of the US, creating hazy conditions and dangerous air quality for tens of millions of Americans.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 22:28
Cuban dissident artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara cleared to travel to US
Whereabouts of artist imprisoned after 2021 protests had remained unknown after his prison sentence ended Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, a prominent Cuban dissident artist whose whereabouts remained unknown after his prison sentence ended last week, has been given permission to travel to the US, according to his official Facebook page. Otero Alcántara, designated a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International, was sentenced to five years in prison in 2022 for insulting national symbols, contempt and disturbing the public order. Continue reading...
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Whereabouts of artist imprisoned after 2021 protests had remained unknown after his prison sentence ended Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, a prominent Cuban dissident artist whose whereabouts remained unknown after his prison sentence ended last week, has been given permission to travel to the US, according to his official Facebook page.
TL;DR:
Whereabouts of artist imprisoned after 2021 protests had remained unknown after his prison sentence ended Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, a prominent Cuban dissident artist whose whereabouts remained unknown after his prison sentence ended last week, has been given permission to travel to the US, according to his official Facebook page.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 22:11
Off-duty Colorado ICE employee arrested for shooting and injuring protester
Woman has non-life threatening injuries after Brandon Booth fired at her with his pistol in front of ICE facility and drove off An employee of a company that runs an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Colorado is under arrest after shooting and injuring a woman on Thursday evening. The incident happened after the woman participated in a protest in front of the facility earlier that day, according to the Aurora police department. When officers arrived on the scene, they said they found the woman with a gunshot wound in her lower body. She had a friend with her, who was unharmed. Continue reading...
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Off-duty Colorado ICE employee arrested for shooting and injuring protester. Woman has non-life threatening injuries after Brandon Booth fired at her with his pistol in front of ICE facility and drove off An employee of a company that runs an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Colorado is under arrest after shooting and injuring a woman on Thursday evening.
TL;DR:
The incident happened after the woman participated in a protest in front of the facility earlier that day, according to the Aurora police department.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 21:43
Kidnapped US Forest Service employees released after more than 12 hours, say authorities
Two men arrested after taking federal employees hostage in Shasta-Trinity national forest Two US Forest Service employees were released early Friday morning after being held hostage for more than 12 hours, authorities in far northern California said. Law enforcement arrested two men for the alleged kidnapping near Gumboot Lake in Shasta-Trinity national forest, Jeremiah LaRue, the Siskiyou county sheriff, told reporters on Friday afternoon. Continue reading...
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Two men arrested after taking federal employees hostage in Shasta-Trinity national forest Two US Forest Service employees were released early Friday morning after being held hostage for more than 12 hours, authorities in far northern California said.
TL;DR:
Two men arrested after taking federal employees hostage in Shasta-Trinity national forest Two US Forest Service employees were released early Friday morning after being held hostage for more than 12 hours, authorities in far northern California said.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 21:36
Distillery owner could face only three months in jail over alleged poisoning Australian teenagers
Fears of light charges in case of Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles and four other travellers confirmed by Laos court The distillery owner linked to the deaths of Australian backpackers Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles could serve just three months in jail after a court in Laos announced charges over the case. The teenagers, who were both 19, were travelling through south-east Asia when they were fatally poisoned with methanol while drinking at Nana backpackers hostel in Vang Vieng. Continue reading...
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Fears of light charges in case of Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles and four other travellers confirmed by Laos court The distillery owner linked to the deaths of Australian backpackers Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles could serve just three months in jail after a court in Laos announced charges over the case.
TL;DR:
Fears of light charges in case of Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles and four other travellers confirmed by Laos court The distillery owner linked to the deaths of Australian backpackers Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles could serve just three months in jail after a court in Laos announced charges over the case.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 20:52
US launches seventh night of Iran strikes as Hormuz conflict escalates
US Central Command says attacks designed to ‘continue degrading Iranian military capabilities’ The US military said it had launched a seventh consecutive night of strikes on Iran on Friday night as fighting escalated over the strait of Hormuz. US Central Command, in a post on X, said the strikes, which began at 7pm GMT, were designed to “continue degrading Iranian military capabilities”. Continue reading...
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US Central Command says attacks designed to ‘continue degrading Iranian military capabilities’ The US military said it had launched a seventh consecutive night of strikes on Iran on Friday night as fighting escalated over the strait of Hormuz.
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US Central Command says attacks designed to ‘continue degrading Iranian military capabilities’ The US military said it had launched a seventh consecutive night of strikes on Iran on Friday night as fighting escalated over the strait of Hormuz.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 20:42
‘Run, Darline, run!’: Trump endorses Lindsey Graham’s sister for full Senate term
Sister of the South Carolina senator who died last Saturday has not previously held any elected office Donald Trump on Friday said he had encouraged Darline Graham to run for a full six-year term representing South Carolina in the US Senate , after she was sworn in to office earlier this week following the sudden death of her brother, Lindsey Graham. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he spoken to Darline Graham at the White House. “I asked Darline, for the Good of our Nation, to run for the U.S. Senate in the Special Republican Primary,” he wrote. Continue reading...
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‘Run, Darline, run!’: Trump endorses Lindsey Graham’s sister for full Senate term. Sister of the South Carolina senator who died last Saturday has not previously held any elected office Donald Trump on Friday said he had encouraged Darline Graham to run for a full six-year term representing South Carolina in the US Senate , after she was sworn in to office earlier this week fo…
TL;DR:
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he spoken to Darline Graham at the White House.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 20:04
Five claims Trump made in primetime address not backed up by evidence
US president offered litany of misleading and false claims during Thursday speech on alleged threats to US elections Donald Trump offered a litany of misleading and false claims during his Thursday speech on threats to US elections, and released previously classified documents to try to support his specious claims. In some cases, his claims were not supported by those documents. Here is a look at some of the key claims that could mislead the American public. Continue reading...
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Five claims Trump made in primetime address not backed up by evidence. In some cases, his claims were not supported by those documents. Here is a look at some of the key claims that could mislead the American public.
TL;DR:
US president offered litany of misleading and false claims during Thursday speech on alleged threats to US elections Donald Trump offered a litany of misleading and false claims during his Thursday speech on threats to US elections, and released previously classified documents to try to support his specious claims.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 18:40
The Battle for Borsch
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This is an updated take on the hair art of the ancient Ukrainian Cossacks, a nomadic warrior people central to Ukrainian identity. This is an updated take on the hair art of the ancient Ukrainian Cossacks, a nomadic warrior people central to Ukrainian identity.
TL;DR:
Ukraine is using the beet-based soup to fortify national identity in the face of Russian aggression.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 18:35
The Soccer Surveillance State
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On June 13, nearly 70,000 fans flocked to San Francisco Bay Area Stadium for the first of six FIFA World Cup matches to be played in the arena. But security preparations started hours earlier, when the stadium’s network of cameras, sensors, and scanners came online.
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How the United States used the World Cup as a testing ground for policing technologies.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 18:32
Jeffrey Donaldson to appeal against conviction for child sexual offences
Former Democratic Unionist party leader’s legal team has lodged documents with the court of appeal in Belfast Jeffrey Donaldson is to appeal against his conviction for rape and other sexual offences against two children. The former Democratic Unionist party (DUP) leader’s legal team lodged documents with the court of appeal in Belfast on Friday, his solicitor, John McBurney, said. Continue reading...
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Former Democratic Unionist party leader’s legal team has lodged documents with the court of appeal in Belfast Jeffrey Donaldson is to appeal against his conviction for rape and other sexual offences against two children.
TL;DR:
Former Democratic Unionist party leader’s legal team has lodged documents with the court of appeal in Belfast Jeffrey Donaldson is to appeal against his conviction for rape and other sexual offences against two children.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 18:05
Nigel Farage says questions over his finances are part of ‘coordinated pile-on’
Reform leader says he’s been ‘demonised’ since revelation he received £5m from billionaire before election Nigel Farage has accused people raising questions about his financial backing of “demonising” him as part of a “coordinated pile-on” to stop Reform UK. In one of his first speeches since the opening of two parliamentary standards inquiries into his financial support, the Reform UK leader said he had been “dehumanised in the most extraordinary way” in recent months, after the Guardian revealed in April that he had received a £5m gift from the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne before the last election. Continue reading...
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Reform leader says he’s been ‘demonised’ since revelation he received £5m from billionaire before election Nigel Farage has accused people raising questions about his financial backing of “demonising” him as part of a “coordinated pile-on” to stop Reform UK.
TL;DR:
Reform leader says he’s been ‘demonised’ since revelation he received £5m from billionaire before election Nigel Farage has accused people raising questions about his financial backing of “demonising” him as part of a “coordinated pile-on” to stop Reform UK.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 18:00
Inside the Race to Protect Ukrainian
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Even if you aren’t Ukrainian, it is still likely that you took part in a small language revolution after the invasion of Ukraine. A lot of us altered our pronunciation and spelling of the Ukrainian capital city, Kyiv, following Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb.
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Kyiv’s language revitalization program seeks to save Ukrainians’ mother tongue through complex state law.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 17:20
Feline good: why kitten heel flip-flops are winning over flats-only gen Z
From Lily Collins at Wimbledon to cast of Love Island, heels-averse cohort is stepping it up a notch Gen Z, the flats-only generation, has finally succumbed to the heel – albeit a tiny one. Long vocally anti-heel, the cohort who were born between 1997 and 2012 have famously shunned millennials’ obsession with Jimmy Choos in favour of pancake-flat shoes, from the “It-trainer”, Adidas Sambas , to split-toe Margiela Tabi’s and so-called “French girl ballet flats” . But they now appear to be embracing a potential gateway heel, typically measuring in the region of 1.5in or the height of a triple-A battery. Continue reading...
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Feline good: why kitten heel flip-flops are winning over flats-only gen Z. Long vocally anti-heel, the cohort who were born between 1997 and 2012 have famously shunned millennials’ obsession with Jimmy Choos in favour of pancake-flat shoes, from the “It-trainer”, Adidas Sambas , to split-toe Margiela Tabi’s and so-called “French girl ballet flats” .
TL;DR:
From Lily Collins at Wimbledon to cast of Love Island, heels-averse cohort is stepping it up a notch Gen Z, the flats-only generation, has finally succumbed to the heel – albeit a tiny one.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 17:12
DHS secretary doubles down on Trump’s baseless 2020 election claims
Markwayne Mullin at presser repeated many of Trump’s unverified claims from controversial primetime speech The US homeland security secretary, Markwayne Mullin, doubled down on Donald Trump’s unsubstantiated election claims on Friday amid his agency’s efforts to support the president’s agenda. Trump used a memo compiled by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as the basis of many of his unsubstantiated claims on Thursday during his televised primetime address to the nation. Continue reading...
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Markwayne Mullin at presser repeated many of Trump’s unverified claims from controversial primetime speech The US homeland security secretary, Markwayne Mullin, doubled down on Donald Trump’s unsubstantiated election claims on Friday amid his agency’s efforts to support the president’s agenda.
TL;DR:
Markwayne Mullin at presser repeated many of Trump’s unverified claims from controversial primetime speech The US homeland security secretary, Markwayne Mullin, doubled down on Donald Trump’s unsubstantiated election claims on Friday amid his agency’s efforts to support the president’s agenda.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 17:03
What in the World?
Test yourself on the week of July 11: China introduces AI regulations, Trump briefly imposes a toll on Hormuz, and Congo’s Ebola outbreak spreads.
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Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . President Donald Trump on Monday said he was reimposing the blockade on Iran and would charge ships for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz. The rise was attributed to energy shocks caused by the Iran war and what other factor?
TL;DR:
Test yourself on the week of July 11: China introduces AI regulations, Trump briefly imposes a toll on Hormuz, and Congo’s Ebola outbreak spreads.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 16:56
Lauren Laverne reveals blood and bone marrow disorder diagnosis
Radio and TV presenter, who recovered from cancer in 2024, announces she has smouldering myeloma Lauren Laverne has announced she has been diagnosed with a blood and bone marrow disorder, less than two years after recovering from cancer. The radio and TV presenter revealed she has smouldering myeloma, a condition characterised by an abnormal level of blood plasma cells in bone marrow, and said she made her diagnosis public out of a desire to help others. In August 2024, she announced she had been diagnosed with cancer, and received the all-clear three months later. Continue reading...
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Lauren Laverne reveals blood and bone marrow disorder diagnosis. The radio and TV presenter revealed she has smouldering myeloma, a condition characterised by an abnormal level of blood plasma cells in bone marrow, and said she made her diagnosis public out of a desire to help others.
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Radio and TV presenter, who recovered from cancer in 2024, announces she has smouldering myeloma Lauren Laverne has announced she has been diagnosed with a blood and bone marrow disorder, less than two years after recovering from cancer.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 16:37
Conservative MP Patrick Spencer cleared of sexual assault
MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich found not guilty after incident at Groucho Club in London in 2023 A Conservative MP has been cleared of sexually assaulting two women at the Groucho Club in London after claiming that he just wanted to give them a hug. Patrick Spencer was seen on camera coming up behind two women and putting his arms around them at the private members’ club during a night out in August 2023, less than a year before he was elected to the seat of Central Suffolk and North Ipswich. Continue reading...
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MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich found not guilty after incident at Groucho Club in London in 2023 A Conservative MP has been cleared of sexually assaulting two women at the Groucho Club in London after claiming that he just wanted to give them a hug.
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MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich found not guilty after incident at Groucho Club in London in 2023 A Conservative MP has been cleared of sexually assaulting two women at the Groucho Club in London after claiming that he just wanted to give them a hug.
Warontherocks
Jul 17, 16:30
The Fedorov Dismissal: On Trust, Technology, and Turnover
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary from across the political spectrum.Every Monday, War on the Rocks members get a curated selection of op-eds and editorials from Ukrainian-language media to understand how Ukrainians themselves debate the biggest issues shaping their country. Western coverage of Ukraine often narrows to the battlefield; these pieces widen the view to daily life, politics, and public argument in a nation at war.A typical edition provides roughly a dozen pieces sorted into five categories: Frontline and Strategy, Allies and Diplomacy, Domestic Politics, Economy, and Society and Culture — closing with detailed Editor’s The post The Fedorov Dismissal: On Trust, Technology, and Turnover appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary from across the political spectrum.Every Monday, War on the Rocks members get a curated selection of op-eds and editorials from Ukrainian-language media to understand how Ukrainians themselves debate the biggest issues shaping their country.
TL;DR:
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary from across the political spectrum.Every Monday, War on the Rocks members get a curated selection of op-eds and editorials from Ukrainian-language media to understand how Ukrainians themselves debate the biggest issues shaping their country.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 16:30
‘Master yachtsman’ who fled 2005 trial for sexual assault arrested off US coast
Ronald Fischer, 70, was sentenced to life in his absence after telling lawyer he planned to ‘enjoy life in another country’ A “master yachtsman” who went on the run for more than two decades after fleeing a sexual assault trial in Rhode Island which resulted in his conviction despite his absence was captured on Thursday on a sailboat off New Jersey’s coast, according to authorities. Ronald L Fischer, 70, had been considered one of Rhode Island’s most wanted fugitives before his arrest, state police officials said in a statement on social media. And his case had been mentioned repeatedly over the years on the true-crime television program America’s Most Wanted. Continue reading...
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‘Master yachtsman’ who fled 2005 trial for sexual assault arrested off US coast. Ronald Fischer, 70, was sentenced to life in his absence after telling lawyer he planned to ‘enjoy life in another country’ A “master yachtsman” who went on the run for more than two decades after fleeing a sexual assault trial in Rhode Island which resulted in his conviction despite his absence w…
TL;DR:
Ronald L Fischer, 70, had been considered one of Rhode Island’s most wanted fugitives before his arrest, state police officials said in a statement on social media.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 16:27
Meta trying to destroy whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams, US senator says
Republican Josh Hawley accuses Mark Zuckerberg’s firm of relentlessly pursuing and attempting to bankrupt her A US senator has accused Meta of using lawfare in “efforts to destroy” a whistleblower who made allegations about the social media company’s dealings with China and its treatment of teenagers. In a letter to its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, the Republican senator Josh Hawley demanded to know what measures Meta had taken to monitor Sarah Wynn-Williams, Facebook’s former global head of public policy, and her family. Continue reading...
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Republican Josh Hawley accuses Mark Zuckerberg’s firm of relentlessly pursuing and attempting to bankrupt her A US senator has accused Meta of using lawfare in “efforts to destroy” a whistleblower who made allegations about the social media company’s dealings with China and its treatment of teenagers.
TL;DR:
Republican Josh Hawley accuses Mark Zuckerberg’s firm of relentlessly pursuing and attempting to bankrupt her A US senator has accused Meta of using lawfare in “efforts to destroy” a whistleblower who made allegations about the social media company’s dealings with China and its treatment of teenagers.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 16:17
The U.S. and Iran Signed a Memorandum of Misunderstanding
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The White House blew up the Hormuz cease-fire agreement because it didn’t understand—or didn’t care—what it had agreed to. Even if never brought before any judicial body, the signed text of an agreement is the only way to establish exactly what the parties actually agreed to.
TL;DR:
Detail and care matter in peacemaking, but not to this White House.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 16:14
Does Cuba Really Have Iranian Drones?
Experts say Trump is laying the pretext for U.S. military action against the island.
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Does Cuba Really Have Iranian Drones?. Experts say Trump is laying the pretext for U.S. military action against the island.
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Experts say Trump is laying the pretext for U.S.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 16:06
Israeli strike on Gaza funeral killed at least seven people, hospital says
Another 22 reportedly wounded while mourning Palestinian killed in Israeli attack earlier the same day An Israeli strike on a funeral in the Gaza Strip has killed at least seven people and wounded another 22, according to a local hospital. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Continue reading...
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Another 22 reportedly wounded while mourning Palestinian killed in Israeli attack earlier the same day An Israeli strike on a funeral in the Gaza Strip has killed at least seven people and wounded another 22, according to a local hospital. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Continue reading...
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Another 22 reportedly wounded while mourning Palestinian killed in Israeli attack earlier the same day An Israeli strike on a funeral in the Gaza Strip has killed at least seven people and wounded another 22, according to a local hospital.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 15:49
Intercity rail passengers face summer disruption amid slashed services and strike votes
East Midlands Railway cancels trains on Midland mainline, as drivers on LNER and Avanti West Coast ballot Intercity rail travellers face potential disruption this summer across Great Britain’s three north-south mainlines, with drivers voting on strike action on two lines and timetables slashed on the other owing to malfunctioning trains. East Midlands Railway announced it will cancel hundreds of services in the coming weeks from its intercity timetable on the Midland mainline, because of continued problems with its fleet of Hitachi trains. Continue reading...
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East Midlands Railway cancels trains on Midland mainline, as drivers on LNER and Avanti West Coast ballot Intercity rail travellers face potential disruption this summer across Great Britain’s three north-south mainlines, with drivers voting on strike action on two lines and timetables slashed on the other owing to malfunctioning trains.
TL;DR:
East Midlands Railway cancels trains on Midland mainline, as drivers on LNER and Avanti West Coast ballot Intercity rail travellers face potential disruption this summer across Great Britain’s three north-south mainlines, with drivers voting on strike action on two lines and timetables slashed on the other owing to malfunctioning trains.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 15:43
Trump administration to grant $12m to groups founded by UK conservatives Jacob Rees-Mogg and Toby Young
Exclusive: Grants are part of controversial package criticised as misuse of public money to influence European politics Donald Trump’s state department intends to allocate $12m to organisations in the UK founded by the prominent Conservatives Jacob Rees-Mogg and Toby Young, the Guardian can reveal. The intended grants, revealed in US government documents, are part of a package of support for European groups viewed favourably by the Trump administration. Some former US officials have criticised the funding as a misuse of public money to seek influence over foreign politics. Continue reading...
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Trump administration to grant $12m to groups founded by UK conservatives Jacob Rees-Mogg and Toby Young. Exclusive: Grants are part of controversial package criticised as misuse of public money to influence European politics Donald Trump’s state department intends to allocate $12m to organisations in the UK founded by the prominent Conservatives Jacob Rees-Mogg and Toby Young,…
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Some former US officials have criticised the funding as a misuse of public money to seek influence over foreign politics.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 15:13
Amazon Web Services customers receive bills for up $1.5tn after global glitch
One UK man whose bill is usually less than £1 says he ‘almost had a heart attack’ when he saw £5.8bn invoice People always suspected big tech was greedy, but not quite like this. Patrons of Amazon Web Services have been landed with panic-inducing monthly bills running as high as $1.5tn for subscriptions that usually cost less than the price of a cup of coffee. From Bangalore to Bolsover the bills have been causing alarm after a computer glitch resulted in the astronomical invoices being dispatched around the world by Jeff Bezos’s company, which provides data and cloud services to millions of customers, from students and small charities to major business. Continue reading...
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Amazon Web Services customers receive bills for up $1.5tn after global glitch. Patrons of Amazon Web Services have been landed with panic-inducing monthly bills running as high as $1.5tn for subscriptions that usually cost less than the price of a cup of coffee.
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One UK man whose bill is usually less than £1 says he ‘almost had a heart attack’ when he saw £5.8bn invoice People always suspected big tech was greedy, but not quite like this.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 15:00
Robodebt whistleblower was told her royal commission evidence ‘could cost you your job’, court hears
Exclusive: Jeannie-Marie Blake is suing the Australian government over alleged threats, which her department denies making Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A key robodebt whistleblower is suing the Australian government, alleging she was threatened before she appeared at a royal commission and was warned that her testimony “could cost you your job”. Services Australia whistleblower Jeannie-Marie Blake has filed proceedings in the federal court, alleging her department made repeated threats against her before and after her explosive evidence to the robodebt royal commission. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Jeannie-Marie Blake is suing the Australian government over alleged threats, which her department denies making Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A key robodebt whistleblower is suing the Australian government, alleging she was threatened before she appeared at a royal commission and was warned that her testimony “could cost you your job”.
TL;DR:
Exclusive: Jeannie-Marie Blake is suing the Australian government over alleged threats, which her department denies making Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A key robodebt whistleblower is suing the Australian government, alleging she was threatened before she appeared at a royal commission and was warned that her testimony “could cost you your job”.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 15:00
Peter Falconio murder: British expert says he has identified a ‘most likely’ burial location
UK police adviser in the early 2000s and global consultant in ‘no-body’ homicide cases says he has narrowed down the outback search area • Peter Falconio murder 25 years on: new footage shows dying Australian outback killer’s refusal to reveal body’s location The former British government expert who consulted on the search for the remains of the murdered backpacker Peter Falconio says he has now identified a “most likely” potential burial location – an abandoned racetrack only 8km from the scene of the infamous outback attack at Barrow Creek. In July 2001, Falconio and his partner, Joanne Lees, both from Yorkshire, were ambushed and attacked by Bradley John Murdoch as they drove along a remote stretch of road in Australia’s Northern Territory, about 300km north of Alice Springs. Continue reading...
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UK police adviser in the early 2000s and global consultant in ‘no-body’ homicide cases says he has narrowed down the outback search area • Peter Falconio murder 25 years on: new footage shows dying Australian outback killer’s refusal to reveal body’s location The former British government expert who consulted on the search for the remains of the murdered backpacker Peter Falco…
TL;DR:
UK police adviser in the early 2000s and global consultant in ‘no-body’ homicide cases says he has narrowed down the outback search area • Peter Falconio murder 25 years on: new footage shows dying Australian outback killer’s refusal to reveal body’s location The former British government expert who consulted on the search for the remains of the murdered backpacker Peter Falconio says he has now identified a “most likely” potential burial location – an abandoned racetrack only 8km from the scene of the infamous outback attack at Barrow Creek.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 15:00
Ribena owner invests in helping blackcurrants withstand extreme weather
The £200,000 move comes after harvests in Britain hit by wet winter, spring frost and hail, then heatwaves The owner of Ribena is to invest £200,000 in helping blackcurrant bushes withstand stress after extreme weather put a squeeze on this year’s UK harvest. That harvest is now under way in the berry’s main growing regions including East Anglia, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Kent and Scotland. It is expected to be about 10% below the average of 10,000 tonnes, as the climate crisis drives extreme weather across Britain and elsewhere. Continue reading...
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Ribena owner invests in helping blackcurrants withstand extreme weather. The £200,000 move comes after harvests in Britain hit by wet winter, spring frost and hail, then heatwaves The owner of Ribena is to invest £200,000 in helping blackcurrant bushes withstand stress after extreme weather put a squeeze on this year’s UK harvest.
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It is expected to be about 10% below the average of 10,000 tonnes, as the climate crisis drives extreme weather across Britain and elsewhere.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:56
Southern Water fined £7m after illegally dumping sewage off Kent coast
Firm pleaded guilty to 13 offences over discharges at Margate and Broadstairs wastewater pumping stations Southern Water has been fined more than £7m after dumping sewage illegally off the Kent coast between 2019 and 2021. The company, described by the judge as having a “record of criminality” which is “an exceptionally serious aggravating factor”, pleaded guilty to 13 offences at Medway magistrates court last April over sewage discharges at Margate and Broadstairs wastewater pumping stations between 2019 and 2021. Continue reading...
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Firm pleaded guilty to 13 offences over discharges at Margate and Broadstairs wastewater pumping stations Southern Water has been fined more than £7m after dumping sewage illegally off the Kent coast between 2019 and 2021.
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Firm pleaded guilty to 13 offences over discharges at Margate and Broadstairs wastewater pumping stations Southern Water has been fined more than £7m after dumping sewage illegally off the Kent coast between 2019 and 2021.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:52
Iran proves it can still inflict damage despite waves of US attacks
Leaked US intelligence report concluded Iran retained 70% of missiles and launchers after 38-day spring campaign Iran and the US have been trading blows for six consecutive nights and there are no shortage of signs that the renewed fighting will worsen further. Tehran and Washington remain far apart diplomatically , and though the US retains a significant military overmatch, Iran has more than enough capability to inflict damage. Friday’s developments are a case in point. A wave of US attacks , with missiles launched from jets, drones and warships, targeted Iranian ports and the south of the country, collapsing a tower at Chabahar, on the Gulf of Oman, and highways and bridges into the key Hormuz port of Bandar Abbas, perhaps in an effort to cut it off. Continue reading...
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Iran proves it can still inflict damage despite waves of US attacks. Tehran and Washington remain far apart diplomatically , and though the US retains a significant military overmatch, Iran has more than enough capability to inflict damage.
TL;DR:
Leaked US intelligence report concluded Iran retained 70% of missiles and launchers after 38-day spring campaign Iran and the US have been trading blows for six consecutive nights and there are no shortage of signs that the renewed fighting will worsen further.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:48
Brenda Fricker, Oscar winner for My Left Foot, dies aged 81
The acclaimed Irish actor started her career in Coronation Street and Casualty before a string of high-profile Hollywood roles Brenda Fricker, who became the first female Irish Oscar winner for acting with My Left Foot, has died aged 81. Her agent Phil Belfield told the BBC in a statement : “We will never see her like again and the world is lesser for the lack of her … I was honoured to know, love and work with her and she will always have a place in my heart and in the heart of so many film and TV fans the world over.” In My Left Foot, Fricker plays the mother of Christy Brown, whose cerebral palsy means he only has muscular control over one of his feet. The film, directed by Jim Sheridan, was released to enormous acclaim in 1989, winning the best actor Oscar for Daniel Day-Lewis as well as best supporting actress for Fricker. Continue reading...
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Brenda Fricker, Oscar winner for My Left Foot, dies aged 81. Her agent Phil Belfield told the BBC in a statement : “We will never see her like again and the world is lesser for the lack of her … I was honoured to know, love and work with her and she will always have a place in my heart and in the heart of so many film and TV fans the world over.
TL;DR:
The acclaimed Irish actor started her career in Coronation Street and Casualty before a string of high-profile Hollywood roles Brenda Fricker, who became the first female Irish Oscar winner for acting with My Left Foot, has died aged 81.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:36
Trump speech lays groundwork for him to tamper with midterm results, critics warn
Democrats and advocates sound alarm at Trump rehashing false claims about 2020 election in his primetime address Democrats and voting rights groups say Donald Trump’s primetime speech making unverified claims of Chinese interference in the 2020 election are the clearest sign yet that the president is laying the groundwork to tamper with the results of November’s midterms. The upcoming elections to decide the balance of power in Congress and many state legislatures will be a major test of Trump’s appeal to voters two years after he resoundingly beat the Democratic candidate Kamala Harris to return to the White House. With polls showing that the president is disliked by majorities of voters and his Republican allies are at risk of losing their control of the House of Representatives, the president’s Thursday evening speech rehashing allegations about the 2020 election he lost to Joe Biden sparked fears he was already looking for ways to ensure November’s results are in his favor. Continue reading...
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Trump speech lays groundwork for him to tamper with midterm results, critics warn. The upcoming elections to decide the balance of power in Congress and many state legislatures will be a major test of Trump’s appeal to voters two years after he resoundingly beat the Democratic candidate Kamala Harris to return to the White House.
TL;DR:
Democrats and advocates sound alarm at Trump rehashing false claims about 2020 election in his primetime address Democrats and voting rights groups say Donald Trump’s primetime speech making unverified claims of Chinese interference in the 2020 election are the clearest sign yet that the president is laying the groundwork to tamper with the results of November’s midterms.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:20
What Andy Burnham’s first speech as Labour leader tells us
The incoming prime minister showed his oratorical skill and that he is prepared to borrow from populism UK politics live – latest updates Nearing the end of his speech accepting the Labour leadership, Andy Burnham paused. “I know what to do,” he said. “I have a plan.” Perhaps he does. But even after half an hour of dense rhetoric, it is still not especially clear what this is. Burnham, who will become prime minister on Monday after this formal party coronation, is a politician who runs largely on vibes, and that was the driving force of his address to the Labour faithful in central London. Continue reading...
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What Andy Burnham’s first speech as Labour leader tells us. But even after half an hour of dense rhetoric, it is still not especially clear what this is. Burnham, who will become prime minister on Monday after this formal party coronation, is a politician who runs largely on vibes, and that was the driving force of his address to the Labour faithful in central London.
TL;DR:
The incoming prime minister showed his oratorical skill and that he is prepared to borrow from populism UK politics live – latest updates Nearing the end of his speech accepting the Labour leadership, Andy Burnham paused.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:18
Mother of Henry Nowak’s murderer jailed for removing knife from scene
Kiran Kaur, 53, sentenced to three years for assisting her son, Vickrum Digwa, after his fatal stabbing of student in Southampton The mother of Vickrum Digwa, whose false claims of racism against the man he killed triggered riots in Southampton, has been jailed for removing a knife from the murder scene. Appearing at Southampton crown court, Kiran Kaur, 53, was jailed for three years for assisting an offender, her son, by removing the knife from where he had murdered the student Henry Nowak. Continue reading...
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Kiran Kaur, 53, sentenced to three years for assisting her son, Vickrum Digwa, after his fatal stabbing of student in Southampton The mother of Vickrum Digwa, whose false claims of racism against the man he killed triggered riots in Southampton, has been jailed for removing a knife from the murder scene.
TL;DR:
Kiran Kaur, 53, sentenced to three years for assisting her son, Vickrum Digwa, after his fatal stabbing of student in Southampton The mother of Vickrum Digwa, whose false claims of racism against the man he killed triggered riots in Southampton, has been jailed for removing a knife from the murder scene.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 14:15
U.S.-China Relations Are More Volatile Than Ever
Trump and Xi have brutally undermined the institutions and personnel responsible for safeguarding diplomacy.
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U.S.-China Relations Are More Volatile Than Ever. Trump and Xi have brutally undermined the institutions and personnel responsible for safeguarding diplomacy.
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Trump and Xi have brutally undermined the institutions and personnel responsible for safeguarding diplomacy.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:07
Burnham finally answers the burning question: how does he take his tea?
Incoming PM has deigned to answer some quickfire TikTok questions – also revealing his stance on socks with sandals UK politics live – latest updates It was Tony Blair who wrote that the “leader sets out for the people what they need and not simply what they want. Otherwise, the leader is just a follower”. The incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, must have been channelling his predecessor when this week he started to set out his views on the big issues facing the UK: should milk go in the cup before the tea? What items belong in a Christmas dinner? Continue reading...
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Burnham finally answers the burning question: how does he take his tea?. Otherwise, the leader is just a follower”. The incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, must have been channelling his predecessor when this week he started to set out his views on the big issues facing the UK: should milk go in the cup before the tea?
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Incoming PM has deigned to answer some quickfire TikTok questions – also revealing his stance on socks with sandals UK politics live – latest updates It was Tony Blair who wrote that the “leader sets out for the people what they need and not simply what they want.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:01
Fifa flies Portugal’s World Cup team on plane used for ICE deportations
Aircraft that transported team to match is same one used to deport dozens of Venezuelans to Cecot mega-prison A plane used by the Portugal men’s soccer team to fly to a World Cup match is the same one used daily for the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign, and brought dozens of Venezuelans to a Salvadoran mega-prison last year against a judge’s orders. Video shows Portugal flying on a Global Crossing Airlines (GlobalX) aircraft en route to Dallas on 4 July ahead of their match against Spain, with the plane’s tail number, N837VA, clearly visible. A review of flight records for that Airbus shows it flew removal-related flights both the day before and after flying the Portuguese athletes. Continue reading...
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Fifa flies Portugal’s World Cup team on plane used for ICE deportations. Video shows Portugal flying on a Global Crossing Airlines (GlobalX) aircraft en route to Dallas on 4 July ahead of their match against Spain, with the plane’s tail number, N837VA, clearly visible.
TL;DR:
Aircraft that transported team to match is same one used to deport dozens of Venezuelans to Cecot mega-prison A plane used by the Portugal men’s soccer team to fly to a World Cup match is the same one used daily for the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign, and brought dozens of Venezuelans to a Salvadoran mega-prison last year against a judge’s orders.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 14:00
Biodiversity fears as human-bred hybrid fish integrate into Philippines lake
Escaped flowerhorn cichlids in Lake Sampaloc are causing concern for native species and about parasites capable of infecting humans Escaped ornamental aquarium fish have integrated into a local ecosystem in the Philippines, but scientists say they may be threatening the native biodiversity of the lake. Flowerhorn cichlids – human-bred hybrid fish prized for their bright-gold colour and prominent head humps – are believed to have escaped from breeding facilities into Lake Sampaloc, which sits in a volcanic crater, during a typhoon. Continue reading...
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Escaped flowerhorn cichlids in Lake Sampaloc are causing concern for native species and about parasites capable of infecting humans Escaped ornamental aquarium fish have integrated into a local ecosystem in the Philippines, but scientists say they may be threatening the native biodiversity of the lake.
TL;DR:
Escaped flowerhorn cichlids in Lake Sampaloc are causing concern for native species and about parasites capable of infecting humans Escaped ornamental aquarium fish have integrated into a local ecosystem in the Philippines, but scientists say they may be threatening the native biodiversity of the lake.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 13:49
More Canadian wildfire smoke shrouds US midwest, mid-Atlantic and north-east
109 million people face another day of poor air quality as smoke from blazes in Ontario drifts over the US Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Tens of millions of Americans face another day of smoky skies, irritated eyes and bad air quality, as Canadian wildfire smoke spread again over huge swathes of the US, affecting around 109 million people across the midwest, mid-Atlantic and north-east. The pungent wildfire blanketed cities such as Chicago and Detroit , where residents on Friday were warned to stay indoors and reduce activity levels after the air quality index reached a “hazardous” 361, according to the government website AirNow . Continue reading...
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109 million people face another day of poor air quality as smoke from blazes in Ontario drifts over the US Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Tens of millions of Americans face another day of smoky skies, irritated eyes and bad air quality, as Canadian wildfire smoke spread again over huge swathes of the US, affecting around 109 million people across the midwest…
TL;DR:
109 million people face another day of poor air quality as smoke from blazes in Ontario drifts over the US Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Tens of millions of Americans face another day of smoky skies, irritated eyes and bad air quality, as Canadian wildfire smoke spread again over huge swathes of the US, affecting around 109 million people across the midwest, mid-Atlantic and north-east.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 13:42
Dismissal of Ukraine’s defence minister highlights wider issues for Zelenskyy
Mykhailo Fedorov, celebrated by many for innovative, tech-driven approach, was sidelined for military old guard The abrupt dismissal of Ukraine’s youthful and innovative defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, by Volodomyr Zelenskyy at precisely the moment Kyiv appeared to be gaining advantages in several spheres of its war with Russia has exposed, not for the first time, a troubling flaw in the president’s leadership. The move, which has startled senior European officials and caused consternation in Ukraine – where it has prompted demonstrations – is all the more shocking given Fedorov’s role in pushing a clear strategy to prosecute the war, leveraging Ukraine’s rapidly developing technological advances in drone and missile technology. Continue reading...
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Mykhailo Fedorov, celebrated by many for innovative, tech-driven approach, was sidelined for military old guard The abrupt dismissal of Ukraine’s youthful and innovative defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, by Volodomyr Zelenskyy at precisely the moment Kyiv appeared to be gaining advantages in several spheres of its war with Russia has exposed, not for the first time, a troubl…
TL;DR:
Mykhailo Fedorov, celebrated by many for innovative, tech-driven approach, was sidelined for military old guard The abrupt dismissal of Ukraine’s youthful and innovative defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, by Volodomyr Zelenskyy at precisely the moment Kyiv appeared to be gaining advantages in several spheres of its war with Russia has exposed, not for the first time, a troubling flaw in the president’s leadership.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 13:27
What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea?
Illness surging in Michigan and other US states is rarely life-threatening, CDC says – but it can have severe effects CDC investigates parasite that’s caused cases of ‘explosive’ diarrhea in 18 US states Cases of cyclosporiasis – a parasitic illness that can cause “explosive”, watery diarrhea – have surged across the United States in recent days, health officials have said, with an abnormally large outbreak of almost 1,000 cases reported in Michigan . Michigan typically reports about 50 cases a year, making the current outbreak the largest in the state’s history and one of the nation’s biggest in recent years. Ohio has also reported a sharp increase, with 177 cases as of 2 July, since the CDC’s last count. Continue reading...
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What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea?. Michigan typically reports about 50 cases a year, making the current outbreak the largest in the state’s history and one of the nation’s biggest in recent years. Ohio has also reported a sharp increase, with 177 cases as of 2 July, since the CDC’s last count.
TL;DR:
Illness surging in Michigan and other US states is rarely life-threatening, CDC says – but it can have severe effects CDC investigates parasite that’s caused cases of ‘explosive’ diarrhea in 18 US states Cases of cyclosporiasis – a parasitic illness that can cause “explosive”, watery diarrhea – have surged across the United States in recent days, health officials have said, with an abnormally large outbreak of almost 1,000 cases reported in Michigan .
Theguardian
Jul 17, 13:10
Trump administration drastically limits length of foreign journalist visas
Visas will be shortened to 240 days, down from five years, and Chinese journalists will be limited to 90 days The Trump administration has said it will drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists in the US to 240 days, down from five years, and cut those for Chinese journalists to only 90 days. The rule announced by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will do away with the “duration of status” system, which allows foreign journalists to stay and work in the United States as long as they meet eligibility requirements. Continue reading...
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Visas will be shortened to 240 days, down from five years, and Chinese journalists will be limited to 90 days The Trump administration has said it will drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists in the US to 240 days, down from five years, and cut those for Chinese journalists to only 90 days.
TL;DR:
Visas will be shortened to 240 days, down from five years, and Chinese journalists will be limited to 90 days The Trump administration has said it will drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists in the US to 240 days, down from five years, and cut those for Chinese journalists to only 90 days.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 12:54
South East Water warns over survival as funds dry up
Supplier to 2.4m customers says it doesn’t have enough money to last beyond July 2027 South East Water has warned that there is “material uncertainty” over its survival, after a disastrous year in which the lossmaking company paid millions of pounds in fines and its chief executive was forced out. The water supplier to 2.4 million customers said it had sufficient funds to make it through to July 2027. However, “shortly after” it will need “new loan facilities in order to continue as a going concern,” the company said in its annual report published on Friday. Continue reading...
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South East Water warns over survival as funds dry up. Supplier to 2.4m customers says it doesn’t have enough money to last beyond July 2027 South East Water has warned that there is “material uncertainty” over its survival, after a disastrous year in which the lossmaking company paid millions of pounds in fines and its chief executive was forced out.
TL;DR:
The water supplier to 2.4 million customers said it had sufficient funds to make it through to July 2027.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 12:30
Jackdaw gasfield would create only 27 full-time jobs, green campaigners say
Anti fossil-fuel groups are urging Andy Burnham to rule out new drilling, which they say will not shave a penny off bills More people can fit on to the top deck of a standard London bus than will be directly employed on the new Jackdaw gasfield in the North Sea, industry documents show. Only 27 direct full-time jobs would be created by Jackdaw, one of the biggest gasfields remaining in the North Sea , according to an environmental impact assessment filed publicly by its owner, Adura , a joint venture between Shell and Norway’s Equinor. Continue reading...
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Anti fossil-fuel groups are urging Andy Burnham to rule out new drilling, which they say will not shave a penny off bills More people can fit on to the top deck of a standard London bus than will be directly employed on the new Jackdaw gasfield in the North Sea, industry documents show.
TL;DR:
Anti fossil-fuel groups are urging Andy Burnham to rule out new drilling, which they say will not shave a penny off bills More people can fit on to the top deck of a standard London bus than will be directly employed on the new Jackdaw gasfield in the North Sea, industry documents show.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 12:30
CDC and FDA link lettuce at Taco Bell in five states to cyclospora outbreak
FDA investigation identified a single supplier of the lettuce, but federal warnings did not name the company Federal health officials have identified lettuce from Mexico served by Taco Bell locations across five US states as a source of the widespread outbreak of diarrhea-causing parasite cyclospora . The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) late Thursday confirmed the source and warned consumers not to eat shredded iceberg lettuce from Taco Bell restaurants in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. Continue reading...
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FDA investigation identified a single supplier of the lettuce, but federal warnings did not name the company Federal health officials have identified lettuce from Mexico served by Taco Bell locations across five US states as a source of the widespread outbreak of diarrhea-causing parasite cyclospora .
TL;DR:
FDA investigation identified a single supplier of the lettuce, but federal warnings did not name the company Federal health officials have identified lettuce from Mexico served by Taco Bell locations across five US states as a source of the widespread outbreak of diarrhea-causing parasite cyclospora .
Theguardian
Jul 17, 12:17
Seven Americans quarantining at Kenya Ebola facility after US travel ban, says aid group
Aid workers are first known people to quarantine at facility, which sparked huge opposition in Kenya Seven American aid workers who had been in Congo to fight the Ebola outbreak are quarantining at a new isolation facility in Kenya after the US government introduced travel restrictions, the head of a US charity employing them told Reuters. The aid workers are the first known people to quarantine at the facility, which has sparked huge opposition in Kenya and is at the heart of a legal case in which a court has ordered the work to be suspended. Construction continued however, according to US officials and satellite imagery reviewed by Reuters. Continue reading...
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Seven Americans quarantining at Kenya Ebola facility after US travel ban, says aid group. The aid workers are the first known people to quarantine at the facility, which has sparked huge opposition in Kenya and is at the heart of a legal case in which a court has ordered the work to be suspended.
TL;DR:
Aid workers are first known people to quarantine at facility, which sparked huge opposition in Kenya Seven American aid workers who had been in Congo to fight the Ebola outbreak are quarantining at a new isolation facility in Kenya after the US government introduced travel restrictions, the head of a US charity employing them told Reuters.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 12:00
Latin America’s Oil Boom
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The highlights this week: Regional oil exporters show resilience amid the Strait of Hormuz crisis, Honduras rethinks its plans to recognize Taiwan , and Argentina advances to the World Cup final .
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Some exporters are reaping financial benefits amid the Iran war.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 17, 11:27
Russia’s Arms Buyers Rejoice Over Trump’s Deal With Turkey
India and other Kremlin customers will benefit from an easing of restrictions.
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Russia’s Arms Buyers Rejoice Over Trump’s Deal With Turkey. India and other Kremlin customers will benefit from an easing of restrictions.
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India and other Kremlin customers will benefit from an easing of restrictions.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 11:13
Andy Burnham becomes Labour leader in final step towards becoming UK PM
Former Greater Manchester mayor expected to take reins as prime minister and appoint new cabinet on Monday Andy Burnham has become the leader of the Labour party, paving the way for him to take over as British prime minister on Monday. The former mayor of Greater Manchester won the overwhelming support of MPs, trade unions and party branches, making him the only choice to take over from Keir Starmer. Continue reading...
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Former Greater Manchester mayor expected to take reins as prime minister and appoint new cabinet on Monday Andy Burnham has become the leader of the Labour party, paving the way for him to take over as British prime minister on Monday.
TL;DR:
Former Greater Manchester mayor expected to take reins as prime minister and appoint new cabinet on Monday Andy Burnham has become the leader of the Labour party, paving the way for him to take over as British prime minister on Monday.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 11:05
First Thing: Trump launches wide-ranging and unverified attack on integrity of US electoral system
US president accused China of meddling in his 2020 election defeat and said system was ‘catastrophically’ unfair. Plus Christopher Nolan’s epic take on The Odyssey hits the big screen Good morning. Donald Trump accused China of interfering with the 2020 election in a primetime televised address that laid bare his continuing obsession with his defeat to Joe Biden, but which opponents warned was a smokescreen for him to meddle in the forthcoming congressional midterms. Trump’s claims are unverified. In a 25-minute speech, the US president cast extraordinary doubts on the integrity of the US electoral process, saying it was “catastrophically” short of standards of fairness and trust, while vulnerable to trespassing by foreign powers. Democrats warned that Trump was trying to sow confusion, spread misinformation and lay the groundwork to challenge the results of the midterm elections. What was the aim of Trump’s address? In this analysis piece , Sam Levine explains how the president is using his office and US intelligence agencies to try to undermine confidence in elections. Instead of offering smoking-gun evidence, the release of new papers seemed to be a return to a classic Trump strategy of flooding the zone with information in an attempt to muddy the waters. What did US networks do about broadcasting Trump’s allegations? The US’s largest television stations split on whether to air Trump’s White House address, which was filled with unproven accusations. While CNN, ABC and NBC chose not to air the speech live, CBS, Fox News and MS Now (formerly MSNBC) aired at least large portions of the speech live. What did Rubio say? “They can call themselves anti-capitalist or anti-imperialist, communist, anarchist or Marxist. It’s always the same. It is a poisonous resentment cloaked in the language of equality and justice liberation – an overwhelming need to tear down, to wreck, what is beautiful and what is right on behalf of people who are only filled with ugliness,” he said. He called leftists “an encroaching darkness” and “the enemies of civilization”. Continue reading...
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First Thing: Trump launches wide-ranging and unverified attack on integrity of US electoral system. Trump’s claims are unverified. What was the aim of Trump’s address?
TL;DR:
US president accused China of meddling in his 2020 election defeat and said system was ‘catastrophically’ unfair.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 11:00
Lindsey Graham’s death leaves South Carolina confronting complex legacy: ‘You loved him and you hated him’
The US state mourns its longest-serving senator while Republicans scramble to choose a successor The South Carolina state house is a microcosm of the US’s contradictions. Outside there are memorials to the Confederate war dead and African American history. Below a statue of Strom Thurmond, a longtime US senator and racial segregationist, are the names of his five children including Essie Mae , whose mother, a Black maid, was 15 when Thurmond impregnated her. Thurmond died at the age of 100 in 2003; his successor, Lindsey Graham, a lifelong bachelor who never had children, died last Saturday at 71. His sudden exit leaves a void not just in Washington but the state that molded Graham, elected him to the Senate four times and wrestled with his shape-shifting journey from Ronald Reagan Republican to Donald Trump sycophant. Continue reading...
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Lindsey Graham’s death leaves South Carolina confronting complex legacy: ‘You loved him and you hated him’. Outside there are memorials to the Confederate war dead and African American history. Thurmond died at the age of 100 in 2003; his successor, Lindsey Graham, a lifelong bachelor who never had children, died last Saturday at 71.
TL;DR:
The US state mourns its longest-serving senator while Republicans scramble to choose a successor The South Carolina state house is a microcosm of the US’s contradictions.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 17, 10:58
Ukraine's defense minister walked into Zelensky corruption buzzsaw
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has fired Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov as part of a larger government shakeup, setting the stage for an ugly political fight from which Zelensky will likely emerge victorious but not unbruised. Of all the things that have been labeled — for the most part, inaccurately — by Western observers as a “ gift to Russia,” Fedorov’s ouster is one that actually meets the mark. Fedorov, unlike much of Ukraine’s top military and political leadership, grasped the extent of Ukraine’s colossal structural disadvantages vis-a-vis Russia and worked toward a strategy that put Kyiv in the best possible position to maneuver within them. Whereas a prominent strain of senior Ukrainian leadership found solace in gauging battlefield success by some variation of General Westmoreland’s infamous Vietnam-era bodycount metric , Fedorov understood that Ukraine cannot prevail in a war of attrition against its much larger, better-resourced foe. Ukraine’s erstwhile defense minister sought instead to leverage his country’s comparative advantages in drone innovation and automation in service of a “middle strike” strategy that shifts the locus of the war from the frontlines in Ukraine’s east and southeast to Russia’s rear. The ensuing Ukrainian strike campaign on targets inside Russia exacted an economic, political, and psychological toll on Moscow that, though it doesn’t change the underlying dynamics of a conflict in which Russia maintains an overall edge in manpower and firepower, has given Ukraine a degree of breathing room and provides a vector for pressuring Moscow. Zelensky has already tapped the acting head of the Security Service of Ukraine, Yevhenii Khmara , to serve in Fedorov’s stead. Yet it appears unlikely that the middle strike strategy can be sustained without Fedorov, who not only masterminded it but was willing to accept the political sacrifices necessary to make it work. Executing a strike program along these lines requires prodigious investments and a recalibration of Ukrainian logistics structures, which is where Fedorov ran into trouble. Fedorov understood that he cannot hit the procurement and sustainment targets needed for a middle strike strategy without rolling back the graft, embezzlement, and cronyism that has become endemic to Ukraine’s war effort. This meant, in practice, cutting out politically well-connected suppliers with profit margins well outside what can be achieved under normal market conditions and enforcing a system of competitive tenders designed to aggressively drive down per unit prices of munitions and other equipment. “We acted harshly as a state by breaking some companies’ business strategies. But how can I justify buying shells we already have in surplus when we have shortages of other types of ammunition?” Fedorov said. This procurement mentality, coupled with Fedorov’s efforts to reform the AFU’s bloated and overstretched corps system, did not make him many friends in Ukraine’s powerful defense-industrial sector and military bureaucracy. Fedorov reportedly sought the dismissal of the AFU’s Commander-in-Chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, whom he saw as emblematic of a Soviet-era mindset standing athwart the deep structural changes needed to keep Ukraine’s war effort alive. But the much more experienced Syrskyi has proven himself a deft political operator — then again, it may not have taken much convincing to align the numerous elites that stand to lose from Fedorov’s reforms into a bloc against him. Meanwhile, Fedorov evidently had not succeeded in shaping a countervailing coalition of stakeholders willing to expend capital on shielding him from political attacks. These forces came to a head with Zelensky’s decision earlier this week to remove Fedorov, a move so unpopular so as to draw rebuke even from his own state media apparatus. There are protest actions planned across Ukraine that may reach the scale of last year’s demonstrations over Zelensky’s moves to gut the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, or NABU. As with the protests last year, which were also brought by the ides of July, the demonstrations over Fedorov’s ouster will provide Ukrainians with a rare outlet to express public disapproval with the government’s handling of the war effort. How will this scandal reflect on Zelensky? It is often said, not without some justification, that Russian President Vladimir Putin enjoys a level of authority and control that offers him substantial, even if not absolute, decisionmaking power. It’s not fully appreciated in Western commentary that Zelensky, though he presides over a very different system, maintains a degree of influence over key Ukrainian institutions, patronage networks, and stakeholder relationships that allows him to weather even the harshest political tides. The events of the past year speak to his remarkable political resilience. Zelensky backtracked on his NABU legislation and managed to emerge from last year’s protests largely unscathe...
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Ukraine’s erstwhile defense minister sought instead to leverage his country’s comparative advantages in drone innovation and automation in service of a “middle strike” strategy that shifts the locus of the war from the frontlines in Ukraine’s east and southeast to Russia’s rear.
TL;DR:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has fired Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov as part of a larger government shakeup, setting the stage for an ugly political fight from which Zelensky will likely emerge victorious but not unbruised.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 10:37
Digested week: So long primary school, it’s going to be hard – for me | Emma Brockes
Plus, Trump pays out to E Jean Carroll, somnolent Little House on the Prairie, and why I’ll be avoiding salad in the US It’s the last week of school and, in our case, the last week of primary school, ever, which I thought wouldn’t be a big deal but now we’re here, I’m sliding off my axis about the cruel passage of time. It’s not about my children, who can’t wait to crack on, it’s about me, me, me. Continue reading...
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It’s not about my children, who can’t wait to crack on, it’s about me, me, me.
TL;DR:
Plus, Trump pays out to E Jean Carroll, somnolent Little House on the Prairie, and why I’ll be avoiding salad in the US It’s the last week of school and, in our case, the last week of primary school, ever, which I thought wouldn’t be a big deal but now we’re here, I’m sliding off my axis about the cruel passage of time.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 09:41
China rejects Trump’s claims of election interference as ‘pure fabrication’ – US politics live
Democrats also criticize speech as ‘lies and long-debunked conspiracies’ Sign up for US News Breaking email Trump makes unverified claims of China ‘election meddling’ Hello and welcome to our live coverage of US politics. Donald Trump used a 25-minute primetime televised address on Thursday to make unverified claims about China interfering with the 2020 presidential election and cast extraordinary doubts on the integrity of the US electoral process. Continue reading...
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Democrats also criticize speech as ‘lies and long-debunked conspiracies’ Sign up for US News Breaking email Trump makes unverified claims of China ‘election meddling’ Hello and welcome to our live coverage of US politics.
TL;DR:
Democrats also criticize speech as ‘lies and long-debunked conspiracies’ Sign up for US News Breaking email Trump makes unverified claims of China ‘election meddling’ Hello and welcome to our live coverage of US politics.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 09:20
ICE arrests human rights lawyer who fled Chinese crackdown
Arrest in Pennsylvania of Wu Shaoping, who is awaiting asylum decision, raises fears of deportation and persecution A Chinese human rights lawyer has been arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), raising concerns he could be deported to China where he would face persecution. Wu Shaoping fled China at the end of 2019 amid a crackdown on human rights lawyers. He travelled to the US on a tourist visa and made an asylum claim in 2020, for which he is still awaiting a decision. Continue reading...
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ICE arrests human rights lawyer who fled Chinese crackdown. Wu Shaoping fled China at the end of 2019 amid a crackdown on human rights lawyers. He travelled to the US on a tourist visa and made an asylum claim in 2020, for which he is still awaiting a decision.
TL;DR:
Arrest in Pennsylvania of Wu Shaoping, who is awaiting asylum decision, raises fears of deportation and persecution A Chinese human rights lawyer has been arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), raising concerns he could be deported to China where he would face persecution.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 09:12
‘Greatest director out there’: Nolan fans fly into London to see The Odyssey at BFI Imax
Film fanatics arrive from US, Switzerland and Ireland for midnight premiere of director’s critically acclaimed epic Odysseus made his name by embarking on a perilous journey from Troy to Ithaca, plus a few unplanned diversions courtesy of the gods. But this is nothing on Christian Campbell, who last night travelled more than 4,000 miles to see the Greek king’s epic fable on the big screen. The 22-year-old film graduate, who aspires to be an editor, made the journey from Atlanta to London to watch Christopher Nolan’s take on Homer’s epic poem, The Odyssey. Continue reading...
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‘Greatest director out there’: Nolan fans fly into London to see The Odyssey at BFI Imax. But this is nothing on Christian Campbell, who last night travelled more than 4,000 miles to see the Greek king’s epic fable on the big screen.
TL;DR:
Film fanatics arrive from US, Switzerland and Ireland for midnight premiere of director’s critically acclaimed epic Odysseus made his name by embarking on a perilous journey from Troy to Ithaca, plus a few unplanned diversions courtesy of the gods.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 09:00
‘Adversarial clothing’: are garments designed to confuse facial recognition systems about to go mainstream?
Designers say that as well as offering a degree of protection from surveillance, their clothes make a powerful fashion statement about the importance of privacy As facial recognition technology is rolled out across Britain’s public spaces, a new generation of designers say privacy could be the next big fashion trend. Companies have started incorporating “adversarial patterns” in their garments – carefully designed arrangements of shapes, colours and repeated motifs said to exploit weaknesses in some computer vision systems. Continue reading...
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Designers say that as well as offering a degree of protection from surveillance, their clothes make a powerful fashion statement about the importance of privacy As facial recognition technology is rolled out across Britain’s public spaces, a new generation of designers say privacy could be the next big fashion trend.
TL;DR:
Designers say that as well as offering a degree of protection from surveillance, their clothes make a powerful fashion statement about the importance of privacy As facial recognition technology is rolled out across Britain’s public spaces, a new generation of designers say privacy could be the next big fashion trend.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 08:35
Weather tracker: Thunderstorms strike across Europe amid record heatwave
Storms are typical during intense heat but this week’s have been extreme. Plus, deadly monsoon rains in Bangladesh Hailstones the size of golf balls have been seen in French villages as, on top of the exceptional European heatwave, thunderstorms struck across certain parts of Europe. While thunderstorms are typical during and after a period of extreme heat, the storms across countries like France, Germany and Poland have been particularly severe and have brought flooding, strong winds and heavy showers with huge balls of hail. Continue reading...
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Weather tracker: Thunderstorms strike across Europe amid record heatwave. Plus, deadly monsoon rains in Bangladesh Hailstones the size of golf balls have been seen in French villages as, on top of the exceptional European heatwave, thunderstorms struck across certain parts of Europe.
TL;DR:
Storms are typical during intense heat but this week’s have been extreme.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 08:16
Moira Deeming disendorsed as Victorian Liberal party candidate for upcoming state election
The party’s state executive decided MP’s fate after she withdrew her legal action against the party earlier this week Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has been disendorsed ahead of the upcoming state election despite dropping an eleventh-hour legal challenge against her own party. The state party called a meeting for Friday afternoon where they voted to remove the MP as a candidate for the November election. Continue reading...
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The party’s state executive decided MP’s fate after she withdrew her legal action against the party earlier this week Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has been disendorsed ahead of the upcoming state election despite dropping an eleventh-hour legal challenge against her own party.
TL;DR:
The party’s state executive decided MP’s fate after she withdrew her legal action against the party earlier this week Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has been disendorsed ahead of the upcoming state election despite dropping an eleventh-hour legal challenge against her own party.
Warontherocks
Jul 17, 08:00
The Blood Bank and the Logistics of Wartime Medicine
Before the twentieth century gave armies antibiotics, the leading killer of American soldiers in wartime was neither enemy fire nor shrapnel. Two-thirds of the roughly 620,000 deaths in the U.S. Civil War came from diseases like typhoid and dysentery. Spread through contaminated water and crowded camps, they were eventually controlled through inoculation and field sanitation rather than the antibiotics that would not arrive until the following generation. Later in World War I, American forces lost more men to disease than to combat: 63,000 to 51,000.By 1940, military medicine had largely closed that gap. Vaccines, sterile surgical technique, sulfa drugs, and The post The Blood Bank and the Logistics of Wartime Medicine appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Before the twentieth century gave armies antibiotics, the leading killer of American soldiers in wartime was neither enemy fire nor shrapnel. Civil War came from diseases like typhoid and dysentery. Later in World War I, American forces lost more men to disease than to combat: 63,000 to 51,000.By 1940, military medicine had largely closed that gap.
TL;DR:
Vaccines, sterile surgical technique, sulfa drugs, and The post The Blood Bank and the Logistics of Wartime Medicine appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 17, 07:45
US strikes on Iran reportedly hit airport and bridge – Middle East crisis live
Iranshahr airport and southern rail station and two bridges attacked, Iranian media says The Iranian health ministry said 38 people have been killed in Iran in recent US attacks, with more than 400 others injured. Reporting the figures on X, Hossein Kermanpour, head of public relations for Iran’s ministry of health, said 22 women and nine children were among the injured. Continue reading...
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Iranshahr airport and southern rail station and two bridges attacked, Iranian media says The Iranian health ministry said 38 people have been killed in Iran in recent US attacks, with more than 400 others injured. Reporting the figures on X, Hossein Kermanpour, head of public relations for Iran’s ministry of health, said 22 women and nine children were among the injured.
TL;DR:
Iranshahr airport and southern rail station and two bridges attacked, Iranian media says The Iranian health ministry said 38 people have been killed in Iran in recent US attacks, with more than 400 others injured.
Warontherocks
Jul 17, 07:30
Broken Drone, Far from Home: The Case for Overseas Autonomous System Sustainment
It’s 2028, and the Fujian carrier strike group has just left Yulin, China, for an unknown destination. The U.S. Navy’s “Hedge Strategy” has let commanders disperse unmanned systems across regional choke points as forward-deployed scouts. But days before contact with Fujian, an unmanned undersea vehicle in the Banda Sea transmits an error code and must head back to Yokosuka for repairs — a 3,000-mile, 15-day trip. A second platform, an unmanned surface vehicle, is overdue for a routine oil filter change in its propulsion system. Planners route it to Singapore, but the specialized technicians need visas to enter the country, The post Broken Drone, Far from Home: The Case for Overseas Autonomous System Sustainment appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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It’s 2028, and the Fujian carrier strike group has just left Yulin, China, for an unknown destination. Navy’s “Hedge Strategy” has let commanders disperse unmanned systems across regional choke points as forward-deployed scouts. A second platform, an unmanned surface vehicle, is overdue for a routine oil filter change in its propulsion system.
TL;DR:
Planners route it to Singapore, but the specialized technicians need visas to enter the country, The post Broken Drone, Far from Home: The Case for Overseas Autonomous System Sustainment appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 17, 07:25
Burnham to say his government will be ‘unashamedly Labour’ in first speech as party leader – UK politics live
‘Special conference’ to take place at noon where Burnham will be formally announced as Labour leader Good morning. Today the Labour party is going to formally announce at a “special conference” that Andy Burnham is its new leader. We will get a speech from Burnham at that event, and then he is expected to give another speech at an event later this afternoon. As Kiran Stacey and Rowena Mason report, in his special conference speech Burnham will say he will lead a government that will have the ‘courage to fix the big things that politics has neglected’ and the ‘conviction to argue for our plans’. Continue reading...
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Burnham to say his government will be ‘unashamedly Labour’ in first speech as party leader – UK politics live. Today the Labour party is going to formally announce at a “special conference” that Andy Burnham is its new leader. We will get a speech from Burnham at that event, and then he is expected to give another speech at an event later this afternoon.
TL;DR:
‘Special conference’ to take place at noon where Burnham will be formally announced as Labour leader Good morning.
Warontherocks
Jul 17, 07:15
How Revolutions Break Their Believers
Waguih Ghali, Beer in the Snooker Club (Vintage International, 2014)The noise, the noise, the unrelenting noise of the world: How is any writer with an interest in the long view supposed to escape it, if only for a couple hours to work, let alone maintain their sanity in the remainders of a day? It’s an old dilemma, for certain, but little digital town criers in our pockets bring instant, constant news about slaughter and ruin in Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, and beyond — grim notices against the background of those chronicling the state of domestic American politics. Perhaps one could forgive The post How Revolutions Break Their Believers appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Waguih Ghali, Beer in the Snooker Club (Vintage International, 2014)The noise, the noise, the unrelenting noise of the world: How is any writer with an interest in the long view supposed to escape it, if only for a couple hours to work, let alone maintain their sanity in the remainders of a day?
TL;DR:
Perhaps one could forgive The post How Revolutions Break Their Believers appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 17, 06:57
China ‘strongly dissatisfied’ with nationalisation of British Steel
Move dealt ‘severe blow to Chinese companies’ confidence in investing in the UK’, says Ministry of Commerce China’s government has said it is “strongly dissatisfied” with the decision to nationalise British Steel this week, 15 months after the UK government stepped in to prevent the closure of its steelworks in Scunthorpe and the loss of 4,000 jobs. On Thursday, British Steel was brought under public ownership to protect “the future of steel production”, the government announced. Continue reading...
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China ‘strongly dissatisfied’ with nationalisation of British Steel. Move dealt ‘severe blow to Chinese companies’ confidence in investing in the UK’, says Ministry of Commerce China’s government has said it is “strongly dissatisfied” with the decision to nationalise British Steel this week, 15 months after the UK government stepped in to prevent the closure of its steelworks…
TL;DR:
On Thursday, British Steel was brought under public ownership to protect “the future of steel production”, the government announced.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 06:54
Andy Burnham’s difficult first cabinet – a visual guide to the options and dilemmas
The Makerfield MP enters No 10 as prime minister on Monday. But who will he choose to join him at the table? Keir Starmer is expected formally to resign as prime minister on Monday morning at Buckingham Palace, with Andy Burnham being invited to take on the role shortly afterwards. Once back in Downing Street mid-morning, Burnham will begin assembling his cabinet. Continue reading...
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Andy Burnham’s difficult first cabinet – a visual guide to the options and dilemmas. Keir Starmer is expected formally to resign as prime minister on Monday morning at Buckingham Palace, with Andy Burnham being invited to take on the role shortly afterwards. Once back in Downing Street mid-morning, Burnham will begin assembling his cabinet.
TL;DR:
The Makerfield MP enters No 10 as prime minister on Monday.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 06:00
‘How’s this joker got my details?’: BrewDog founder faces complaints over emails to ‘equity punks’
Exclusive: Watchdog asked to look into how James Watt got data of ex-crowdfunders he invited to join buy-back bid James Watt, the BrewDog founder who sold the debt-laden “punk” brewer earlier this year , is the subject of complaints to the UK’s data privacy watchdog linked to his surprise bid to buy the company back, the Guardian has learned. BrewDog’s brand, intellectual property, UK breweries and 11 bars were sold to the US cannabis and drinks firm Tilray in March for £33m, in a deal that rendered the shares of more than 200,000 crowdfunding investors worthless . Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Watchdog asked to look into how James Watt got data of ex-crowdfunders he invited to join buy-back bid James Watt, the BrewDog founder who sold the debt-laden “punk” brewer earlier this year , is the subject of complaints to the UK’s data privacy watchdog linked to his surprise bid to buy the company back, the Guardian has learned.
TL;DR:
Exclusive: Watchdog asked to look into how James Watt got data of ex-crowdfunders he invited to join buy-back bid James Watt, the BrewDog founder who sold the debt-laden “punk” brewer earlier this year , is the subject of complaints to the UK’s data privacy watchdog linked to his surprise bid to buy the company back, the Guardian has learned.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 06:00
No deposit, no problem: the new 100% mortgages for first-time buyers
Banks and building societies have started relaxing affordability rules and becoming more creative with products For many first-time buyers, getting their foot on the property ladder can feel like an impossible dream. However, the good news is that there are a growing number of mortgage deals that require only a small deposit, or no deposit at all. Metro Bank is the latest high street lender to launch a deal that allows eligible first-timers to borrow up to 100% of the value of a property. Home loans that let people borrow 100% have been making a bit of a comeback – they were once fairly commonplace but were axed after the 2008 financial crisis. Continue reading...
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No deposit, no problem: the new 100% mortgages for first-time buyers. However, the good news is that there are a growing number of mortgage deals that require only a small deposit, or no deposit at all. Metro Bank is the latest high street lender to launch a deal that allows eligible first-timers to borrow up to 100% of the value of a property.
TL;DR:
Banks and building societies have started relaxing affordability rules and becoming more creative with products For many first-time buyers, getting their foot on the property ladder can feel like an impossible dream.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 05:00
EU border chaos feared at Dover crossing as busiest summer weekend looms
British domestic holidays are being pushed to their highest levels since Covid The start of the peak summer season is set to bring millions of drivers on to British roads, with concerns of traffic chaos as the port of Dover faces its biggest test yet of new EU border controls. The semi-functioning entry-exit system (EES) is credited, along with the heatwaves and fears about flights after the war in Iran , with helping push British domestic holidays to its highest levels since Covid halted international travel. Continue reading...
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EU border chaos feared at Dover crossing as busiest summer weekend looms. British domestic holidays are being pushed to their highest levels since Covid The start of the peak summer season is set to bring millions of drivers on to British roads, with concerns of traffic chaos as the port of Dover faces its biggest test yet of new EU border controls.
TL;DR:
The semi-functioning entry-exit system (EES) is credited, along with the heatwaves and fears about flights after the war in Iran , with helping push British domestic holidays to its highest levels since Covid halted international travel.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 05:00
Weatherwatch: How English summer clouds can warn of trouble ahead
Mackerel skies and mare’s tails signal arrival of warm fronts that push moisture to high altitudes and creates distinctive clouds “Mare’s tails and mackerel scales make lofty ships to carry low sails,” runs an old English saying about summer skies. Mackerel skies are cirrocumulus or altocumulus clouds in regular but patchy rows, resembling the light and dark-scale pattern on a mackerel. The cirrocumulus version is white and wispy, altocumulus is grey and thicker. One easy rule is that cirrocumulus is narrower than a finger at arm’s length, altocumulus more like three fingers. Continue reading...
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Weatherwatch: How English summer clouds can warn of trouble ahead. Mackerel skies and mare’s tails signal arrival of warm fronts that push moisture to high altitudes and creates distinctive clouds “Mare’s tails and mackerel scales make lofty ships to carry low sails,” runs an old English saying about summer skies.
TL;DR:
Mackerel skies are cirrocumulus or altocumulus clouds in regular but patchy rows, resembling the light and dark-scale pattern on a mackerel.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 05:00
Taking salsa classes can improve mental health, Oxford study suggests
Researchers find dance reduced depressive symptoms and social anxiety in young people in eight-week trial Salsa is one of the most popular dance forms, with hundreds of millions of followers worldwide. A mix of Caribbean, Spanish and African musical styles and rhythms, it is believed to offer many cognitive and physical benefits, such as improving cardiovascular health, muscle tone and posture. Now a randomised controlled trial suggests it could also reduce depression and anxiety. Researchers at the University of Oxford and the Oxford Health NHS trust studied 121 young adults with mild to moderate depression and anxiety who were randomly assigned to a salsa dance programme or a control group. Continue reading...
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Taking salsa classes can improve mental health, Oxford study suggests. Now a randomised controlled trial suggests it could also reduce depression and anxiety. Researchers at the University of Oxford and the Oxford Health NHS trust studied 121 young adults with mild to moderate depression and anxiety who were randomly assigned to a salsa dance programme or a control group.
TL;DR:
Researchers find dance reduced depressive symptoms and social anxiety in young people in eight-week trial Salsa is one of the most popular dance forms, with hundreds of millions of followers worldwide.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 17, 04:05
Gunboat or showboat: Can the Navy truly sustain a long war with Iran?
A powerful naval force is now concentrated from the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean in support of continuing operations against the Islamic Republic of Iran — including two aircraft carriers, six amphibious assault ships, and 19 cruisers and destroyers. Just this week, President Donald Trump declared he would re-impose a blockade on Iranian ports, while U.S. attacks against coastal and island targets continued unabated. How long can the U.S. Navy keep this armada forward deployed? That we even ask this question highlights the visible decline of American Seapower. In 1945, with over 6,000 ships, the United States Navy was a truly global seapower. Today, some 80 years later, the fleet is so diminished that Americans quietly doubt if it can sustain operations against Iran — which have once again been renewed. A renewed naval blockade — even a distant barrier in the Arabian Sea — means prolonged operating tempo for ships and personnel. Ships that have been in-theater since February that have been deployed for a total 10 months and more, must be rotated out and replaced. Keeping so many ships in the CENTCOM Area of Responsibility means a Navy that can only focus on one region, effectively abandoning its global reach. What happened? Three things. First, the fleet lost its ships . The U.S. Navy listed 6,768 ships in 1945, enough to last for several decades. Even during Vietnam, the fleet still numbered over 900 ships. Yet by the later 1970s, it had fallen to something like 450. With the Reagan resurgence, fleet size rebounded to nearly 600 ships. With the Cold War’s end, however, a long shrinkage began. Today, the Navy’s useful order-of-battle stands at around 180 ships: Carriers (CVN), “large-deck amphibs” (LHA/LHD, LSD/LPH), attack submarines (SSN), and guided missile destroyers (DDG). As a critical counterpoint, China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) now has more battle force ships than the U.S. America’s battle force ships are big and powerful, yet they are not adequately supplemented by ships for necessary subsidiary missions, like patrol, escort, and minesweeping. The now-infamous Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) was designed to meet this need, and in the last 20 years, 35 were built. They are now being retired — some brand new. In the words of Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) then-chair of the House Armed Services Committee in 2022, “We can’t use them, number one because they’re not ready to do anything. Number two, when they are, they still break down.” Hence, the U.S. Navy is no longer a balanced fleet. Second, a shrinking fleet means fewer ships at sea. It is a standard rule of thumb that you need three hulls to keep one deployed overseas. In times of high tension and crisis, ships are kept at sea as long as humanly possible to make sure enough seaborne firepower is at hand to satisfy a demanding commander-in-chief, mollify queasy allies, and allegedly “deter” evil adversaries. The USS Abraham Lincoln, for example, was deployed in November 2025 and is now in the Arabian Sea, over 210 days without a port visit — a Navy record . The result: precious ships get worn out, and then sent to put out more fires, until they break. Moreover, when worn out and broken they finally return home, there are simply not enough places to fix them and get them back into working order. Maintenance facilities are so limited that recent submarine overhauls have taken as many as eight years to complete; one nuclear boat, the USS Boise, was scrapped after 10 years of repairs. $800 million was spent, and the job was only 25% complete! The situation is so bad that 40% of the Navy submarine force cannot be deployed because of maintenance bottlenecks and contractor incompetence. Yet submarines get highest priority. Things are much worse for the surface fleet. A broken maintenance and repair system makes an already small fleet even smaller. The third factor quietly undermining the Navy is the easiest to overlook. It is also the biggest threat to the Navy’s future: the fatigue and demoralization of its sailors. Long overseas deployments, especially those that keep getting extended, break the morale of both the sailor and of the family waiting back home. Vice Admiral Phil Wisecup (ret.) knows. When he was Navy Scheduler in the 1990s, he co-authored a study that recommended Navy deployments be limited to six months — with only urgent exceptions. The Navy adopted this standard. Then, in the crisis atmosphere that swept Washington after 9/11, it was just thrown away. For a quarter-century now, the U.S. Navy has been operating under wartime conditions — at least as far as ship deployments are concerned. It's like World War II again, when ships were sent across the Pacific, not to return home until war’s end; or Vietnam, when carriers were kept in the Gulf of Tonkin until exhausted, when they would return home for a month of R&R, only to go right back again to Yankee Station . Yet those examples of sustained high intensity combat lasted ju...
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Gunboat or showboat: Can the Navy truly sustain a long war with Iran?. Just this week, President Donald Trump declared he would re-impose a blockade on Iranian ports, while U.S. With the Cold War’s end, however, a long shrinkage began.
TL;DR:
First, the fleet lost its ships .
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 17, 04:05
They pressured Carter to invade Kharg Island too. He didn't.
The president was in a humiliating bind. The American people were obsessed with the harrowing images of blindfolded and bound hostages beamed into their homes by the nightly newscasts, and they prayed their government would find a way to free them. Desperate for a way out, some White House advisers prodded the president to go to war. This is not the story of the Trump administration, which is trapped in a quagmire of the president’s own creation. It is the dilemma that swallowed President Jimmy Carter from November 4, 1979, when hundreds of militant Iranian students overran the U.S. embassy in Tehran and took 63 hostages. Three more were seized at a nearby building. Of the many possible parallels between then and now, one is the importance of a small coral island in the northern Persian Gulf about 20 miles from the Iranian coast. Kharg Island is home to a major oil terminal through which nearly all Iranian oil exports pass. President Donald Trump says he’s thinking about seizing it, a threat he has made numerous times since he launched a war with Iran on February 28. But Trump is not the first president to mull such an operation. In a largely forgotten footnote to his presidency, Jimmy Carter was presented with plans to capture the island but rejected them. The reasons for his restraint still hold force today. In a top-secret memo in late December 1979, national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski asked Carter “to consider military actions which contribute to [Ayatollah Khomeini’s] downfall, and thus secure the release of the hostages.” Seizing Kharg and two other islands near the Strait of Hormuz’s entrance could, in Brzezinski’s estimation, impose “a protracted humiliation on Khomeini, which could only be terminated through the release of the hostages.” He hoped to “mesh” military action “with covert political action designed to create an alternative to Khomeini.” In other words, regime change. As the Washington Post revealed the following March, the risky plan called for amphibious assault ships to steam up the Persian Gulf and disembark U.S. Marines. “Once on the island, they or technicians with them would take over the oil lines,” the Post reported, noting that backers of the plan hoped that cutting off oil revenue “would put tremendous pressure on the Iranian leader without reaping the whirlwind of criticism” that would result from bombing mainland Iran. As Edward Luce wrote in his 2025 biography of Brzezinski, Carter dismissed the idea of deploying military force to pressure the ayatollah to free the hostages: “Such actions would only rally Iranians around Khomeini, he said.” Brzezinski grew frustrated at Carter’s “stubborn instinct to do what he thought was right, even if it damaged his reelection prospects,” Luce noted . Four months later, on April 10, 1980, with the hostages still in captivity and Americans obsessing over their fate, Brzezinski wrote another memo to Carter lamenting the lack of diplomatic progress and proposing military strikes. In Brzezinski’s six-step plan to save the hostages, step 5 was “Closure of Kharg Island and/or occupation of the Tunbs and Abu Musa at the mouth of the Persian Gulf.” Once again, Carter chose restraint. “President Carter recognized that military action in the Persian Gulf was too risky and could trigger a wider war,” University of Texas historian Jeremi Suri tells RS. “The best leverage Carter had was to try to work with the new government behind the scenes to protect and release American personnel.” Luce tells RS that Carter had a “radically different” view of military force than Brzezinski. “In spite of the latter's ceaseless efforts to get Carter to take kinetic action — seizing Kharg Island, imposing a naval blockade, bombing Iranian oil refineries, and various other proposals — Carter did not come close to approving military action, except for Operation Eagle Claw. No US president before or since has been so reluctant to deploy the Pentagon.” Under withering pressure to do something to save the American captives, Carter authorized on April 24, 1980, the long-planned Eagle Claw rescue mission that crashed and burned in a desert 200 miles from Tehran, another humiliation piled upon a seemingly impotent administration. Eagle Claw’s failure led to the same consequence that bombing Iran or seizing Kharg Island might have produced, according to historian John Ghazvinian. “If there had been any possibility of a diplomatic breakthrough in the hostage crisis, it was now gone,” Ghazvinian wrote in his history of U.S.-Iran relations. There are no hostages to rescue in Iran today. President Trump is hostage instead to his judgment, having attacked Iran twice in eight months during negotiations. Trump may be desperate to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but Iran’s new hardline leadership cadre has proven itself capable of withstanding immense pressure. Seizing Kharg Island as leverage, therefore, seems destined to fail. This won’t stop some in Washington from supp...
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They pressured Carter to invade Kharg Island too. Desperate for a way out, some White House advisers prodded the president to go to war. But Trump is not the first president to mull such an operation.
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President Donald Trump says he’s thinking about seizing it, a threat he has made numerous times since he launched a war with Iran on February 28.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 03:59
Cyclist Rohan Dennis pleads guilty to driving with suspended licence after crash that killed wife
Adelaide-based Olympian was banned from driving for five years over Melissa Hoskins’ 2023 death Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Former professional cyclist Rohan Dennis faces a jail sentence after admitting he drove while disqualified over the events leading up to the death of his Olympian wife, Melissa Hoskins. A judge had previously warned the former Olympian he would be jailed if he drove while banned. Continue reading...
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A judge had previously warned the former Olympian he would be jailed if he drove while banned.
TL;DR:
Adelaide-based Olympian was banned from driving for five years over Melissa Hoskins’ 2023 death Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Former professional cyclist Rohan Dennis faces a jail sentence after admitting he drove while disqualified over the events leading up to the death of his Olympian wife, Melissa Hoskins.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 03:50
Marines board tanker amid blockade of Iranian ports as US expands strikes with attacks on bridges
Boarding of M/T Wen Yao in Gulf of Oman comes as expanded airstrike campaign hits five bridges in southern Iran American forces boarded a ship in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday as part of the renewed blockade of Iran’s ports that began earlier this week, the US military said. US Marines boarded the M/T Wen Yao “to ensure full compliance with the ongoing US naval blockade,” US Central Command (Centcom) said in a post on X. Continue reading...
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Boarding of M/T Wen Yao in Gulf of Oman comes as expanded airstrike campaign hits five bridges in southern Iran American forces boarded a ship in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday as part of the renewed blockade of Iran’s ports that began earlier this week, the US military said.
TL;DR:
Boarding of M/T Wen Yao in Gulf of Oman comes as expanded airstrike campaign hits five bridges in southern Iran American forces boarded a ship in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday as part of the renewed blockade of Iran’s ports that began earlier this week, the US military said.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 03:04
How Trump is using his office to try to undermine US confidence in elections
Primetime address seemed aimed at laying groundwork for further destabilization before midterm elections Donald Trump used the imprimatur of the presidency and United States intelligence agencies to try to undermine confidence in American elections in a presidential address on Thursday that seemed bluntly aimed at laying the groundwork for further destabilizing the electoral system before November’s midterm elections. In his address from the East Room at the White House, Trump attempted to give the impression that his administration had uncovered new bombshell findings about vulnerabilities in the US’s election system. China, he claimed, had illicitly acquired voter information on 220 million Americans (many states allow anyone to buy voter roll information; Trump did not say the means by which the nation acquired the data). He claimed that China interfered in other ways to undermine his 2020 campaign and that the information had been suppressed by intelligence officials. Continue reading...
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How Trump is using his office to try to undermine US confidence in elections. In his address from the East Room at the White House, Trump attempted to give the impression that his administration had uncovered new bombshell findings about vulnerabilities in the US’s election system.
TL;DR:
Primetime address seemed aimed at laying groundwork for further destabilization before midterm elections Donald Trump used the imprimatur of the presidency and United States intelligence agencies to try to undermine confidence in American elections in a presidential address on Thursday that seemed bluntly aimed at laying the groundwork for further destabilizing the electoral system before November’s midterm elections.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 02:14
US TV networks split on broadcasting Trump’s election-focused speech
NBC and CNN stayed away from White House speech, while Fox News, MS Now, CBS and some ABC affiliates aired it The US’s largest television stations split on whether to air Donald Trump ’s White House address live on Thursday night, which was heavy on unproven accusations about the integrity of the 2020 election won by Joe Biden. While CNN, ABC and NBC chose not to air the speech live, CBS, Fox News and MS Now (formerly MSNBC) aired at least large portions of the speech live. ABC did not air the speech as a must-run broadcast, but some station affiliates – including the Washington DC station owned by right-leaning broadcaster Sinclair – chose to air the speech. Continue reading...
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US TV networks split on broadcasting Trump’s election-focused speech. NBC and CNN stayed away from White House speech, while Fox News, MS Now, CBS and some ABC affiliates aired it The US’s largest television stations split on whether to air Donald Trump ’s White House address live on Thursday night, which was heavy on unproven accusations about the integrity of the 2020 electi…
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While CNN, ABC and NBC chose not to air the speech live, CBS, Fox News and MS Now (formerly MSNBC) aired at least large portions of the speech live.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 01:53
Sinkhole on Sunset Boulevard: broken water pipe floods LA-area hotspot
Businesses and traffic in West Hollywood doused after century-old pipe bursts belowground A century-old water pipe buried below a bustling boulevard in a Los Angeles county city burst early Thursday, sending a shock of water spewing into the streets and snarling traffic as several major roads shut down. The 36in riveted steel pipe’s rupture left a protruding sinkhole and cracked pavement in West Hollywood. Images of the aftermath showed local metro buses partially submerged in murky brown water. Continue reading...
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Sinkhole on Sunset Boulevard: broken water pipe floods LA-area hotspot. The 36in riveted steel pipe’s rupture left a protruding sinkhole and cracked pavement in West Hollywood. Images of the aftermath showed local metro buses partially submerged in murky brown water.
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Businesses and traffic in West Hollywood doused after century-old pipe bursts belowground A century-old water pipe buried below a bustling boulevard in a Los Angeles county city burst early Thursday, sending a shock of water spewing into the streets and snarling traffic as several major roads shut down.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 01:47
Pauline Hanson laments end of White Australia policy and talks up daughter’s leadership potential
Appearing on a podcast with the far-right UK activist who goes by the name Tommy Robinson, Hanson makes evidence-free claims about migrants Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Pauline Hanson has used an interview with the far-right British activist Tommy Robinson to blame the end of the White Australia policy for creating what she sees as problems with migration and said her daughter, Lee Hanson, was the future of One Nation. The One Nation leader, who is visiting the UK for a series of conference appearances and a holiday with her billionaire benefactor Gina Rinehart , appeared on an episode of Robinson’s podcast on Friday, repeating unsubstantiated claims about the spread of sharia law and accusing Muslim communities, without evidence, of rorting the national disability insurance scheme. Continue reading...
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Appearing on a podcast with the far-right UK activist who goes by the name Tommy Robinson, Hanson makes evidence-free claims about migrants Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Pauline Hanson has used an interview with the far-right British activist Tommy Robinson to blame the end of the White Austr…
TL;DR:
Appearing on a podcast with the far-right UK activist who goes by the name Tommy Robinson, Hanson makes evidence-free claims about migrants Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Pauline Hanson has used an interview with the far-right British activist Tommy Robinson to blame the end of the White Australia policy for creating what she sees as problems with migration and said her daughter, Lee Hanson, was the future of One Nation.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 01:00
Telstra blames missing software update and undocumented design change for massive outage
Telco outlines reasons for network failure that hit mobiles, trains and retailers ahead of appearance at Senate inquiry Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Telstra has blamed the lack of a software update for a key time-keeping system for outage that caused nationwide chaos last week, with its maintenance teams also unaware of a design change that affected how it would reset. Ahead of an appearance by its chief executive, Vicki Brady, at a Senate inquiry into the mobile outage on Friday, Telstra provided a written submission that revealed the cause. In it, the company stated it did not lack redundancy in its network – but that such redundancy did not prevent the outage. Continue reading...
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Telstra blames missing software update and undocumented design change for massive outage. Ahead of an appearance by its chief executive, Vicki Brady, at a Senate inquiry into the mobile outage on Friday, Telstra provided a written submission that revealed the cause.
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Telco outlines reasons for network failure that hit mobiles, trains and retailers ahead of appearance at Senate inquiry Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Telstra has blamed the lack of a software update for a key time-keeping system for outage that caused nationwide chaos last week, with its maintenance teams also unaware of a design change that affected how it would reset.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 00:34
Family devastated by ‘unacceptable’ charges over methanol deaths of Australian teenagers in Laos
Australian government says it is ‘deeply frustrated’ and will continue to press for ‘real charges with teeth’ over deaths of Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Australian government says it wants “real charges with teeth” over the fatal methanol poisoning of two teenage travellers in Laos, as authorities prepare to lay lesser charges that have been called “bitterly” disappointing. Melbourne travellers Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles, both 19, were backpacking through the south-east Asian nation in late 2024 when they were fatally poisoned with methanol while drinking at Nana backpackers hostel in Vang Vieng. Continue reading...
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Australian government says it is ‘deeply frustrated’ and will continue to press for ‘real charges with teeth’ over deaths of Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Australian government says it wants “real charges with teeth” over the fatal methanol poisoning o…
TL;DR:
Australian government says it is ‘deeply frustrated’ and will continue to press for ‘real charges with teeth’ over deaths of Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Australian government says it wants “real charges with teeth” over the fatal methanol poisoning of two teenage travellers in Laos, as authorities prepare to lay lesser charges that have been called “bitterly” disappointing.
Theguardian
Jul 17, 00:23
Cyclosporiasis: officials looking at Taco Bell lettuce supplier as potential source of outbreak
Taylor Farms reportedly linked to outbreak thought to be in Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea? Amid an ongoing outbreak of cyclosporiasis, federal health officials are reportedly looking at iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms that was supplied to Taco Bell as a possible source. On Thursday afternoon, the Washington Post , CNN and other media outlets reported that the lettuce supplier had been linked to the outbreak, citing unnamed sources “familiar with the investigation”. Continue reading...
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Cyclosporiasis: officials looking at Taco Bell lettuce supplier as potential source of outbreak. Amid an ongoing outbreak of cyclosporiasis, federal health officials are reportedly looking at iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms that was supplied to Taco Bell as a possible source.
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Taylor Farms reportedly linked to outbreak thought to be in Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea?
Theguardian
Jul 17, 00:13
‘Brazen corruption’: critics denounce Trump media plan to sell priority access to Truth Social posts
Move would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to potentially profit from seeing president’s posts first Donald Trump’s media company is planning to charge for special high-speed access to Truth Social posts, including possibly his own, affecting national security and financial markets. The move announced Thursday would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to get news from top Truth Social contributors in milliseconds so they could profit off subsequent moves in stocks, bonds and interest rates. Continue reading...
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Move would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to potentially profit from seeing president’s posts first Donald Trump’s media company is planning to charge for special high-speed access to Truth Social posts, including possibly his own, affecting national security and financial markets.
TL;DR:
Move would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to potentially profit from seeing president’s posts first Donald Trump’s media company is planning to charge for special high-speed access to Truth Social posts, including possibly his own, affecting national security and financial markets.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 23:06
Trump’s speech rumored to feature elections or Iran after president teases ‘really big news’ – live updates
Speculation surrounding tonight’s address has mounted since Trump promised big announcement without being specific Trump to deliver TV speech amid speculation over elections announcement Sign up for the Breaking News US email Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, returned from maternity leave Thursday and teased the president’s upcoming address from the White House briefing room. Fielding questions about the substance of the president’s televised address tonight – specifically reports that Trump plans to unveil new claims of interference in the 2020 election, despite the lack of evidence of widespread fraud – Leavitt argued that the president remains focused on the results because “the media has refused to acknowledge that tens of millions of Americans share his concerns about the sanctity of our elections.” Continue reading...
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Speculation surrounding tonight’s address has mounted since Trump promised big announcement without being specific Trump to deliver TV speech amid speculation over elections announcement Sign up for the Breaking News US email Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, returned from maternity leave Thursday and teased the president’s upcoming address from the White House briefi…
TL;DR:
Speculation surrounding tonight’s address has mounted since Trump promised big announcement without being specific Trump to deliver TV speech amid speculation over elections announcement Sign up for the Breaking News US email Trump’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, returned from maternity leave Thursday and teased the president’s upcoming address from the White House briefing room.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 22:47
Florida House write-in candidate arrested for allegedly threatening to kill Trump
William Upham, a 35-year-old former marine, faces federal charges and up to five years in prison, officials say A former marine and Republican write-in candidate for the US House in Florida has been arrested and charged in federal court with threatening to kill Donald Trump, according to the US attorney’s office. William Upham, 35, was taken into custody on Thursday after appearing in federal court in Jacksonville, Florida. If convicted, he faces up to five years in federal prison. According to public records , Upham is a write-in candidate, running in the Republican primary for Florida’s fifth congressional district. Continue reading...
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Florida House write-in candidate arrested for allegedly threatening to kill Trump. William Upham, 35, was taken into custody on Thursday after appearing in federal court in Jacksonville, Florida. According to public records , Upham is a write-in candidate, running in the Republican primary for Florida’s fifth congressional district.
TL;DR:
William Upham, a 35-year-old former marine, faces federal charges and up to five years in prison, officials say A former marine and Republican write-in candidate for the US House in Florida has been arrested and charged in federal court with threatening to kill Donald Trump, according to the US attorney’s office.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 22:00
Trump to deliver TV address amid speculation over elections announcement
Expectations grow that US president – who promised ‘really big news’ – to focus on election security and war with Iran Donald Trump will address the nation on Thursday in a live primetime televised address that has become the subject of fevered guesswork amid speculation he will make headline-grabbing announcements on election security and the war with Iran. Expectations surrounding the address have been raised by Trump himself, who promised “really big news” without being specific. Continue reading...
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Expectations surrounding the address have been raised by Trump himself, who promised “really big news” without being specific.
TL;DR:
Expectations grow that US president – who promised ‘really big news’ – to focus on election security and war with Iran Donald Trump will address the nation on Thursday in a live primetime televised address that has become the subject of fevered guesswork amid speculation he will make headline-grabbing announcements on election security and the war with Iran.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 21:59
‘The pigeon came to them seeking help’: California firefighters give oxygen to suffering bird
A crew in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Oakland spotted a pigeon ‘in distress’ after a vehicle fire Heartwarming footage of California firefighters treating perhaps their smallest patient on record has captivated the internet. A crew in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Oakland spotted a pigeon “in distress” earlier this week after a vehicle fire, and jumped into action to assist. Continue reading...
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A crew in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Oakland spotted a pigeon ‘in distress’ after a vehicle fire Heartwarming footage of California firefighters treating perhaps their smallest patient on record has captivated the internet.
TL;DR:
A crew in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Oakland spotted a pigeon ‘in distress’ after a vehicle fire Heartwarming footage of California firefighters treating perhaps their smallest patient on record has captivated the internet.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 16, 21:54
The America First Contradiction
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Anyway, here’s what’s on tap for the day: the cognitive dissonance of America First , the Iran war resumes with possible Houthi involvement, and two new Biden books . Anyway, here’s what’s on tap for the day: the cognitive dissonance of America First , the Iran war resumes with possible Houthi involvement, and two new Biden books .
TL;DR:
A Pentagon official’s X thread exposes the cognitive dissonance of Trump’s foreign policy.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 21:11
Kalshi to offer betting on drug trial results and FDA regulatory decisions
Move comes as prediction platforms rapidly gain popularity and offer opportunities to bet on virtually anything Kalshi is expanding its wagers to include bets on drug trial results, an expansion into new predictions territory as platforms continue to rapidly gain popularity and offer opportunities to bet on virtually anything. The betting platform said the expansion into clinical trials and FDA regulatory decisions would help surface information on drug trials that otherwise go unreported. A publicly listed contract on a drug trial would produce a “continuously updated, public probability that reflects the weight of the evidence, rather than the preferred message of the trial sponsor”, the company said. Continue reading...
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Kalshi to offer betting on drug trial results and FDA regulatory decisions. The betting platform said the expansion into clinical trials and FDA regulatory decisions would help surface information on drug trials that otherwise go unreported.
TL;DR:
Move comes as prediction platforms rapidly gain popularity and offer opportunities to bet on virtually anything Kalshi is expanding its wagers to include bets on drug trial results, an expansion into new predictions territory as platforms continue to rapidly gain popularity and offer opportunities to bet on virtually anything.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 21:04
White House teleprompter operator put on leave over alleged bets on Trump speeches
Karoline Leavitt calls apparent bets on Kalshi prediction platform ‘deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace’ Donald Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator has been placed on administrative leave, the White House said on Thursday, after reports that he used his position to win $100,000 by placing bets on the president’s speeches using the online prediction market Kalshi. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president had been informed about the situation, which she described as “deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace”. Continue reading...
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White House teleprompter operator put on leave over alleged bets on Trump speeches. Karoline Leavitt calls apparent bets on Kalshi prediction platform ‘deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace’ Donald Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator has been placed on administrative leave, the White House said on Thursday, after reports that he used his position to win $100,000 by plac…
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president had been informed about the situation, which she described as “deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace”.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 20:59
Remains of LA millionaire missing since 1981 identified after more than 40 years
After Thelma Gaston disappeared, her companion was convicted of second-degree murder Authorities in southern California announced this week that, after more than 40 years, they had identified the remains of a Los Angeles millionaire missing since 1981. The Riverside county sheriff confirmed in a statement that investigators, using genetic genealogy and dental records, had determined the remains found in a rugged area near Sugarloaf Mountain were those of Thelma Gaston. Continue reading...
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After Thelma Gaston disappeared, her companion was convicted of second-degree murder Authorities in southern California announced this week that, after more than 40 years, they had identified the remains of a Los Angeles millionaire missing since 1981.
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After Thelma Gaston disappeared, her companion was convicted of second-degree murder Authorities in southern California announced this week that, after more than 40 years, they had identified the remains of a Los Angeles millionaire missing since 1981.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 16, 20:51
Zelensky’s Cabinet Reshuffle Sparks Public Outcry in Ukraine
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Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at protests in Ukraine , Iran ’s new threats to the Gulf region, and dangerous air quality levels for Canada and the United States . Thousands of people took to the streets on Thursday to protest Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s cabinet reshuffle.
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Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov was popular for his drone development push—but not enough to keep him in office.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 20:30
Australia news live: Telstra CEO to face parliamentary inquiry over mobile outage
Vicki Brady due to appear at inquiry over mobile outage last week. Follow today’s news live. Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Telstra’s bosses are set to be grilled over a nationwide outage that affected triple zero calls and businesses, disrupted payment systems and stopped trains in two states. Telstra’s chief executive, Vicki Brady, will be among a group of executives who will front a parliamentary inquiry into the incident in Canberra on Friday. Continue reading...
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Australia news live: Telstra CEO to face parliamentary inquiry over mobile outage. Follow today’s news live. Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Telstra’s bosses are set to be grilled over a nationwide outage that affected triple zero calls and businesses, disrupted payment systems and stopped trains in two states.
TL;DR:
Vicki Brady due to appear at inquiry over mobile outage last week.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 19:53
‘Enemies of civilization’: top Trump officials disparage leftism at event
Marco Rubio and Stephen Miller took aim at only leftwing activism at meeting of 66 nations against political violence Top Trump officials on Thursday hosted a gathering of 66 nations to discuss the supposed threat of leftwing violence, and launched a series of diatribes, harsh even by the standards of the Trump administration, against leftism. The conference, convened by Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, and attended by Stephen Miller, a top Trump adviser, and Scott Bessent, the treasury secretary, was billed as a “ministerial on the resurgence of political violence” but the focus was solely on crushing leftist violence. It came as Donald Trump ramps up his efforts to label his political opponents, and a rising number of politicians identified with the Democratic Socialists of America as “communists”. Continue reading...
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‘Enemies of civilization’: top Trump officials disparage leftism at event. The conference, convened by Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, and attended by Stephen Miller, a top Trump adviser, and Scott Bessent, the treasury secretary, was billed as a “ministerial on the resurgence of political violence” but the focus was solely on crushing leftist violence.
TL;DR:
Marco Rubio and Stephen Miller took aim at only leftwing activism at meeting of 66 nations against political violence Top Trump officials on Thursday hosted a gathering of 66 nations to discuss the supposed threat of leftwing violence, and launched a series of diatribes, harsh even by the standards of the Trump administration, against leftism.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 19:50
Ex-DoJ lawyer fired by Todd Blanche urges senators to reject nomination
Liz Oyer tells of how she refused to ‘rubber-stamp a political favor’ in gun rights case involving Trump ally Mel Gibson Former pardon attorney Liz Oyer condemned Todd Blanche, Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, over his Wednesday testimony to the Senate judiciary committee. Blanche fired Oyer after she refused to recommend restoring firearms rights to the actor and Trump ally Mel Gibson, who was previously convicted of domestic violence. “I declined to rubber-stamp a political favor for a friend of the president, and it cost me my job,” the former US pardon attorney told the committee on the second day of Blanche’s confirmation hearing. Continue reading...
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Ex-DoJ lawyer fired by Todd Blanche urges senators to reject nomination. Blanche fired Oyer after she refused to recommend restoring firearms rights to the actor and Trump ally Mel Gibson, who was previously convicted of domestic violence.
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Liz Oyer tells of how she refused to ‘rubber-stamp a political favor’ in gun rights case involving Trump ally Mel Gibson Former pardon attorney Liz Oyer condemned Todd Blanche, Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, over his Wednesday testimony to the Senate judiciary committee.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 19:03
John Fetterman says he would leave Democrats if they became ‘anti-Israel’
His comments come after 103 House Democrats backed an unsuccessful bid to halt billions in military aid to Israel Israel’s support among Democrats is starting to buckle Senator John Fetterman said he would consider leaving the Democratic party it ever became “the anti-Israel party”, as more than 100 House lawmakers backed halting military aid to the Middle Eastern ally over its incursions into Gaza and Lebanon. The Pennsylvania senator has emerged as one of Israel’s most prominent advocates among Senate Democrats, even as others in the party back away from their traditional support for the country amid accusations that prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government committed genocide in Gaza. Continue reading...
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His comments come after 103 House Democrats backed an unsuccessful bid to halt billions in military aid to Israel Israel’s support among Democrats is starting to buckle Senator John Fetterman said he would consider leaving the Democratic party it ever became “the anti-Israel party”, as more than 100 House lawmakers backed halting military aid to the Middle Eastern ally over it…
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His comments come after 103 House Democrats backed an unsuccessful bid to halt billions in military aid to Israel Israel’s support among Democrats is starting to buckle Senator John Fetterman said he would consider leaving the Democratic party it ever became “the anti-Israel party”, as more than 100 House lawmakers backed halting military aid to the Middle Eastern ally over its incursions into Gaza and Lebanon.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:53
Energy drinks to be banned from sale to under-16s in England
About 100,000 children across the country drink the high-caffeine beverages daily High-caffeine energy drinks “have no place in children’s hands” and will be banned from sale to under-16s in England from April next year under new laws designed to improve health outcomes in young people. About 100,000 children across the country currently drink high-caffeine energy drinks daily, with those in more deprived areas and households more likely to consume them, according to the government. Continue reading...
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About 100,000 children across the country drink the high-caffeine beverages daily High-caffeine energy drinks “have no place in children’s hands” and will be banned from sale to under-16s in England from April next year under new laws designed to improve health outcomes in young people.
TL;DR:
About 100,000 children across the country drink the high-caffeine beverages daily High-caffeine energy drinks “have no place in children’s hands” and will be banned from sale to under-16s in England from April next year under new laws designed to improve health outcomes in young people.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:46
‘Continuity Keir’: Burnham keeping on many of Starmer’s No 10 advisers
Lack of change in key roles could mean next week’s policy announcements may lack radicalism many hoped for Andy Burnham’s Downing Street operation is beginning to take shape, with many of Keir Starmer’s aides due to remain at the centre of government. The incoming prime minister has now picked most of the senior No 10 jobs, according to those who have been involved in the process, and the names of several key staff were confirmed on Thursday. Continue reading...
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Lack of change in key roles could mean next week’s policy announcements may lack radicalism many hoped for Andy Burnham’s Downing Street operation is beginning to take shape, with many of Keir Starmer’s aides due to remain at the centre of government.
TL;DR:
Lack of change in key roles could mean next week’s policy announcements may lack radicalism many hoped for Andy Burnham’s Downing Street operation is beginning to take shape, with many of Keir Starmer’s aides due to remain at the centre of government.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:25
Political crisis and protests in Ukraine as Zelenskyy defends sacking defence minister
President says he had to choose ‘one side or the other’ after breakdown of relations between ministry and military leaders Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has defended his decision to dismiss the country’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov , and confirmed reports that relations had broken down between the ministry and the country’s top army leadership. Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv with the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, Zelenskyy said there had been a “challenging dialogue” between Fedorov – widely seen as a reformist and moderniser – and the military’s commander in chief, Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi. Continue reading...
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President says he had to choose ‘one side or the other’ after breakdown of relations between ministry and military leaders Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has defended his decision to dismiss the country’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov , and confirmed reports that relations had broken down between the ministry and the country’s top army leadership.
TL;DR:
President says he had to choose ‘one side or the other’ after breakdown of relations between ministry and military leaders Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has defended his decision to dismiss the country’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov , and confirmed reports that relations had broken down between the ministry and the country’s top army leadership.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:19
A House vote makes it clear: Israel’s support among Democrats is starting to buckle
More than 100 Democrats voted to cut military aid to Israel as US public opinion shifts – Republicans are noticing too Somewhere in the days before Wednesday’s vote, Hakeem Jeffries , the House minority leader, sat down and wrote his caucus a letter urging Democrats to reject an amendment that would strip security assistance to Israel. For most of his tenure as Democratic leader, that kind of internal whipping operation would have been unnecessary, because the outcome would have been assumed. His own second-in-command voted the other way anyway. Continue reading...
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A House vote makes it clear: Israel’s support among Democrats is starting to buckle. For most of his tenure as Democratic leader, that kind of internal whipping operation would have been unnecessary, because the outcome would have been assumed. His own second-in-command voted the other way anyway.
TL;DR:
More than 100 Democrats voted to cut military aid to Israel as US public opinion shifts – Republicans are noticing too Somewhere in the days before Wednesday’s vote, Hakeem Jeffries , the House minority leader, sat down and wrote his caucus a letter urging Democrats to reject an amendment that would strip security assistance to Israel.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:15
Vodafone settles legal claim brought by 62 former franchisees
Agreement, without admission of liability, ends 19-month high court dispute that small-business owners said left them with large debts Vodafone has settled a long-running legal claim filed by 62 of its former franchisees who alleged the mobile phone group “unjustly enriched” itself at their expense by up to £85m. The small-business owners – some of whom said they had suffered suicidal thoughts because of the pressure exerted by the telecoms group – launched the high court claim in 2024 after running up large personal debts they said had been caused by their deals with the company. Continue reading...
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Agreement, without admission of liability, ends 19-month high court dispute that small-business owners said left them with large debts Vodafone has settled a long-running legal claim filed by 62 of its former franchisees who alleged the mobile phone group “unjustly enriched” itself at their expense by up to £85m.
TL;DR:
Agreement, without admission of liability, ends 19-month high court dispute that small-business owners said left them with large debts Vodafone has settled a long-running legal claim filed by 62 of its former franchisees who alleged the mobile phone group “unjustly enriched” itself at their expense by up to £85m.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:10
Uber driver who killed dog walker is also found guilty of trying to murder his landlord
Dawood Safi, 28, mounted a ‘frenzied’ and deadly rampage while in the grip of a psychotic episode An Uber driver who stabbed a dog walker to death in a “frenzy of violence” while in the grip of a psychotic episode has also been found guilty of trying to murder his landlord. Dawood Safi, 28, killed 49-year-old Wayne Broadhurst in the random knife attack last October, just minutes after attacking his landlord, Shahzad Farrukh, and a boy of 14. Continue reading...
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Dawood Safi, 28, mounted a ‘frenzied’ and deadly rampage while in the grip of a psychotic episode An Uber driver who stabbed a dog walker to death in a “frenzy of violence” while in the grip of a psychotic episode has also been found guilty of trying to murder his landlord.
TL;DR:
Dawood Safi, 28, mounted a ‘frenzied’ and deadly rampage while in the grip of a psychotic episode An Uber driver who stabbed a dog walker to death in a “frenzy of violence” while in the grip of a psychotic episode has also been found guilty of trying to murder his landlord.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:09
Largest landlord in the US accused of civil rights violations
Fair housing complaints accuse Greystar of refusing to take tenants who use federal rent vouchers Greystar, the largest owner and manager of apartments in the US, systematically flouts local laws designed to make housing affordable to the poor, according to civil rights complaints filed with authorities in six states and the District of Columbia. The complaints – filed this week with government agencies in California, Hawaii, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia and Washington DC – accuse Greystar of 114 violations of state and DC fair housing laws. They allege that the company refuses to accept federal housing choice vouchers (also known as Section 8) in places that require landlords to accept them. Continue reading...
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Largest landlord in the US accused of civil rights violations. The complaints – filed this week with government agencies in California, Hawaii, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia and Washington DC – accuse Greystar of 114 violations of state and DC fair housing laws.
TL;DR:
Fair housing complaints accuse Greystar of refusing to take tenants who use federal rent vouchers Greystar, the largest owner and manager of apartments in the US, systematically flouts local laws designed to make housing affordable to the poor, according to civil rights complaints filed with authorities in six states and the District of Columbia.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:06
‘Disorderly’ intruder removed from NBC’s Today show after security breach
Unauthorized interloper was arrested after reportedly hurling racial slur at host Craig Melvin A man was arrested after breaking on to the set of NBC ’s Today show on Thursday morning and allegedly hurling a racial slur at a host. NYPD officers at New York’s midtown north precinct responded to a report of a disorderly person at the show’s 30 Rockefeller Center studios shortly after 9am. Continue reading...
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Unauthorized interloper was arrested after reportedly hurling racial slur at host Craig Melvin A man was arrested after breaking on to the set of NBC ’s Today show on Thursday morning and allegedly hurling a racial slur at a host.
TL;DR:
Unauthorized interloper was arrested after reportedly hurling racial slur at host Craig Melvin A man was arrested after breaking on to the set of NBC ’s Today show on Thursday morning and allegedly hurling a racial slur at a host.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 18:03
General Mills recalls 736,000 Pillsbury rolls over glass contamination fears
FDA notice warns of ‘potential foreign material’ as recall covers two types of frozen bread roll dough General Mills is recalling nearly 736,000 Pillsbury bread rolls over concerns they could contain glass, according to a notice issued by the US Food and Drug Administration earlier this week. The recall covers two frozen bread roll products: 3,080 cases of Hard Roll Dough, with 180 rolls in each case, totaling 554,400 rolls, and 1,260 cases of Kaiser Roll Dough with 144 rolls per case, totaling 181,440 rolls. The FDA notice states the products may contain “potential foreign material (glass)”. Continue reading...
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General Mills recalls 736,000 Pillsbury rolls over glass contamination fears. FDA notice warns of ‘potential foreign material’ as recall covers two types of frozen bread roll dough General Mills is recalling nearly 736,000 Pillsbury bread rolls over concerns they could contain glass, according to a notice issued by the US Food and Drug Administration earlier this week.
TL;DR:
The FDA notice states the products may contain “potential foreign material (glass)”.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 17:38
Trump-backed Senate candidate is linked to white nationalist influencer – his son-in-law
Mike Collins’ son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II, has shared antisemitic conspiracies and Nazi imagery online US politics live – latest updates The Republican Senate nominee in Georgia, Mike Collins, who has been plagued by a string of controversies in his time in public office, has close ties with a white nationalist influencer – his son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II – it has transpired. A trucking executive and one-time “Freedom caucus” conservative endorsed by Donald Trump , Collins has been the GOP representative for Georgia’s 10th congressional district since 2023. In that time, the anti-abortion hardliner has drawn scrutiny over his associations with far-right and extremist figures, incendiary social media activity and accusations of antisemitism, which he has denied. He has also denied the legitimacy of the 2020 election and defended January 6 rioters, who he has said deserved pardons . Continue reading...
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Trump-backed Senate candidate is linked to white nationalist influencer – his son-in-law. A trucking executive and one-time “Freedom caucus” conservative endorsed by Donald Trump , Collins has been the GOP representative for Georgia’s 10th congressional district since 2023.
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Mike Collins’ son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II, has shared antisemitic conspiracies and Nazi imagery online US politics live – latest updates The Republican Senate nominee in Georgia, Mike Collins, who has been plagued by a string of controversies in his time in public office, has close ties with a white nationalist influencer – his son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II – it has transpired.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 17:37
Amnesty UK self-reports to watchdog after calling women’s centre ‘anti-rights’
Beira’s Place in Edinburgh, founded by JK Rowling, says claim was ‘deeply offensive’ as it considers legal action Amnesty International UK has referred itself to the charity regulator over a report it published that described a sexual violence support centre founded by JK Rowling as “anti-rights”. The UK branch of the global human rights charity listed Beira’s Place in Edinburgh among more than 100 organisations it said were part of an anti-rights movement. Continue reading...
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Beira’s Place in Edinburgh, founded by JK Rowling, says claim was ‘deeply offensive’ as it considers legal action Amnesty International UK has referred itself to the charity regulator over a report it published that described a sexual violence support centre founded by JK Rowling as “anti-rights”.
TL;DR:
Beira’s Place in Edinburgh, founded by JK Rowling, says claim was ‘deeply offensive’ as it considers legal action Amnesty International UK has referred itself to the charity regulator over a report it published that described a sexual violence support centre founded by JK Rowling as “anti-rights”.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 17:04
Ava DuVernay to make Netflix documentary 14th on birthright citizenship
The film-maker behind Selma and 13th will focus on the 14th amendment for a new film out later this year as Donald Trump targets those protected by it Ava DuVernay announced on Thursday that she has made a documentary for Netflix on the 14th amendment, which gave liberty and rights to formerly enslaved people following the civil war, and which has come under legal attack from Donald Trump. Netflix said on Thursday that it will release 14th later this year. The film will mark a return to nonfiction for DuVernay, the film-maker of Selma and Origin, and a follow-up to DuVernay’s 2016 film 13th, her examination of the legacy of the 13th amendment, which abolished slavery. Continue reading...
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Ava DuVernay to make Netflix documentary 14th on birthright citizenship. Netflix said on Thursday that it will release 14th later this year. The film will mark a return to nonfiction for DuVernay, the film-maker of Selma and Origin, and a follow-up to DuVernay’s 2016 film 13th, her examination of the legacy of the 13th amendment, which abolished slavery.
TL;DR:
The film-maker behind Selma and 13th will focus on the 14th amendment for a new film out later this year as Donald Trump targets those protected by it Ava DuVernay announced on Thursday that she has made a documentary for Netflix on the 14th amendment, which gave liberty and rights to formerly enslaved people following the civil war, and which has come under legal attack from Donald Trump.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 16:32
Cool, calm and creepy-crawly: reporter unfazed by cockroach cameo on live TV
Rachel Menitoff praised for her professionalism as giant insect lands on her during piece to camera Viewers of a now-viral video are sharing their amazement at a TV reporter who maintained her composure during a live broadcast after a huge flying cockroach unexpectedly landed on her mid-report. Rachel Menitoff, a reporter for Los Angeles station KTLA News, was covering dangerous conditions caused by extreme heat from Sherman Oaks, California , on Wednesday during an evening live shot. Her report took an unexpected turn when a giant insect interrupted the segment. Continue reading...
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Cool, calm and creepy-crawly: reporter unfazed by cockroach cameo on live TV. Rachel Menitoff, a reporter for Los Angeles station KTLA News, was covering dangerous conditions caused by extreme heat from Sherman Oaks, California , on Wednesday during an evening live shot. Her report took an unexpected turn when a giant insect interrupted the segment.
TL;DR:
Rachel Menitoff praised for her professionalism as giant insect lands on her during piece to camera Viewers of a now-viral video are sharing their amazement at a TV reporter who maintained her composure during a live broadcast after a huge flying cockroach unexpectedly landed on her mid-report.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 16:30
Burnham’s ‘black box’ plans for cabinet send Westminster into hysteria
Few know who will get top jobs when new PM enters No 10 and the vacuum of information has its downsides As Labour MPs filed out of Portcullis House on the last day before parliament rose – and Andy Burnham ascends – one said they were struggling with a metaphor for how concentrated Burnham’s power had become. Flailing for something that did not sound insulting, he gave up and likened Burnham’s absolute control to North Korea’s Kim dynasty. It is a very congenial and receptive kind of dictatorship. But never in British politics has such power been concentrated in the hands of such a tiny number of individuals. Never in British politics have so many of Labour’s biggest beasts had so little influence or leverage. Continue reading...
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Burnham’s ‘black box’ plans for cabinet send Westminster into hysteria. But never in British politics has such power been concentrated in the hands of such a tiny number of individuals. Never in British politics have so many of Labour’s biggest beasts had so little influence or leverage.
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Few know who will get top jobs when new PM enters No 10 and the vacuum of information has its downsides As Labour MPs filed out of Portcullis House on the last day before parliament rose – and Andy Burnham ascends – one said they were struggling with a metaphor for how concentrated Burnham’s power had become.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 16:25
Former boss of Italian motorways sentenced to 12 years over Genoa bridge tragedy
Giovanni Castellucci among 32 people convicted over the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse, which killed 43 Thirty-two people, including the former chief executive of Italy’s motorway operator, have been convicted over the 2018 collapse of a Genoa bridge in which 43 people died. In a hushed courtroom on Thursday in the north-western Italian city, Giovanni Castellucci, former boss of Autostrade per l’Italia, was sentenced to 12 years in prison, the highest in the case. Continue reading...
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Giovanni Castellucci among 32 people convicted over the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse, which killed 43 Thirty-two people, including the former chief executive of Italy’s motorway operator, have been convicted over the 2018 collapse of a Genoa bridge in which 43 people died.
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Giovanni Castellucci among 32 people convicted over the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse, which killed 43 Thirty-two people, including the former chief executive of Italy’s motorway operator, have been convicted over the 2018 collapse of a Genoa bridge in which 43 people died.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 16:12
Inquest reopened into death of 14-year-old boy after TikTok ‘blackout challenge’
Landmark high court ruling calls for fresh inquiry into Jools Sweeney’s death to allow for previously omitted social media evidence The inquest into the death of a 14-year-old boy, whose mother believes he died after a TikTok challenge gone wrong, is to be reopened in a landmark ruling by the high court. Jools Sweeney, a schoolboy from Gloucestershire, died in April 2022. His parents, Ellen Roome and Matt Sweeney, believed social media played a role in his death, pointing to the popularity of the “blackout challenge” online at the time. Continue reading...
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Inquest reopened into death of 14-year-old boy after TikTok ‘blackout challenge’. Jools Sweeney, a schoolboy from Gloucestershire, died in April 2022. His parents, Ellen Roome and Matt Sweeney, believed social media played a role in his death, pointing to the popularity of the “blackout challenge” online at the time.
TL;DR:
Landmark high court ruling calls for fresh inquiry into Jools Sweeney’s death to allow for previously omitted social media evidence The inquest into the death of a 14-year-old boy, whose mother believes he died after a TikTok challenge gone wrong, is to be reopened in a landmark ruling by the high court.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 16, 16:05
German Military Power Needs to Go It Alone
NATO’s multinational forces are an unwieldy relic of a more peaceful past.
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German Military Power Needs to Go It Alone. NATO’s multinational forces are an unwieldy relic of a more peaceful past.
TL;DR:
NATO’s multinational forces are an unwieldy relic of a more peaceful past.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 16:00
Life-threatening flash flooding takes hold of central Texas as storms ravage region
Flash flood emergencies were issued on Thursday for parts of Kerr and Uvalde counties and Texas Hill Country Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email “Life threatening” flooding has taken hold in south-central Texas , where up to 20in of rain have already fallen in some areas – just one year after the same region endured catastrophic flooding that killed more than 100 people . Flash flood emergencies were issued on Thursday for parts of Kerr and Uvalde counties, where emergency crews performed water rescues, as well as areas around the Guadalupe River and the Pedernales River, according to morning updates from the National Weather Service (NWS). There have been no immediate reports of injuries or deaths. Continue reading...
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Life-threatening flash flooding takes hold of central Texas as storms ravage region. Flash flood emergencies were issued on Thursday for parts of Kerr and Uvalde counties, where emergency crews performed water rescues, as well as areas around the Guadalupe River and the Pedernales River, according to morning updates from the National Weather Service (NWS).
TL;DR:
Flash flood emergencies were issued on Thursday for parts of Kerr and Uvalde counties and Texas Hill Country Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email “Life threatening” flooding has taken hold in south-central Texas , where up to 20in of rain have already fallen in some areas – just one year after the same region endured catastrophic flooding that killed more than 100 people .
Theguardian
Jul 16, 15:28
Drugmaker Merck announces approval of new cholesterol-fighting drug
Lipfendra can be taken in conjunction with or an alternative to statins, the most prescribed medication in the US Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email The drug giant Merck on Thursday announced it had received FDA approval for a daily pill that can be an alternative to statins for treating high LDL levels, or so-called bad cholesterol. The new pill, Lipfendra, is a version of a drug called a PCSK9 inhibitor. For decades the go-to therapy to treat high cholesterol levels has been statins, the most prescribed medication in the US. But statins come occasionally with side effects like muscle aches and they sometimes don’t drop cholesterol levels enough to meet recommended levels. Continue reading...
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Drugmaker Merck announces approval of new cholesterol-fighting drug. For decades the go-to therapy to treat high cholesterol levels has been statins, the most prescribed medication in the US. But statins come occasionally with side effects like muscle aches and they sometimes don’t drop cholesterol levels enough to meet recommended levels.
TL;DR:
Lipfendra can be taken in conjunction with or an alternative to statins, the most prescribed medication in the US Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email The drug giant Merck on Thursday announced it had received FDA approval for a daily pill that can be an alternative to statins for treating high LDL levels, or so-called bad cholesterol.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 15:20
UK aid cuts ‘reduce bilateral support to some African countries by 90%’
Critics say Foreign Office figures send ‘global message about the role the country wants to play on international stage’ Labour’s foreign aid cuts mean reductions of as much as 90% in the bilateral support the UK will give to some African countries, Foreign Office figures show. The department’s annual report includes a long-awaited breakdown of how the reduction in the aid budget will affect individual countries for the next three years. Continue reading...
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Critics say Foreign Office figures send ‘global message about the role the country wants to play on international stage’ Labour’s foreign aid cuts mean reductions of as much as 90% in the bilateral support the UK will give to some African countries, Foreign Office figures show.
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Critics say Foreign Office figures send ‘global message about the role the country wants to play on international stage’ Labour’s foreign aid cuts mean reductions of as much as 90% in the bilateral support the UK will give to some African countries, Foreign Office figures show.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 15:17
Keir Starmer makes Sadiq Khan a peer in the House of Lords
Appointment by outgoing prime minister, potentially opens door for London mayor to join Burnham cabinet Sadiq Khan has been given a peerage by Keir Starmer just days before the prime minister stands down, potentially opening the door to one of Labour’s most high-profile mayors joining Andy Burnham’s cabinet in future. The London mayor has long been tipped for the House of Lords, with Starmer said to have been keen to put him there immediately after the May local elections in an attempt to shore up Labour’s progressive flank. Continue reading...
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Appointment by outgoing prime minister, potentially opens door for London mayor to join Burnham cabinet Sadiq Khan has been given a peerage by Keir Starmer just days before the prime minister stands down, potentially opening the door to one of Labour’s most high-profile mayors joining Andy Burnham’s cabinet in future.
TL;DR:
Appointment by outgoing prime minister, potentially opens door for London mayor to join Burnham cabinet Sadiq Khan has been given a peerage by Keir Starmer just days before the prime minister stands down, potentially opening the door to one of Labour’s most high-profile mayors joining Andy Burnham’s cabinet in future.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 15:16
Zelenskyy defends sacking Ukraine’s defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov
President says he had to choose ‘one side or the other’ after breakdown of relations between ministry and military leaders Europe live – latest updates Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has defended his decision to dismiss the country’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov , and confirmed reports that relations had broken down between the ministry and the country’s top army leadership. Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv with the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, Zelenskyy said there had been a “challenging dialogue” between Fedorov – widely seen as a reformist and moderniser – and the military’s commander in chief, Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi. Continue reading...
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President says he had to choose ‘one side or the other’ after breakdown of relations between ministry and military leaders Europe live – latest updates Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has defended his decision to dismiss the country’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov , and confirmed reports that relations had broken down between the ministry and the country…
TL;DR:
President says he had to choose ‘one side or the other’ after breakdown of relations between ministry and military leaders Europe live – latest updates Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has defended his decision to dismiss the country’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov , and confirmed reports that relations had broken down between the ministry and the country’s top army leadership.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 15:01
Nearly one in five World Cup matches reached heat levels players’ union warns against
Guardian analysis finds 19% of games reached heat levels warranting delays, as Fifa defends its player safeguards The climate crisis has come for football. During this year’s World Cup , nearly one in five of the tournament’s 100-plus matches took place in levels of heat and humidity that a football players’ union has previously said should trigger delays or postponements, a Guardian analysis has found. An additional 23 matches were played in cities as they reached those heat levels, but in stadiums where conditions were mitigated by air conditioning. Continue reading...
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Nearly one in five World Cup matches reached heat levels players’ union warns against. During this year’s World Cup , nearly one in five of the tournament’s 100-plus matches took place in levels of heat and humidity that a football players’ union has previously said should trigger delays or postponements, a Guardian analysis has found.
TL;DR:
Guardian analysis finds 19% of games reached heat levels warranting delays, as Fifa defends its player safeguards The climate crisis has come for football.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 15:00
Smoking rates fall to historic low across Australia despite the rise of illicit tobacco
Long-running AIHW survey shows daily rates of smoking dropped to 5.6% last year – down from 8.3% two years ago Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Daily smoking rates have fallen to a historic low and are tracking well ahead of national targets, while vaping rates have stabilised, according to the largest nationally representative survey on tobacco use. But those who do smoke are increasingly using illicit tobacco, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s (AIHW) National Drug Strategy Household Survey also found. Continue reading...
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Long-running AIHW survey shows daily rates of smoking dropped to 5.6% last year – down from 8.3% two years ago Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Daily smoking rates have fallen to a historic low and are tracking well ahead of national targets, while vaping rates have stabilised, according to the largest nationally representative survey on tobacco use.
TL;DR:
Long-running AIHW survey shows daily rates of smoking dropped to 5.6% last year – down from 8.3% two years ago Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Daily smoking rates have fallen to a historic low and are tracking well ahead of national targets, while vaping rates have stabilised, according to the largest nationally representative survey on tobacco use.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 14:51
Target of Monaco bomb blames attack on Ukrainian spy agency
Vadym Iermolaiev says military intelligence officers were behind assassination attempt that seriously wounded his wife and child Europe live – latest updates The Ukrainian businessman who survived an assassination attempt in Monaco has accused Ukraine’s military intelligence agency of organising the attack. In his first public statement since the bombing that shook the wealthy principality, Vadym Iermolaiev alleged that serving and former officers of the GUR military intelligence agency were behind the attempted killing, which left him injured but his partner critically wounded. Continue reading...
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Vadym Iermolaiev says military intelligence officers were behind assassination attempt that seriously wounded his wife and child Europe live – latest updates The Ukrainian businessman who survived an assassination attempt in Monaco has accused Ukraine’s military intelligence agency of organising the attack.
TL;DR:
Vadym Iermolaiev says military intelligence officers were behind assassination attempt that seriously wounded his wife and child Europe live – latest updates The Ukrainian businessman who survived an assassination attempt in Monaco has accused Ukraine’s military intelligence agency of organising the attack.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 14:49
Air quality plummets in 20 states as smoke from Canadian wildfires spreads across the US
Millions of Americans face air quality alerts from Minnesota to New York as authorities urge people to stay indoors Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Smoke from wildfires burning in south-central Canada and parts of Minnesota is spreading across the US, prompting air quality alerts in more than 20 states with millions of Americans expected to face unhealthy air conditions this week. The smoke from the more than 180 active wildfires in northern Ontario briefly made Toronto’s air quality among the worst in the world on Wednesday. By Wednesday night , the smoke had spread across several US states, from Minnesota, where multiple wildfires are also burning, to New York, blanketing the skies in haze and worsening air quality. Continue reading...
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Air quality plummets in 20 states as smoke from Canadian wildfires spreads across the US. The smoke from the more than 180 active wildfires in northern Ontario briefly made Toronto’s air quality among the worst in the world on Wednesday.
TL;DR:
Millions of Americans face air quality alerts from Minnesota to New York as authorities urge people to stay indoors Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Smoke from wildfires burning in south-central Canada and parts of Minnesota is spreading across the US, prompting air quality alerts in more than 20 states with millions of Americans expected to face unhealthy air conditions this week.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 14:35
Burnham too influenced by ‘vested interests’ to offer change, Polanski says
Exclusive: Green party launches pushback against idea that next PM will have more left-leaning agenda than Starmer UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham is “too in hock to vested interests” to offer real change, Zack Polanski has said as the Greens launched a pushback against the incoming prime minister, portraying him as cautious and weak on such areas as wealth taxes, Gaza and rent controls. Under Polanski’s leadership the Green party in England and Wales has more than tripled its membership , and is closely tracking Labour in opinion polls, with much of the new support coming from former Labour voters disenchanted with Keir Starmer’s approach. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Green party launches pushback against idea that next PM will have more left-leaning agenda than Starmer UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham is “too in hock to vested interests” to offer real change, Zack Polanski has said as the Greens launched a pushback against the incoming prime minister, portraying him as cautious and weak on such areas as wealth taxe…
TL;DR:
Exclusive: Green party launches pushback against idea that next PM will have more left-leaning agenda than Starmer UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham is “too in hock to vested interests” to offer real change, Zack Polanski has said as the Greens launched a pushback against the incoming prime minister, portraying him as cautious and weak on such areas as wealth taxes, Gaza and rent controls.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 16, 14:02
A Divided World Is North Korea’s Greatest Asset
Geopolitical fragmentation has hamstrung nuclear sanctions regimes. Pyongyang is taking advantage.
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A Divided World Is North Korea’s Greatest Asset. Geopolitical fragmentation has hamstrung nuclear sanctions regimes. Pyongyang is taking advantage.
TL;DR:
Geopolitical fragmentation has hamstrung nuclear sanctions regimes.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 13:58
Trump’s Board of Peace drops full Gaza recovery plan in favour of tiny pilot scheme
Revised plan aims to ‘keep something going’ amid fears Netanyahu may gamble on new all-out offensive before Israeli elections The Gaza recovery plan being pursued by Donald Trump’s Board of Peace (BoP) has shrunk dramatically from an ambitious blueprint for the reconstruction of the whole territory to a small pilot project in the south of the strip. Even the envisaged pilot scheme – involving a temporary camp for a tiny fraction of Gaza’s 2 million displaced people, with a Palestinian administration, police and a small international security force – is not expected to take shape before the end of the year. Continue reading...
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Revised plan aims to ‘keep something going’ amid fears Netanyahu may gamble on new all-out offensive before Israeli elections The Gaza recovery plan being pursued by Donald Trump’s Board of Peace (BoP) has shrunk dramatically from an ambitious blueprint for the reconstruction of the whole territory to a small pilot project in the south of the strip.
TL;DR:
Revised plan aims to ‘keep something going’ amid fears Netanyahu may gamble on new all-out offensive before Israeli elections The Gaza recovery plan being pursued by Donald Trump’s Board of Peace (BoP) has shrunk dramatically from an ambitious blueprint for the reconstruction of the whole territory to a small pilot project in the south of the strip.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 13:49
Hal Williams, actor best known for Sanford and Son and 227, dies at 91
The actor, who also appeared in The Waltons and Private Benjamin, died at his home in California Hal Williams, actor best known for TV roles in Sanford & Son and 227, has died at the age of 91. His representative confirmed that Williams died on 15 July at his home in California. Continue reading...
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The actor, who also appeared in The Waltons and Private Benjamin, died at his home in California Hal Williams, actor best known for TV roles in Sanford & Son and 227, has died at the age of 91. His representative confirmed that Williams died on 15 July at his home in California. Continue reading...
TL;DR:
The actor, who also appeared in The Waltons and Private Benjamin, died at his home in California Hal Williams, actor best known for TV roles in Sanford & Son and 227, has died at the age of 91.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 13:47
Offer teenagers a meningitis B vaccine on NHS, advisers tell UK government
JCVI says children should have one or two doses of menB vaccine at age 15, depending on if they had one as a baby Teenagers should be offered a vaccine on the NHS to protect against deadly meningitis B (menB), government advisers have recommended. The move by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), which needs approval from the government, means young people should get a jab around the age of 15, with catch-up programmes for those who would otherwise miss out. Continue reading...
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JCVI says children should have one or two doses of menB vaccine at age 15, depending on if they had one as a baby Teenagers should be offered a vaccine on the NHS to protect against deadly meningitis B (menB), government advisers have recommended.
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JCVI says children should have one or two doses of menB vaccine at age 15, depending on if they had one as a baby Teenagers should be offered a vaccine on the NHS to protect against deadly meningitis B (menB), government advisers have recommended.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 13:38
UK government drops plan to stop paying coastguard volunteers
Move raises questions over position of the head of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency UK politics live – latest updates Ministers have U-turned on plans to strip volunteer coastguard officers of their hourly pay after coming in for intense criticism over the plan. The announcement, made by the maritime minister in parliament on Thursday, was described as a huge win for coastguards many of whom had said they would reduce their hours or leave the service altogether if the government had pushed ahead. It has raised questions over the position of Virginia McVea, head of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). Continue reading...
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UK government drops plan to stop paying coastguard volunteers. The announcement, made by the maritime minister in parliament on Thursday, was described as a huge win for coastguards many of whom had said they would reduce their hours or leave the service altogether if the government had pushed ahead.
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Move raises questions over position of the head of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency UK politics live – latest updates Ministers have U-turned on plans to strip volunteer coastguard officers of their hourly pay after coming in for intense criticism over the plan.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 13:21
MI5 lied about relations with neo-Nazi informant, watchdog says
Review of case criticises handling of agent X, who exploited role with agency to violently threaten his girlfriend MI5 has been reprimanded by a watchdog for lying about its relationship with a neo-Nazi informant, who had exploited his role with the spy agency to violently threaten his girlfriend. The Investigatory Powers Commissioner’s Office (Ipco) criticised MI5’s handling of a man known only as agent X, and said some of its officers had initially misled the courts and the regulator about his true status. Continue reading...
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Review of case criticises handling of agent X, who exploited role with agency to violently threaten his girlfriend MI5 has been reprimanded by a watchdog for lying about its relationship with a neo-Nazi informant, who had exploited his role with the spy agency to violently threaten his girlfriend.
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Review of case criticises handling of agent X, who exploited role with agency to violently threaten his girlfriend MI5 has been reprimanded by a watchdog for lying about its relationship with a neo-Nazi informant, who had exploited his role with the spy agency to violently threaten his girlfriend.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 16, 13:00
Nigeria Is Quietly Becoming a Diplomatic Powerhouse
Many analysts think Abuja’s foreign policy is on the decline. Here’s why that view is misguided.
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Nigeria Is Quietly Becoming a Diplomatic Powerhouse. Many analysts think Abuja’s foreign policy is on the decline. Here’s why that view is misguided.
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Many analysts think Abuja’s foreign policy is on the decline.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 12:50
Mafia law gives Italian families right to break free from a life of crime
Wives and children offered new identities to try to stop gangsters recruiting down the generations Children and young adults raised in mafia families will be given a chance to break away from organised crime under new legislation in Italy that aims to stop the inter-generational recruitment of gangsters. In an unprecedented effort to sever the family chain, the Italian state will offer children aged under 25 and other close relatives of mafia bosses a chance to start over: a new home in another city, a new school and, if necessary, a new identity. Continue reading...
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Wives and children offered new identities to try to stop gangsters recruiting down the generations Children and young adults raised in mafia families will be given a chance to break away from organised crime under new legislation in Italy that aims to stop the inter-generational recruitment of gangsters.
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Wives and children offered new identities to try to stop gangsters recruiting down the generations Children and young adults raised in mafia families will be given a chance to break away from organised crime under new legislation in Italy that aims to stop the inter-generational recruitment of gangsters.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 12:26
US gas prices edge up again as US-Iran tensions heighten over strait of Hormuz
Diesel tops $5 a gallon as regular gas reaches almost $4, nearly a dollar and a quarter more than a year ago Middle East crisis live – latest updates The average price of diesel fuel in the US has increased again to more than $5 a gallon, according to the AAA , and the average price of gas is almost $4, returning to their highs before the June memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran . It’s a reminder to consumers and truckers of the costs of the Iran war and the unpredictable rhetoric from both Washington and Tehran. A year ago today, the AAA says, the average price for a gallon of diesel was $3.72, almost a dollar and a quarter less than it is now. Continue reading...
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US gas prices edge up again as US-Iran tensions heighten over strait of Hormuz. It’s a reminder to consumers and truckers of the costs of the Iran war and the unpredictable rhetoric from both Washington and Tehran. A year ago today, the AAA says, the average price for a gallon of diesel was $3.72, almost a dollar and a quarter less than it is now.
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Diesel tops $5 a gallon as regular gas reaches almost $4, nearly a dollar and a quarter more than a year ago Middle East crisis live – latest updates The average price of diesel fuel in the US has increased again to more than $5 a gallon, according to the AAA , and the average price of gas is almost $4, returning to their highs before the June memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran .
Theguardian
Jul 16, 12:11
Keir Starmer wants Fifa investigation into Argentina players who held Falklands banner
Spokesperson says islands ‘definitely’ belong to the UK ‘PM wishes both teams well for the final, especially Spain’ Keir Starmer supports the idea of Fifa investigating Argentina players who displayed a banner touting their country’s claim to the Falklands Islands after their World Cup semi-final win against England, Downing Street has said. Starmer, who watched the match while travelling to Ukraine by train for the final overseas trip of his prime ministership, endorsed a call by Peter Kyle, the business secretary, for Fifa to “thoroughly” investigate what rules may have been broken. Continue reading...
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Spokesperson says islands ‘definitely’ belong to the UK ‘PM wishes both teams well for the final, especially Spain’ Keir Starmer supports the idea of Fifa investigating Argentina players who displayed a banner touting their country’s claim to the Falklands Islands after their World Cup semi-final win against England, Downing Street has said.
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Spokesperson says islands ‘definitely’ belong to the UK ‘PM wishes both teams well for the final, especially Spain’ Keir Starmer supports the idea of Fifa investigating Argentina players who displayed a banner touting their country’s claim to the Falklands Islands after their World Cup semi-final win against England, Downing Street has said.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 12:07
Trump fires new US attorney in Seattle an hour after federal judges appoint him
Roger Rogoff’s was selected by panel of judges for top prosecutor job after interim US attorney’s term ended US politics live – latest updates Donald Trump fired the new top federal prosecutor in Seattle on Wednesday less than an hour after the attorney was unanimously appointed by the federal judges in the district, highlighting tensions between the courts and the president over the powerful positions. Roger Rogoff, a former judge and veteran state and federal prosecutor, was sworn in as US attorney before 8am at the US courthouse in downtown Seattle. In a phone interview, he said he then went to the US attorney’s office and asked to meet with Charles Neil Floyd, whose 120-day interim term in the position ended in February. Continue reading...
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Trump fires new US attorney in Seattle an hour after federal judges appoint him. Roger Rogoff, a former judge and veteran state and federal prosecutor, was sworn in as US attorney before 8am at the US courthouse in downtown Seattle.
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Roger Rogoff’s was selected by panel of judges for top prosecutor job after interim US attorney’s term ended US politics live – latest updates Donald Trump fired the new top federal prosecutor in Seattle on Wednesday less than an hour after the attorney was unanimously appointed by the federal judges in the district, highlighting tensions between the courts and the president over the powerful positions.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 12:00
How Trump’s ‘original oil guy’ boosted US-Israel ties and played down risks of Iran war
Fracking billionaire Harold Hamm is co-chair of a non-profit that has aggressively pushed for US energy dominance Tycoon Harold Hamm is one of the US’s most successful oilmen, the son of Oklahoma sharecroppers who hit it rich as a “wildcatter” and pioneered fracking techniques that drove the shale boom in 2008 that reversed declining US oil production. Donald Trump describes him as a “ long time ” friend and is said to have called him his “ original oil guy ” behind closed doors. The Continental Resources founder has also faced scrutiny from climate advocates and groups and some Democratic lawmakers over his influence on Trump and role in pushing him to go all in on planet-heating fossil fuels and gut climate rules. Continue reading...
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How Trump’s ‘original oil guy’ boosted US-Israel ties and played down risks of Iran war. Donald Trump describes him as a “ long time ” friend and is said to have called him his “ original oil guy ” behind closed doors.
TL;DR:
Fracking billionaire Harold Hamm is co-chair of a non-profit that has aggressively pushed for US energy dominance Tycoon Harold Hamm is one of the US’s most successful oilmen, the son of Oklahoma sharecroppers who hit it rich as a “wildcatter” and pioneered fracking techniques that drove the shale boom in 2008 that reversed declining US oil production.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 11:47
US intensifies attacks on Iran as Tehran hits back at Gulf states
Sixth day of fighting threatens to turn into all-out war and casts serious doubt on peace deal struck last month • Chaos and confusion bring US no closer to resolution on strait of Hormuz Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US has intensified its attacks on Iran, hitting targets near Tehran and striking a ship it accused of trying to break its blockade, while Iran retaliated by firing missiles and drones at US allies in the region The back-and-forth attacks, which have reached their sixth consecutive day, threaten to pull the region back into a total war and cast serious doubt about an interim deal reached last month meant to achieve a permanent peace. Continue reading...
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Sixth day of fighting threatens to turn into all-out war and casts serious doubt on peace deal struck last month • Chaos and confusion bring US no closer to resolution on strait of Hormuz Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US has intensified its attacks on Iran, hitting targets near Tehran and striking a ship it accused of trying to break its blockade, while Iran ret…
TL;DR:
Sixth day of fighting threatens to turn into all-out war and casts serious doubt on peace deal struck last month • Chaos and confusion bring US no closer to resolution on strait of Hormuz Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US has intensified its attacks on Iran, hitting targets near Tehran and striking a ship it accused of trying to break its blockade, while Iran retaliated by firing missiles and drones at US allies in the region The back-and-forth attacks, which have reached their sixth consecutive day, threaten to pull the region back into a total war and cast serious doubt about an interim deal reached last month meant to achieve a permanent peace.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 11:33
Uganda calls for travel restrictions to be lifted after last Ebola patient discharged
Country begins 42-day countdown to outbreak being declared officially over, as numbers continue to rise in neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo Uganda has started lobbying countries to lift Ebola-related travel restrictions after discharging its last confirmed Ebola patient from hospital. The discharge of a Congolese national from the Mulago national referral hospital’s isolation centre in Kampala on Thursday triggered the start of a 42-day countdown required by the World Health Organization before Uganda can officially be declared Ebola-free, provided no new infections are detected. Continue reading...
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Country begins 42-day countdown to outbreak being declared officially over, as numbers continue to rise in neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo Uganda has started lobbying countries to lift Ebola-related travel restrictions after discharging its last confirmed Ebola patient from hospital.
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Country begins 42-day countdown to outbreak being declared officially over, as numbers continue to rise in neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo Uganda has started lobbying countries to lift Ebola-related travel restrictions after discharging its last confirmed Ebola patient from hospital.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 11:00
Democrats allege Trump administration stalled US-Canada bridge opening as a favor to billionaire donor
Delay seen as move to protect interests of Matthew Moroun, the owner of nearby Ambassador Bridge and a Trump donor The Trump administration for months blocked a $4.7bn publicly owned bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, a move critics allege is a quid pro quo for a billionaire Donald Trump donor. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Gordie Howe international bridge connecting Detroit and Windsor was initially scheduled for early June but was abruptly cancelled amid dispute between US and Canadian officials. On 10 July, Canada announced it reached a deal with the US, and the bridge will open on 27 July. Continue reading...
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Democrats allege Trump administration stalled US-Canada bridge opening as a favor to billionaire donor. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Gordie Howe international bridge connecting Detroit and Windsor was initially scheduled for early June but was abruptly cancelled amid dispute between US and Canadian officials.
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Delay seen as move to protect interests of Matthew Moroun, the owner of nearby Ambassador Bridge and a Trump donor The Trump administration for months blocked a $4.7bn publicly owned bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, a move critics allege is a quid pro quo for a billionaire Donald Trump donor.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 11:00
‘A first step to fascism’: critics denounce Trump administration replacing slavery exhibit at George Washington’s home
Replacement of panels with version that’s sympathetic to enslavers comes amid effort by Trump to dismantle diversity initiatives Critics say the Trump administration acted under the “cover of darkness” to replace an exhibit exploring the lives of nine enslaved people who lived at George Washington’s Philadelphia home with a version that is overly sympathetic to enslavers and that whitewashes the country’s origins. The installation of new information panels followed a six-month fight between the city of Philadelphia and the Trump administration over an enslavement memorial at the former home of Washington and John Adams. Continue reading...
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Replacement of panels with version that’s sympathetic to enslavers comes amid effort by Trump to dismantle diversity initiatives Critics say the Trump administration acted under the “cover of darkness” to replace an exhibit exploring the lives of nine enslaved people who lived at George Washington’s Philadelphia home with a version that is overly sympathetic to enslavers and…
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Replacement of panels with version that’s sympathetic to enslavers comes amid effort by Trump to dismantle diversity initiatives Critics say the Trump administration acted under the “cover of darkness” to replace an exhibit exploring the lives of nine enslaved people who lived at George Washington’s Philadelphia home with a version that is overly sympathetic to enslavers and that whitewashes the country’s origins.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 10:53
‘Keys to the kingdom’: hackers who gained access to heart of London transport network jailed
Thalha Jubair, 20, and Owen Flowers, 19, sentenced to five and a half years each for cyber-attack that cost Transport for London £39m The teenage hackers had London’s transport network at their mercy. Thalha Jubair and Owen Flowers had burrowed into the heart of Transport for London’s IT systems and held the “keys to the kingdom”. TfL said the attack, which occurred between 31 August and 3 September 2024, could have caused “catastrophic damage” to its technology systems and could have led to “significant and extended transport service degradation and disruption”. Continue reading...
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‘Keys to the kingdom’: hackers who gained access to heart of London transport network jailed. Thalha Jubair and Owen Flowers had burrowed into the heart of Transport for London’s IT systems and held the “keys to the kingdom”.
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Thalha Jubair, 20, and Owen Flowers, 19, sentenced to five and a half years each for cyber-attack that cost Transport for London £39m The teenage hackers had London’s transport network at their mercy.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 10:23
First Thing: US attacks tanker in continuing Iran conflict as Tehran releases US citizen
US renews blockade of Iranian ports, while Iran attacks sites in Bahrain and Kuwait. Plus, legendary director John Waters on 60 years of screen carnage Good morning. The US has fired on an oil tanker attempting to reach Kharg Island in the strait of Hormuz as part of its blockade on Iranian ports, as Tehran came under attack for the first time in the latest round of strikes. The US targeted coastal defences and missile sites, as well as targets farther north, with state media reporting strikes on the country’s capital, Tehran. The US also said it had disabled the unladen oil tanker, firing Hellfire missiles into the ship’s smokestack after it ignored multiple warnings. What other development have happened in the region? Donald Trump said Iran has released a US citizen detained since 2024, identified as Dena Karari, a dual US-Iranian citizen. Meanwhile, the Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, told US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, that Israel was determined to keep its forces in “security zones” in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza. What did the man’s family say? Arenas-Silva’s sister and immigrants’ rights groups in Georgia said in a press statement that ICE did not provide him with necessary medications during his time in detention for an unnamed condition he was dealing with, despite his family’s pleas that he take the medications during his arrest last week. How is the crisis becoming more international? Mexico has formally requested that US state attorneys general criminally investigate cases of immigrants who have died in ICE custody or during raids, the Mexican government has said . Since the beginning of Donald Trump’s second term, 17 Mexican immigrants have died during immigration enforcement, 14 in ICE custody and three in agency operations. Continue reading...
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First Thing: US attacks tanker in continuing Iran conflict as Tehran releases US citizen. Donald Trump said Iran has released a US citizen detained since 2024, identified as Dena Karari, a dual US-Iranian citizen.
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US renews blockade of Iranian ports, while Iran attacks sites in Bahrain and Kuwait.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 10:09
Trump to meet Darline Graham at the White House today – US politics live
President will meet new Republican senator who has taken over the seat following the death of her brother Lindsey Graham Sign up for the Breaking News US email Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. Donald Trump is due to meet Darline Graham - the sister of the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham, was sworn in to temporarily fill his Senate seat – later today. 103 House Democrats voted to cut military aid to Israel as accusations that Israel’s government carried out a genocide in Gaza are gaining more traction in the party. Two of Donald Trump ’s nominees for powerful positions, Todd Blanche and Jay Clayton , buckled under pressure during their confirmations hearings. Blanche, the acting attorney general, described himself as Trump’s lawyer, before correcting himself. Clayton, the would-be national intelligence director, refused to say who won the 2020 election when asked by senator Jon Ossoff . Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna , who wrote the Epstein Files Transparency Act , the law requiring the release of investigative files on the late child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein , introduced a sequel that would allow state officials, victims and members of Congress to sue the attorney general over withheld records. In an interview with the podcaster Joe Rogan , US vice-president JD Vance discounted the conspiracy theory that Trump’s long association with Epstein had been used by Israel to blackmail the president into attacking Iran. The treasury department announced Wednesday that the US Mint has started producing a new commemorative $1 coin featuring Donald Trump as part of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebration. Continue reading...
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Trump to meet Darline Graham at the White House today – US politics live. 103 House Democrats voted to cut military aid to Israel as accusations that Israel’s government carried out a genocide in Gaza are gaining more traction in the party.
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President will meet new Republican senator who has taken over the seat following the death of her brother Lindsey Graham Sign up for the Breaking News US email Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 10:01
Uber to buy Germany’s Delivery Hero in $14.8bn global deal
Uber will offer taxi services and food delivery in 58 markets after deal completes, up from 34 Business live – latest updates Uber has reached an agreement to take over the German takeaway company Delivery Hero in a $14.8bn (£10.7bn/€12.6bn) deal that would create a global food delivery giant. The US tech firm said it had offered to pay €41.50 per share to Delivery Hero’s shareholders, valuing the business at $14.8bn. Uber will pay $13.7bn after accounting for its previous purchases of a quarter of Delivery Hero’s shares, most recently in May. Continue reading...
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Uber to buy Germany’s Delivery Hero in $14.8bn global deal. The US tech firm said it had offered to pay €41.50 per share to Delivery Hero’s shareholders, valuing the business at $14.8bn. Uber will pay $13.7bn after accounting for its previous purchases of a quarter of Delivery Hero’s shares, most recently in May.
TL;DR:
Uber will offer taxi services and food delivery in 58 markets after deal completes, up from 34 Business live – latest updates Uber has reached an agreement to take over the German takeaway company Delivery Hero in a $14.8bn (£10.7bn/€12.6bn) deal that would create a global food delivery giant.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 09:40
Demise of Timmy the whale inspires satirical play exploring German identity
Timmy: Hope Dies Last elevates stranded humpback into Jesus-like figure, igniting hope and grief When people in Germany organised a daring rescue mission for a humpback whale stranded on the Baltic coast in April, it briefly looked like a country stricken with political division and economic anxiety was rallying around a common cause. A new satirical play inspired by the episode, however, suggests the spectators, social-media influencers, politicians and millionaires who flocked to the seaside in support never just wanted to rescue the cetacean that came to be nicknamed Timmy, but for Timmy to rescue them. Continue reading...
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Timmy: Hope Dies Last elevates stranded humpback into Jesus-like figure, igniting hope and grief When people in Germany organised a daring rescue mission for a humpback whale stranded on the Baltic coast in April, it briefly looked like a country stricken with political division and economic anxiety was rallying around a common cause.
TL;DR:
Timmy: Hope Dies Last elevates stranded humpback into Jesus-like figure, igniting hope and grief When people in Germany organised a daring rescue mission for a humpback whale stranded on the Baltic coast in April, it briefly looked like a country stricken with political division and economic anxiety was rallying around a common cause.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 09:00
‘People think you’ve got 10,000 cats’: the support group for hoarders
Many hoarders are scared to seek help but one UK housing association is taking a more empathetic approach At one end of the table sits Tony*, who showers at his local leisure centre in Birkenhead every day. His landlord won’t fix his bathroom because of his hoarding. Then there’s Sarah*, who ended up homeless with her three teenagers after their landlord evicted them because of hoarding. In her new home the problem has started again, but she says she’s petrified to ask for help in case she loses her property. Sian Cowley, 35, who has struggled with hoarding for decades, says: “I’ve lived without central heating for two years. A lot of us live without the basics like hot water, heating and cooking because we are too scared to get people in to do repairs because of the threat of eviction.” Continue reading...
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‘People think you’ve got 10,000 cats’: the support group for hoarders. Sian Cowley, 35, who has struggled with hoarding for decades, says: “I’ve lived without central heating for two years. A lot of us live without the basics like hot water, heating and cooking because we are too scared to get people in to do repairs because of the threat of eviction.” Continue reading...
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Many hoarders are scared to seek help but one UK housing association is taking a more empathetic approach At one end of the table sits Tony*, who showers at his local leisure centre in Birkenhead every day.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 08:54
Ocado chief says he won’t be a ‘puppet master’ amid apparent succession row
Tim Steiner speaks as shares in the online grocer slide nearly 15% on plunge in pre-tax profits to £17m Business live – latest updates The co-founder and boss of Ocado has insisted he has “no intention of being a puppet master” exerting control over its staff amid an apparent boardroom row over succession at the grocery technology company. Tim Steiner, who is to stand down as chief executive in 2028, suggested that any successor would be happy to work with him. Continue reading...
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Tim Steiner speaks as shares in the online grocer slide nearly 15% on plunge in pre-tax profits to £17m Business live – latest updates The co-founder and boss of Ocado has insisted he has “no intention of being a puppet master” exerting control over its staff amid an apparent boardroom row over succession at the grocery technology company.
TL;DR:
Tim Steiner speaks as shares in the online grocer slide nearly 15% on plunge in pre-tax profits to £17m Business live – latest updates The co-founder and boss of Ocado has insisted he has “no intention of being a puppet master” exerting control over its staff amid an apparent boardroom row over succession at the grocery technology company.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 08:29
UK investigation to determine if TikTok fails to protect children from harmful content
Ofcom concerned platform’s age verification is ineffective, leaving some at risk of seeing posts about self-harm and suicide TikTok is under formal investigation over concerns it has failed to protect children from harmful content, the UK’s online regulator, Ofcom, has announced. The social media platform’s approach to checking the ages of users has sparked “particular concerns” at the watchdog, almost a year after measures to protect children from the worst of online content came into effect under the Online Safety Act. Continue reading...
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Ofcom concerned platform’s age verification is ineffective, leaving some at risk of seeing posts about self-harm and suicide TikTok is under formal investigation over concerns it has failed to protect children from harmful content, the UK’s online regulator, Ofcom, has announced.
TL;DR:
Ofcom concerned platform’s age verification is ineffective, leaving some at risk of seeing posts about self-harm and suicide TikTok is under formal investigation over concerns it has failed to protect children from harmful content, the UK’s online regulator, Ofcom, has announced.
Warontherocks
Jul 16, 08:00
Reading through the Lines of the FY2027 NDAA
The relationship between Congress and the Pentagon over the past year has been marked by public disagreements and frustrations over lawmakers’ concerns about the Iran War, and by what some lawmakers view as politically motivated firings of top military leaders. In many ways, the House and Senate versions of the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act reflect lawmakers’ efforts to check the Pentagon’s policy power.Innovation efforts are generally a bright spot in these political battles. While the reforms proposed this year across the chambers were more modest than last year’s transformational SPEED and FoRGED Acts, lawmakers continue to advance The post Reading through the Lines of the FY2027 NDAA appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Reading through the Lines of the FY2027 NDAA. In many ways, the House and Senate versions of the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act reflect lawmakers’ efforts to check the Pentagon’s policy power.Innovation efforts are generally a bright spot in these political battles.
TL;DR:
The relationship between Congress and the Pentagon over the past year has been marked by public disagreements and frustrations over lawmakers’ concerns about the Iran War, and by what some lawmakers view as politically motivated firings of top military leaders.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 07:58
Starmer nationalises British Steel and visits Ukraine on last full day as Labour leader – UK politics live
Outgoing PM moves to cements his legacy before his replacement by Andy Burnham as party leader tomorrow Good morning. Conventional wisdom has it that, once a PM announces they are going to stand down, all their power vanishes faster than water down a clear plughole. Broadly that’s correct. But in the last week or so Keir Starmer seems to have been acting with a decisiveness that eluded him for most of his time in office: finalising the defence investment plan; delivering the long-awaited apology to victims of forced adoption; over-ruling the security services to deliver the concession that got the Hillsborough law bill over the line; and finally securing a conditional pardon for Ruth Ellis. This is not happening because being on the way out makes a PM more powerful. But it does help them focus, and forces them to give up on faffing around. British Steel is part of the fabric of our nation and a cornerstone of Britain’s industrial strength. Today’s decision secures the future of steelmaking in the UK, protects skilled jobs and safeguards a vital national capability. Continue reading...
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Starmer nationalises British Steel and visits Ukraine on last full day as Labour leader – UK politics live. British Steel is part of the fabric of our nation and a cornerstone of Britain’s industrial strength. Today’s decision secures the future of steelmaking in the UK, protects skilled jobs and safeguards a vital national capability.
TL;DR:
Outgoing PM moves to cements his legacy before his replacement by Andy Burnham as party leader tomorrow Good morning.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 07:37
Keir Starmer arrives in Kyiv for farewell visit as British PM – Europe live
Arrival of outgoing British leader in Ukraine comes as Zelenskyy faces outrage after removing popular defence minister Volodymyr Zelenskyy is facing public outrage this morning over his decision to remove Ukraine’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, as he welcomes the UK’s departing prime minister Keir Starmer to Kyiv. The Ukrainian president moves to oust Fedorov despite pleas from foreign partners and civil society for him to keep his job , as part of wide-ranging government reshuffle which also saw Yulia Svyrydenko leave the post of the prime minister. Continue reading...
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Arrival of outgoing British leader in Ukraine comes as Zelenskyy faces outrage after removing popular defence minister Volodymyr Zelenskyy is facing public outrage this morning over his decision to remove Ukraine’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, as he welcomes the UK’s departing prime minister Keir Starmer to Kyiv.
TL;DR:
Arrival of outgoing British leader in Ukraine comes as Zelenskyy faces outrage after removing popular defence minister Volodymyr Zelenskyy is facing public outrage this morning over his decision to remove Ukraine’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, as he welcomes the UK’s departing prime minister Keir Starmer to Kyiv.
Warontherocks
Jul 16, 07:30
The Peace That Redistributes War: What Camp David Reveals About Lebanon and Iran
Nothing reveals truths more effectively than patterns. If you can identify a pattern, you can see what actions conceal, what statements leave unsaid, and what agreements postpone. Peace treaties and the negotiations surrounding them are rarely analyzed in this way, even though they may exhibit patterns that recur across different circumstances. Consequently, there is often a simplification in understanding the pressures, incentives, and constraints shaping each step and each party’s choices, an exaggeration in linking the various warring factions into a single understanding without seeing the gaps, or a disregard for realities that might prevent us from truly understanding the The post The Peace That Redistributes War: What Camp David Reveals About Lebanon and Iran appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The Peace That Redistributes War: What Camp David Reveals About Lebanon and Iran. Nothing reveals truths more effectively than patterns. Peace treaties and the negotiations surrounding them are rarely analyzed in this way, even though they may exhibit patterns that recur across different circumstances.
TL;DR:
Consequently, there is often a simplification in understanding the pressures, incentives, and constraints shaping each step and each party’s choices, an exaggeration in linking the various warring factions into a single understanding without seeing the gaps, or a disregard for realities that might prevent us from truly understanding the The post The Peace That Redistributes War: What Camp David Reveals About Lebanon and Iran appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 16, 07:26
British Steel is taken into public ownership to save UK supply
Scunthorpe factory is expropriated from China’s Jingye and ministers will ask a valuer to assess compensation British Steel has formally been taken into public ownership 15 months after the government stepped in to prevent the closure of its steelworks in Scunthorpe and the loss of 4,000 jobs. Keir Starmer on Thursday said that it was in the national interest for the government to take over the factory from its Chinese owner, Jingye, in one of the last significant actions overseen by him as prime minister after the Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Act received Royal Assent on Wednesday. Continue reading...
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Scunthorpe factory is expropriated from China’s Jingye and ministers will ask a valuer to assess compensation British Steel has formally been taken into public ownership 15 months after the government stepped in to prevent the closure of its steelworks in Scunthorpe and the loss of 4,000 jobs.
TL;DR:
Scunthorpe factory is expropriated from China’s Jingye and ministers will ask a valuer to assess compensation British Steel has formally been taken into public ownership 15 months after the government stepped in to prevent the closure of its steelworks in Scunthorpe and the loss of 4,000 jobs.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 07:22
US strikes expand to northern Iran as Tehran fires on Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan – Middle East crisis live
Iran reports explosions in several cities including capital while US military says it also hit and disabled tanker in strait of Hormuz US attacks oil tanker in strait of Hormuz as strikes reported in Tehran Pakistan has called on the US and Iran to end the violence and resume negotiations as stipulated in the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in June with Islamabad’s mediation. “While the implementation of the MoU is facing challenges, Pakistan will continue to encourage all sides to end the violence and resume technical level talks in accordance with the MoU,” Tahir Andrabi, spokesperson for the Pakistani foreign ministry, said at a press briefing today. Continue reading...
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Iran reports explosions in several cities including capital while US military says it also hit and disabled tanker in strait of Hormuz US attacks oil tanker in strait of Hormuz as strikes reported in Tehran Pakistan has called on the US and Iran to end the violence and resume negotiations as stipulated in the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in June with Islamabad’s me…
TL;DR:
Iran reports explosions in several cities including capital while US military says it also hit and disabled tanker in strait of Hormuz US attacks oil tanker in strait of Hormuz as strikes reported in Tehran Pakistan has called on the US and Iran to end the violence and resume negotiations as stipulated in the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in June with Islamabad’s mediation.
Warontherocks
Jul 16, 07:15
Academia’s Critical Role in Developing an Economic Security Workforce
Editor’s note: This is the tenth article in an 11-part series examining how the United States should organize, lead, and integrate economic statecraft into strategy, defense practice, and the broader national security ecosystem. The special series is brought to you by the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies and War on the Rocks. Prior installments can be found at the War by Other Ledgers page.The United States is fighting a new kind of global competition — over supply chains, chips, and sanctions. It barely has anyone trained to fight it.No single country can untangle itself from the forces of global trade, and no industry can stabilize in The post Academia’s Critical Role in Developing an Economic Security Workforce appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Academia’s Critical Role in Developing an Economic Security Workforce. The special series is brought to you by the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies and War on the Rocks. Prior installments can be found at the War by Other Ledgers page.The United States is fighting a new kind of global competition — over supply chains, chips, and sanctions.
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Editor’s note: This is the tenth article in an 11-part series examining how the United States should organize, lead, and integrate economic statecraft into strategy, defense practice, and the broader national security ecosystem.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 06:52
Snake in a chain: lucky escape for Australian woman after bite from deadly reptile caught in bike chain
Woman in her 60s was riding on popular cycling trail in northern NSW when she ran over the two-metre long eastern brown snake, one of the world’s most venomous A woman in her 60s is recovering after being bitten by a two-metre-long eastern brown snake that had become entangled in her bike chain in regional Australia. She was riding on the northern rivers rail trail near Burringbar, in the Tweed shire in northern New South Wales, when she ran over the snake. Continue reading...
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She was riding on the northern rivers rail trail near Burringbar, in the Tweed shire in northern New South Wales, when she ran over the snake.
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Woman in her 60s was riding on popular cycling trail in northern NSW when she ran over the two-metre long eastern brown snake, one of the world’s most venomous A woman in her 60s is recovering after being bitten by a two-metre-long eastern brown snake that had become entangled in her bike chain in regional Australia.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 06:00
British girl, 15, stranded in Rome for six weeks due to new passport rules
The dual national, who missed six weeks of school, is latest of several children affected by recent Home Office policy A British girl was prevented from returning to her school in the UK for six weeks after a trip to see her grandmother in Italy because of the Home Office’s new rule requiring dual British nationals to have a British passport to get back into the country. The 15-year-old, who was stranded in Rome in April, is just the latest of a number of children and young adults hit by a new Labour government rule that came into force in February. Continue reading...
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The dual national, who missed six weeks of school, is latest of several children affected by recent Home Office policy A British girl was prevented from returning to her school in the UK for six weeks after a trip to see her grandmother in Italy because of the Home Office’s new rule requiring dual British nationals to have a British passport to get back into the country.
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The dual national, who missed six weeks of school, is latest of several children affected by recent Home Office policy A British girl was prevented from returning to her school in the UK for six weeks after a trip to see her grandmother in Italy because of the Home Office’s new rule requiring dual British nationals to have a British passport to get back into the country.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 05:52
Police release images of clothes to help identify victims of alleged Sydney childcare paedophile
AFP release images of children’s clothes found on electronic devices seized as part of investigation into Hamish Tait Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A tiny dinosaur puffer jacket could lead police to more victims of a former childcare worker and alleged prolific child sex offender. Federal police have released pictures of clothing from children they want to identify, urging parents and carers who recognise the items to come forward. Continue reading...
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AFP release images of children’s clothes found on electronic devices seized as part of investigation into Hamish Tait Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A tiny dinosaur puffer jacket could lead police to more victims of a former childcare worker and alleged prolific child sex offender.
TL;DR:
AFP release images of children’s clothes found on electronic devices seized as part of investigation into Hamish Tait Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A tiny dinosaur puffer jacket could lead police to more victims of a former childcare worker and alleged prolific child sex offender.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 05:46
Australian patients’ medical records could be sold on dark web after clinics’ data breach
‘Malicious actor’ obtains sensitive data including Medicare numbers, treatment details and pathology results in cyber-attack on Partnered Health Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australians’ medical records and patient information could be sold on the hidden market, an expert has warned, after a cyber-attack at one of the nation’s biggest healthcare providers. Partnered Health revealed 21 clinics across several cities including Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra were affected when a “malicious actor” accessed its data on 23 June. Continue reading...
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‘Malicious actor’ obtains sensitive data including Medicare numbers, treatment details and pathology results in cyber-attack on Partnered Health Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australians’ medical records and patient information could be sold on the hidden market, an expert has warned, after a…
TL;DR:
‘Malicious actor’ obtains sensitive data including Medicare numbers, treatment details and pathology results in cyber-attack on Partnered Health Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australians’ medical records and patient information could be sold on the hidden market, an expert has warned, after a cyber-attack at one of the nation’s biggest healthcare providers.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 05:36
Hundreds of refugees feared dead after two suspected shipwrecks off Myanmar: UN
Vessels believed to have departed from Myanmar in late June, with mostly Muslim Rohingya minority onboard The United Nations has said more than 500 people are feared dead after reports of two large shipwrecks off Myanmar since late June. The UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) and its refugee agency UNHCR voiced alarm in a joint statement at reports “that two boats carrying more than 500 people may have capsized off the coast of Myanmar in recent days”. Continue reading...
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Vessels believed to have departed from Myanmar in late June, with mostly Muslim Rohingya minority onboard The United Nations has said more than 500 people are feared dead after reports of two large shipwrecks off Myanmar since late June.
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Vessels believed to have departed from Myanmar in late June, with mostly Muslim Rohingya minority onboard The United Nations has said more than 500 people are feared dead after reports of two large shipwrecks off Myanmar since late June.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 05:01
Brazil condemns US move to impose 25% tariffs next week
Trade office cites investigation of Brazilian trade practices while Marco Rubio says Lula’s policies ‘bad for Americans and bad for Brazilians’ Brazil has condemned the US decision to impose 25% tariffs on certain Brazilian products, after the Trump administration found a range of what it deemed unfair trade practices by the South American country. “The Brazilian government repudiates the decision announced today by the United States government regarding the imposition of 25 percent tariffs on Brazilian products,” the office of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said in a statement on X, denying it had engaged in unfair trade practices. Continue reading...
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Trade office cites investigation of Brazilian trade practices while Marco Rubio says Lula’s policies ‘bad for Americans and bad for Brazilians’ Brazil has condemned the US decision to impose 25% tariffs on certain Brazilian products, after the Trump administration found a range of what it deemed unfair trade practices by the South American country.
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Trade office cites investigation of Brazilian trade practices while Marco Rubio says Lula’s policies ‘bad for Americans and bad for Brazilians’ Brazil has condemned the US decision to impose 25% tariffs on certain Brazilian products, after the Trump administration found a range of what it deemed unfair trade practices by the South American country.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 05:00
‘It’s like home’: Brixton market traders fight to stop site being sold to big business
Campaign hopes to buy site for community, fearing it could go same route of corporate gentrification as Camden and Old Spitalfields Traders at Brixton market say they are in a battle of “people over profit” after submitting a last-minute plan to stop the site being bought by a private equity firm which they fear could price out longstanding independent businesses. Those behind the Buy Back Brixton campaign said they are through to the second stage of a bidding process, competing against multinational companies to buy Brixton Village and Market Row for community ownership. Continue reading...
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‘It’s like home’: Brixton market traders fight to stop site being sold to big business. Campaign hopes to buy site for community, fearing it could go same route of corporate gentrification as Camden and Old Spitalfields Traders at Brixton market say they are in a battle of “people over profit” after submitting a last-minute plan to stop the site being bought by a private equit…
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Those behind the Buy Back Brixton campaign said they are through to the second stage of a bidding process, competing against multinational companies to buy Brixton Village and Market Row for community ownership.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 05:00
All newborns in England to be screened for spinal muscular atrophy from 2027
Campaigners hail ‘landmark moment’ in early detection and treatment of rare muscle-wasting disease Every baby born in England will be screened for a rare muscle-wasting disease, starting next year, the Department of Health and Social Care announced on Thursday. Campaigners said the “landmark moment” should lead to babies who were found to have spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) being treated early and thus growing up without any of its debilitating symptoms. Continue reading...
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Campaigners hail ‘landmark moment’ in early detection and treatment of rare muscle-wasting disease Every baby born in England will be screened for a rare muscle-wasting disease, starting next year, the Department of Health and Social Care announced on Thursday.
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Campaigners hail ‘landmark moment’ in early detection and treatment of rare muscle-wasting disease Every baby born in England will be screened for a rare muscle-wasting disease, starting next year, the Department of Health and Social Care announced on Thursday.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 05:00
Revealed: Bucharest tourists hiring rentals that could collapse in an earthquake
Exclusive: More than 200 illegal holiday properties found in buildings at the highest level of seismic risk Tourists in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, are staying in illegal accommodation listed on Airbnb and Booking.com in buildings considered so seismically vulnerable they could collapse in the event of a major earthquake, according to exclusive data shared with the Guardian. Analysis of data collected by Re:Rise, a Romanian organisation working on seismic risk reduction, identified at least 207 illegal tourist rental properties advertised across the two platforms in Bucharest at the end of May, with a combined capacity to host more than 1,000 visitors each night. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: More than 200 illegal holiday properties found in buildings at the highest level of seismic risk Tourists in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, are staying in illegal accommodation listed on Airbnb and Booking.
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Exclusive: More than 200 illegal holiday properties found in buildings at the highest level of seismic risk Tourists in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, are staying in illegal accommodation listed on Airbnb and Booking.com in buildings considered so seismically vulnerable they could collapse in the event of a major earthquake, according to exclusive data shared with the Guardian.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 05:00
Burnham must avoid ‘summer of speculation’ on tax, warns CBI chief
Rain Newton-Smith calls for a new generation of public-private partnerships to fund major projects Andy Burnham must avoid another “summer of speculation” on tax and spend that would spook British business, the chief executive of the CBI has warned. As Burnham prepares to take up the Labour leadership on Friday, with a new cabinet to be announced on Monday, Rain Newton-Smith urged him to tread carefully. Continue reading...
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Rain Newton-Smith calls for a new generation of public-private partnerships to fund major projects Andy Burnham must avoid another “summer of speculation” on tax and spend that would spook British business, the chief executive of the CBI has warned.
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Rain Newton-Smith calls for a new generation of public-private partnerships to fund major projects Andy Burnham must avoid another “summer of speculation” on tax and spend that would spook British business, the chief executive of the CBI has warned.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 04:42
Liberals say ‘all options’ should be considered despite Angus Taylor hosing down gender quota proposal
Anne Ruston called for the party to act with ‘urgency’ after discussion paper suggested ways to improve engagement with women, multicultural communities and young people Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Angus Taylor has hosed down a proposal for the Liberal party to consider introducing gender quotas, while one of his senior shadow cabinet ministers has implored the party to act on such ideas with “urgency”. After a discussion paper that canvassed the idea was circulated to supporters on Wednesday, the party’s leader said he has never been supportive of quotas – shortly before his deputy, Jane Hume, intervened to say all options would be considered. Continue reading...
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Anne Ruston called for the party to act with ‘urgency’ after discussion paper suggested ways to improve engagement with women, multicultural communities and young people Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Angus Taylor has hosed down a proposal for the Liberal party to consider introducing gender quotas, while one of his senior shadow cabinet ministers…
TL;DR:
Anne Ruston called for the party to act with ‘urgency’ after discussion paper suggested ways to improve engagement with women, multicultural communities and young people Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Angus Taylor has hosed down a proposal for the Liberal party to consider introducing gender quotas, while one of his senior shadow cabinet ministers has implored the party to act on such ideas with “urgency”.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 04:30
Moroccan intelligence insider reveals widespread use of Pegasus hacking software
Whistleblower suggests internal security services deployed spyware from 2017 against key domestic and foreign targets A former member of Morocco’s domestic intelligence service has helped to provide an unprecedented insight into how the north African state used hacking software – including Pegasus spyware – to target journalists, human rights defenders, French politicians and Spanish cabinet ministers and police officers. Pegasus, which is manufactured by the Israel-based NSO Group, allows its operator to access everything on a target’s mobile phone, including emails, text messages and photographs. It can also activate the phone’s recorder and camera, turning it into a listening device. Continue reading...
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Moroccan intelligence insider reveals widespread use of Pegasus hacking software. Pegasus, which is manufactured by the Israel-based NSO Group, allows its operator to access everything on a target’s mobile phone, including emails, text messages and photographs. It can also activate the phone’s recorder and camera, turning it into a listening device.
TL;DR:
Whistleblower suggests internal security services deployed spyware from 2017 against key domestic and foreign targets A former member of Morocco’s domestic intelligence service has helped to provide an unprecedented insight into how the north African state used hacking software – including Pegasus spyware – to target journalists, human rights defenders, French politicians and Spanish cabinet ministers and police officers.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 16, 04:05
Iran's World Cup ordeal was a dress rehearsal for renewed war
Over the past week, the U.S. resumed heavy airstrikes on Iran, hitting over 300 targets in the first three nights alone, according to U.S. Central Command. The strikes killed more than 30 civilians and wounded more than 260, according to Iran's Health Ministry. This U.S. bombing campaign came amid ongoing peace talks between Iran and the U.S. and while Iran held cross-border funeral processions for the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. At the NATO summit in Ankara on July 8, President Trump declared the ceasefire with Iran "over." He called Iranian officials "scum," "sick" and "vicious, violent people." Such insults against Iranians are not new. Weeks earlier, this aggressive rhetoric and the renewed bombing campaign were foreshadowed by the U.S. and FIFA’s mistreatment of the Iranian football team. I witnessed the rehearsal firsthand. The opening act came well before the tournament began. U.S. officials accused the Iranian national team of attempting to smuggle Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps operatives and barred at least eleven members of the delegation from entering the United States. Iran's football federation condemned the claims as "false, fabricated, and lacking any credibility." However, the accusations played their part. By casting the Iranian football team’s attendance at the World Cup as an infiltration risk, the U.S. could frame every discriminatory action it took as a necessary safety measure. With the premise set, the restrictions followed. The Trump administration would not allow the team to camp on U.S. soil, despite all their matches being in the United States. They were only permitted to be in the U.S. during narrow windows of time to play their matches and forced to leave immediately after. As a World Cup host, the U.S. did not extend hospitality, only hostility. I had a front-row seat with the Iranian national football delegation during their World Cup stay — at their matches in Los Angeles and Seattle, in the Seattle hotel we shared, and at their base camp in Tijuana, Mexico, to which I traveled twice. Over days of conversations, members of the delegation came to know me. I had not set out to write about them. That came once I heard what the tournament had been like for them from the inside. At the airport on the way to and from all three of their matches, captain Mehdi Taremi and assistant coach Saeed Alhoei were held for nearly 30 minutes and questioned. The constant detainments, security, and immigration checks made the 127 mile flight from Tijuana to Los Angeles — normally a short hop — take nearly five hours . The team, initially promised they could stay the night in Seattle given their 8 p.m. match, received an email from FIFA three days before their game saying that they were no longer permitted to stay and would have to leave immediately after the match. Driving back to my hotel at 1:30 a.m. that night — the same one the team had been booked into — I was startled to see their distinctive royal-blue bus on the highway: not parked for the night, but moving. After the post-game press conference, anti-doping testing, airport fingerprinting, and flight, they arrived back at their hotel in Tijuana at 4:40 a.m., only to eat a post-game meal near sunrise. By refusing them hospitality, the U.S. effectively deprived Iran's World Cup team of time to sleep and eat, even on a match day. Iran was never offered fair play or an equal chance. Iran's Alireza Jahanbakhsh put the team's ask plainly: "To be honest, we don't ask for much. We just ask for the same procedure for all the other 47 teams." The answer came from the head of the White House's World Cup task force, Andrew Giuliani, who told ABC News the players should thank the U.S. for "our hospitality." After Iran was eliminated came the curtain call. The Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin told reporters at a World Cup security briefing that he was "so happy," that his department had "pulled their visas," and that he "might've sung a song or two or maybe even danced a happy dance.” On the same day Iran played its final match, the U.S. was bombing Iran. The players took the field while their own country was under American fire. When the players emerged from the plane in Tijuana, Mexico, at the start of the tournament, they were wearing pins reading “168” — a reminder to the world of the 168 Iranians, mostly children, who were killed on February 28, the opening day of the U.S.–Israeli war on Iran, at an all-girls' school in Minab. The treatment of Iran’s football team underscored the way wars are marketed to the public. Manufacturing an enemy and treating their people as a mortal danger is not realism, and does not bring security. Demonization and threat inflation are expensive habits. They foreclose possible avenues for pragmatic, effective diplomacy, and narrow the script until war looks like the only option. Even now, with no shortage of diplomats and mediators, Washington is attempting to bomb its way into negotiations. Trum...
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Iran's World Cup ordeal was a dress rehearsal for renewed war. The Trump administration would not allow the team to camp on U.S. As a World Cup host, the U.S.
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bombing campaign came amid ongoing peace talks between Iran and the U.S.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 16, 04:05
Critics slam idea to create US combatant command for robots
Even as the Pentagon mulls culling its combatant commands to reduce its bureaucratic bloat, lawmakers are itching to prop up another one — based on robots and AI. Combatant commands like CENTCOM (Central Command) and AFRICOM (Africa Command) — sprawling military headquarters which oversee operations and activities across their assigned region or function — are notorious for their high operational costs and continued pushes for more responsibilities, including entanglements abroad. The Department of Defense has weighed paring the commands back in response, floating restructuring plans last December that would reduce their number from 11 to 8. But lawmakers are going in the opposite direction, pushing for a new combatant command they say will speed up the military’s uptake of robotic and autonomous systems. As experts tell RS, the new command is poised to create more redundancy, waste, and inefficiency — and the mission creep that comes with it — while stifling efforts to deploy such technologies in practice. Embracing the future of warfare? Tucked into the Senate Armed Services Committee’s (SASC) version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2027, a provision called section 917 would allow for the creation of a Robotic and Autonomous Systems Command (RASCOM). By centralizing oversight over autonomous systems, lawmakers hope RASCOM will help the military adopt them as quickly as possible. In particular, they aim to overcome difficulties that have plagued previous procurement efforts. In a press release, SASC chairman Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) hailed the prospective combatant command as a means to help the military “embrace 21st century warfare.” RASCOM “would standardize the way the entire armed services use unmanned systems in combat,” Wicker wrote , The armed service branches would be able to set up offices within RASCOM, “ensuring that [they all] adopt the latest systems.” Runaway bureaucratic bloat But another combatant command would be at odds with the Pentagon's stated goal of reducing its sprawling bureaucratic overhead . DoD Secretary Pete Hegseth “has righteously complained about bloat in the GOFO [General and Flag Officers] corps, saying he wants to cut the number of [four-star generals] by 20%," Justin Logan, director of defense and foreign policy studies at the Cato Institute, told RS. "Another place to park a four-star and his buddies flies in the face of that.” A new combatant command would also take up work the Pentagon is already doing through its deployment of uncrewed systems across its operation. And, as Jennifer Kavanagh, Defense Priorities’ director of military analysis, tells RS, the administrative structure needed for a new combatant command will “duplicate functions provided elsewhere, including at the leadership level.” What’s more, combatant commands rarely remain limited to their original missions. Instead, they often push for greater budgets, more responsibilities, and more sway over the direction of U.S. military policy. “If RASCOM is created, it will face the same institutional incentives to expand its mission,” Gary Sampson, a national security strategist and retired U.S. Marine Corps intelligence and international affairs officer, told RS. “Just like the Navy pushes for Naval spending and CENTCOM pushes for wars in the Middle East, RASCOM would act as a sales team for robotics and autonomous systems,” Logan predicted, referencing CENTCOM officials’ persistent support for continued U.S. military engagement in the Middle East. “That is the job of companies who manufacture autonomous systems, not the U.S. government.” Standing up and maintaining another command would also be costly. “This is the last thing the Pentagon needs given its already massive budget,” Kavanagh said. And, once established, RASCOM may prove difficult to get rid of. As Dan Grazier, who directs the Stimson Center’s National Security reform program, tells RS, “there would be entrenched interests that... have a stake in seeing it continue.” “Even if the [command’s] headquarters is stood down later, many functions, personnel, and institutional interests tend to persist and migrate elsewhere,” Sampson said. Throwing a wrench at military preparedness Beyond concerns over bureaucratic bloat and mission creep, experts observe that RASCOM’s proposed organizational structure could create other operational problems. For example, most existing combatant commands are organized around geographic missions, or by function. In contrast, RASCOM would be structured around a class of tools. Brandon Carr, a senior studies associate at the Quincy Institute, tells RS this “logic is well-intentioned” but “likely to be counterproductive.” “So many future robotic and autonomous systems will become part of an individual service member’s personal equipment,” Carr said. The “technology does not lend itself to a unified command with centralized control.” To best promote innovation, he said, “robotic and autonomous s...
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Critics slam idea to create US combatant command for robots. But lawmakers are going in the opposite direction, pushing for a new combatant command they say will speed up the military’s uptake of robotic and autonomous systems. By centralizing oversight over autonomous systems, lawmakers hope RASCOM will help the military adopt them as quickly as possible.
TL;DR:
military engagement in the Middle East.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 02:47
ANU denies it ‘lost control’ to a pro-Palestine encampment, royal commission hears
Internal safety review at Australian National University found encampment had ‘high’ psychosocial risk rating Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Australian National University’s acting provost has denied the university “lost control” of its campus to a pro-Palestine encampment, revealing an internal safety review found the encampment had a “high” psychosocial risk rating. Prof Joan Leach appeared before the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion on Thursday, which is examining the lived experiences of Jewish students and academics, including the response of universities. Continue reading...
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Internal safety review at Australian National University found encampment had ‘high’ psychosocial risk rating Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Australian National University’s acting provost has denied the university “lost control” of its campus to a pro-Palestine encampment, revealing an in…
TL;DR:
Internal safety review at Australian National University found encampment had ‘high’ psychosocial risk rating Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Australian National University’s acting provost has denied the university “lost control” of its campus to a pro-Palestine encampment, revealing an internal safety review found the encampment had a “high” psychosocial risk rating.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 02:40
US attacks oil tanker in strait of Hormuz as strikes reported in Tehran
US disables unladen oil tanker using Hellfire missiles in strait of Hormuz amid concerns strikes could spiral into open conflict The US has fired on an oil tanker attempting to reach Kharg Island in the strait of Hormuz as part of its blockade on Iranian ports, as Tehran came under attack for the first time in this latest round of strikes. The US said on Thursday morning it had disabled an unladen oil tanker, during a fifth day of strikes, firing Hellfire missiles into the ship’s smokestack after it ignored multiple warnings. Continue reading...
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US disables unladen oil tanker using Hellfire missiles in strait of Hormuz amid concerns strikes could spiral into open conflict The US has fired on an oil tanker attempting to reach Kharg Island in the strait of Hormuz as part of its blockade on Iranian ports, as Tehran came under attack for the first time in this latest round of strikes.
TL;DR:
US disables unladen oil tanker using Hellfire missiles in strait of Hormuz amid concerns strikes could spiral into open conflict The US has fired on an oil tanker attempting to reach Kharg Island in the strait of Hormuz as part of its blockade on Iranian ports, as Tehran came under attack for the first time in this latest round of strikes.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 02:23
Fears for New Zealand’s native species as first bird flu case emerges
Minister urges public to report cases of three or more sick or dead birds in a group after brown skua seabird tests positive for H5N1 on Wellington beach The deadly H5N1 bird flu has been confirmed in New Zealand for the first time, sparking alarm that some of the country’s most beloved and vulnerable native birds could be wiped out if it spreads. A single ocean-going seabird, a brown skua, returned a confirmed positive test on Wednesday, after it was found on Petone beach in Wellington on 10 July, said Andrew Hoggard, the biosecurity minister. Continue reading...
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Minister urges public to report cases of three or more sick or dead birds in a group after brown skua seabird tests positive for H5N1 on Wellington beach The deadly H5N1 bird flu has been confirmed in New Zealand for the first time, sparking alarm that some of the country’s most beloved and vulnerable native birds could be wiped out if it spreads.
TL;DR:
Minister urges public to report cases of three or more sick or dead birds in a group after brown skua seabird tests positive for H5N1 on Wellington beach The deadly H5N1 bird flu has been confirmed in New Zealand for the first time, sparking alarm that some of the country’s most beloved and vulnerable native birds could be wiped out if it spreads.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 02:20
R Kelly formally appeals to Donald Trump to commute his 31-year prison sentence
The R&B singer was found guilty of racketeering, sex trafficking and producing child abuse images, with his lawyer lobbying the US president for more than a year R Kelly has formally appealed to the US president, Donald Trump, for a reduction of his 31-year prison sentence for racketeering, sex trafficking and child abuse images, in a filing to the Department of Justice. The 59-year-old R&B singer, whose full name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, was found guilty in 2021 of leading a criminal enterprise that recruited women and underage girls for illegal sexual activity and pornography, for which he was sentenced to 30 years in prison . In 2022 he was found guilty on three counts of child abuse images and three counts of child enticement and sentenced to 20 years in prison , which he is serving nearly entirely concurrently but for one additional year. Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organizations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 802 9999. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html Continue reading...
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In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 802 9999. Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html Continue reading...
TL;DR:
The R&B singer was found guilty of racketeering, sex trafficking and producing child abuse images, with his lawyer lobbying the US president for more than a year R Kelly has formally appealed to the US president, Donald Trump, for a reduction of his 31-year prison sentence for racketeering, sex trafficking and child abuse images, in a filing to the Department of Justice.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 01:27
Five arrested in Hong Kong bookstore raids in ‘seditious’ materials crackdown
Third round of arrests linked to independent bookshops widely regarded as clampdown on dissent in territory Hong Kong authorities have raided two bookstores and arrested five people on suspicion of selling allegedly seditious publications, in the latest step targeting independent booksellers. Videos and photos from multiple media outlets on Wednesday showed officers wearing vests marked with “police” seizing boxes from the building that houses Have A Nice Stay, a bookshop founded by former journalists. AFP reporters saw officers also lead away a woman in handcuffs to a van. Continue reading...
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Five arrested in Hong Kong bookstore raids in ‘seditious’ materials crackdown. Videos and photos from multiple media outlets on Wednesday showed officers wearing vests marked with “police” seizing boxes from the building that houses Have A Nice Stay, a bookshop founded by former journalists. AFP reporters saw officers also lead away a woman in handcuffs to a van.
TL;DR:
Third round of arrests linked to independent bookshops widely regarded as clampdown on dissent in territory Hong Kong authorities have raided two bookstores and arrested five people on suspicion of selling allegedly seditious publications, in the latest step targeting independent booksellers.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 00:42
US military says it disabled tanker trying to breach blockade amid new wave of strikes on Iran – Middle East crisis live
Central Command says US aircraft fired missiles into oil tanker’s smokestack in strait of Hormuz as US strikes Iran for fourth consecutive day Trump again threatens to strike Iran’s power plants amid impasse over strait of Hormuz For a second day in a row, US strikes targeted Iran’s southern port city of Bushehr, home to the country’s only civilian nuclear plant, according to the state news agency IRNA quoting a local official. “In continuation of the brutality of the American enemy, three points in the city of Bushehr were attacked today,” Mohammad Mozaffari, the governor of Bushehr, was quoted as saying. In the recent attacks on the southern part of the country, more than 30 civilians lost their lives. While expressing our condolences and sympathy to the bereaved families, we honour the memory of the fallen. The government will stand by the people with all its might. The south of Iran is the beating heart of this land. The south of Iran, the soul of Iran.” Continue reading...
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US military says it disabled tanker trying to breach blockade amid new wave of strikes on Iran – Middle East crisis live. Central Command says US aircraft fired missiles into oil tanker’s smokestack in strait of Hormuz as US strikes Iran for fourth consecutive day Trump again threatens to strike Iran’s power plants amid impasse over strait of Hormuz For a second day in a row,…
TL;DR:
The south of Iran, the soul of Iran.” Continue reading...
Theguardian
Jul 16, 00:35
Moira Deeming drops legal case against Victorian Liberal party, makes last-ditch bid to avoid disendorsement
State MP abandons supreme court challenge, saying her party ‘can now decide whether to pursue mediation or reconvene to disendorse me’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has dropped legal action against her own party as she seeks to make a last-ditch appeal to avoid being disendorsed ahead of the state election. Deeming launched an eleventh-hour supreme court challenge against the Victorian Liberal party president, Brian Loughnane, on 3 July after she made an assault allegation against former leader Matthew Guy and subsequently rejected calls to apologise after Victoria police determined “there was no offence detected”. Continue reading...
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State MP abandons supreme court challenge, saying her party ‘can now decide whether to pursue mediation or reconvene to disendorse me’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has dropped legal action against her own party as she seeks to make a last-ditch appeal to av…
TL;DR:
State MP abandons supreme court challenge, saying her party ‘can now decide whether to pursue mediation or reconvene to disendorse me’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming has dropped legal action against her own party as she seeks to make a last-ditch appeal to avoid being disendorsed ahead of the state election.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 00:32
New York Times files motion to quash justice department’s subpoenas
Journalists who had reported on security concerns around the new Air Force One, a gift from Qatar, received summons The New York Times on Wednesday filed a motion to quash subpoenas the justice department served journalists who reported on security concerns involving the new, Qatari-gifted Air Force One, teeing up a significant court fight over press freedom and the government’s ability to force reporters to identify sources. “As we set out in our motion, these subpoenas are brought in bad faith to punish The Times for its coverage. They violate the constitutional rights of The Times and its journalists. We are going to court to defend our journalists’ rights to report freely on the administration and to provide the public with stories that matter,” David McCraw, the newspaper’s senior vice-president and deputy general counsel, said in a statement. Continue reading...
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“As we set out in our motion, these subpoenas are brought in bad faith to punish The Times for its coverage. They violate the constitutional rights of The Times and its journalists. We are going to court to defend our journalists’ rights to report freely on the administration and to provide the public with stories that matter,” David McCraw, the newspaper’s senior vice-preside…
TL;DR:
Journalists who had reported on security concerns around the new Air Force One, a gift from Qatar, received summons The New York Times on Wednesday filed a motion to quash subpoenas the justice department served journalists who reported on security concerns involving the new, Qatari-gifted Air Force One, teeing up a significant court fight over press freedom and the government’s ability to force reporters to identify sources.
Theguardian
Jul 16, 00:20
Trump says Iran has released US citizen detained since 2024
Dena Karari, dual US-Iranian citizen, ‘now safely outside of Iran, and in good condition’, president posts on Truth Social Donald Trump said Wednesday Iran had agreed to release an American citizen who was “wrongfully detained” since December 2024. “She is now safely outside of Iran, and in good condition,” Trump wrote on social media , without naming the woman. “The United States of America appreciates this gesture of Goodwill by Iran!” Continue reading...
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Trump says Iran has released US citizen detained since 2024. Dena Karari, dual US-Iranian citizen, ‘now safely outside of Iran, and in good condition’, president posts on Truth Social Donald Trump said Wednesday Iran had agreed to release an American citizen who was “wrongfully detained” since December 2024.
TL;DR:
“The United States of America appreciates this gesture of Goodwill by Iran!” Continue reading...
Theguardian
Jul 15, 23:46
China and Xi Jinping seen more favourably than the US and Trump in poll of major countries
Global views appear to have flipped in Beijing’s favour, driven in part by tensions between the Trump administration and US allies, a new Pew survey shows The world has largely viewed the US more favourably than China for years, but those opinions have flipped in Beijing’s favour this year, according to a new poll from the Pew Research Center , a remarkable shift driven in part by tensions between the Trump administration and US allies. More people have favourable views of China than the US in 25 out of the 36 countries and territories that were surveyed, including Canada and Mexico. The poll was conducted from February to May, a period when the United States and Israel were engaged in a war against Iran . Continue reading...
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China and Xi Jinping seen more favourably than the US and Trump in poll of major countries. Global views appear to have flipped in Beijing’s favour, driven in part by tensions between the Trump administration and US allies, a new Pew survey shows The world has largely viewed the US more favourably than China for years, but those opinions have flipped in Beijing’s favour this y…
TL;DR:
The poll was conducted from February to May, a period when the United States and Israel were engaged in a war against Iran .
Theguardian
Jul 15, 23:28
Drained reflecting pool reveals Trump’s ‘American flag blue’ liner is now closer to gray
Trump’s effort to revamp the landmark stretched well past the goal of having it ready by the Fourth of July The newly drained Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool’s bottom surface has noticeably faded since it was lined with a protective coating in a color Donald Trump called “American flag blue” this spring. An Associated Press reporter and photographer viewed the fenced-off reflecting pool on Wednesday from the top of the Washington Monument. The new liner appears grayer than when the pool was repainted and refilled with water in early June. Debris that had been visible earlier this week after the pool was drained is now largely gone, after work crews removed it. Continue reading...
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Drained reflecting pool reveals Trump’s ‘American flag blue’ liner is now closer to gray. An Associated Press reporter and photographer viewed the fenced-off reflecting pool on Wednesday from the top of the Washington Monument. Debris that had been visible earlier this week after the pool was drained is now largely gone, after work crews removed it.
TL;DR:
Trump’s effort to revamp the landmark stretched well past the goal of having it ready by the Fourth of July The newly drained Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool’s bottom surface has noticeably faded since it was lined with a protective coating in a color Donald Trump called “American flag blue” this spring.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 23:06
‘We screwed up the comms’: JD Vance admits errors over Epstein files release
Vice-president tells Joe Rogan administration botched handling and should have released all documents from start JD Vance, the US vice-president, agreed with criticism that the Trump administration botched the handling of the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, telling podcast host Joe Rogan that “we absolutely screwed up the comms”. The Department of Justice’s repeated moves to delay the release of documents related to the convicted sex offender drew bipartisan disapproval last year. The files have been one of the most significant political liabilities to Donald Trump since his second term began. Continue reading...
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‘We screwed up the comms’: JD Vance admits errors over Epstein files release. The Department of Justice’s repeated moves to delay the release of documents related to the convicted sex offender drew bipartisan disapproval last year. The files have been one of the most significant political liabilities to Donald Trump since his second term began.
TL;DR:
Vice-president tells Joe Rogan administration botched handling and should have released all documents from start JD Vance, the US vice-president, agreed with criticism that the Trump administration botched the handling of the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, telling podcast host Joe Rogan that “we absolutely screwed up the comms”.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 22:30
Black doctors in England four times less likely to get training places than white counterparts
For one placement, black applicants had a less than 1 in 100 chance of being offered a place, NHS data shows Black doctors in England are four times less likely to be offered a training place than their white counterparts, according to analysis. As part of their medical training, doctors across the NHS are able to apply to placements within specific branches of practice such as psychiatry, obstetrics and gynaecology, and emergency medicine. Continue reading...
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For one placement, black applicants had a less than 1 in 100 chance of being offered a place, NHS data shows Black doctors in England are four times less likely to be offered a training place than their white counterparts, according to analysis.
TL;DR:
For one placement, black applicants had a less than 1 in 100 chance of being offered a place, NHS data shows Black doctors in England are four times less likely to be offered a training place than their white counterparts, according to analysis.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 22:03
‘Malvinas are Argentinian’: World Cup holders celebrate win over England with Falklands banner
Banner refers to Falkland Islands conflict in 1982 Players celebrate on the pitch with the message The Argentina players celebrated their World Cup win over England with a banner saying “ Las Malvinas son Argentinas ”, making reference to the 1982 Falklands war . Argentina were 1-0 down with five minutes to go of the semi-final in Atlanta but rallied and scored twice in quick succession to reach a second straight World Cup final , where they will face Spain in New Jersey on Sunday. Continue reading...
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Banner refers to Falkland Islands conflict in 1982 Players celebrate on the pitch with the message The Argentina players celebrated their World Cup win over England with a banner saying “ Las Malvinas son Argentinas ”, making reference to the 1982 Falklands war .
TL;DR:
Banner refers to Falkland Islands conflict in 1982 Players celebrate on the pitch with the message The Argentina players celebrated their World Cup win over England with a banner saying “ Las Malvinas son Argentinas ”, making reference to the 1982 Falklands war .
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 15, 21:35
Half of House Dems vote to end US aid to Israel
The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to block an amendment to the National Security and State Department appropriations bill that would have struck $3.3 billion in aid to Israel. The amendment, introduced by outgoing Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), was never expected to pass given the near-unanimous opposition from Republicans. But the vote was nonetheless closely watched because of what it revealed about a growing rift among Democratic elected officials concerning the U.S-Israel relationship. In the end, the amendment failed by a vote of 104-314. A slight majority of voting Democrats – 103 out of 201 – voted in favor. Ten Democratic members voted present. The division among Democrats made it up to party leadership, with Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and caucus chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) opposing the measure, while Rep. Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), the minority whip, came out in favor . In a lengthy statement the day before the vote, Jeffries said that the amendment was “overly broad” because it would limit “funds for longstanding initiatives,” including refugee resettlement and peacebuilding, and that it would “restrict our country’s ability to confront Hamas, Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations.” Jeffries said he would not whip other members to vote against the amendment and acknowledged that urgent changes were needed to American policy toward Israel. Hamid Bendaas, the communications director for the Institute for Middle East Understanding policy project, told Responsible Statecraft that, while it was“unfortunate that [Jeffries] wouldn't do what the vast majority of Democrats would want their highest ranking House member to do,” it was nonetheless notable that “he is cognizant of just how dangerous his stance is to to vote against it, and he had to try to explain that as best as he could.” The Congressional Progressive Caucus endorsed the measure. In a letter Tuesday responding to Jeffries, Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), the CPC chair, lamented that “At a time when millions are struggling to make ends meet, we are sending billions of dollars to a military that has killed tens of thousands of civilians in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon, destabilized the region, and helped lead us into war with Iran.” Casar noted that more than 98% of the funds that would have been removed by the Massie amendment was money for the Israeli military. “The American people are crying out for an end to US tax dollars subsidizing Israel’s military,” he added. Speaking on the House floor ahead of the vote, Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) added that "Words are not enough... If we hope to change Israel's behavior, we must use our leverage." This was the first congressional vote related to U.S. aid to Israel since primary elections in New York and Colorado saw a wave of progressive insurgents defeat incumbents and more establishment-aligned candidates in races that, to varying degrees, centered the future of Washington’s relationship with Israel. Polls continue to show that strong majorities of Democrats believe the U.S. is too supportive of Israel and oppose “providing additional economic and military support to Israel.” “More House members are realizing that this is a demand of their voters and not voting the right way on this, in terms of voting to cut the funding to Israel is something that leaves them vulnerable in future elections to a primary challenge,” Bendaas told RS shortly before the vote. “It's clearly people responding to political necessity, and it just shows how far this issue has moved over the last few years.”
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Half of House Dems vote to end US aid to Israel. In the end, the amendment failed by a vote of 104-314. “The American people are crying out for an end to US tax dollars subsidizing Israel’s military,” he added.
TL;DR:
The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to block an amendment to the National Security and State Department appropriations bill that would have struck $3.3 billion in aid to Israel.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 21:24
CDC nominee Erica Schwartz pressed on whether she will resist RFK Jr’s vaccine agenda
During confirmation hearing Wednesday, Trump’s pick tells Senate health committee she will ‘never betray the science’ Erica Schwartz, the Trump administration ’s latest nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), faced sharp questioning from senators who pressed her to say whether she would stand up to her boss, the health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr . During her confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Schwartz, a deputy surgeon general in the first Trump administration, told the Senate health committee she “will never betray the science” and pledged to use “radical transparency” to rebuild public trust. But she repeatedly deflected questions about how she would handle pressure from Kennedy, a leader in the anti-vaccine movement who has overseen months of turmoil at the agency and made controversial changes to US vaccine policies. Continue reading...
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CDC nominee Erica Schwartz pressed on whether she will resist RFK Jr’s vaccine agenda. During her confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Schwartz, a deputy surgeon general in the first Trump administration, told the Senate health committee she “will never betray the science” and pledged to use “radical transparency” to rebuild public trust.
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During confirmation hearing Wednesday, Trump’s pick tells Senate health committee she will ‘never betray the science’ Erica Schwartz, the Trump administration ’s latest nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), faced sharp questioning from senators who pressed her to say whether she would stand up to her boss, the health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr .
Theguardian
Jul 15, 21:17
House Republicans resurrect Save America Act by adding it to spending bill
Effort is latest attempt to pass bill that seeks to ban mail-in ballots and imposes voter identification requirements House Republicans on Wednesday made another attempt to answer Donald Trump’s demand for new restrictions on voting nationwide by linking the measure to an unrelated spending bill and passing both largely along party lines. The effort was the latest attempt by congressional Republicans to pass the Save America Act, which would ban mail-in ballots and impose new identification requirements on voters when they register and cast ballots. While the Trump administration has cast the bill as necessary to prevent non-citizens from voting and combat election fraud, voting rights advocates say there’s no evidence of widespread election tampering and warn the bill could disenfranchise swaths of eligible voters ahead of November’s midterm elections. Continue reading...
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House Republicans resurrect Save America Act by adding it to spending bill. The effort was the latest attempt by congressional Republicans to pass the Save America Act, which would ban mail-in ballots and impose new identification requirements on voters when they register and cast ballots.
TL;DR:
Effort is latest attempt to pass bill that seeks to ban mail-in ballots and imposes voter identification requirements House Republicans on Wednesday made another attempt to answer Donald Trump’s demand for new restrictions on voting nationwide by linking the measure to an unrelated spending bill and passing both largely along party lines.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 21:11
Over 100 House Democrats vote to end military aid to Israel in rebuke to US ally
Backing by 103 Democrats underscores how sentiment in party towards Israel and Netanyahu government has soured More than 100 House Democrats on Wednesday voted to slash military aid to Israel, a significant rebuke of the longtime US ally as accusations that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government green-lit genocide in Gaza continue to convulse the party ahead of November’s midterm election. The amendment proposed by Republican congressman Thomas Massie to a spending measure would have halted $3.3bn in planned aid – much of which would have gone to Israel’s military – but was rejected by a 104-314 vote, with 10 lawmakers voting present. It received the support of 103 House Democrats, or nearly half of the 212-strong caucus, underscoring how sentiment in the party towards Israel and the Netanyahu government has soured since the 7 October attack and Israel’s subsequent invasion of Gaza. Continue reading...
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Over 100 House Democrats vote to end military aid to Israel in rebuke to US ally. The amendment proposed by Republican congressman Thomas Massie to a spending measure would have halted $3.3bn in planned aid – much of which would have gone to Israel’s military – but was rejected by a 104-314 vote, with 10 lawmakers voting present.
TL;DR:
Backing by 103 Democrats underscores how sentiment in party towards Israel and Netanyahu government has soured More than 100 House Democrats on Wednesday voted to slash military aid to Israel, a significant rebuke of the longtime US ally as accusations that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government green-lit genocide in Gaza continue to convulse the party ahead of November’s midterm election.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 20:58
Mexico asks US state attorneys general to investigate immigrant ICE deaths
Since start of Trump’s second term, 14 Mexican immigrants have died in ICE custody and three in agency operations Mexico formally requested that US state attorneys general criminally investigate cases of immigrants who have died in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody or during raids, the Mexican government said Tuesday. The request follows the death of Mexican immigrant Lorenzo Salgado Araujo , who was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Houston. Since the beginning of Donald Trump ’s second term, 17 Mexican immigrants have died during immigration enforcement, 14 in ICE custody and three in agency operations. Continue reading...
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Mexico asks US state attorneys general to investigate immigrant ICE deaths. Since start of Trump’s second term, 14 Mexican immigrants have died in ICE custody and three in agency operations Mexico formally requested that US state attorneys general criminally investigate cases of immigrants who have died in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody or during raids, the Mexica…
TL;DR:
Since the beginning of Donald Trump ’s second term, 17 Mexican immigrants have died during immigration enforcement, 14 in ICE custody and three in agency operations.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 20:47
Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismisses Ukraine’s popular defence minister
Mykhailo Fedorov, credited with transforming the ministry, ousted in reshuffle after six months in post Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Ukraine’s popular defence minister, despite pleas from foreign partners and civil society for him to keep his job, as part of wide-ranging government reshuffle. In a post on Telegram Mykhailo Fedorov announced that he was leaving his position, saying it had been a “great honour” to serve the Ukrainian people. He was widely credited with transforming the defence ministry and reducing corruption. Continue reading...
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismisses Ukraine’s popular defence minister. In a post on Telegram Mykhailo Fedorov announced that he was leaving his position, saying it had been a “great honour” to serve the Ukrainian people. He was widely credited with transforming the defence ministry and reducing corruption.
TL;DR:
Mykhailo Fedorov, credited with transforming the ministry, ousted in reshuffle after six months in post Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Ukraine’s popular defence minister, despite pleas from foreign partners and civil society for him to keep his job, as part of wide-ranging government reshuffle.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 20:45
Russia Shifts Its Focus to the Black Sea
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Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at Russian efforts to strain Ukraine ’s wartime economy, intensified U.S. strikes on Iran , and border controls between the European Union and United Kingdom . strikes on Iran , and border controls between the European Union and United Kingdom .
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Moscow is targeting trade routes and deepwater ports to strain Ukraine’s wartime economy.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 20:39
Australia news live: Josh Thomas weighs in on Divine Playhouse debate; meth surges in workplace drug use survey
Comedian backs LGBTQ+ theatre in ‘David v Goliath’ fight. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The comedian Josh Thomas has weighed in on the row over the LGBT theatre based in a converted church in Sydney which is facing eviction after its landlord ordered it to cease “offensive trade” The promoter and founder of Divine Playhouse says the venue faces significant operational, legal and financial challenges after the landlord, KCSYD Pty Ltd, said the theatre caused offence to “millions of Christian Australians”. The tenants invested so much time and money into this venue in good faith ... Surely they knew it was going to be a queer venue? They’re a giant company - they have the resources to check who’s moving in. Continue reading...
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Australia news live: Josh Thomas weighs in on Divine Playhouse debate; meth surges in workplace drug use survey. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The comedian Josh Thomas has weighed in on the row over the LGBT theatre based in a converted church in Sydney which is facing eviction after its landlord ordered it to cease “offe…
TL;DR:
Comedian backs LGBTQ+ theatre in ‘David v Goliath’ fight.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 19:58
A New Law Heralds China’s Fraught Ethnic Future
Xi Jinping’s push for assimilation won’t solve long-standing issues.
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A New Law Heralds China’s Fraught Ethnic Future. Xi Jinping’s push for assimilation won’t solve long-standing issues.
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Xi Jinping’s push for assimilation won’t solve long-standing issues.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 19:58
Maltese politicians ‘involved’ in plot to kill Daphne Caruana Galizia, court hears
Former economy minister Chris Cardona and ex-chief of staff Keith Schembri named as being involved in 2017 murder of journalist Two political figures who previously held powerful government roles in Malta were accused of plotting to kill the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia during court testimony on Wednesday. The allegations, against a former economy minister and a former chief of staff to the prime minister, were made during a chaotic day at the courts of justice in Valletta, where the businessman Yorgen Fenech is on trial for ordering the assassination of Caruana Galizia in 2017. Continue reading...
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Former economy minister Chris Cardona and ex-chief of staff Keith Schembri named as being involved in 2017 murder of journalist Two political figures who previously held powerful government roles in Malta were accused of plotting to kill the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia during court testimony on Wednesday.
TL;DR:
Former economy minister Chris Cardona and ex-chief of staff Keith Schembri named as being involved in 2017 murder of journalist Two political figures who previously held powerful government roles in Malta were accused of plotting to kill the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia during court testimony on Wednesday.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 19:46
Sudan Faces New Sanctions as Evidence of Atrocities Mounts
But countries remain unwilling to directly sanction foreign actors enabling the war.
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Sudan Faces New Sanctions as Evidence of Atrocities Mounts. But countries remain unwilling to directly sanction foreign actors enabling the war.
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But countries remain unwilling to directly sanction foreign actors enabling the war.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 19:32
Police charge 14-year-old boy over alleged terror plot targeting London mosques
‘Documents of concern’ found at child’s home in the capital, with no other suspects sought A 14-year-old boy from south London has been charged with an offence linked to “extreme rightwing terrorism” after a police search uncovered an alleged plot to target two mosques. The boy was arrested on 9 July on suspicion of criminal damage to a vehicle, but officers dispatched to his address found “a number of documents of concern” during a search, according to the Metropolitan police. Continue reading...
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‘Documents of concern’ found at child’s home in the capital, with no other suspects sought A 14-year-old boy from south London has been charged with an offence linked to “extreme rightwing terrorism” after a police search uncovered an alleged plot to target two mosques.
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‘Documents of concern’ found at child’s home in the capital, with no other suspects sought A 14-year-old boy from south London has been charged with an offence linked to “extreme rightwing terrorism” after a police search uncovered an alleged plot to target two mosques.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 19:27
Ukraine Isn’t Waiting Around for Patriots
A new European coalition is looking to build quicker and cheaper anti-ballistic missile systems—off Ukrainian technology.
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Fresh off an encouraging NATO summit and significant wins on the battlefield against Russia over the past several weeks, Ukraine is making moves to ensure those gains aren’t in vain. Fresh off an encouraging NATO summit and significant wins on the battlefield against Russia over the past several weeks, Ukraine is making moves to ensure those gains aren’t in vain.
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A new European coalition is looking to build quicker and cheaper anti-ballistic missile systems—off Ukrainian technology.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 19:24
New $1 coin featuring Trump in production at US Mint, treasury says
Coin commemorating 250th anniversary will be released this fall and will mark the first time a living president appears on currency The treasury department announced Wednesday that the US Mint has started producing a new commemorative $1 coin featuring Donald Trump as part of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebration. The coin is scheduled for release this fall. Treasury officials said its final design was approved earlier this year by the US Commission of Fine Arts, whose members were appointed by Trump. However, the version revealed Wednesday is not identical to the previously approved design. Among the changes, the coin has a gold finish rather than being made of solid gold. Continue reading...
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New $1 coin featuring Trump in production at US Mint, treasury says. Treasury officials said its final design was approved earlier this year by the US Commission of Fine Arts, whose members were appointed by Trump. Among the changes, the coin has a gold finish rather than being made of solid gold.
TL;DR:
Coin commemorating 250th anniversary will be released this fall and will mark the first time a living president appears on currency The treasury department announced Wednesday that the US Mint has started producing a new commemorative $1 coin featuring Donald Trump as part of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebration.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 18:52
Shabana Mahmood expected to be named Andy Burnham’s chancellor
The home secretary is the frontrunner for the role ahead of ‘risky’ Ed Miliband, according to senior Labour figures Shabana Mahmood has emerged as the frontrunner to become Andy Burnham’s chancellor after a fierce briefing war over the prospect of Ed Miliband being appointed to the powerful role. Senior Labour figures with knowledge of Burnham’s thinking told the Guardian they expected the home secretary to be moved to the Treasury amid concerns that Miliband would become a target for criticism of the government. Continue reading...
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The home secretary is the frontrunner for the role ahead of ‘risky’ Ed Miliband, according to senior Labour figures Shabana Mahmood has emerged as the frontrunner to become Andy Burnham’s chancellor after a fierce briefing war over the prospect of Ed Miliband being appointed to the powerful role.
TL;DR:
The home secretary is the frontrunner for the role ahead of ‘risky’ Ed Miliband, according to senior Labour figures Shabana Mahmood has emerged as the frontrunner to become Andy Burnham’s chancellor after a fierce briefing war over the prospect of Ed Miliband being appointed to the powerful role.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 18:45
Germany warns against election interference as US offers funding to Maga-aligned causes in Europe
New state department scheme will provide grants to ‘address sovereignty, migration, censorship and lawfare’ Friedrich Merz has warned Donald Trump’s administration against interfering in German elections after the US state department announced a scheme to fund Maga-aligned causes in Europe. The German chancellor was responding to a new US initiative offering grants of up to $3m (£2.2m) for European charities, thinktanks and individuals. Continue reading...
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New state department scheme will provide grants to ‘address sovereignty, migration, censorship and lawfare’ Friedrich Merz has warned Donald Trump’s administration against interfering in German elections after the US state department announced a scheme to fund Maga-aligned causes in Europe.
TL;DR:
New state department scheme will provide grants to ‘address sovereignty, migration, censorship and lawfare’ Friedrich Merz has warned Donald Trump’s administration against interfering in German elections after the US state department announced a scheme to fund Maga-aligned causes in Europe.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 18:28
Jude Bellingham lookalikes compete for a £1,966 Deliveroo voucher
The match-winning England striker is ‘a good ambassador for young people’, says one contestant All together now, with arms in the air: One Jude Bellingham, there’s only one Jude Bellingham … Unless, that is, you happened to find yourself in Shoreditch, east London, on Wednesday, where a dozen young men who looked vaguely like the England midfielder gathered for a lookalike contest almost as competitive as the one currently continuing in the US. Continue reading...
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For England football fans who dream of cloning their rampaging match-winner, the event might have offered a glimpse of a fantastical future. Bellingham has scored six goals in as many games in the competition, and another one of him in England’s midfield would surely not go amiss.
TL;DR:
The match-winning England striker is ‘a good ambassador for young people’, says one contestant All together now, with arms in the air: One Jude Bellingham, there’s only one Jude Bellingham … Unless, that is, you happened to find yourself in Shoreditch, east London, on Wednesday, where a dozen young men who looked vaguely like the England midfielder gathered for a lookalike contest almost as competitive as the one currently continuing in the US.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 18:09
Andy Burnham signals a wealth tax is off the agenda for now
I don’t want to create new divisions, incoming prime minister says as Mahmood is tipped to be chancellor Andy Burnham has signalled that he will not increase wealth taxes immediately after becoming prime minister, easing concerns among the business community but limiting his economic room for manoeuvre. He said on Wednesday he did not want to “create new divisions” with his tax policy, in comments that allies said were a sign that he did not intend to raise money by taxing wealth. Continue reading...
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I don’t want to create new divisions, incoming prime minister says as Mahmood is tipped to be chancellor Andy Burnham has signalled that he will not increase wealth taxes immediately after becoming prime minister, easing concerns among the business community but limiting his economic room for manoeuvre.
TL;DR:
I don’t want to create new divisions, incoming prime minister says as Mahmood is tipped to be chancellor Andy Burnham has signalled that he will not increase wealth taxes immediately after becoming prime minister, easing concerns among the business community but limiting his economic room for manoeuvre.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 18:05
Trump rails against New York’s statewide datacenter moratorium
AI-friendly president shared a post saying governor Kathy Hochul should scrap the one-year policy ‘IMMEDIATELY’ Donald Trump railed against the New York governor, Kathy Hochul, for pausing the construction of large new datacenters, the resource-intensive facilities that power artificial intelligence. New York became the first US state to enact a moratorium on new datacenters on Tuesday, when Hochul signed an executive order mandating a one-year statewide pause on so-called “hyperscale” datacenters. Continue reading...
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AI-friendly president shared a post saying governor Kathy Hochul should scrap the one-year policy ‘IMMEDIATELY’ Donald Trump railed against the New York governor, Kathy Hochul, for pausing the construction of large new datacenters, the resource-intensive facilities that power artificial intelligence.
TL;DR:
AI-friendly president shared a post saying governor Kathy Hochul should scrap the one-year policy ‘IMMEDIATELY’ Donald Trump railed against the New York governor, Kathy Hochul, for pausing the construction of large new datacenters, the resource-intensive facilities that power artificial intelligence.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 18:03
Ukraine’s Drones Have Turned the Tide, but Can They Change the Map?
Mid-range drone strikes may not be enough to regain Ukrainian territory.
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Ukraine’s Drones Have Turned the Tide, but Can They Change the Map?. Mid-range drone strikes may not be enough to regain Ukrainian territory.
TL;DR:
Mid-range drone strikes may not be enough to regain Ukrainian territory.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 17:50
Venezuelan man becomes 22nd person to die in ICE custody this year
Jesús Manuel Arenas-Silva, 45, found ‘unresponsive’ while being transferred between detention facilities in Georgia Another person has died in federal immigration custody this week in Georgia, officials announced on Wednesday, His is the 22nd death in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody this year. Jesús Manuel Arenas-Silva, a 45-year-old Venezuelan man, died on Monday morning while being transferred between detention facilities in Georgia. In a press release, ICE said Arenas-Silva was arrested last Thursday and had been detained at the Irwin county detention center, a privately run facility in Georgia. He was being transferred to another ICE facility, the Folkston ICE processing center, when he was found “unresponsive” in a transport bus. ICE said the “suspected” cause of death was cardiac arrest. Continue reading...
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Venezuelan man becomes 22nd person to die in ICE custody this year. In a press release, ICE said Arenas-Silva was arrested last Thursday and had been detained at the Irwin county detention center, a privately run facility in Georgia. He was being transferred to another ICE facility, the Folkston ICE processing center, when he was found “unresponsive” in a transport bus.
TL;DR:
Jesús Manuel Arenas-Silva, 45, found ‘unresponsive’ while being transferred between detention facilities in Georgia Another person has died in federal immigration custody this week in Georgia, officials announced on Wednesday, His is the 22nd death in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody this year.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 17:49
Save the Children clashes with Labour after accusing Starmer of ‘complicity’ in Gaza deaths
Government – which provides significant portion of charity’s funding – is understood to have demanded an explanation The charity Save the Children has angered the government with a social media post marking Keir Starmer’s impending exit from Downing Street. The organisation suggested on X that the outgoing prime minister was complicit in the deaths of thousands of civilians in the Israel-Gaza war. Continue reading...
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Government – which provides significant portion of charity’s funding – is understood to have demanded an explanation The charity Save the Children has angered the government with a social media post marking Keir Starmer’s impending exit from Downing Street.
TL;DR:
Government – which provides significant portion of charity’s funding – is understood to have demanded an explanation The charity Save the Children has angered the government with a social media post marking Keir Starmer’s impending exit from Downing Street.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 15, 17:35
Can Dems harness Iran war anger to sink Trump’s military budget?
Congress returned to Washington DC this week after its July 4 recess. With President Donald Trump having recently declared the memorandum of understanding with Iran “ over ” and with the two countries exchanging attacks, the war has predictably taken center stage. Congressional Democrats have been mostly unified against the war, but this week has presented opportunities for members to use new vehicles to express their opposition via the power of the purse. On Tuesday, every present Democratic Senator voted to block debate over the 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which authorizes the appropriation of Pentagon funds. The bill, which needed 60 votes to advance, failed by a 50-46 tally. The NDAA typically proceeds in a relatively bipartisan manner, but the warning signs were apparent in June when nine Democrats voted against advancing the bill out of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC). Several Democrats framed their opposition as, in part, a rejection of the war in Iran. In advance of the vote, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), said the bill would “effectively green light Trump's illegal Iran war.” Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), who noted that he typically votes in favor of the NDAA, said he would oppose it given that the legislature had not “even had an up or down vote to authorize this war in the first place.” Republicans charged Democrats with playing politics over the national security bill, with SASC chairman Roger Wicker (R-Miss. ) calling it a “ new low .” There were other considerations at play as well, including the Trump administration’s ask for a $1.5 trillion defense budget and the lack of transparency surrounding the cost of the war with Iran. On Tuesday, Jules Hurst, testifying to become the Pentagon comptroller, told SASC members that he did not have an update on the $29 billion price tag for the war, since he had not been performing the role since May 20, when his term as acting comptroller came to an end. Sources said that Republicans’ approach to funding bills has created conditions in which Democrats may stall or even stop defense appropriations legislation. With Democrats seemingly dug in on blocking the NDAA until the questions surrounding an Iran war authorization are settled, the must-pass bill’s future appears murky. “The Trump administration has not meaningfully consulted Congress on the Iran conflict or engaged Democrats on broader budget strategy, leaving its budget plans and legislative priorities stalled,” a senior congressional aide told RS. “Republicans now face the possibility of flat funding for the Department of Defense under a continuing resolution, or potentially an extended shutdown.” In addition, a group of Senators, led by Van Hollen and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), raised concerns about an amendment to the NDAA that would more deeply integrate U.S. and Israeli intelligence. They sent a letter to their colleagues last week urging them to block the legislation until they could hold further discussion regarding those measures. But congressional sources said that the timing of the vote — shortly after Trump’s announcement that the agreement with Iran was dead — contributed to Democrats voting unanimously against the NDAA. Supporters of ending the war with Iran interpreted the vote as a signal that the war was increasingly unpopular and that Congress should keep up political pressure on the president. “The war with Iran is incredibly unpopular with the American people and Democrats were right to pick up on that and use this opportunity to vote accordingly,” one senior Democratic Senate staffer told RS. In order to keep up pressure on the administration, the staffer argued, Democrats “should announce publicly that they won’t support any measure to advance the NDAA until Trump resumes negotiations with Iran and gets a deal done.” National Iranian American Council president Jamal Abdi wrote a statement that urged members to not advance any “other major national legislation (...) as long as this unauthorized war continues without an explicit prohibition on funding it.” That major legislation may include the administration’s roughly $88 billion DoD supplemental funding request, much of which is intended to fund the Iran war. The administration made the request late last month, though its future on the floor remains unclear as Republican members remain frustrated by a lack of information from the Pentagon regarding the request’s details. As the Stimson Center’s Julia Gledhill told RS in June, “the supplemental doesn’t even detail what weapons the Pentagon wants to buy.” Up until this point, Democratic opposition has primarily been registered through a string of votes on war powers resolutions. Both the House and the Senate passed concurrent resolutions in June to push Trump to wind down the war absent authorization from the legislature. Congressional Democrats are reportedly considering taking the issue to the courts to compel the administration to comply. Sen...
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Can Dems harness Iran war anger to sink Trump’s military budget?. With President Donald Trump having recently declared the memorandum of understanding with Iran “ over ” and with the two countries exchanging attacks, the war has predictably taken center stage.
TL;DR:
Several Democrats framed their opposition as, in part, a rejection of the war in Iran.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 17:34
Pete Hegseth says soldiers over age 30 to be screened for testosterone deficiency
US defense secretary unveils plan that will work to ensure service members have the ‘right testosterone levels’ Pete Hegseth announced Wednesday that the Department of Defense will offer testosterone deficiency screening for soldiers 30 and older. The US defense secretary unveiled plans for a new screening program for testosterone deficiency among troops that will work to ensure service members have the “right testosterone levels” to perform at their optimal conditions in a video posted to X. Continue reading...
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US defense secretary unveils plan that will work to ensure service members have the ‘right testosterone levels’ Pete Hegseth announced Wednesday that the Department of Defense will offer testosterone deficiency screening for soldiers 30 and older.
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US defense secretary unveils plan that will work to ensure service members have the ‘right testosterone levels’ Pete Hegseth announced Wednesday that the Department of Defense will offer testosterone deficiency screening for soldiers 30 and older.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 17:32
Chaos and confusion bring US no closer to resolution on strait of Hormuz
Five months of U-turns and false boasts leave Donald Trump in worse position than when he started Donald Trump has taken the war with Iran into a new, murkier phase as the two sides move further and further from the vague memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed on 17 June. And as during the opening phase of the conflict, the US leader’s objectives and methods are clouded in confusion, daily U-turns and boasts that within hours are revealed to be false. Continue reading...
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Five months of U-turns and false boasts leave Donald Trump in worse position than when he started Donald Trump has taken the war with Iran into a new, murkier phase as the two sides move further and further from the vague memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed on 17 June.
TL;DR:
Five months of U-turns and false boasts leave Donald Trump in worse position than when he started Donald Trump has taken the war with Iran into a new, murkier phase as the two sides move further and further from the vague memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed on 17 June.
Warontherocks
Jul 15, 17:30
One Size Doesn’t Fit All: The Many Faces of Africa’s Foreign Fighters
In 2020, Austin Doctor wrote, “The Looming Influx of Foreign Fighters in Sub-Saharan Africa,” in which he predicted the region would see an influx of foreign fighters to aid Islamist extremist groups. Six years later, we asked Austin to revisit his arguments.Image: African Union Mission in Somalia (Photo by Abukar Albadri)In your 2020 article, you forecasted an influx of foreign fighters into sub-Saharan Africa within a year. Six years later, how has that forecast held up? Did the anticipated surge materialize on the scale you expected? Why or why not?There are far more foreign terrorist fighters, who hail from a The post One Size Doesn’t Fit All: The Many Faces of Africa’s Foreign Fighters appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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In 2020, Austin Doctor wrote, “The Looming Influx of Foreign Fighters in Sub-Saharan Africa,” in which he predicted the region would see an influx of foreign fighters to aid Islamist extremist groups. Six years later, we asked Austin to revisit his arguments.
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Why or why not?There are far more foreign terrorist fighters, who hail from a The post One Size Doesn’t Fit All: The Many Faces of Africa’s Foreign Fighters appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 15, 17:25
Search continues for three people missing after Alcatraz boating disaster
One person dead after pontoon boat involved in memorial service capsized in San Francisco Bay on Tuesday Rescuers were still searching for three missing people on Wednesday after a boat involved in a memorial service sank in the cold, fast-moving waters of San Francisco Bay near Alcatraz Island, authorities said. At least one person died and 16 people were rescued after the boat capsized on Tuesday afternoon in what witnesses described as “rough seas”, San Francisco fire chief Dean Crispen said at a news conference. Continue reading...
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One person dead after pontoon boat involved in memorial service capsized in San Francisco Bay on Tuesday Rescuers were still searching for three missing people on Wednesday after a boat involved in a memorial service sank in the cold, fast-moving waters of San Francisco Bay near Alcatraz Island, authorities said.
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One person dead after pontoon boat involved in memorial service capsized in San Francisco Bay on Tuesday Rescuers were still searching for three missing people on Wednesday after a boat involved in a memorial service sank in the cold, fast-moving waters of San Francisco Bay near Alcatraz Island, authorities said.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 16:54
Trump’s barbed eulogy for Lindsey Graham reveals how fragile his ego is
In interviews and social posts, the loyalty-obsessed president couldn’t help but weave criticism into his praise This was originally published in This Week in Trumpland. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Wednesday Normal procedure in the immediate aftermath of an unexpected death is to shower the deceased with praise, irrespective of whether it is deserved. Donald Trump, commemorating Lindsey Graham in recent days, has taken a different tack, sometimes extolling the South Carolina senator’s virtues but at other times rather diminishing the newly deceased 71-year-old. Continue reading...
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Trump’s barbed eulogy for Lindsey Graham reveals how fragile his ego is. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Wednesday Normal procedure in the immediate aftermath of an unexpected death is to shower the deceased with praise, irrespective of whether it is deserved.
TL;DR:
In interviews and social posts, the loyalty-obsessed president couldn’t help but weave criticism into his praise This was originally published in This Week in Trumpland.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 16:43
Nobby Stiles died with brain condition caused by repeatedly heading a football, coroner rules
England World Cup winner died in 2020 but his death was never reported by authorities to the coroner’s office England World Cup winner Nobby Stiles died with a brain condition caused by repeatedly heading a football, a coroner has ruled. Stiles, a tenacious, tough-tackling midfielder described by Geoff Hurst as the “heart and soul” of the 1966 World Cup-winning team , died in 2020 but his death was not reported by authorities to the coroner’s office. Continue reading...
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England World Cup winner died in 2020 but his death was never reported by authorities to the coroner’s office England World Cup winner Nobby Stiles died with a brain condition caused by repeatedly heading a football, a coroner has ruled.
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England World Cup winner died in 2020 but his death was never reported by authorities to the coroner’s office England World Cup winner Nobby Stiles died with a brain condition caused by repeatedly heading a football, a coroner has ruled.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 16:39
Stonegate pub and bar chain investigated over ‘unfair’ treatment of landlords
Pubs code adjudicator says it has reasonable grounds to believe group has breached industry regulations The owner of the Slug & Lettuce and Be At One chains is being investigated over concerns about possible “unfair” treatment of landlords who run more than 3,000 of its venues. Stonegate Group, Britain’s biggest chain of bars and pubs, could be fined up to 1% of revenue, more than £16m, if it is found to have breached the “pubs code”, legislation governing how pub-owning companies treat their tenants. Continue reading...
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Pubs code adjudicator says it has reasonable grounds to believe group has breached industry regulations The owner of the Slug & Lettuce and Be At One chains is being investigated over concerns about possible “unfair” treatment of landlords who run more than 3,000 of its venues.
TL;DR:
Pubs code adjudicator says it has reasonable grounds to believe group has breached industry regulations The owner of the Slug & Lettuce and Be At One chains is being investigated over concerns about possible “unfair” treatment of landlords who run more than 3,000 of its venues.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 16:25
Wisconsin panel finds Elon Musk’s $1m state supreme court voter giveaway was likely illegal
Musk distributed money to three people before the 2025 election, which he claimed was critical to Trump’s agenda Billionaire Elon Musk likely violated Wisconsin law when he gave out $1m checks to voters in the 2025 state supreme court election, a bipartisan elections panel has found. Musk distributed the money before the vote, which he claimed was critical to Donald Trump’s agenda and “the future of civilization”. Continue reading...
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Wisconsin panel finds Elon Musk’s $1m state supreme court voter giveaway was likely illegal. Musk distributed money to three people before the 2025 election, which he claimed was critical to Trump’s agenda Billionaire Elon Musk likely violated Wisconsin law when he gave out $1m checks to voters in the 2025 state supreme court election, a bipartisan elections panel has found.
TL;DR:
Musk distributed the money before the vote, which he claimed was critical to Donald Trump’s agenda and “the future of civilization”.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 16:18
Social media curfew for teens: is it pointless? – The Latest
Sixteen- and 17-year-olds face an overnight social media curfew in an extension of the government’s social media ban for under-16s. Under the plan, aimed at reducing online harms, certain apps would be blocked by default from midnight to 6am. But the curfew will not be mandatory and teenagers can opt out, so will it achieve anything? Annie Kelly speaks to social affairs correspondent Jessica Murray – watch on YouTube Continue reading...
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Social media curfew for teens: is it pointless? Under the plan, aimed at reducing online harms, certain apps would be blocked by default from midnight to 6am. Annie Kelly speaks to social affairs correspondent Jessica Murray – watch on YouTube Continue reading...
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Sixteen- and 17-year-olds face an overnight social media curfew in an extension of the government’s social media ban for under-16s.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 16:08
Wildfires in Ontario make Toronto air quality worst in world
Environment Canada issued health warnings after sky over city turns yellow Smoke from more than 100 active wildfires in northern Ontario have made Toronto’s air quality the worst in the world on Wednesday and caused yellow, smoky air in cities across the northeast US. Environment Canada issued health warnings on Wednesday after the sky over country’s largest city turned a sickly yellow and was ranked the worst in the world according to IQAir , the Swiss technology company that racks global air quality. Continue reading...
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Environment Canada issued health warnings after sky over city turns yellow Smoke from more than 100 active wildfires in northern Ontario have made Toronto’s air quality the worst in the world on Wednesday and caused yellow, smoky air in cities across the northeast US.
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Environment Canada issued health warnings after sky over city turns yellow Smoke from more than 100 active wildfires in northern Ontario have made Toronto’s air quality the worst in the world on Wednesday and caused yellow, smoky air in cities across the northeast US.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:58
Man arrested on suspicion of posting social media threat to shoot Nigel Farage
Met police detain man in his 20s after post on X was reported to them by parliamentary authorities in May A man has been arrested on suspicion of publishing a message on social media in which he threatened to shoot Nigel Farage. The Metropolitan police arrested a man in his 20s on Tuesday after the post was reported to them by the parliamentary authorities in May. Continue reading...
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The Metropolitan police arrested a man in his 20s on Tuesday after the post was reported to them by the parliamentary authorities in May.
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Met police detain man in his 20s after post on X was reported to them by parliamentary authorities in May A man has been arrested on suspicion of publishing a message on social media in which he threatened to shoot Nigel Farage.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:55
Nationwide customer vows to fight on after failed attempt to join board
James Sherwin-Smith says he will launch fresh campaign for change at the building society after losing vote at AGM A Nationwide customer has vowed to fight on after losing a historic attempt to join its board and is plotting a fresh campaign to boost democracy at the building society. James Sherwin-Smith secured about 12.5% of the vote, representing support from 75,939 Nationwide members, at the mutual’s annual general meeting on Wednesday. Continue reading...
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James Sherwin-Smith says he will launch fresh campaign for change at the building society after losing vote at AGM A Nationwide customer has vowed to fight on after losing a historic attempt to join its board and is plotting a fresh campaign to boost democracy at the building society. James Sherwin-Smith secured about 12.
TL;DR:
James Sherwin-Smith says he will launch fresh campaign for change at the building society after losing vote at AGM A Nationwide customer has vowed to fight on after losing a historic attempt to join its board and is plotting a fresh campaign to boost democracy at the building society.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:47
Unlicensed casinos could face ban on sponsoring UK sports teams from 2027
Proposal to protect vulnerable and stop money laundering could affect Premier League clubs and Formula One Unlicensed casinos could be banned from sponsoring sports teams in the UK from next year, in a move that poses financial questions for Premier League clubs such as Everton FC and sports including Formula One. Plans for a ban, revealed by the Guardian on Sunday and confirmed by the government on Wednesday, are aimed at protecting vulnerable people and reducing the risk of sport being used by organised crime groups for money laundering. Continue reading...
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Proposal to protect vulnerable and stop money laundering could affect Premier League clubs and Formula One Unlicensed casinos could be banned from sponsoring sports teams in the UK from next year, in a move that poses financial questions for Premier League clubs such as Everton FC and sports including Formula One.
TL;DR:
Proposal to protect vulnerable and stop money laundering could affect Premier League clubs and Formula One Unlicensed casinos could be banned from sponsoring sports teams in the UK from next year, in a move that poses financial questions for Premier League clubs such as Everton FC and sports including Formula One.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:46
Unheard David Bowie songs from 1965 to be released – including ones with Jimmy Page on guitar
Compilation entitled David Bowie: The Shel Talmy Recordings will be released in September, collating material from when he recorded as Davy Jones Unheard 1965 recordings by David Bowie, from when he was starting out in swinging 60s London as Davy Jones, are finally to be released – some featuring a pre-Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page. Before he broke through with 1969’s Space Oddity, and scaled up through The Man Who Sold the World and Hunky Dory towards the explosive impact of his Ziggy Stardust alter ego in 1972, Bowie started out as a very different kind of artist: sharp-suited and coiffured, playing the kind of forthright, blues-influenced, sometimes faintly psychedelic pop-rock that was the hallmark of mid-60s London, from the Beatles to the Small Faces and the Who. Continue reading...
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Compilation entitled David Bowie: The Shel Talmy Recordings will be released in September, collating material from when he recorded as Davy Jones Unheard 1965 recordings by David Bowie, from when he was starting out in swinging 60s London as Davy Jones, are finally to be released – some featuring a pre-Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page.
TL;DR:
Compilation entitled David Bowie: The Shel Talmy Recordings will be released in September, collating material from when he recorded as Davy Jones Unheard 1965 recordings by David Bowie, from when he was starting out in swinging 60s London as Davy Jones, are finally to be released – some featuring a pre-Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:01
Greater gliders not as great at gliding as thought – but still look like magic carpets, experts say
While new study challenges assumptions about how far they travel, witnessing them in action still takes your breath away, scientists say Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast They may look like a fluffy flying carpet, but greater gliders are not as great at gliding as previously thought, Australian researchers have discovered. The first study to measure the aerial ability of Australia’s largest gliding marsupial has found they soar across an average distance of 19 metres – far shorter than the 100 metres suggested in an 85-year-old study. Continue reading...
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While new study challenges assumptions about how far they travel, witnessing them in action still takes your breath away, scientists say Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast They may look like a fluffy flying carpet, but greater gliders are not as great at gliding as previously thought, Australian r…
TL;DR:
While new study challenges assumptions about how far they travel, witnessing them in action still takes your breath away, scientists say Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast They may look like a fluffy flying carpet, but greater gliders are not as great at gliding as previously thought, Australian researchers have discovered.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:00
Almost 145,000 Australians will lose support for autism under NDIS reforms, documents reveal
Internal estimates show 144,600 people will be taken off the scheme by 2030, many of them under 18 Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Almost 145,000 Australians receiving support for autism on the national disability insurance scheme (NDIS) are expected to be removed by the end of the decade, internal estimates show, as the federal government moves ahead with plans to narrow the focus of the “diluted” $52bn scheme toward those with significant and complex needs. From 2028, almost two-thirds of the 241,000 participants set to lose access to the NDIS will be aged 18 or under, health department documents released to Guardian Australia under freedom of information laws show. Continue reading...
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Internal estimates show 144,600 people will be taken off the scheme by 2030, many of them under 18 Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Almost 145,000 Australians receiving support for autism on the national disability insurance scheme (NDIS) are expected to be removed by the end of the decade, internal estimates show, as the federal government moves ah…
TL;DR:
Internal estimates show 144,600 people will be taken off the scheme by 2030, many of them under 18 Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Almost 145,000 Australians receiving support for autism on the national disability insurance scheme (NDIS) are expected to be removed by the end of the decade, internal estimates show, as the federal government moves ahead with plans to narrow the focus of the “diluted” $52bn scheme toward those with significant and complex needs.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:00
Albanese’s AI plan is admirable – but will face tech giants more powerful than most national governments
Challenges of regulating social media or stopping hate speech show these firms can set their own terms and prices for countries like Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese took a trip back in time during his much anticipated speech on artificial intelligence on Wednesday. Seeking to harness the momentous change bearing down on our lives, the prime minister told an audience at the University of Sydney that his government would keep pace with AI, even seeking to “get out in front” of the technological tidal wave. Continue reading...
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Challenges of regulating social media or stopping hate speech show these firms can set their own terms and prices for countries like Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese took a trip back in time during his much anticipated speech on artificial intelligence on Wednesday.
TL;DR:
Challenges of regulating social media or stopping hate speech show these firms can set their own terms and prices for countries like Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese took a trip back in time during his much anticipated speech on artificial intelligence on Wednesday.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:00
Albanese’s AI blueprint sparks calls for datacentre moratorium until new regulations in place
Prime minister’s plan will create energy regulations for datacentres in Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Environmental and community groups have called for a pause on datacentre development until new regulations are in place after Anthony Albanese promised “greater clarity and speed” over their approval. In his landmark speech on artificial intelligence at the University of Sydney on Wednesday, the prime minister said Australia would create a legal obligation for large-scale datacentres to underwrite new power supply, pay their full share of grid connection, and add as much energy to the grid as they take out of it. Continue reading...
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Prime minister’s plan will create energy regulations for datacentres in Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Environmental and community groups have called for a pause on datacentre development until new regulations are in place after Anthony Albanese promised “greater clarity and speed” over their approval.
TL;DR:
Prime minister’s plan will create energy regulations for datacentres in Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Environmental and community groups have called for a pause on datacentre development until new regulations are in place after Anthony Albanese promised “greater clarity and speed” over their approval.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 15:00
Farage said he would need ‘a million a year’ to stand as MP in 2024
Exclusive: Politician spoke to senior figures in Reform in March that year about covering lost earnings, sources tell the Guardian Nigel Farage told senior figures in Reform UK he would need “a million a year” to cover lost earnings if he stood for parliament in the 2024 general election, sources have told the Guardian, raising further questions about why he was given £5m by a crypto billionaire. Sources say the discussion took place in March 2024 – shortly before the undeclared gift was made by Christopher Harborne on 5 April, according to the Thailand-based crypto billionaire’s lawyers. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Politician spoke to senior figures in Reform in March that year about covering lost earnings, sources tell the Guardian Nigel Farage told senior figures in Reform UK he would need “a million a year” to cover lost earnings if he stood for parliament in the 2024 general election, sources have told the Guardian, raising further questions about why he was given £5m by a…
TL;DR:
Exclusive: Politician spoke to senior figures in Reform in March that year about covering lost earnings, sources tell the Guardian Nigel Farage told senior figures in Reform UK he would need “a million a year” to cover lost earnings if he stood for parliament in the 2024 general election, sources have told the Guardian, raising further questions about why he was given £5m by a crypto billionaire.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 14:52
Trump endorses MyPillow founder Mike Lindell in Minnesota governor’s race
The Republican Trump ally has spent years promoting discredited claims about the 2020 election Donald Trump has endorsed Mike Lindell’s bid for Minnesota governor, calling the MyPillow founder “one of America’s greatest and most hard working Patriots” in a Truth Social post Wednesday. Trump described Lindell as someone who has “sacrificed” more than almost anyone else “in fighting for our country, especially when it comes to Election Integrity”, invoking Lindell’s years spent promoting discredited claims about the 2020 election. Trump said Lindell “will MAKE MINNESOTA GREAT AGAIN” and gave him full-throated support ahead of the state’s 11 August Republican primary, where early voting is already under way. Continue reading...
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Trump endorses MyPillow founder Mike Lindell in Minnesota governor’s race. Trump described Lindell as someone who has “sacrificed” more than almost anyone else “in fighting for our country, especially when it comes to Election Integrity”, invoking Lindell’s years spent promoting discredited claims about the 2020 election.
TL;DR:
The Republican Trump ally has spent years promoting discredited claims about the 2020 election Donald Trump has endorsed Mike Lindell’s bid for Minnesota governor, calling the MyPillow founder “one of America’s greatest and most hard working Patriots” in a Truth Social post Wednesday.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 14:51
The Other American Anniversary
The 1826 Congress of Panama sought to resist the predations of great powers. It was as relevant then as it is now.
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The Other American Anniversary. The 1826 Congress of Panama sought to resist the predations of great powers. It was as relevant then as it is now.
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The 1826 Congress of Panama sought to resist the predations of great powers.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 14:34
Ilhan Omar introduces resolution urging US to join international criminal court
Exclusive: bill from Democratic lawmaker comes two days after Marco Rubio vowed to dismantle war crimes tribunal Democratic congresswoman Ilhan Omar introduced a resolution Wednesday urging the United States to join the international criminal court (ICC), marking the first congressional pushback against the Trump administration’s pledge to “systematically disable” the war crimes tribunal through sanctions and diplomatic pressure. Omar’s bill came two days after Marco Rubio , the US secretary of state, vowed to dismantle the court . Continue reading...
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Omar’s bill came two days after Marco Rubio , the US secretary of state, vowed to dismantle the court .
TL;DR:
Exclusive: bill from Democratic lawmaker comes two days after Marco Rubio vowed to dismantle war crimes tribunal Democratic congresswoman Ilhan Omar introduced a resolution Wednesday urging the United States to join the international criminal court (ICC), marking the first congressional pushback against the Trump administration’s pledge to “systematically disable” the war crimes tribunal through sanctions and diplomatic pressure.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 14:30
As Russia’s assault continues, Ukraine’s politics shift and an old alliance begins to fray
Beneath the drone strikes and talk of ceasefires lies a battle over history that is testing Kyiv’s chances for an end to the conflict • Don’t get This Is Europe delivered to your inbox? Sign up here I’ve just come back from a trip to Kyiv, where after more than four years of war, it can feel like the political and diplomatic news agenda has become cyclical: a suggestion that some kind of peace deal could be around the corner, followed by the swift intervention of reality that the Kremlin has no interest in abandoning its maximalist goals, and we all go back to the drawing board. We are now in a period where Russia has again stepped up its air attacks on the Ukrainian capital. Frequent mass drone and missile attacks keep Kyiv residents awake, and some even get through to the city centre, whereas in the past Ukrainian air defences were usually able to repel them. Nights can be noisy and scary: one attack while I was there killed 27 people. Thousands head into the metro to get some sleep. Continue reading...
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As Russia’s assault continues, Ukraine’s politics shift and an old alliance begins to fray. We are now in a period where Russia has again stepped up its air attacks on the Ukrainian capital. Nights can be noisy and scary: one attack while I was there killed 27 people.
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Beneath the drone strikes and talk of ceasefires lies a battle over history that is testing Kyiv’s chances for an end to the conflict • Don’t get This Is Europe delivered to your inbox?
Theguardian
Jul 15, 14:23
South Texas braces for more flooding after US storms strand motorists
Up to 16in of rain fell in some areas as forecasters warn another foot could fall, prompting rescues and road closures Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Heavy rains in south Texas have washed out highways and stranded motorists, with forecasters warning that more severe weather could bring dangerous flooding to already drenched counties near the border with Mexico. On Tuesday, storms dumped up to 16in of rain in some rural areas of the state, leading to the dispatch of emergency crews to make at least two dozen rescues across the region. Officials shut down parts of a highway near Ulvade, 80 miles west of San Antonio. Continue reading...
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South Texas braces for more flooding after US storms strand motorists. On Tuesday, storms dumped up to 16in of rain in some rural areas of the state, leading to the dispatch of emergency crews to make at least two dozen rescues across the region. Officials shut down parts of a highway near Ulvade, 80 miles west of San Antonio.
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Up to 16in of rain fell in some areas as forecasters warn another foot could fall, prompting rescues and road closures Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Heavy rains in south Texas have washed out highways and stranded motorists, with forecasters warning that more severe weather could bring dangerous flooding to already drenched counties near the border with Mexico.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 14:23
Bristol declared ‘city of harm reduction’ as Greens seek less punitive drug policy
Councillors pass motion that paves way to setting up drugs-consumption facility where users can be helped and treated UK politics live – latest updates Bristol has been formally declared a “city of harm reduction”, with local politicians pledging to focus on helping and treating users of illegal drugs rather than punishing them. Green councillors, who lead the city council, said the declaration was a clear signal that public health rather than criminal justice solutions were needed to tackle the UK’s growing drugs crisis. Continue reading...
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Councillors pass motion that paves way to setting up drugs-consumption facility where users can be helped and treated UK politics live – latest updates Bristol has been formally declared a “city of harm reduction”, with local politicians pledging to focus on helping and treating users of illegal drugs rather than punishing them.
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Councillors pass motion that paves way to setting up drugs-consumption facility where users can be helped and treated UK politics live – latest updates Bristol has been formally declared a “city of harm reduction”, with local politicians pledging to focus on helping and treating users of illegal drugs rather than punishing them.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 14:13
George Lucas likens AI sceptics to luddites clinging to horses and carts
Star Wars director calls AI technology ‘the future’ of film-making and says ‘there’s nothing you can do about it’ The Star Wars director, George Lucas, has added his voice to the growing chorus of film-makers receptive to the rising use of AI tools in moviemaking. Speaking in an interview with A Rabbit’s Foot , Lucas, 82, said: “Artificial intelligence means it’s much easier for us to make movies.” Continue reading...
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Star Wars director calls AI technology ‘the future’ of film-making and says ‘there’s nothing you can do about it’ The Star Wars director, George Lucas, has added his voice to the growing chorus of film-makers receptive to the rising use of AI tools in moviemaking.
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Star Wars director calls AI technology ‘the future’ of film-making and says ‘there’s nothing you can do about it’ The Star Wars director, George Lucas, has added his voice to the growing chorus of film-makers receptive to the rising use of AI tools in moviemaking.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 14:06
Dale Vince to get damages from Daily Mail publisher over misleading article
Court of appeal rules Labour donor suffered ‘obvious injustice’ over photo next to the words ‘sex harassment’ The green energy entrepreneur and Labour donor Dale Vince is in line to receive damages from the publisher of the Daily Mail after claiming it used his picture to mislead millions of readers. Vince, who has given more than £5m to Labour over several years, took legal action against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) over an article, published in June 2023, headlined “Labour repays £100,000 to sex pest donor”. Continue reading...
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Court of appeal rules Labour donor suffered ‘obvious injustice’ over photo next to the words ‘sex harassment’ The green energy entrepreneur and Labour donor Dale Vince is in line to receive damages from the publisher of the Daily Mail after claiming it used his picture to mislead millions of readers.
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Court of appeal rules Labour donor suffered ‘obvious injustice’ over photo next to the words ‘sex harassment’ The green energy entrepreneur and Labour donor Dale Vince is in line to receive damages from the publisher of the Daily Mail after claiming it used his picture to mislead millions of readers.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 14:00
Tripling US union membership would shift $1.2tn to workers annually – report
More density would also narrow racial pay gaps, while a decline in density correlated to surges in wealth inequality Tripling union membership in the US would lead to a 14.5% raise for the median US worker, shifting $1.2tn to workers annually and significantly narrowing racial wage gaps, according to a new report released Wednesday. The report from the Economic Policy Institute notes that union membership rates across the workforce, also known as union density, was once three times as high as it is today. Union density in the 1950s was more than 30% before it started to decline in the 1960s. By the 1980s, union density dropped to 22.2% only to decline even further in recent decades, to 10% in 2025. Continue reading...
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Tripling US union membership would shift $1.2tn to workers annually – report. More density would also narrow racial pay gaps, while a decline in density correlated to surges in wealth inequality Tripling union membership in the US would lead to a 14.5% raise for the median US worker, shifting $1.
TL;DR:
The report from the Economic Policy Institute notes that union membership rates across the workforce, also known as union density, was once three times as high as it is today.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 13:35
Former Obama White House counsel to face House questioning over Epstein ties
Kathryn Ruemmler welcomes closed-door interview and says she had no knowledge of ongoing criminal activity Kathryn Ruemmler, who served as White House counsel under Barack Obama, is set to testify on Wednesday before the House committee on oversight and reform about her ties to Jeffrey Epstein as part of the panel’s investigation into the convicted sex offender. Ruemmler came under scrutiny earlier this year after her name appeared thousands of times in the records related to Epstein that were released by the justice department under the Epstein Files Transparency Act. She announced in February that she would be resigning from her role at Goldman Sachs as chief legal officer effective on 30 June. Continue reading...
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Former Obama White House counsel to face House questioning over Epstein ties. Ruemmler came under scrutiny earlier this year after her name appeared thousands of times in the records related to Epstein that were released by the justice department under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
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Kathryn Ruemmler welcomes closed-door interview and says she had no knowledge of ongoing criminal activity Kathryn Ruemmler, who served as White House counsel under Barack Obama, is set to testify on Wednesday before the House committee on oversight and reform about her ties to Jeffrey Epstein as part of the panel’s investigation into the convicted sex offender.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 13:30
Trump says ICE should continue traffic stops after two men killed
Comment comes after homeland security sources say federal officers told to temporarily stop pulling drivers over Donald Trump said on Wednesday morning that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) should continue making traffic stops, just one day after the homeland security department (DHS) said they’d be halting them in the wake of recent stops that left two men killed in the space of a week. Federal officers across the US had been told to temporarily stop pulling drivers over on Tuesday, homeland security sources told the Guardian. That directive came after ICE agents fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston on 7 July and Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine on Monday. Both men were unarmed, neither was the intended target of the operation that killed him, and in both cases the agents involved wore no body camera to record what happened. Continue reading...
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Trump says ICE should continue traffic stops after two men killed. Comment comes after homeland security sources say federal officers told to temporarily stop pulling drivers over Donald Trump said on Wednesday morning that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) should continue making traffic stops, just one day after the homeland security department (DHS) said they’d be ha…
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Federal officers across the US had been told to temporarily stop pulling drivers over on Tuesday, homeland security sources told the Guardian.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 13:29
Trump’s Boat Strikes Are Crimes Against Humanity
Rodrigo Duterte’s prosecution at the International Criminal Court shows why U.S. officials should be worried.
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Trump’s Boat Strikes Are Crimes Against Humanity. Rodrigo Duterte’s prosecution at the International Criminal Court shows why U.S. officials should be worried.
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Rodrigo Duterte’s prosecution at the International Criminal Court shows why U.S.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 13:29
Utah bans Stephen King novella collection from public schools
Different Seasons, which incudes stories that inspired films such as Stand by Me and The Shawshank Redemption, judged to contain ‘objective sensitive material’ Stephen King is the most banned author in US schools, according to report A collection of Stephen King novellas that inspired classic films including Stand by Me and The Shawshank Redemption has been banned from Utah public schools. Published in 1982, the collection, titled Different Seasons , contains four novellas: Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption: Hope Springs Eternal, Apt Pupil: Summer of Corruption, The Body: Fall from Innocence, and The Breathing Method: A Winter’s Tale. Continue reading...
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Different Seasons, which incudes stories that inspired films such as Stand by Me and The Shawshank Redemption, judged to contain ‘objective sensitive material’ Stephen King is the most banned author in US schools, according to report A collection of Stephen King novellas that inspired classic films including Stand by Me and The Shawshank Redemption has been banned from Utah pu…
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Different Seasons, which incudes stories that inspired films such as Stand by Me and The Shawshank Redemption, judged to contain ‘objective sensitive material’ Stephen King is the most banned author in US schools, according to report A collection of Stephen King novellas that inspired classic films including Stand by Me and The Shawshank Redemption has been banned from Utah public schools.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 13:10
US civil rights leaders plan march on Washington for voting protections
Rev Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III to lead August march after court rulings weakened voting rights A coalition of civil rights leaders have announced plans to march on Washington in defense of voting rights following a string of federal and supreme court rulings that have weakened protections against racial discrimination in US elections. Reverend Al Sharpton ’s National Action Network is leading the 28 August action , joined by Martin Luther King III, Arndrea Waters King, and several civil rights groups. The “March on Washington 2026: Defend the Vote” will take place on the 63rd anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr’s I Have a Dream speech. Continue reading...
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US civil rights leaders plan march on Washington for voting protections. Reverend Al Sharpton ’s National Action Network is leading the 28 August action , joined by Martin Luther King III, Arndrea Waters King, and several civil rights groups.
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Rev Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III to lead August march after court rulings weakened voting rights A coalition of civil rights leaders have announced plans to march on Washington in defense of voting rights following a string of federal and supreme court rulings that have weakened protections against racial discrimination in US elections.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 13:00
Extreme temperature warnings in place as ‘heat dome’ bakes US
Americans warned to be on alert for heat-related illness as parts of country experience record high temperatures Extreme heat warnings are in place for large swaths of the United States this week, as an unusual weather pattern eclipses record temperature highs. In Billings, Montana, residents experienced a sweltering 111F (43.9C) on Sunday, the hottest day in its history. Salt Lake City in Utah also hit an all-time record high on Sunday at 109F (42.8C). Boston has seen more 90F (32.3C) days than average, according to NPR station WBUR-FM. Continue reading...
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Extreme temperature warnings in place as ‘heat dome’ bakes US. In Billings, Montana, residents experienced a sweltering 111F (43.9C) on Sunday, the hottest day in its history. Salt Lake City in Utah also hit an all-time record high on Sunday at 109F (42.8C).
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Americans warned to be on alert for heat-related illness as parts of country experience record high temperatures Extreme heat warnings are in place for large swaths of the United States this week, as an unusual weather pattern eclipses record temperature highs.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 13:00
‘They want to break our will’: Gaza flotilla activist tells of rape in Israeli detention
Anna Liedtke files criminal complaint in Israel over alleged attack by female guards and says abuse was intended to silence campaigners The third time Anna Liedtke was subjected to an illegal strip-search in Israeli detention, female prison guards forced her on to her knees, covered her mouth to stop her screaming and raped her, according to interviews and a criminal complaint filed in Israel. She described hearing male guards laughing during the attack, which she believes they watched and may have filmed. It took place in an area separated from the prison hallway by a partially drawn curtain that her attackers had left open. Continue reading...
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‘They want to break our will’: Gaza flotilla activist tells of rape in Israeli detention. She described hearing male guards laughing during the attack, which she believes they watched and may have filmed. It took place in an area separated from the prison hallway by a partially drawn curtain that her attackers had left open.
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Anna Liedtke files criminal complaint in Israel over alleged attack by female guards and says abuse was intended to silence campaigners The third time Anna Liedtke was subjected to an illegal strip-search in Israeli detention, female prison guards forced her on to her knees, covered her mouth to stop her screaming and raped her, according to interviews and a criminal complaint filed in Israel.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 12:59
‘We did pull the levers’: emotional Starmer defends his record
In his final PMQs the prime minister offers Andy Burnham – and the England team – his full support Politics live – latest updates Keir Starmer has defended his record as prime minister in an often emotional final outing at prime minister’s questions, which largely avoided political jibes in favour of tributes and questions, many about the World Cup. Answering the very last question, his voice breaking at times, Starmer paid tribute to those he had worked with over his two years in office, which will end on Monday when he hands over to Andy Burnham. Continue reading...
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In his final PMQs the prime minister offers Andy Burnham – and the England team – his full support Politics live – latest updates Keir Starmer has defended his record as prime minister in an often emotional final outing at prime minister’s questions, which largely avoided political jibes in favour of tributes and questions, many about the World Cup.
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In his final PMQs the prime minister offers Andy Burnham – and the England team – his full support Politics live – latest updates Keir Starmer has defended his record as prime minister in an often emotional final outing at prime minister’s questions, which largely avoided political jibes in favour of tributes and questions, many about the World Cup.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 12:39
Joe Biden to publish memoir of presidency after November midterms
Promise Me, America to cover everything from economy to decision to drop bid for re-election Former president Joe Biden will publish a memoir this fall, publisher Little, Brown and Company told the Associated Press. Promise Me, America, which Biden says will touch upon everything from the economy to his decision to drop his bid for re-election , is scheduled to come out on 17 November. Continue reading...
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Promise Me, America to cover everything from economy to decision to drop bid for re-election Former president Joe Biden will publish a memoir this fall, publisher Little, Brown and Company told the Associated Press.
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Promise Me, America to cover everything from economy to decision to drop bid for re-election Former president Joe Biden will publish a memoir this fall, publisher Little, Brown and Company told the Associated Press.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 12:08
Muslim man stabbed multiple times in Utah over his religion, police say
Arrested suspect tells police he ‘intends to kill Muslims’ after alleged attack on kiosk worker at West Valley City mill A man was arrested in Utah for stabbing a Muslim man multiple times and stated that he targeted the victim because of the victim’s religion, police said in court records on Tuesday. Police said the suspect told them he “intends to kill Muslims” and that he constituted “a substantial danger to the public if released based on his violent actions ... ideologies and pre-planned mass casualty events”. Continue reading...
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Muslim man stabbed multiple times in Utah over his religion, police say. Police said the suspect told them he “intends to kill Muslims” and that he constituted “a substantial danger to the public if released based on his violent actions ... ideologies and pre-planned mass casualty events”.
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Arrested suspect tells police he ‘intends to kill Muslims’ after alleged attack on kiosk worker at West Valley City mill A man was arrested in Utah for stabbing a Muslim man multiple times and stated that he targeted the victim because of the victim’s religion, police said in court records on Tuesday.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 12:00
How Democrats’ datacenter push in swing states is risking their midterm hopes
Polls suggest many Democratic voters oppose the projects as party leaders champion AI investment Sarah Brabbs used to be a fan of Michigan ’s Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer. “I have her book; I appreciated her stewardship and guidance during the pandemic,” Brabbs, who has voted Democrat for basically her entire life, says. “I will never not appreciate who she was during that time.” Continue reading...
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How Democrats’ datacenter push in swing states is risking their midterm hopes. “I have her book; I appreciated her stewardship and guidance during the pandemic,” Brabbs, who has voted Democrat for basically her entire life, says. “I will never not appreciate who she was during that time.” Continue reading...
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Polls suggest many Democratic voters oppose the projects as party leaders champion AI investment Sarah Brabbs used to be a fan of Michigan ’s Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 12:00
Burnham urged to drop ‘flawed’ plans that may let developers bypass environment laws for £1
Exclusive: allowing firms to dodge biodiversity protections by paying into levy will harm nature and economy, say 100 experts in letter The UK government has been accused of “rushing through” planning changes that could give developers permission to “trash” nature for as little as £1. A letter signed by more than 100 conservationists, scientists, celebrities and businesses, including the actor and writer Stephen Fry and the broadcaster Chris Packham, has urged the incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, to immediately halt the rollout of environmental delivery plans (EDPs). Continue reading...
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Exclusive: allowing firms to dodge biodiversity protections by paying into levy will harm nature and economy, say 100 experts in letter The UK government has been accused of “rushing through” planning changes that could give developers permission to “trash” nature for as little as £1.
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Exclusive: allowing firms to dodge biodiversity protections by paying into levy will harm nature and economy, say 100 experts in letter The UK government has been accused of “rushing through” planning changes that could give developers permission to “trash” nature for as little as £1.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 11:46
Venezuela’s interim government and opposition to begin formal talks
Nobel laureate María Corina Machado will not lead negotiations over new elections, contrary to expectations The interim government of Venezuela has announced it will begin formal talks with the opposition aimed at “strengthening democracy” in the country. The move is backed by the US, which says it is seeking a “democratic transition” in a country still recovering from the twin earthquakes that killed more than 4,700 people. Continue reading...
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Nobel laureate María Corina Machado will not lead negotiations over new elections, contrary to expectations The interim government of Venezuela has announced it will begin formal talks with the opposition aimed at “strengthening democracy” in the country.
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Nobel laureate María Corina Machado will not lead negotiations over new elections, contrary to expectations The interim government of Venezuela has announced it will begin formal talks with the opposition aimed at “strengthening democracy” in the country.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 11:45
Putin’s War Comes Home to Russia
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The man did not blame the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine, which is now bringing the war home to Russians by striking fuel depots and oil refineries. In other words, the man who had just lost a day and a half of his life to a shortage caused by his country’s war concluded that the appropriate response was not a cease-fire and peace negotiations but yet more war.
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Ukraine’s attacks have unleashed a crisis—but don’t expect repercussions for the regime.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 11:42
First Thing: Trump flip-flops on Hormuz toll and threatens Iran’s civilian infrastructure
US president says power plants and bridges could be targeted, which would probably constitute war crimes. Plus, the bear that raided an elderly couple’s fridge, and a stolen cat involved in a bank robbery Good morning. Donald Trump has threatened to expand US strikes on Iran next week to target civilian infrastructure including power plants and bridges if Tehran does not agree to a deal. Trump made similar comments in March. Destroying civilian infrastructure such as power and water facilities would be illegal under international humanitarian law and would probably constitute a war crime. The US president, meanwhile, has U-turned on a threat that ships would have to pay a 20% fee to the US for “security” in the strait of Hormuz. He said he had decided to scrap the toll “based on highly productive conversations with Middle East leadership”, and touted “massive” investments. He said the US would continue to blockade Iranian ports. How have Democrats responded to renewed hostilities? Senate Democrats blocked the advancement of a must-pass defense bill. Chuck Schumer, the Senate’s top Democrat, said his party could not support advancing the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) as long as the fighting continued. Top House Democrats, meanwhile, have vowed to oppose a bid to cut US military aid to Israel as the party grapples with a rebellion among their voters over the party’s support for the Middle Eastern ally. Continue reading...
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First Thing: Trump flip-flops on Hormuz toll and threatens Iran’s civilian infrastructure. Donald Trump has threatened to expand US strikes on Iran next week to target civilian infrastructure including power plants and bridges if Tehran does not agree to a deal. He said the US would continue to blockade Iranian ports.
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US president says power plants and bridges could be targeted, which would probably constitute war crimes.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 11:28
‘Collective failure’: French press digests World Cup semi-final defeat by Spain
L’Équipe laments ‘mentally sunk’ players iin Dallas Ouest France front page reads: ‘End of American dream’ French fans’s expectations of their national team had been at an all-time high: a semi-final on Bastille day, Kylian Mbappé a hero, a squad unbeaten. Across the country, bars had been packed with viewers spilling on to pavements, ready to crack open the fireworks ahead of hopes for the final. But the night was unexpectedly subdued, streets cleared early. On Wednesday morning, the French media was still digesting the disappointment of defeat in a World Cup semi-final , praising Spain’s performance in Texas while struggling to comprehend Les Bleus ’ fall from a high. Continue reading...
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‘Collective failure’: French press digests World Cup semi-final defeat by Spain. Across the country, bars had been packed with viewers spilling on to pavements, ready to crack open the fireworks ahead of hopes for the final.
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L’Équipe laments ‘mentally sunk’ players iin Dallas Ouest France front page reads: ‘End of American dream’ French fans’s expectations of their national team had been at an all-time high: a semi-final on Bastille day, Kylian Mbappé a hero, a squad unbeaten.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 11:00
Trump intelligence pick Jay Clayton to face senators in confirmation hearing
Clayton, if confirmed, would replace Bill Pulte, whose position as acting intelligence chief has prompted outcry Jay Clayton, the US attorney for the southern district of New York, will face senators on the intelligence committee Wednesday morning in a confirmation hearing to become the nation’s next intelligence chief. Clayton, if confirmed, would replace Bill Pulte, whom Donald Trump installed as acting director of national intelligence last month. Pulte’s position atop the American intelligence agencies has been deeply divisive on Capitol Hill, with members of both parties saying his background as the chair of a federal mortgage regulation agency is not enough experience for the job, and that Pulte’s unwavering loyalty to Trump and willingness to punish the president’s political enemies makes him a dangerous spy chief. Continue reading...
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Trump intelligence pick Jay Clayton to face senators in confirmation hearing. Clayton, if confirmed, would replace Bill Pulte, whose position as acting intelligence chief has prompted outcry Jay Clayton, the US attorney for the southern district of New York, will face senators on the intelligence committee Wednesday morning in a confirmation hearing to become the nation’s next…
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Clayton, if confirmed, would replace Bill Pulte, whom Donald Trump installed as acting director of national intelligence last month.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 10:48
How the United States and Iran Can Solve Hormuz
Fees for passage through the strait are likely inevitable.
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How the United States and Iran Can Solve Hormuz. Fees for passage through the strait are likely inevitable.
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Fees for passage through the strait are likely inevitable.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 10:41
Patient records stolen in cyber-attack on Australian healthcare provider
Partnered Health says personal information and medical details and notes were breached in the attack on 21 clinics Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Thousands of medical records and patient information stored with one of Australia’s biggest healthcare providers have been breached in a cyber-attack. Partnered Health, owned by private equity firm Quadrant, said 21 clinics across several cities including Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra have been affected by the breach which occurred on 23 June. Continue reading...
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Partnered Health says personal information and medical details and notes were breached in the attack on 21 clinics Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Thousands of medical records and patient information stored with one of Australia’s biggest healthcare providers have been breached in a cyber-attack.
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Partnered Health says personal information and medical details and notes were breached in the attack on 21 clinics Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Thousands of medical records and patient information stored with one of Australia’s biggest healthcare providers have been breached in a cyber-attack.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 10:38
Bank of England governor would have put off Farage meeting had £5m gift been under investigation
Exclusive: Andrew Bailey says he does not regret meeting Reform UK leader to discuss cryptocurrency regulation The Bank of England governor has said he would have put off a controversial meeting with Nigel Farage last autumn had the Reform UK leader’s £5m gift from a crypto billionaire been under investigation at the time. Andrew Bailey said he did not regret meeting Farage to discuss the Bank’s plans for cryptocurrency regulation last September, months before the controversial donation from Thailand-based investor, Christopher Harborne, was revealed by the Guardian in April. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Andrew Bailey says he does not regret meeting Reform UK leader to discuss cryptocurrency regulation The Bank of England governor has said he would have put off a controversial meeting with Nigel Farage last autumn had the Reform UK leader’s £5m gift from a crypto billionaire been under investigation at the time.
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Exclusive: Andrew Bailey says he does not regret meeting Reform UK leader to discuss cryptocurrency regulation The Bank of England governor has said he would have put off a controversial meeting with Nigel Farage last autumn had the Reform UK leader’s £5m gift from a crypto billionaire been under investigation at the time.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 10:09
Trump’s pick for attorney-general faces Senate hearing later today – US politics live
Trump’s nominee – his former personal defense lawyer – will face what is expected to be a contentious Senate nomination hearing Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. President Donald Trump’s pick to be the next US attorney general – his former personal defense lawyer Todd Blanche – faces what is expected to be a contentious Senate nomination hearing today. Federal immigration officials have been instructed to stop pulling over vehicles until further notice, according to a homeland security source, following two recent deadly shootings in Texas and Maine during which officials shot and killed immigrants in vehicles. More here . Darline Graham, the sister of the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham, was sworn in to temporarily fill his Senate seat on Tuesday, just three days after his sudden death. Graham was appointed by Henry McMaster, South Carolina’s governor, to fill the remainder of her brother’s current term. More here . A person died during an encounter with federal immigration officials on Tuesday morning in Florida, marking the third death in one week linked to immigration enforcement operations. Officials with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), which is a component of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), had an “encounter” with four men in a vehicle in the parking lot of a convenience store along a busy road in St Augustine, Florida, the highway patrol spokesperson said. More here . Supreme court justices requested $14.6m increase in security amid a rise in threats. Amy Coney Barrett told House lawmakers that a sharp rise in threats against her and other justices is increasingly affecting her personal and family lives. More here . Continue reading...
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Trump’s pick for attorney-general faces Senate hearing later today – US politics live. Federal immigration officials have been instructed to stop pulling over vehicles until further notice, according to a homeland security source, following two recent deadly shootings in Texas and Maine during which officials shot and killed immigrants in vehicles.
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Trump’s nominee – his former personal defense lawyer – will face what is expected to be a contentious Senate nomination hearing Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 10:00
‘Fear, intimidation, violence’: calls mount to remove ICE from US streets after agents killed two men
Agents killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas, even though both were not targets of enforcement action US officials are facing mounting calls to remove US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from American streets after federal agents killed two men who were not the target of enforcement action in less than a week. Advocacy groups, including the National Police Accountability Project and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, described the fatal shootings of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas as extrajudicial killings. Continue reading...
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Agents killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas, even though both were not targets of enforcement action US officials are facing mounting calls to remove US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from American streets after federal agents killed two men who were not the target of enforcement action in less than a week.
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Agents killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas, even though both were not targets of enforcement action US officials are facing mounting calls to remove US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from American streets after federal agents killed two men who were not the target of enforcement action in less than a week.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 10:00
Arrest of American who has given $1m in aid to Palestine prompts fears of ‘growing repression from Trump’
Extradition request for James ‘Fergie’ Chambers sparks concerns that US government is conflating humanitarian aid with terrorism The arrest in Ibiza and US justice department extradition request for a wealthy American donor to lefwing causes in connection with alleged material support for Hamas is sending ripples through leftwing circles in Spain and being closely monitored in the US for potential “chilling effects” on support for Palestine. Spanish authorities detained James “Fergie” Chambers Friday and are now holding him without bail in Madrid. A hearing is scheduled on whether he can be released on bail for Thursday. Continue reading...
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Arrest of American who has given $1m in aid to Palestine prompts fears of ‘growing repression from Trump’. Spanish authorities detained James “Fergie” Chambers Friday and are now holding him without bail in Madrid. A hearing is scheduled on whether he can be released on bail for Thursday.
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Extradition request for James ‘Fergie’ Chambers sparks concerns that US government is conflating humanitarian aid with terrorism The arrest in Ibiza and US justice department extradition request for a wealthy American donor to lefwing causes in connection with alleged material support for Hamas is sending ripples through leftwing circles in Spain and being closely monitored in the US for potential “chilling effects” on support for Palestine.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 10:00
Todd Blanche to sit for confirmation hearing in bid for attorney general
Trump’s nominee will face tough questions over purging of career prosecutors, Epstein files and more Todd Blanche will appear in front of the Senate judiciary committee on Wednesday, as one of Donald Trump ’s most loyal and powerful enforcers in government aims to be confirmed as the nation’s top law enforcement officer. Few officials have been more instrumental in Trump’s crusade to transform the federal government in his second term than Blanche. Trump tapped Blanche, his former personal attorney, to serve as the deputy attorney general, the justice department’s No 2 position, at the start of his term, where he steered the department’s day-to-day work as career employees were purged over their connection to Trump investigations and the president oriented the department towards punishing political rivals and investigating debunked conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. Continue reading...
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Todd Blanche to sit for confirmation hearing in bid for attorney general. Trump’s nominee will face tough questions over purging of career prosecutors, Epstein files and more Todd Blanche will appear in front of the Senate judiciary committee on Wednesday, as one of Donald Trump ’s most loyal and powerful enforcers in government aims to be confirmed as the nation’s top law enf…
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Few officials have been more instrumental in Trump’s crusade to transform the federal government in his second term than Blanche.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 09:38
Spain and Gibraltar celebrate as border fence falls after signing of ‘historic deal’
Treaty came into effect at midnight, eliminating border controls on land frontier with British overseas territory Europe live – latest updates Spain and Gibraltar are celebrating the fall of the last frontier fence in western Europe after the signing of a post-Brexit deal that brings an end to border checks for residents, tourists and the thousands of Spanish workers who cross into the British overseas territory every day. The agreement, which was signed in Brussels on Tuesday and came into effect at midnight, marks the conclusion of more than four years of negotiations between the UK, Spain, Gibraltar and the EU after Britain’s departure from the bloc. Continue reading...
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Treaty came into effect at midnight, eliminating border controls on land frontier with British overseas territory Europe live – latest updates Spain and Gibraltar are celebrating the fall of the last frontier fence in western Europe after the signing of a post-Brexit deal that brings an end to border checks for residents, tourists and the thousands of Spanish workers who cross…
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Treaty came into effect at midnight, eliminating border controls on land frontier with British overseas territory Europe live – latest updates Spain and Gibraltar are celebrating the fall of the last frontier fence in western Europe after the signing of a post-Brexit deal that brings an end to border checks for residents, tourists and the thousands of Spanish workers who cross into the British overseas territory every day.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 09:19
School in remote SA Indigenous community on list of places where accused paedophile worked
Police investigating Hamish Tait – who faces 329 child abuse charges – have released list of 55 locations where he worked or attended Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A federal police investigation into an accused paedophile facing more than 300 child abuse charges has expanded to a remote community in South Australia. Hamish Tait, 35, faces 329 charges of child abuse between 2009 and 2025 while working across 62 centres. Continue reading...
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Hamish Tait, 35, faces 329 charges of child abuse between 2009 and 2025 while working across 62 centres.
TL;DR:
Police investigating Hamish Tait – who faces 329 child abuse charges – have released list of 55 locations where he worked or attended Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A federal police investigation into an accused paedophile facing more than 300 child abuse charges has expanded to a remote community in South Australia.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 09:15
Former Sydney church turned LGBTQ+ arts venue weighs legal action after landlord orders it to stop ‘offensive trade’
Divine Playhouse promoter and founder says venue faces significant operational, legal and financial challenges Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A former church turned arts venue at the centre of a culture war is exploring legal action after receiving a notice from its landlord that forced its organisers to close the space and cancel planned events. Divine Playhouse is facing possible eviction, with its landlord ordering the venue’s organisers, Heaps Gay Events, to stop “engaging in offensive trade”, days after religious groups protested its opening night. Continue reading...
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Divine Playhouse promoter and founder says venue faces significant operational, legal and financial challenges Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A former church turned arts venue at the centre of a culture war is exploring legal action after receiving a notice from its landlord that forced its organisers to close the space and cancel planned events.
TL;DR:
Divine Playhouse promoter and founder says venue faces significant operational, legal and financial challenges Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A former church turned arts venue at the centre of a culture war is exploring legal action after receiving a notice from its landlord that forced its organisers to close the space and cancel planned events.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 08:05
Thames Water says it has enough funding to survive until end of year
Annual results show struggling firm’s net debt has risen to £18.5bn, up from £16.8bn a year earlier Business live – latest updates Thames Water has said it has sufficient funding to survive until the end of the year, as it scrambles to recapitalise to avoid nationalisation. The UK’s largest water company, which serves 16 million customers in London and the south of England, said it continued to work with creditors, regulators and the government on a recapitalisation plan. Continue reading...
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Annual results show struggling firm’s net debt has risen to £18.5bn, up from £16.8bn a year earlier Business live – latest updates Thames Water has said it has sufficient funding to survive until the end of the year, as it scrambles to recapitalise to avoid nationalisation.
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Annual results show struggling firm’s net debt has risen to £18.5bn, up from £16.8bn a year earlier Business live – latest updates Thames Water has said it has sufficient funding to survive until the end of the year, as it scrambles to recapitalise to avoid nationalisation.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 08:00
Shipwrecks of Shackleton and Scott recreated in 3D digital form after deep sea expedition
Canadian scientists visit remains of polar exploration vessels in ‘golden era for shipwreck investigating’ Moments after devouring the final glimmers of light, the seafloor offered nothing but darkness and silt. Then the bow appeared. More than 1,000ft (305 metres) below the surface of the Labrador Sea, off the coast of Canada, the skeleton of the final ship used by the famed polar explorer Ernest Shackleton appeared in its silty grave. Continue reading...
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Canadian scientists visit remains of polar exploration vessels in ‘golden era for shipwreck investigating’ Moments after devouring the final glimmers of light, the seafloor offered nothing but darkness and silt.
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Canadian scientists visit remains of polar exploration vessels in ‘golden era for shipwreck investigating’ Moments after devouring the final glimmers of light, the seafloor offered nothing but darkness and silt.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 08:00
Maryland police arrest alleged bank robber wielding stolen cat: ‘Tried to use her as an accessory’
Police say suspect stole three-and-a-half-month-old tuxedo kitten Magnolia before attempting to rob a PNC bank In this day and age, law enforcement agencies worldwide are accustomed to dealing with cat burglars – but now a Maryland police department is saying it grappled with a cat-wielding bank robber. The Prince George’s county police department said its officers arrested a man suspected of stealing a cat and then taking the animal with him to a PNC bank branch in the local community of Beltsville to rob the establishment on Monday morning. Continue reading...
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Police say suspect stole three-and-a-half-month-old tuxedo kitten Magnolia before attempting to rob a PNC bank In this day and age, law enforcement agencies worldwide are accustomed to dealing with cat burglars – but now a Maryland police department is saying it grappled with a cat-wielding bank robber.
TL;DR:
Police say suspect stole three-and-a-half-month-old tuxedo kitten Magnolia before attempting to rob a PNC bank In this day and age, law enforcement agencies worldwide are accustomed to dealing with cat burglars – but now a Maryland police department is saying it grappled with a cat-wielding bank robber.
Warontherocks
Jul 15, 08:00
MOLLE, PALS, and the Empty Loops of America’s Civil-Military Divide
Editor’s note: This is the third article in a limited series celebrating American defense technologies born from wartime and their effects on broader national security, politics, and society. This series will run for several weeks to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, and winners will be selected by a reader vote undertaken through our newsletter later this summer. Prior installments can be found at the Arsenal of Innovation page. In the half-century since the Gates Commission established the all-volunteer force — and especially over the last 25 years — the relationship between the American soldier and the state has changed profoundly. Military service has become The post MOLLE, PALS, and the Empty Loops of America’s Civil-Military Divide appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Editor’s note: This is the third article in a limited series celebrating American defense technologies born from wartime and their effects on broader national security, politics, and society. This series will run for several weeks to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, and winners will be selected by a reader vote undertaken through our newsletter later this summer.
TL;DR:
Military service has become The post MOLLE, PALS, and the Empty Loops of America’s Civil-Military Divide appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 15, 07:51
Ursula von der Leyen in Kyiv to announce new defence initiatives as Ukraine and Russia exchange strikes – Europe live
In Brussels EU ambassadors will be trying to work out the details of the 21st sanctions package for Russia Here is your daily briefing on Ukraine from Warren Murray : European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen is in Kyiv today with plans to announce “new initiatives to integrate our defence industries,” a day after both European and Ukrainian armies were involved in the Bastille Day parade in Paris. Continue reading...
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Lithuania’s president says Russia could be looking to escalate against one of the Baltic countries or Poland Key events 5m ago Lithuania warns Russia could be planning 'targeted' attacks on critical infrastructure 29m ago Morning opening: How to help Ukraine? Ukraine has built a strong military momentum.
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In Brussels EU ambassadors will be trying to work out the details of the 21st sanctions package for Russia Here is your daily briefing on Ukraine from Warren Murray : European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen is in Kyiv today with plans to announce “new initiatives to integrate our defence industries,” a day after both European and Ukrainian armies were involved in the Bastille Day parade in Paris.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 07:47
Starmer faces final Cabinet and PMQs as Burnham nears Labour leadership finish line – UK politics live
The outgoing Labour leader will have final talks with his senior ministers in No 10 before taking his last PMQs Good morning. Everyone likes a leaving do and today it’s Keir Starmer’s, or at least his parliamentary one. If the colleague who is going is someone you like and admire, then the chance to see them thanked and celebrated is welcome. And if the colleague who is going is someone that you don’t like, or who has stayed too long, then that’s even better. At a good leaving do, there are also decent jokes. And, in politics, a final PMQs is one of the rare moments when even opponents tend to be polite and respectful (which is something people watching from outside the circus tend to like). Starmer is chairing his last cabinet meeting this morning, and taking his final PMQs at noon. Doubtless he has had a chance to study how his predecessors handled this challenge, and he may have read what Tony Blair said on the day he left the Commons – worth quoting again because it is a good summary for those of us who think politics is still a worthy calling. Some may belittle politics but we who are engaged in it know that it is where people stand tall. Although I know that it has many harsh contentions, it is still the arena that sets the heart beating a little faster. If it is, on occasions, the place of low skulduggery, it is more often the place for the pursuit of noble causes. I wish everyone, friend or foe, well. That is that. The end. Continue reading...
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Starmer faces final Cabinet and PMQs as Burnham nears Labour leadership finish line – UK politics live. Everyone likes a leaving do and today it’s Keir Starmer’s, or at least his parliamentary one.
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The outgoing Labour leader will have final talks with his senior ministers in No 10 before taking his last PMQs Good morning.
Warontherocks
Jul 15, 07:30
Before the Next Mythos Moment: The Case for an AI Threat Fusion Center
Earlier this spring, Claude’s developers found the cyber potential of Anthropic’s model, Mythos 5, hazardous enough to pump the brakes on model release, creating the Project Glasswing collaboration to give cyber defenders the upper hand through controlled access to the model. Despite these efforts, the U.S. government stepped in on June 12, 2026, and forced Anthropic to take down Mythos and its safeguarded form, Fable 5 — an action the company disputed, calling the trigger a narrow, nonuniversal jailbreak. A lack of standard processes, complex legal terrain, and information-sharing obstacles resulted in a “pickup game” where, absent a shared factual The post Before the Next Mythos Moment: The Case for an AI Threat Fusion Center appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Before the Next Mythos Moment: The Case for an AI Threat Fusion Center. government stepped in on June 12, 2026, and forced Anthropic to take down Mythos and its safeguarded form, Fable 5 — an action the company disputed, calling the trigger a narrow, nonuniversal jailbreak.
TL;DR:
Earlier this spring, Claude’s developers found the cyber potential of Anthropic’s model, Mythos 5, hazardous enough to pump the brakes on model release, creating the Project Glasswing collaboration to give cyber defenders the upper hand through controlled access to the model.
Warontherocks
Jul 15, 07:15
Breaking America’s Promise to Pacific Island Veterans
In January, Robson Henry died at the age of 66. Chances are, you have never heard of Henry. He was not famous, rich, or powerful. In many ways, Henry was no different from the thousands of young men and women who, at the age of 18, chose to serve by enlisting in the U.S. Army. Nor does the fact that he stayed in the Army for the next 26 years, serving multiple tours of duty in the Middle East, meaningfully distinguish him. And yet, Henry was special: Unlike the vast majority of his fellow soldiers, he was not from the The post Breaking America’s Promise to Pacific Island Veterans appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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In January, Robson Henry died at the age of 66. In many ways, Henry was no different from the thousands of young men and women who, at the age of 18, chose to serve by enlisting in the U.S. Nor does the fact that he stayed in the Army for the next 26 years, serving multiple tours of duty in the Middle East, meaningfully distinguish him.
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And yet, Henry was special: Unlike the vast majority of his fellow soldiers, he was not from the The post Breaking America’s Promise to Pacific Island Veterans appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Theguardian
Jul 15, 07:00
Andy Burnham urged to overhaul ‘timid and limited’ elections bill
Ex-minister who helped write draft calls for bolder action on voting reform, crypto donations and social media The government was “timid” and “incremental” when deciding what to include in its elections bill, a former minister who helped write it has said, as she urged the incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, to go further. Rushanara Ali, who resigned as democracy minister last August, said the draft legislation still contained big gaps when it came to voting reform, cryptocurrency donations and social media regulation. Continue reading...
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Ex-minister who helped write draft calls for bolder action on voting reform, crypto donations and social media The government was “timid” and “incremental” when deciding what to include in its elections bill, a former minister who helped write it has said, as she urged the incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, to go further.
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Ex-minister who helped write draft calls for bolder action on voting reform, crypto donations and social media The government was “timid” and “incremental” when deciding what to include in its elections bill, a former minister who helped write it has said, as she urged the incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, to go further.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 06:07
Brisbane child accused of school stabbing allegedly faced ‘racist’ abuse, court hears
Alleged attack may have been motivated by a social media post, police prosecutor tells court Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Brisbane child accused of stabbing a fellow student was allegedly subjected to months of “racist” abuse and threats, a court has heard. The 16-year-old child was arrested after allegedly stabbing a 17-year-old schoolmate on Tuesday. Continue reading...
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The 16-year-old child was arrested after allegedly stabbing a 17-year-old schoolmate on Tuesday.
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Alleged attack may have been motivated by a social media post, police prosecutor tells court Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Brisbane child accused of stabbing a fellow student was allegedly subjected to months of “racist” abuse and threats, a court has heard.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 05:47
Wednesday briefing: Do MPs have the will to stop mega-donors interfering in UK politics?
In today’s newsletter: The representation of the people bill has become a test of whether Britain can curb the surge in billionaire‑backed donations trying to influence how we run the country Good morning. I’m Hettie O’Brien, and I’ll be arriving in your inbox regularly from today, rounding out the First Edition team alongside Libby and Michael. I’ve spent much of my time at the Guardian writing about who is pulling the strings in Britain: I enjoy illuminating knotty subjects for our readers, exposing how power works, and helping to make sense of the stories defining our world. I’d love to hear what you think – just reply to this email – we want you to play a part in shaping First Edition. But go easy, it’s my first day. UK news | The police investigation into the death of Ann Widdecombe is examining whether a leftwing or single-issue cause may lie behind her killing , the Guardian has learned. Middle East | Donald Trump has threatened to expand US strikes on Iran next week to target power plants and bridges if Tehran does not agree to a deal amid a continuing dispute over the strait of Hormuz. UK politics | Boris Johnson’s government wasted £10bn of public money because of the way it went about buying PPE during the coronavirus pandemic, an official inquiry has concluded. Europe news | A spokesperson for the EU has pushed back against the Trump administration’s assertion that the international criminal court poses a threat to US sovereignty. US news | The man killed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Maine on Monday has been identified as Joan Sebastian Guerrero, according to local news outlets. Continue reading...
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Wednesday briefing: Do MPs have the will to stop mega-donors interfering in UK politics?. But go easy, it’s my first day. Middle East | Donald Trump has threatened to expand US strikes on Iran next week to target power plants and bridges if Tehran does not agree to a deal amid a continuing dispute over the strait of Hormuz.
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Europe news | A spokesperson for the EU has pushed back against the Trump administration’s assertion that the international criminal court poses a threat to US sovereignty.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 05:14
University of Melbourne ‘sharply’ changed protest policies after pro-Palestine sit-ins, commission hears
Response of universities to incidents on campus investigated in royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The interim vice-chancellor of the University of Melbourne (UoM) says pro-Palestine sit-ins on campus led to the institution “quite sharply” changing its protest policies and that further restrictions could arise. Prof Glyn Davis appeared before the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion on Wednesday, which is examining the lived experiences of Jewish students and academics, including the response of universities. Continue reading...
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Response of universities to incidents on campus investigated in royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The interim vice-chancellor of the University of Melbourne (UoM) says pro-Palestine sit-ins on campus led to the institution “quite sharply” cha…
TL;DR:
Response of universities to incidents on campus investigated in royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The interim vice-chancellor of the University of Melbourne (UoM) says pro-Palestine sit-ins on campus led to the institution “quite sharply” changing its protest policies and that further restrictions could arise.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 05:00
Labour must stop just writing a cheque for benefit claimants, says McFadden
Exclusive: Work and pensions secretary signals possible reform to welfare as ministers await key reviews Labour must stop “simply writing a cheque” for health and disability benefit claimants and will provide more job support instead, the work and pensions secretary has said. Pat McFadden said the government was preparing to launch a renewed effort at welfare reform with a focus on encouraging more people with health conditions to get into work and off benefits. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Work and pensions secretary signals possible reform to welfare as ministers await key reviews Labour must stop “simply writing a cheque” for health and disability benefit claimants and will provide more job support instead, the work and pensions secretary has said.
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Exclusive: Work and pensions secretary signals possible reform to welfare as ministers await key reviews Labour must stop “simply writing a cheque” for health and disability benefit claimants and will provide more job support instead, the work and pensions secretary has said.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 05:00
Green-led council plans to ban cooperation with Home Office on immigration raids
Exclusive: Lewisham council’s move marks first step in Greens’ plan to create a corridor of sanctuary boroughs across London A Green-led London council is planning to ban its officials from working with the Home Office on immigration raids, after uncovering evidence suggesting government officials wanted to use environmental health data to target restaurant workers. Councillors on the Lewisham borough council are due to vote next week on a motion that would review its systems with a view to ending any cooperation with the government’s attempts to deport people without the right to remain in the UK. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Lewisham council’s move marks first step in Greens’ plan to create a corridor of sanctuary boroughs across London A Green-led London council is planning to ban its officials from working with the Home Office on immigration raids, after uncovering evidence suggesting government officials wanted to use environmental health data to target restaurant workers.
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Exclusive: Lewisham council’s move marks first step in Greens’ plan to create a corridor of sanctuary boroughs across London A Green-led London council is planning to ban its officials from working with the Home Office on immigration raids, after uncovering evidence suggesting government officials wanted to use environmental health data to target restaurant workers.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 05:00
Heating oil customers to get up to £350 compensation for cancelled orders
Watchdog says about 1,700 people were affected during a price surge triggered by the Middle East crisis Heating oil customers whose deliveries were cancelled when the war in the Middle East caused a price surge are to receive compensation of up to £350 each following an investigation by the UK competition watchdog. As the crisis unfolded, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it was investigating heating oil suppliers after complaints that existing orders were being scrapped, with customers offered new deliveries at a significantly higher price. Continue reading...
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Watchdog says about 1,700 people were affected during a price surge triggered by the Middle East crisis Heating oil customers whose deliveries were cancelled when the war in the Middle East caused a price surge are to receive compensation of up to £350 each following an investigation by the UK competition watchdog.
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Watchdog says about 1,700 people were affected during a price surge triggered by the Middle East crisis Heating oil customers whose deliveries were cancelled when the war in the Middle East caused a price surge are to receive compensation of up to £350 each following an investigation by the UK competition watchdog.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 05:00
What Did the Nine-Dash Line Ruling Accomplish?
This issue is preventing our website from loading properly. Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] .
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Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . Sunday saw the 10-year anniversary of the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s ruling against China’s nine-dash line. It went ahead anyway, and the court ruling eviscerated China’s position, ruling its infamous nine-dash line invalid and faulting China on other points.
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Ten years on, the Philippines is stepping up its defense plans in the South China Sea.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 04:27
Japan officials hunt bear that raided couple’s fridge amid string of break-ins
Officials set up traps and electric fences after 14 break-ins recored in one town in two weeks, amid fears of a repeat offender Authorities are searching for a bear that sneaked into the home of an elderly couple and raided their fridge amid concerns it may be behind 14 break-ins across a Japanese town in the past fortnight. On Monday evening, Mitsuo Matsubara, 87, was confronted by a large Asiatic black bear when he went to investigate a noise in his kitchen. His fridge was open , and food was strewn across the floor. His wife called the police. Continue reading...
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Japan officials hunt bear that raided couple’s fridge amid string of break-ins. On Monday evening, Mitsuo Matsubara, 87, was confronted by a large Asiatic black bear when he went to investigate a noise in his kitchen. His wife called the police.
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Officials set up traps and electric fences after 14 break-ins recored in one town in two weeks, amid fears of a repeat offender Authorities are searching for a bear that sneaked into the home of an elderly couple and raided their fridge amid concerns it may be behind 14 break-ins across a Japanese town in the past fortnight.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 04:13
Icac inquiry raises questions over whether taxpayer funds were used in alleged illegal political donations
Catholic Schools NSW’s alleged donations to Liberal party show the need to ensure public money is spent for approved purposes, expert says Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast An education funding expert says alleged donations by Catholic Schools NSW to the Liberal party, under investigation by the state corruption watchdog, show governments need to check taxpayer funding was “being spent according to its purposes” and not funnelled into political donations. The Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac) is investigating allegations that political donations were made by Catholic Schools NSW “in amounts that were not declared and exceeded applicable donation caps”. Continue reading...
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Catholic Schools NSW’s alleged donations to Liberal party show the need to ensure public money is spent for approved purposes, expert says Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast An education funding expert says alleged donations by Catholic Schools NSW to the Liberal party, under investigation by the…
TL;DR:
Catholic Schools NSW’s alleged donations to Liberal party show the need to ensure public money is spent for approved purposes, expert says Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast An education funding expert says alleged donations by Catholic Schools NSW to the Liberal party, under investigation by the state corruption watchdog, show governments need to check taxpayer funding was “being spent according to its purposes” and not funnelled into political donations.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 04:05
Melbourne council votes to scrap Lime ebikes after failing to meet ‘bare minimum standards’
City of Yarra councillors end trial, claiming the company has not done enough to stop dumping and misuse of share bikes Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Shared ebikes will disappear from some inner-city Melbourne streets after a council scrapped its agreement with Australia’s largest electric bike operator. The City of Yarra on Tuesday voted to end its memorandum of understanding with Lime, terminating its almost six-year-long trial. Continue reading...
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The City of Yarra on Tuesday voted to end its memorandum of understanding with Lime, terminating its almost six-year-long trial.
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City of Yarra councillors end trial, claiming the company has not done enough to stop dumping and misuse of share bikes Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Shared ebikes will disappear from some inner-city Melbourne streets after a council scrapped its agreement with Australia’s largest electric bike operator.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 15, 04:05
The Iran war destroyed the strategic logic of the Abraham Accords
The Abraham Accords sought to succeed where decades of negotiations had failed. By separating Arab normalization with Israel from the Palestinian issue, the effort bypassed the core concept of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, which explicitly tied the normalization to the creation of a Palestinian state on its 1967 borders. The Accords made no attempt to discuss or adjust this principle; instead, they discarded it outright. This American approach was based on an exchange of interests. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain acquired the security assurances they had long sought to protect them from Iran, along with prospects for military and technological cooperation with Israel. Morocco secured America’s recognition of its sovereignty over Western Sahara, fulfilling Rabat’s long-standing demand. Sudan, for its part, was primarily concerned with getting off Washington’s state sponsor of terror list and ending the economic and financial isolation that has long burdened the country. Each party had its demands, and Washington was ready to pay the political price of fulfilling them. The positions of states that refused to join the Accords were also instructive. Saudi Arabia held fast to an unequivocal principle: no normalization with Israel without a clear path to a Palestinian state. The kingdom could not deviate from this position, mindful as it was of the consequences that such a reversal would have on its standing in the Arab and Islamic worlds. Qatar and Oman had their own considerations. Both countries derive their authority in the region from their ability to maintain open channels of communication with a range of parties, be they the United States, Iran, or other Middle Eastern powers. Joining the Abraham Accords would have weakened or even eliminated this geopolitical advantage. Kuwait, meanwhile, grounded its approach in a firm constitutional and political commitment, and it declared on several occasions that it would be the last Arab state to establish diplomatic relations with Israel. The Abraham Accords did not simply set aside the Palestinian issue but also suggested that it no longer held pride of place among regional priorities. As Palestinian factions watched the wave of normalization extend from Abu Dhabi all the way to Rabat, the message they received was clear: the Arab World was moving forward, and the Palestinian cause was fading away. Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks can mainly be understood as a violent rejection of this trajectory. Palestinian armed groups saw that the course of events was set to eclipse the Palestinian issue and remove it from the regional and international agenda. They saw no other way to stop this trajectory than a massive shock that would shake the region to its core. In the end, this shock had disastrous effects that reverberated across the region, with Gaza paying the heaviest price. But these events revealed a fundamental truth: any regional system that attempts to bypass the Palestinian issue is fragile, and its weaknesses are quickly exposed. The tragedy of Gaza was the most painful proof of that fact. Then came the Iran war of 2026, and the agreements that resulted from it, which revealed a consequential shift. It has now become clear that the security guarantees underlying the Abraham Accords were far less solid than they first seemed, and that previous attempts to contain Iran had failed to meet their objectives. In fact, the war revealed that Iran has become a leading Middle Eastern power that cannot be excluded from any security frameworks in the Persian Gulf. Because of the war, the accords have lost one of their most important strategic justifications: the belief that an American security umbrella alone could offer security and stability to its allies in the region. The collapse of this strategic basis for the Abraham Accords should come as no surprise. For those who believe that true peace can only come after a just resolution of the Palestinian issue, this reality is not a reason to fret but rather a reminder that a structure built on a faulty foundation cannot last. Today, the question is no longer what we lost, but rather who benefited from the old trajectory. It is believed that Jews and Arabs are descended, respectively, from Isaac and Ishmael, the first two sons of Abraham. The Israeli descendants of Isaac sat at the negotiating table, while the Palestinian sons of Ishmael remained outside. This was not merely a detail in the development of the accords but rather a fundamental flaw that doomed it from the start. What we saw afterward was a natural consequence of this flaw. Today, it has become necessary to find a new framework, one that we might call the Sons of Abraham Accords. The goal here is not merely a new name but a different philosophy grounded in a basic truth: that any peace worthy of Abraham’s name must recognize both sides, both peoples, and the rights of both parties to land and dignity. The creation of a serious pathway to the creation of a...
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The Iran war destroyed the strategic logic of the Abraham Accords. In fact, the war revealed that Iran has become a leading Middle Eastern power that cannot be excluded from any security frameworks in the Persian Gulf.
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Then came the Iran war of 2026, and the agreements that resulted from it, which revealed a consequential shift.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 15, 04:05
Voters: The military makes us feel safe but not sure it's worth a trillion
There is a growing disconnect between how American voters think about safety and how Washington spends money in the name of national security. In a recent poll conducted by ReThink Media and the Costs of War Project at Brown University, when voters were asked what contributes to safety in daily life, they were more likely to point to friends and family or first responders than to the U.S. military. Social policies and public services, such as healthcare, education, and housing, also had significant support, with 68% of respondents stating these contributed somewhat or greatly to everyday safety. Yet at the very moment voters describe safety in these broad social terms, the Trump administration is proposing a $1.5 trillion national security budget and arguing that domestic priorities must take a back seat to military spending. This tension was one of the central findings of a multi-year research project sponsored by the Andrew Carnegie Foundation in partnership with Purdue University. In recent polling, 68% of voters stated that U.S. military dominance was personally "very important" or "somewhat important" to them. Yet almost two-thirds of respondents rejected the idea of limitless military spending, and 59% said the current administration’s proposed 2027 military budget of $1.5 trillion is too high. This tension matters because the scale of spending currently under consideration is extraordinary. Our research also clarifies how advocates for a right-sized Pentagon budget need to help everyday people imagine how their government can keep them safe without continually increasing military spending. A trillion dollars a year — the Pentagon’s current annual budget — is a massive sum, far outpacing investments in things that would address Americans’ top concerns, like healthcare and medical research , trains, roads and bridges fit for the 21st century. President Trump's budget request for fiscal year 2027 goes from the ill-advised to the virtually impossible, calling for a $500 billion one-year increase in military spending. People are right to be concerned. America’s priorities are out of balance. President Donald Trump said it himself , telling supporters on Easter that, “It’s not possible for us to take care of daycare, Medicaid, Medicare…We have to take care of one thing: military protection.” Agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control , which are essential in protecting the public from urgent threats like the climate crisis and mass outbreaks of disease, are slated to receive a total of less than $10 billion next year, roughly 1% of the current Pentagon budget, and less than the cost of just one week of the war with Iran. In fact, the Iran War seems to have awakened many Americans to the harms of endless military spending in ways that the other wars of this century did not, at least not to the same degree or for as wide a swath of the public. The devastating human and economic costs of the war have prompted many citizens to question whether the United States needs to rebalance how it protects itself and its allies. This does not mean abandoning military strength, but embedding it in a larger foreign policy framework that values non-military tools of statecraft like diplomacy, economic assistance, and cultural exchanges. The Trump administration has essentially abandoned all of these non-military forms of global influence and cooperation in favor of an all-military, all-the-time approach — the same approach that led the United States to spend $8 trillion on failed wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that left the world less safe and had devastating impacts not only on people in the war zones but on hundreds of thousands of U.S. military personnel who came home with severe physical and psychological injuries. That is why resistance to the administration's proposed military budget has become increasingly visible in Congress. Some lawmakers understand that their constituents are tired of politicians prioritizing military contractors over the needs of everyday people. Our polling suggests that Americans increasingly define safety in broader terms than either the administration or most of their representatives in Congress do. While 42% of respondents said the U.S. military contributed “greatly” to their sense of safety in daily life, even larger numbers (55%) pointed to friends and family as the things that actually keep them safe, with social policies remaining important (30%) too. In short, the ability to project military force is not the only — or even primary — way many Americans understand what keeps them safe. Indeed, in our polling 31% of voters said U.S. military action over the past two years increased foreign threats, as compared with 18% of respondents stating that historical interventions had increased threats. Further, in focus groups and interviews with 230 participants across five U.S. field sites, we observed a similar tension between a desire for military st...
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Voters: The military makes us feel safe but not sure it's worth a trillion. Yet almost two-thirds of respondents rejected the idea of limitless military spending, and 59% said the current administration’s proposed 2027 military budget of $1.5 trillion is too high.
TL;DR:
There is a growing disconnect between how American voters think about safety and how Washington spends money in the name of national security.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 04:04
Minister breaks ranks with Victorian premier by calling for explanation for alleged wrongdoing on project
Melissa Horne describes allegations of improper government interference on a hospital project as ‘alarming’, after Jacinta Allan said report was wrong Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Victorian minister has broken ranks with Jacinta Allan over allegations involving the CFMEU, describing a report about alleged improper government interference on a hospital project as “alarming” and asking a senior official for assurances that no wrongdoing occurred. The Facebook post by the health infrastructure minister, Melissa Horne, is a public signal of fractures within the government over how to handle corruption allegations on infrastructure projects, less than five months before the state election in November. Continue reading...
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Melissa Horne describes allegations of improper government interference on a hospital project as ‘alarming’, after Jacinta Allan said report was wrong Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Victorian minister has broken ranks with Jacinta Allan over allegations involving the CFMEU, describing a repo…
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Melissa Horne describes allegations of improper government interference on a hospital project as ‘alarming’, after Jacinta Allan said report was wrong Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Victorian minister has broken ranks with Jacinta Allan over allegations involving the CFMEU, describing a report about alleged improper government interference on a hospital project as “alarming” and asking a senior official for assurances that no wrongdoing occurred.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 15, 04:01
NATO Is Splitting in Two
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The recent NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, has been hailed as a resounding success . President Donald Trump by assiduously presenting him with tributes: namely, evidence of their increased military spending. President Donald Trump by assiduously presenting him with tributes: namely, evidence of their increased military spending.
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Mark Carney and Mark Rutte offer competing visions for the future of the trans-Atlantic alliance.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 03:53
Barnaby Joyce claims Australia is a ‘Christian nation’ and says many First Nations people would agree
One Nation MP refines party’s view on national identity as he accepts award for ‘political courage’ at anti-abortion gala organised by Joanna Howe Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast One Nation’s Barnaby Joyce has claimed First Nations people would agree with him that Australia is a “Christian nation”. The New England MP made the comments at an anti-abortion gala – where he accepted a prize for “political courage” – in Sydney over the weekend. Continue reading...
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One Nation MP refines party’s view on national identity as he accepts award for ‘political courage’ at anti-abortion gala organised by Joanna Howe Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast One Nation’s Barnaby Joyce has claimed First Nations people would agree with him that Australia is a “Christian nati…
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One Nation MP refines party’s view on national identity as he accepts award for ‘political courage’ at anti-abortion gala organised by Joanna Howe Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast One Nation’s Barnaby Joyce has claimed First Nations people would agree with him that Australia is a “Christian nation”.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 03:18
Liberals re-examine gender quotas in slew of proposals to make party ‘fit-for-purpose political machine’
Angus Taylor has stated his opposition, but discussion paper’s authors warn ‘if we want a different outcome, we need to be prepared to do things differently’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Liberal party is canvassing views on gender quotas among possible interventions to increase the number of women in its parliamentary ranks, which it says is critical to the long-term survival of the movement. The idea has re-emerged in a new discussion paper from the Liberal Party Commission, an internal group established under former leader Sussan Ley to review the party after consecutive thumping federal election defeats . Continue reading...
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Angus Taylor has stated his opposition, but discussion paper’s authors warn ‘if we want a different outcome, we need to be prepared to do things differently’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Liberal party is canvassing views on gender quotas among possible interventions to increase the numbe…
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Angus Taylor has stated his opposition, but discussion paper’s authors warn ‘if we want a different outcome, we need to be prepared to do things differently’ Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Liberal party is canvassing views on gender quotas among possible interventions to increase the number of women in its parliamentary ranks, which it says is critical to the long-term survival of the movement.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 02:03
Singapore court orders Bloomberg to pay ministers $356,000 in defamation case
Bloomberg’s editor-in-chief, John Micklethwait, stands by reporting, saying ministers who sued ‘imposed an extremely strained meaning on what was a solid story’ Bloomberg News and one of its reporters have been ordered to pay S$460,000 (US$355,734) in damages after an article it published was found to have defamed two Singapore government ministers, the city-state’s high court said in a judgment released on Tuesday. Bloomberg and the reporter, Low De Wei, are liable to jointly pay S$230,000 to each minister, comprising S$170,000 in general damages and S$60,000 in aggravated damages, the judgment said. Continue reading...
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Bloomberg’s editor-in-chief, John Micklethwait, stands by reporting, saying ministers who sued ‘imposed an extremely strained meaning on what was a solid story’ Bloomberg News and one of its reporters have been ordered to pay S$460,000 (US$355,734) in damages after an article it published was found to have defamed two Singapore government ministers, the city-state’s high cour…
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Bloomberg’s editor-in-chief, John Micklethwait, stands by reporting, saying ministers who sued ‘imposed an extremely strained meaning on what was a solid story’ Bloomberg News and one of its reporters have been ordered to pay S$460,000 (US$355,734) in damages after an article it published was found to have defamed two Singapore government ministers, the city-state’s high court said in a judgment released on Tuesday.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 00:33
Florida executes one of its oldest prisoners in state’s 10th lethal injection this year
Man who was 74 was one of three older prisoners scheduled for execution within the span of a month Florida put to death one of its oldest prisoners in its state history on Tuesday, a 74-year-old convicted murderer who was one of three older prisoners scheduled for execution within the span of a month in the nation’s busiest death penalty state. Dennis Sochor was pronounced dead at 6.16pm after a three-drug injection at Florida state prison near Starke. He was convicted of killing Patricia Gifford on 1 January 1982, just hours after meeting the 18-year-old woman at a New Year’s Eve party. Continue reading...
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Florida executes one of its oldest prisoners in state’s 10th lethal injection this year. Dennis Sochor was pronounced dead at 6.16pm after a three-drug injection at Florida state prison near Starke. He was convicted of killing Patricia Gifford on 1 January 1982, just hours after meeting the 18-year-old woman at a New Year’s Eve party.
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Man who was 74 was one of three older prisoners scheduled for execution within the span of a month Florida put to death one of its oldest prisoners in its state history on Tuesday, a 74-year-old convicted murderer who was one of three older prisoners scheduled for execution within the span of a month in the nation’s busiest death penalty state.
Theguardian
Jul 15, 00:13
One person missing and 17 rescued after boat fire near San Francisco’s Alcatraz Island
Video shows ‘pontoon pleasure boat’ partially submerged about 600 yards from famous tourist attraction One person was missing and 17 people were rescued after a fire broke out on a pontoon near San Francisco’s Alcatraz Island on Tuesday, authorities said. The US coast guard confirmed search-and-rescue efforts were “ongoing” Tuesday afternoon. Continue reading...
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One person missing and 17 rescued after boat fire near San Francisco’s Alcatraz Island. Video shows ‘pontoon pleasure boat’ partially submerged about 600 yards from famous tourist attraction One person was missing and 17 people were rescued after a fire broke out on a pontoon near San Francisco’s Alcatraz Island on Tuesday, authorities said.
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The US coast guard confirmed search-and-rescue efforts were “ongoing” Tuesday afternoon.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 23:59
Trump again threatens to strike Iran’s power plants amid impasse over strait of Hormuz
US president says he will knock out all Iran’s power plants and bridges next week in bid to force Tehran to agree to a deal Middle East crisis – live updates President Donald Trump has threatened to expand US strikes on Iran next week to target power plants and bridges if Tehran does not agree to a deal amid a continuing dispute over the strait of Hormuz. “Next week it gets really bad for them because next week comes the power plants. Next week comes the bridges,” Trump said in a Fox News interview on Tuesday. “We’re going to knock out all their power plants. We’re going to knock out all their bridges unless they get to the table and negotiate.” Continue reading...
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Trump again threatens to strike Iran’s power plants amid impasse over strait of Hormuz. Next week comes the bridges,” Trump said in a Fox News interview on Tuesday. We’re going to knock out all their bridges unless they get to the table and negotiate.” Continue reading...
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US president says he will knock out all Iran’s power plants and bridges next week in bid to force Tehran to agree to a deal Middle East crisis – live updates President Donald Trump has threatened to expand US strikes on Iran next week to target power plants and bridges if Tehran does not agree to a deal amid a continuing dispute over the strait of Hormuz.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 23:01
‘Unprecedented’ changes in UK climate are normalising extremes, report says
Annual State of the UK Climate analysis finds last four years in UK are in top five hottest on record The UK’s climatic extremes are becoming increasingly normal, a report has found, with last year the hottest on record and further “unprecedented changes” likely to break the record again soon. Data stretching back to 1884 shows the UK has never experienced a year as hot as 2025, according to the annual State of the UK Climate report, with temperatures pushed to dizzying heights by carbon pollution clogging the atmosphere. Continue reading...
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Annual State of the UK Climate analysis finds last four years in UK are in top five hottest on record The UK’s climatic extremes are becoming increasingly normal, a report has found, with last year the hottest on record and further “unprecedented changes” likely to break the record again soon.
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Annual State of the UK Climate analysis finds last four years in UK are in top five hottest on record The UK’s climatic extremes are becoming increasingly normal, a report has found, with last year the hottest on record and further “unprecedented changes” likely to break the record again soon.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 23:01
MPs call for ban on fast food outlets opening near schools to tackle obesity
Commons health committee also recommends end to junk food advertising on billboards and public transport Fast food chains such as KFC should be stopped from opening near schools, and advertising for junk food on billboards and public transport should be banned to help curb obesity, MPs will say today. The Commons health committee will also urge ministers to stop giving in to food industry lobbying and get tough to tackle a problem that costs the UK £74bn a year and causes huge illness. Supermarkets should be forced to display fruit and vegetables prominently, for example near entrances and checkouts, to help boost sales. All food must start carrying front-of-pack, traffic light-style labels telling consumers how healthy or unhealthy they are, which some supermarket chains already use. The government should urgently progress its previously announced intention to compel food producers to reveal what percentage of their sales come from healthy and unhealthy products. Ministers should “be more courageous [and start] standing up to challenge from industry”, which often seeks to delay the introduction of measures to limit bad diet. Continue reading...
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MPs call for ban on fast food outlets opening near schools to tackle obesity. The Commons health committee will also urge ministers to stop giving in to food industry lobbying and get tough to tackle a problem that costs the UK £74bn a year and causes huge illness.
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Commons health committee also recommends end to junk food advertising on billboards and public transport Fast food chains such as KFC should be stopped from opening near schools, and advertising for junk food on billboards and public transport should be banned to help curb obesity, MPs will say today.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 14, 22:19
China Wants to Regulate AI Companions
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The highlights this week: China’s new rules governing artificial intelligence companions take effect, a deadly shoe factory fire devastates the southeastern city of Jinjiang, and China braces for an active typhoon season .
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With the latest rules, Beijing hopes to rein in a booming industry.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 22:13
US marshal shot dead serving arrest warrant in Louisiana
Clarence Frazier Jr charged with murder over killing of Drew Hanson and could face death penalty if convicted A federal agent was fatally shot while trying to help authorities capture a man who failed to show up to his sexual battery trial in Louisiana , according to the US justice department. Clarence Frazier Jr, 48, was charged with murder in the killing of deputy US marshal Drew Hanson, authorities said. Frazier could face life imprisonment or the death penalty if he is eventually convicted of murdering Hanson. Continue reading...
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US marshal shot dead serving arrest warrant in Louisiana. Clarence Frazier Jr charged with murder over killing of Drew Hanson and could face death penalty if convicted A federal agent was fatally shot while trying to help authorities capture a man who failed to show up to his sexual battery trial in Louisiana , according to the US justice department.
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Clarence Frazier Jr, 48, was charged with murder in the killing of deputy US marshal Drew Hanson, authorities said.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 21:50
California: thousands flock to see pair of pungent corpse flowers bloom
Two of largest – and smelliest – plants flower at Huntington library and gardens, as ‘enchanted’ visitors queue for hours Two corpse flowers have bloomed at a southern California research institution, where thousands of visitors had the rare chance to watch two of the world’s largest – and most odorous – plants flowering at the same time. The two titan arums, named Odorysseus and Odora, attracted more than 7,000 people on Monday at the Huntington library, art museum and botanical gardens in San Marino, about 12 miles from downtown Los Angeles, after they bloomed over the weekend. Continue reading...
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Two of largest – and smelliest – plants flower at Huntington library and gardens, as ‘enchanted’ visitors queue for hours Two corpse flowers have bloomed at a southern California research institution, where thousands of visitors had the rare chance to watch two of the world’s largest – and most odorous – plants flowering at the same time.
TL;DR:
Two of largest – and smelliest – plants flower at Huntington library and gardens, as ‘enchanted’ visitors queue for hours Two corpse flowers have bloomed at a southern California research institution, where thousands of visitors had the rare chance to watch two of the world’s largest – and most odorous – plants flowering at the same time.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 21:30
UK 16- and 17-year-olds to be encouraged to follow midnight social media curfew
Midnight to 6am block on some apps is latest stage of Labour’s bid to protect young people from online harms Sixteen and 17-year-olds are to be encouraged to observe a midnight social media curfew, in the latest stage of Labour’s bid “to protect the next generation” from online harms, including poor sleep caused by night-time scrolling. From next spring, Britain’s oldest children will be urged to refrain from using certain apps with a midnight to 6am block being switched on by default. But the curfew will not be mandatory and can be overridden. The move is an extension of the under-16 social media ban announced last month, which included restrictions on platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X. Continue reading...
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UK 16- and 17-year-olds to be encouraged to follow midnight social media curfew. From next spring, Britain’s oldest children will be urged to refrain from using certain apps with a midnight to 6am block being switched on by default.
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Midnight to 6am block on some apps is latest stage of Labour’s bid to protect young people from online harms Sixteen and 17-year-olds are to be encouraged to observe a midnight social media curfew, in the latest stage of Labour’s bid “to protect the next generation” from online harms, including poor sleep caused by night-time scrolling.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 14, 21:09
Trump Pivots His Strait of Hormuz Strategy—Again
Pressure from Gulf leaders prompted Trump to abandon proposed tolls.
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Trump Pivots His Strait of Hormuz Strategy—Again. Pressure from Gulf leaders prompted Trump to abandon proposed tolls.
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Pressure from Gulf leaders prompted Trump to abandon proposed tolls.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 21:01
Man killed by semi after fleeing from immigration officials in Florida
Death of unidentified 28-year-old man marks third immigration enforcement-related death in one week A person died during an encounter with federal immigration officials on Tuesday morning in Florida, a state highway patrol spokesperson confirmed, marking the third death in one week linked to immigration enforcement operations. Officials with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), which is a component of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), had an “encounter” with four men in a vehicle in the parking lot of a convenience store along a busy road in St Augustine, Florida, the highway patrol spokesperson said. As the four men fled from the agents, one of them ran into the busy road and was struck by a semi truck. The person died at the scene. Continue reading...
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Man killed by semi after fleeing from immigration officials in Florida. Officials with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), which is a component of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), had an “encounter” with four men in a vehicle in the parking lot of a convenience store along a busy road in St Augustine, Florida, the highway patrol spokesperson said.
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Death of unidentified 28-year-old man marks third immigration enforcement-related death in one week A person died during an encounter with federal immigration officials on Tuesday morning in Florida, a state highway patrol spokesperson confirmed, marking the third death in one week linked to immigration enforcement operations.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 20:53
Australia news live: top 100 CEOs bank 16% pay rise; Husic warns Labor over Gaza policy
Chief executives of Australia’s 100 biggest companies earned a median $4.8m in the 2025 financial year. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Luca has more on ACSI’s CEO pay report, which reveals that Life360’s founder Chris Hulls was the top-paid chief executive of an Australian-listed company in 2025’s financial year. Hull earned $47.7m in realised pay, which was about 437 times more than the average Australian full-time adult worker. Continue reading...
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Australia news live: top 100 CEOs bank 16% pay rise; Husic warns Labor over Gaza policy. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Luca has more on ACSI’s CEO pay report, which reveals that Life360’s founder Chris Hulls was the top-paid chief executive of an Australian-listed company in 2025’s financial year. Hull earned $47.
TL;DR:
Chief executives of Australia’s 100 biggest companies earned a median $4.8m in the 2025 financial year.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 14, 20:24
The Gulf States That Iran Thinks It Can Attack
Why Bahrain and Kuwait have become Tehran’s preferred targets.
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The Gulf States That Iran Thinks It Can Attack. Why Bahrain and Kuwait have become Tehran’s preferred targets.
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Why Bahrain and Kuwait have become Tehran’s preferred targets.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 20:10
Global cooperation needed to tackle AI threats, says Bank of England governor
Andrew Bailey warns that US will not be able to achieve its ambitions alone The Bank of England governor has called for international cooperation to tackle growing AI threats, warning that the US and Trump administration would not be able to achieve their ambitions alone. Andrew Bailey’s comments come weeks after the US president, Donald Trump, temporarily banned foreigners from using Anthropic’s powerful Claude Mythos model. Continue reading...
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Andrew Bailey warns that US will not be able to achieve its ambitions alone The Bank of England governor has called for international cooperation to tackle growing AI threats, warning that the US and Trump administration would not be able to achieve their ambitions alone.
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Andrew Bailey warns that US will not be able to achieve its ambitions alone The Bank of England governor has called for international cooperation to tackle growing AI threats, warning that the US and Trump administration would not be able to achieve their ambitions alone.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 20:06
Senate Democrats block advancement of defense bill to protest Trump’s hostilities with Iran
Chuck Schumer says Republicans are ‘ignoring the nation’s most urgent national security crisis’ amid US exchange of fire with Iran US politics live – latest updates Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked the advancement of a must-pass defense bill in protest of Donald Trump’s resumption of hostilities with Iran. The hold up of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) comes amid the fiercest exchange in fire between the countries in weeks, which has amplified frustration among Democrats that the US remains involved in the conflict despite the passage last month of a war powers resolution intended to force a ceasefire. Continue reading...
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Chuck Schumer says Republicans are ‘ignoring the nation’s most urgent national security crisis’ amid US exchange of fire with Iran US politics live – latest updates Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked the advancement of a must-pass defense bill in protest of Donald Trump’s resumption of hostilities with Iran.
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Chuck Schumer says Republicans are ‘ignoring the nation’s most urgent national security crisis’ amid US exchange of fire with Iran US politics live – latest updates Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked the advancement of a must-pass defense bill in protest of Donald Trump’s resumption of hostilities with Iran.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 20:00
Hillsborough law symbolises new era as power passes from Starmer to Burnham
Bill marks a full-circle moment for the PM-in-waiting and encapsulates what he says his government will be about Andy Burnham has always said he took his first steps out of Westminster in 2009, when he walked out to address furious Liverpool fans at the Kop on the 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster. They chanted “Justice for the 96” for a full two minutes before the then culture secretary was able to continue, demonstrating their anger that nobody in public office had been convicted of any offence over the tragedy. Continue reading...
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Bill marks a full-circle moment for the PM-in-waiting and encapsulates what he says his government will be about Andy Burnham has always said he took his first steps out of Westminster in 2009, when he walked out to address furious Liverpool fans at the Kop on the 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster.
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Bill marks a full-circle moment for the PM-in-waiting and encapsulates what he says his government will be about Andy Burnham has always said he took his first steps out of Westminster in 2009, when he walked out to address furious Liverpool fans at the Kop on the 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 14, 19:08
China Is Ready to Get Tough
Beijing’s diplomatic retaliation has limits—but fewer than before.
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China Is Ready to Get Tough. Beijing’s diplomatic retaliation has limits—but fewer than before.
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Beijing’s diplomatic retaliation has limits—but fewer than before.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 19:00
Two teens charged in fatal shootings of five family members in Illinois
A boy, 16, and girl, 15, were charged with murder after the family members were shot at three different locations Two teenagers were charged with murder Tuesday in the killings of five members of an Illinois family who were shot at three different locations. A 16-year-old boy will be prosecuted as an adult, while the case against a 15-year-old girl will start in juvenile court before a possible transfer to the St Clair county criminal court, the county prosecutor’s office said. Continue reading...
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A boy, 16, and girl, 15, were charged with murder after the family members were shot at three different locations Two teenagers were charged with murder Tuesday in the killings of five members of an Illinois family who were shot at three different locations.
TL;DR:
A boy, 16, and girl, 15, were charged with murder after the family members were shot at three different locations Two teenagers were charged with murder Tuesday in the killings of five members of an Illinois family who were shot at three different locations.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:56
Caribbean calls for return of British Virgin Islands – and for King Charles to back decolonisation
At London briefing, Caricom Reparations Commission decries fact region remains ‘most colonised part of world’ The main reparations committee for Caribbean nations has called on the UK to return the British Virgin Islands and for King Charles to commit to decolonising Britain’s remaining overseas territories, warning of a “resurgence of colonisation” around the world. In a visit to the UK this week, the Caricom Reparations Commission – the body seeking reparative justice for enslavement, colonialism and its legacies on behalf of the alliance of Caribbean states – decried the fact that the Caribbean remained “the most colonised part of the world”. Continue reading...
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At London briefing, Caricom Reparations Commission decries fact region remains ‘most colonised part of world’ The main reparations committee for Caribbean nations has called on the UK to return the British Virgin Islands and for King Charles to commit to decolonising Britain’s remaining overseas territories, warning of a “resurgence of colonisation” around the world.
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At London briefing, Caricom Reparations Commission decries fact region remains ‘most colonised part of world’ The main reparations committee for Caribbean nations has called on the UK to return the British Virgin Islands and for King Charles to commit to decolonising Britain’s remaining overseas territories, warning of a “resurgence of colonisation” around the world.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:55
Foreign Office appoints first special envoy for Britons detained overseas
Alistair Burt will bring diplomatic clout to complex cases involving human rights violations and arbitrary detention The Foreign Office has appointed a special envoy for British citizens detained overseas, a new role to deal with “complex consular cases” such as that of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, the British-Iranian dual national who was imprisoned in Tehran for six years. Alistair Burt, the former Conservative Middle East minister, has taken on the role, fulfilling a pledge by David Lammy when he was shadow foreign secretary. Continue reading...
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Alistair Burt will bring diplomatic clout to complex cases involving human rights violations and arbitrary detention The Foreign Office has appointed a special envoy for British citizens detained overseas, a new role to deal with “complex consular cases” such as that of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, the British-Iranian dual national who was imprisoned in Tehran for six years.
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Alistair Burt will bring diplomatic clout to complex cases involving human rights violations and arbitrary detention The Foreign Office has appointed a special envoy for British citizens detained overseas, a new role to deal with “complex consular cases” such as that of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, the British-Iranian dual national who was imprisoned in Tehran for six years.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:53
Cyclospora outbreaks causing diarrhea in US expected to continue through August
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says they are scouring food supply chain for culprit, which may be lettuce What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea? Federal health officials said they expect the outbreaks of cyclospora – a parasite that causes watery, explosive diarrhea – across the US to continue through August as they scour the food supply chain for the culprit. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have identified 1,645 lab-confirmed cases of the parasite; reported that 145 people have been hospitalized; and reported that they have a backlog of 5,100 cases that require more analysis, including interviews. Continue reading...
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Cyclospora outbreaks causing diarrhea in US expected to continue through August. Federal health officials said they expect the outbreaks of cyclospora – a parasite that causes watery, explosive diarrhea – across the US to continue through August as they scour the food supply chain for the culprit.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says they are scouring food supply chain for culprit, which may be lettuce What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea?
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:44
After Graham’s death and McConnell’s absence, conspiracy theories abound
A collision of online conspiracy theories came for two of the most powerful Republicans in the Senate in recent days It was Russia. It was Israel. Could it have been Iran? Or maybe it was a Covid-19 booster. What about the Clintons? After US senator Lindsey Graham died suddenly over the weekend from what a preliminary medical examiner report said was an aortic dissection, conspiracy theories spread quickly claiming – without evidence – that any number of foreign adversaries or other frequent conspiracy subjects might have orchestrated the Republican’s death. Continue reading...
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After Graham’s death and McConnell’s absence, conspiracy theories abound. Or maybe it was a Covid-19 booster. After US senator Lindsey Graham died suddenly over the weekend from what a preliminary medical examiner report said was an aortic dissection, conspiracy theories spread quickly claiming – without evidence – that any number of foreign adversaries or other frequent consp…
TL;DR:
A collision of online conspiracy theories came for two of the most powerful Republicans in the Senate in recent days It was Russia.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:39
Mahmoud Khalil sues Trump officials and pro-Israel groups over ‘conspiracy’ to target him
Lawsuit alleges administration coordinated with online surveillance groups to ‘criminalize solidarity with Palestine’ Mahmoud Khalil filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against Trump administration officials and several pro-Israel groups, accusing them of conspiring to target him and others as punishment for their support of Palestinian rights. The former Columbia University graduate student became the face of the Trump administration’s crackdown on pro-Palestine speech after he was detained last year. A permanent US resident, Khalil is also fighting in court against the government’s effort to deport him. Continue reading...
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Mahmoud Khalil sues Trump officials and pro-Israel groups over ‘conspiracy’ to target him. The former Columbia University graduate student became the face of the Trump administration’s crackdown on pro-Palestine speech after he was detained last year. A permanent US resident, Khalil is also fighting in court against the government’s effort to deport him.
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Lawsuit alleges administration coordinated with online surveillance groups to ‘criminalize solidarity with Palestine’ Mahmoud Khalil filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against Trump administration officials and several pro-Israel groups, accusing them of conspiring to target him and others as punishment for their support of Palestinian rights.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:38
Darline Graham, sister of Lindsey Graham, sworn in to end late Republican senator’s term
Younger sister Graham was appointed by Henry McMaster, South Carolina’s governor Darline Graham Nordone: Lindsey Graham’s sister and interim US senator Darline Graham, the sister of the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham, will be sworn in as his replacement on Tuesday to finish out the remainder of his term. Graham was appointed by Henry McMaster, South Carolina’s governor. Continue reading...
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Graham was appointed by Henry McMaster, South Carolina’s governor.
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Younger sister Graham was appointed by Henry McMaster, South Carolina’s governor Darline Graham Nordone: Lindsey Graham’s sister and interim US senator Darline Graham, the sister of the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham, will be sworn in as his replacement on Tuesday to finish out the remainder of his term.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:23
Derision at US chain Chipotle’s plan to sell its Mexican food in Mexico
One social media user described the opening of its first outlet in Monterrey as ‘like the dog teaching a duck to fly’ A US chain’s plan to sell its version of Mexican food to Mexicans with a first branch south of the border has prompted bemusement, skepticism and anger among local people. Chipotle Mexican Grill, known for its customisable burritos, tacos and bowls, has more than 4,000 locations worldwide and announced on Tuesday that it was expanding into Mexico in what it described as a significant milestone. Continue reading...
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One social media user described the opening of its first outlet in Monterrey as ‘like the dog teaching a duck to fly’ A US chain’s plan to sell its version of Mexican food to Mexicans with a first branch south of the border has prompted bemusement, skepticism and anger among local people.
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One social media user described the opening of its first outlet in Monterrey as ‘like the dog teaching a duck to fly’ A US chain’s plan to sell its version of Mexican food to Mexicans with a first branch south of the border has prompted bemusement, skepticism and anger among local people.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:22
MPs say death threats a daily reality in ‘increasing climate of abuse’
As Ann Widdecombe’s death raises concerns over security, politicians reveal extent of problem Jess Phillips has received so many death threats she has to remind herself not to be blase. One night she received more than 600 rape threats. In 2019, a man forced his way into her office. The same year a white supremacist sent her a picture of Jo Cox, her friend and fellow Labour MP who was murdered in 2016, accompanied with the message: “I will have you dealt with.” “This is not academic to me; it is something I face every day,” says the MP for Birmingham Yardley. “You learn to cope with it, but it does cause terrible anxiety. For me, I feel guilty about the people who work for me, my kids, my family.” Continue reading...
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MPs say death threats a daily reality in ‘increasing climate of abuse’. The same year a white supremacist sent her a picture of Jo Cox, her friend and fellow Labour MP who was murdered in 2016, accompanied with the message: “I will have you dealt with.” “This is not academic to me; it is something I face every day,” says the MP for Birmingham Yardley.
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As Ann Widdecombe’s death raises concerns over security, politicians reveal extent of problem Jess Phillips has received so many death threats she has to remind herself not to be blase.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:14
‘They’re local lads’: artist puts mural of Bellingham and Rogers on chip shop
The mural in a Birmingham suburb is so popular that the shop’s owner is opening two hours early to meet demand On a busy junction in Quinton, a suburb of Birmingham, England football stars Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers are peering out from the side of a fish and chip shop, tucking into the local delicacy: orange chips. The huge lifelike image was pasted on the wall on Friday afternoon by a local guerilla artist seeking to foster West Midlands pride, both for the area’s footballing stars and for its distinctive neon battered chips. Continue reading...
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The mural in a Birmingham suburb is so popular that the shop’s owner is opening two hours early to meet demand On a busy junction in Quinton, a suburb of Birmingham, England football stars Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers are peering out from the side of a fish and chip shop, tucking into the local delicacy: orange chips.
TL;DR:
The mural in a Birmingham suburb is so popular that the shop’s owner is opening two hours early to meet demand On a busy junction in Quinton, a suburb of Birmingham, England football stars Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers are peering out from the side of a fish and chip shop, tucking into the local delicacy: orange chips.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:08
Top House Democrats vow to oppose bid to cut US military aid to Israel
House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, calls amendment ‘overly broad’ as party grapples with backlash over Israel US politics live – latest updates Top House Democrats on Tuesday said they will oppose an effort to cut funding from Israel ’s military, amid a rebellion from voters over US support for the Middle Eastern ally that has roiled recent primary elections. The party has been debating how to vote on an amendment that would halt $3.3bn in military aid for Israel, which Republican congressman Thomas Massie has proposed adding to an appropriations bill for the state department and related agencies. Democrats were debating the amendment, which may come up for a vote before the House of Representatives later this week, in the context of a slew of primary victories by candidates who have vowed to take a hardline against Israel. Continue reading...
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Top House Democrats vow to oppose bid to cut US military aid to Israel. The party has been debating how to vote on an amendment that would halt $3.3bn in military aid for Israel, which Republican congressman Thomas Massie has proposed adding to an appropriations bill for the state department and related agencies.
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House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, calls amendment ‘overly broad’ as party grapples with backlash over Israel US politics live – latest updates Top House Democrats on Tuesday said they will oppose an effort to cut funding from Israel ’s military, amid a rebellion from voters over US support for the Middle Eastern ally that has roiled recent primary elections.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 18:05
Britons urged to take ‘small steps’ to prepare for potential national crises
Government to launch campaign to help people cope with events such as weather emergencies or cyber-attacks The British public should begin taking “small but important steps” to secure and protect water, power supplies and basic phone signal in case of further severe weather emergencies, national crises or cyber-attacks, Downing Street has said. Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the prime minister, told MPs “the risks we face from climate change cannot be underestimated”, and warned of the “significant and prolonged disruption to essential services” extreme weather events could cause. Continue reading...
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Government to launch campaign to help people cope with events such as weather emergencies or cyber-attacks The British public should begin taking “small but important steps” to secure and protect water, power supplies and basic phone signal in case of further severe weather emergencies, national crises or cyber-attacks, Downing Street has said.
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Government to launch campaign to help people cope with events such as weather emergencies or cyber-attacks The British public should begin taking “small but important steps” to secure and protect water, power supplies and basic phone signal in case of further severe weather emergencies, national crises or cyber-attacks, Downing Street has said.
Warontherocks
Jul 14, 18:00
NATO’s Unity on Paper and Fractures Beneath the Surface
On July 7-8, NATO held its 36th official summit in Ankara, Turkey. There were several consequential topics to discuss at this year’s meeting, chief among them the wars in Ukraine and Iran and the uncertain future of European defense and security. We asked five experts to assess the outcomes of the summit for the various parties involved.Liviu HorovitzAssociate Researcher at German Institute for Security and International AffairsThe key takeaway from Ankara is that even President Donald Trump is struggling to escape NATO’s strategic logic. He arrived attacking allies and questioning the alliance’s value, yet left reaffirming Article 5 and praising The post NATO’s Unity on Paper and Fractures Beneath the Surface appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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NATO’s Unity on Paper and Fractures Beneath the Surface. There were several consequential topics to discuss at this year’s meeting, chief among them the wars in Ukraine and Iran and the uncertain future of European defense and security.
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On July 7-8, NATO held its 36th official summit in Ankara, Turkey.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 17:54
Tom Cruise among names set to take part in World Cup closing ceremony
Mission: Impossible star to appear in a pre-game show that will also feature Robbie Williams and Jennifer Hudson A wide array of performers, from actor Tom Cruise to streamer IShowSpeed, will help close out the World Cup, Fifa announced Tuesday. Soccer’s governing body released the lineup for the closing ceremony, which will take place 90 minutes before Sunday’s final. The show is meant to “celebrate the 48 teams’ unforgettable journey” through 16 host cities across three countries, Fifa said in a statement. Continue reading...
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Tom Cruise among names set to take part in World Cup closing ceremony. Mission: Impossible star to appear in a pre-game show that will also feature Robbie Williams and Jennifer Hudson A wide array of performers, from actor Tom Cruise to streamer IShowSpeed, will help close out the World Cup, Fifa announced Tuesday.
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The show is meant to “celebrate the 48 teams’ unforgettable journey” through 16 host cities across three countries, Fifa said in a statement.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 17:49
Pilot known for ‘Miracle on the Hudson’ river plane landing reveals Alzheimer’s diagnosis
Chesley Sullenberger, 75, safely landed a US Airways flight carrying 155 people in New York’s Hudson river in 2009 Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger – the pilot known for the “Miracle on the Hudson” after safely landing a US Airways flight in New York City’s Hudson river during a 2009 emergency – announced on Tuesday that he was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. “For now, this means a name may not come easily to me, I forget a story I have recently told, or I don’t sleep as well, but I am in the beginning of this long journey,” Sullenberger, 75, said in a statement . “This new phase of my life has challenged what it means to be of service. And the answer is to speak up. It is my hope that by sharing this, other families living in the shadows with this disease will feel they too can step forward.” Continue reading...
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Pilot known for ‘Miracle on the Hudson’ river plane landing reveals Alzheimer’s diagnosis. “For now, this means a name may not come easily to me, I forget a story I have recently told, or I don’t sleep as well, but I am in the beginning of this long journey,” Sullenberger, 75, said in a statement .
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Chesley Sullenberger, 75, safely landed a US Airways flight carrying 155 people in New York’s Hudson river in 2009 Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger – the pilot known for the “Miracle on the Hudson” after safely landing a US Airways flight in New York City’s Hudson river during a 2009 emergency – announced on Tuesday that he was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 17:39
Dua Lipa calls Albanian protests against Jared Kushner-backed resort ‘inspiring’
Pop star, whose parents are Kosovan Albanian, expresses admiration for demonstrations, which are entering their sixth week Albania’s “flamingo revolution” has won its most prominent supporter yet after the pop star Dua Lipa expressed admiration for the protest movement against a Trump family-backed resort in the Balkan state. As demonstrations against the €1.6bn (£0.85bn) real estate project entered a sixth week, the London-born singer, who was partially raised in Pristina, home to her Kosovan Albanian émigré parents, described the civic unrest as “inspiring”. Continue reading...
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Pop star, whose parents are Kosovan Albanian, expresses admiration for demonstrations, which are entering their sixth week Albania’s “flamingo revolution” has won its most prominent supporter yet after the pop star Dua Lipa expressed admiration for the protest movement against a Trump family-backed resort in the Balkan state. As demonstrations against the €1.6bn (£0.
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Pop star, whose parents are Kosovan Albanian, expresses admiration for demonstrations, which are entering their sixth week Albania’s “flamingo revolution” has won its most prominent supporter yet after the pop star Dua Lipa expressed admiration for the protest movement against a Trump family-backed resort in the Balkan state.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 17:36
Pilot killed fighting Colorado wildfire identified as Nicholas Dale
The British Columbia pilot was the only person aboard the helicopter, which crashed during aerial firefighting The pilot who died when his helicopter crashed while fighting a Colorado wildfire has been named as Nicholas Dale of Sooke, British Columbia. Dale, 56, died when his helicopter crashed into the Silver Jack reservoir on Monday while fighting what authorities have named the Gold Mountain fire, the local Gunnison county sheriff’s office said. His body was later recovered from the submerged helicopter by divers. Continue reading...
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Pilot killed fighting Colorado wildfire identified as Nicholas Dale. Dale, 56, died when his helicopter crashed into the Silver Jack reservoir on Monday while fighting what authorities have named the Gold Mountain fire, the local Gunnison county sheriff’s office said. His body was later recovered from the submerged helicopter by divers.
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The British Columbia pilot was the only person aboard the helicopter, which crashed during aerial firefighting The pilot who died when his helicopter crashed while fighting a Colorado wildfire has been named as Nicholas Dale of Sooke, British Columbia.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 17:36
Nine of ten bestselling novels in UK have one thing in common: a woman is murdered
Author Wendy Jones highlighted the trend in an Instagram post: ‘What is going on here?’ Nine of the 10 bestselling fiction paperbacks in the UK this week have one thing in common: a woman is murdered. The novels, which appear on this week’s Sunday Times bestseller list , include The Secret of Secrets, The Divorce, The Names , The Family Friend, The Widow, The Impossible Fortune, The Hallmarked Man , My Husband’s Wife and Boleyn Traitor. Continue reading...
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Author Wendy Jones highlighted the trend in an Instagram post: ‘What is going on here?’ Nine of the 10 bestselling fiction paperbacks in the UK this week have one thing in common: a woman is murdered.
TL;DR:
Author Wendy Jones highlighted the trend in an Instagram post: ‘What is going on here?’ Nine of the 10 bestselling fiction paperbacks in the UK this week have one thing in common: a woman is murdered.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 14, 17:18
Why can't the US get Southeast Asia's support in the South China Sea?
Sunday marked a decade since an Arbitral Tribunal at The Hague handed a near total victory to the Philippines, a U.S. treaty ally, in its maritime dispute with China. Despite the ruling, the dispute has escalated in recent years with standoffs, collisions, and other dangerous encounters at sea. Over the weekend, the United States, along with 13 other countries, issued a joint statement commemorating the 10th anniversary of the award. The statement, citing the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also expressed “strong opposition to any destabilizing or unilateral actions including by force or coercion that threaten peace and stability in the region,” and, as has been routine in past U.S. pronouncements, upheld “freedom of navigation and overflight.” Notably, the Philippines was the only Southeast Asian country to endorse the statement. In 2016, the tribunal, constituted under Annex VII of the UNCLOS, invalidated China’s claim of “historic rights” to large swathes of the South China Sea, which is embodied by its “9-dash line” through the waterway; adjudicated the legal nature of various maritime features in the contested seas; and declared China’s reclamation and artificial island construction as having violated the Philippines’ sovereign rights. The award also contained important environmental strictures and upheld Philippine fishers’ traditional fishing rights at the disputed Scarborough Shoal. The 2016 award was a major step forward in international law. It applied UNCLOS’ provisions to a complex case and provided key guidance on how maritime entitlements, historical claims, and environmental obligations apply to all nations, not just those bordering the South China Sea. However, the coalition that the United States helped forge for the joint statement was mainly composed of European and Western countries. South Korea, a core U.S. ally in Asia, stayed away. Most notably, Southeast Asian states (apart from the Philippines) did not sign up – not even Vietnam, which has its own sharp maritime dispute with China, and should be a logical partner. Hanoi chose to reiterate its support for the award in a separate statement . The inability of Washington and Manila to convince regional states to join in is a sign of the gap that still needs to be covered in U.S. diplomacy. Almost all Southeast Asian states reject China’s expansive 9-dash line and are opposed to or uneasy with Beijing’s intrusive and aggressive actions. However, they also have important economic and other ties with China that they do not want to risk. If a broader regional coalition is to be built to counter China’s excessive behavior in the region, the U.S.-Philippines alliance will need to work harder at forging a compromise path forward that is appealing to the wider region. This includes adopting smarter language. But there’s also a need to add elements of reassurance, along with the deterrence already present. The right mix of both can help achieve the sort of strategic stability that is in the best interests of the United States and the region.
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Why can't the US get Southeast Asia's support in the South China Sea?. However, the coalition that the United States helped forge for the joint statement was mainly composed of European and Western countries. The right mix of both can help achieve the sort of strategic stability that is in the best interests of the United States and the region.
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treaty ally, in its maritime dispute with China.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 17:16
ICE pauses vehicle stops after deadly shootings in Texas and Maine
The deaths of Joan Sebastian Guerrero and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo have prompted calls for independent investigations Federal immigration officials have been instructed to stop pulling over vehicles until further notice, according to a homeland security source, following two recent deadly shootings in Texas and Maine during which officials shot and killed immigrants in vehicles. Other news outlets, including Fox News and CNN, confirmed that officials nationwide received the instructions, with the former reporting some vehicle stops would be allowed to target “the most egregious criminal aliens”. Continue reading...
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The deaths of Joan Sebastian Guerrero and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo have prompted calls for independent investigations Federal immigration officials have been instructed to stop pulling over vehicles until further notice, according to a homeland security source, following two recent deadly shootings in Texas and Maine during which officials shot and killed immigrants in vehicles.
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The deaths of Joan Sebastian Guerrero and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo have prompted calls for independent investigations Federal immigration officials have been instructed to stop pulling over vehicles until further notice, according to a homeland security source, following two recent deadly shootings in Texas and Maine during which officials shot and killed immigrants in vehicles.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 17:12
Andrew Lloyd Webber says Broadway in ‘dire danger’ as Cats musical announces early closing
The legendary composer warned theaters could soon meet the same fate as Hollywood’s ‘empty soundstages’ Andrew Lloyd Webber has spoken out about the precarious state of Broadway in the wake of the early closing of his revival Cats: The Jellicle Ball . “Broadway is more than a street or a collection of buildings. It is an idea—and one of the greatest cultural ideas America has given us,” the composer wrote in a lengthy X thread on Tuesday morning. Continue reading...
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Andrew Lloyd Webber says Broadway in ‘dire danger’ as Cats musical announces early closing. “Broadway is more than a street or a collection of buildings. It is an idea—and one of the greatest cultural ideas America has given us,” the composer wrote in a lengthy X thread on Tuesday morning.
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The legendary composer warned theaters could soon meet the same fate as Hollywood’s ‘empty soundstages’ Andrew Lloyd Webber has spoken out about the precarious state of Broadway in the wake of the early closing of his revival Cats: The Jellicle Ball .
Theguardian
Jul 14, 16:53
Ann Widdecombe killing: police investigating possible leftwing motivation
Detectives examining whether hatred of Widdecombe’s strong views or of Reform party were factors in killing described as a ‘targeted attack’ The police investigation into the death of Ann Widdecombe is examining whether a leftwing or single-issue cause may lie behind her killing, the Guardian has learned. Among issues detectives are investigating are whether a hatred of Widdecombe’s strong views, such as on homosexuality, was a factor. They are also examining whether extreme hostility to the Reform UK party played a role. Continue reading...
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Ann Widdecombe killing: police investigating possible leftwing motivation. Detectives examining whether hatred of Widdecombe’s strong views or of Reform party were factors in killing described as a ‘targeted attack’ The police investigation into the death of Ann Widdecombe is examining whether a leftwing or single-issue cause may lie behind her killing, the Guardian has learne…
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They are also examining whether extreme hostility to the Reform UK party played a role.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 16:33
Supreme court justices testify to House on budget request to increase security
Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett appear before House lawmakers to request more security for the judiciary Supreme court justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett are testifying Tuesday in front of House lawmakers to discuss the court’s budget request, particularly the need for increased security for the judiciary. The justices appearing before lawmakers confirmed that each justice was assigned “between four and eight members of the security detail”. Continue reading...
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Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett appear before House lawmakers to request more security for the judiciary Supreme court justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett are testifying Tuesday in front of House lawmakers to discuss the court’s budget request, particularly the need for increased security for the judiciary.
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Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett appear before House lawmakers to request more security for the judiciary Supreme court justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett are testifying Tuesday in front of House lawmakers to discuss the court’s budget request, particularly the need for increased security for the judiciary.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 16:10
Buffett omits gift to Bill Gates' foundation after Microsoft cofounder's Epstein ties disclosed
Gates has denied any ties to Epstein’s crimes and has not been accused of any wrongdoing Billionaire Warren Buffett omitted Bill Gates ′ foundation from his annual donations this year after disclosures of the Microsoft co-founder’s ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein . Buffett will donate about $6bn to four foundations connected to his own family, but did not mention Gates in his announcement Tuesday. Buffett also said in his statement that he wants all of his remaining Berkshire Hathaway stock worth more than $140bn donated to charity by the end of 2034. Previously the plan was for his three children to distribute his remaining fortune within 10 years of the 95-year-old investor’s death. Continue reading...
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Buffett omits gift to Bill Gates' foundation after Microsoft cofounder's Epstein ties disclosed. Buffett will donate about $6bn to four foundations connected to his own family, but did not mention Gates in his announcement Tuesday. Previously the plan was for his three children to distribute his remaining fortune within 10 years of the 95-year-old investor’s death.
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Gates has denied any ties to Epstein’s crimes and has not been accused of any wrongdoing Billionaire Warren Buffett omitted Bill Gates ′ foundation from his annual donations this year after disclosures of the Microsoft co-founder’s ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein .
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:57
Yellowstone tourist tossed 8ft in air by bison says attack could have been worse
Carl McDaniel, 65, says run-in ‘was not as catastrophic as it could’ve been’ in first remarks since attack that injured him A grandfather flipped 8ft in the air by a bull bison at Yellowstone national park recently has spoken out for the first time about the encounter that broke his femur in four places, saying he believes the animal spared his life by choosing not to gore him. The entire incident, he said, “was not as catastrophic as it could have been”. Continue reading...
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The entire incident, he said, “was not as catastrophic as it could have been”.
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Carl McDaniel, 65, says run-in ‘was not as catastrophic as it could’ve been’ in first remarks since attack that injured him A grandfather flipped 8ft in the air by a bull bison at Yellowstone national park recently has spoken out for the first time about the encounter that broke his femur in four places, saying he believes the animal spared his life by choosing not to gore him.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:42
Fake football shirts worth £5.5m seized in one of UK’s biggest counterfeiting raids
More than 158,000 items of fake kit seized featuring World Cup semi-finalists England, France and Spain More than 158,000 fake football strips have been seized in an operation targeting World Cup counterfeit kit and blocking criminals from trying to “cash in on fan demand”. Edinburgh’s trading standards team confiscated 9 tonnes of Scotland, England and other nations’ fake kits, worth an estimated £5.5m. Continue reading...
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More than 158,000 items of fake kit seized featuring World Cup semi-finalists England, France and Spain More than 158,000 fake football strips have been seized in an operation targeting World Cup counterfeit kit and blocking criminals from trying to “cash in on fan demand”.
TL;DR:
More than 158,000 items of fake kit seized featuring World Cup semi-finalists England, France and Spain More than 158,000 fake football strips have been seized in an operation targeting World Cup counterfeit kit and blocking criminals from trying to “cash in on fan demand”.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:41
EU rejects Trump administration claims that ICC threatens US sovereignty
US government says it wants to ‘systematically disable’ The Hague-based international criminal court A spokesperson for the EU has pushed back against the Trump administration’s assertion that the international criminal court poses a threat to US sovereignty, a day after the US government said it would work to “systematically disable” a global tribunal that seeks to prosecute some of the world’s gravest crimes. “We stand firm in our support for the international criminal court (ICC),” an EU spokesperson, Anouar El Anouni, said on Tuesday. “Attacks or threats against the court-elected officials, personnel or those cooperating with the court are simply not acceptable.” Continue reading...
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EU rejects Trump administration claims that ICC threatens US sovereignty. “We stand firm in our support for the international criminal court (ICC),” an EU spokesperson, Anouar El Anouni, said on Tuesday. “Attacks or threats against the court-elected officials, personnel or those cooperating with the court are simply not acceptable.” Continue reading...
TL;DR:
US government says it wants to ‘systematically disable’ The Hague-based international criminal court A spokesperson for the EU has pushed back against the Trump administration’s assertion that the international criminal court poses a threat to US sovereignty, a day after the US government said it would work to “systematically disable” a global tribunal that seeks to prosecute some of the world’s gravest crimes.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:37
Keir Starmer becomes first UK PM to receive France’s Légion d’honneur
Exclusive: Emmanuel Macron honours outgoing prime minister for leadership role in supporting Ukraine Keir Starmer has become the first UK prime minister to be presented with the Légion d’honneur by a French president, in recognition of his work with France on the security of Europe. Emmanuel Macron awarded the historic honour to Starmer for his leadership in setting up the coalition of the willing – a group of countries chaired by France and the UK that have pledged to support Ukraine – at a critical moment for Europe in early 2025. Continue reading...
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Exclusive: Emmanuel Macron honours outgoing prime minister for leadership role in supporting Ukraine Keir Starmer has become the first UK prime minister to be presented with the Légion d’honneur by a French president, in recognition of his work with France on the security of Europe.
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Exclusive: Emmanuel Macron honours outgoing prime minister for leadership role in supporting Ukraine Keir Starmer has become the first UK prime minister to be presented with the Légion d’honneur by a French president, in recognition of his work with France on the security of Europe.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:33
Tuberculosis outbreak at Colorado ICE jail sickens at least 12 detainees
The reported infections are the latest in a series of health concerns at the federal immigration jail in Aurora At least 12 people detained at a federal immigration jail in Colorado have contracted tuberculosis in recent days, according to testimony from inside the facility where dozens of others have reportedly been placed in quarantine. Those affected by the outbreak are also being made to endure their isolation without air conditioning, one detainee who has been at the facility in Aurora since December told the Guardian, through his partner, in a telephone call on Monday afternoon. Continue reading...
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The reported infections are the latest in a series of health concerns at the federal immigration jail in Aurora At least 12 people detained at a federal immigration jail in Colorado have contracted tuberculosis in recent days, according to testimony from inside the facility where dozens of others have reportedly been placed in quarantine.
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The reported infections are the latest in a series of health concerns at the federal immigration jail in Aurora At least 12 people detained at a federal immigration jail in Colorado have contracted tuberculosis in recent days, according to testimony from inside the facility where dozens of others have reportedly been placed in quarantine.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:31
T rex fossil ‘Gus’ sells for $50.1m at New York auction, setting new record
Skeleton judged to be one of the largest and most complete ever unearthed was excavated on a ranch in South Dakota A vast, fossilized Tyrannosaurus rex nicknamed Gus sold at Sotheby’s in New York on Tuesday for $50.1m with fees (£37.4m) to a phone bidder – making it the most valuable dinosaur fossil sold at auction. It also sold well above a pre-sale estimate of $20m to $30m (£15m to £22.4m). Continue reading...
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It also sold well above a pre-sale estimate of $20m to $30m (£15m to £22.4m).
TL;DR:
Skeleton judged to be one of the largest and most complete ever unearthed was excavated on a ranch in South Dakota A vast, fossilized Tyrannosaurus rex nicknamed Gus sold at Sotheby’s in New York on Tuesday for $50.1m with fees (£37.4m) to a phone bidder – making it the most valuable dinosaur fossil sold at auction.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:21
US rapper Boosie seeks $300,000 refund after failed Trump pardon bid
The rapper paid $600,000 to JM Burkman & Associates, but the firm says no partial refund was promised Louisiana rapper Boosie Badazz is reportedly looking to claw back $300,000 from a firm of Washington DC lobbyists after they failed to secure a Donald Trump pardon that he hired them to pursue over his conviction on charges of possessing a loaded weapon at music video shooting in 2023. Boosie – whose legal name is Torence Hatch and who hails from his home state’s capital of Baton Rouge – paid JM Burkman & Associates $600,000 in 2025 to advance his push for a pardon from the US president, according to a report on Monday from Notus , which covers the federal government. Continue reading...
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The rapper paid $600,000 to JM Burkman & Associates, but the firm says no partial refund was promised Louisiana rapper Boosie Badazz is reportedly looking to claw back $300,000 from a firm of Washington DC lobbyists after they failed to secure a Donald Trump pardon that he hired them to pursue over his conviction on charges of possessing a loaded weapon at music video shooting…
TL;DR:
The rapper paid $600,000 to JM Burkman & Associates, but the firm says no partial refund was promised Louisiana rapper Boosie Badazz is reportedly looking to claw back $300,000 from a firm of Washington DC lobbyists after they failed to secure a Donald Trump pardon that he hired them to pursue over his conviction on charges of possessing a loaded weapon at music video shooting in 2023.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:12
E Jean Carroll receives $5.6m owed by Trump after court releases damages
Funds released from escrow account after Trump’s efforts to block sexual abuse and defamation award fail A Manhattan federal court has released more than $5.6m that Donald Trump owes E Jean Carroll in her successful 2023 sexual abuse and defamation trial against him, records reveal. The disbursement, made public in a 14 July entry on Carroll’s case docket, indicates that the funds were released by a court-held account on 9 July – one day after judge Lewis Kaplan ordered the release of this money. Trump has denied wrongdoing. “Three years ago, a unanimous nine-person jury found President Trump liable for sexually assaulting and defaming E Jean Carroll. Today, we are pleased to report that she has received the damages payment the jury awarded her as a result of that verdict,” Roberta Kaplan, Carroll’s lead lawyer, said in a statement. Trump has fought the release of this money since June 2023 – after the supreme court on 29 June denied his request to hear his appeal. Carroll’s legal team promptly requested the judge to order the release of these funds following the supreme court’s decision. Trump’s legal team asked for more time to provide a response to Roberta Kaplan’s request, which the judge denied. Both Carroll and Trump’s lawyers had agreed that he could deposit the jury award with the court’s registry investment system (Cris) while he pursued his appeals. Cris in effect functions as an escrow agent for funds awarded in litigation if legal processes continue after a judgment. As such, if a defendant’s appeals efforts fail, this money is available to the victor. Because a defendant does not have this money in their possession, they cannot withhold these funds with financial or legal tactics. When they agreed to the Cris arrangement, both Carroll and Trump’s lawyers also agreed that the money should be released upon certain legal developments, including a supreme court refusal to hear his appeal. Before the supreme court’s rejection, Trump had mounted multiple unsuccessful appeals. Trump’s team insisted in court filings that Carroll’s team misinterpreted this provision and said that the money should remain in Cris since he was asking the supreme court to reconsider. In a separate 2024 trial, a separate Manhattan federal court jury awarded Carroll $83.3m for defamatory comments Trump made about her while he was president. The two jury awards stem from a 2019 New York magazine feature that excerpting Carroll’s book, What Do We Need Men For? A Modest Proposal. Carroll claimed in this book that Trump sexually assaulted her about three decades prior in the fitting room of a luxury New York department store. Continue reading...
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E Jean Carroll receives $5.6m owed by Trump after court releases damages. Before the supreme court’s rejection, Trump had mounted multiple unsuccessful appeals. Trump’s team insisted in court filings that Carroll’s team misinterpreted this provision and said that the money should remain in Cris since he was asking the supreme court to reconsider.
TL;DR:
Trump has denied wrongdoing.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 14, 15:09
Will a U.S.-Iran Deal Include Kurds?
Attacks against Kurdish regions in Iran and Iraq never stopped.
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Will a U.S.-Iran Deal Include Kurds?. Attacks against Kurdish regions in Iran and Iraq never stopped.
TL;DR:
Attacks against Kurdish regions in Iran and Iraq never stopped.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:08
Young Germans opting out of military service as Berlin strives to boost army
Almost 6,000 people apply to be excluded on moral or religious grounds despite ‘conscription lite’ policy The number of young men applying to be conscientious objectors and refuse armed military service in Germany has risen sharply this year, undermining a drive by Berlin to create Europe’s strongest conventional army and deter the Russian threat. More people had applied to exclude themselves from service on religious or moral grounds in the first half of 2026 than in the whole of last year, according to figures provided by the government on Tuesday. Continue reading...
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Young Germans opting out of military service as Berlin strives to boost army. Almost 6,000 people apply to be excluded on moral or religious grounds despite ‘conscription lite’ policy The number of young men applying to be conscientious objectors and refuse armed military service in Germany has risen sharply this year, undermining a drive by Berlin to create Europe’s strongest…
TL;DR:
More people had applied to exclude themselves from service on religious or moral grounds in the first half of 2026 than in the whole of last year, according to figures provided by the government on Tuesday.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:00
Kash Patel gave his Australian counterpart a 3D replica gun as a gift. It was destroyed within months
Documents show the FBI director’s gift was ‘displayed proudly’ by the AFP before new commissioner ordered it be destroyed Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast When the FBI director, Kash Patel, visited the Australian federal police last year, he came bearing a gift: a 3D-printed imitation pistol that then was “displayed proudly” in the commissioner’s office. Yet within months, shortly after Krissy Barrett became the AFP’s new commissioner last October, she ordered it to be destroyed. Continue reading...
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Kash Patel gave his Australian counterpart a 3D replica gun as a gift. It was destroyed within months. Yet within months, shortly after Krissy Barrett became the AFP’s new commissioner last October, she ordered it to be destroyed.
TL;DR:
Documents show the FBI director’s gift was ‘displayed proudly’ by the AFP before new commissioner ordered it be destroyed Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast When the FBI director, Kash Patel, visited the Australian federal police last year, he came bearing a gift: a 3D-printed imitation pistol that then was “displayed proudly” in the commissioner’s office.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 15:00
David Penman wasn’t happy with his local Victorian council. So, he privately prosecuted five councillors
Legal action by the Daylesford small business owner has forced councillors to stand down – leaving only two able to serve Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast David Penman wasn’t happy. The Daylesford small business owner didn’t like the work of his local council. So, using little-known laws that force elected officials to stand down, he essentially stopped it from making any big decisions. Continue reading...
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David Penman wasn’t happy with his local Victorian council. The Daylesford small business owner didn’t like the work of his local council. So, using little-known laws that force elected officials to stand down, he essentially stopped it from making any big decisions.
TL;DR:
Legal action by the Daylesford small business owner has forced councillors to stand down – leaving only two able to serve Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast David Penman wasn’t happy.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 14:58
UK man admits 32 sexual offences against allegedly drugged or sleeping partner
Defendant pleads guilty to crimes over the course of 12 years, some of which also involved ‘a person unknown’ A man has been told he faces a possible life sentence after pleading guilty to 32 sexual offences against his girlfriend while she was allegedly drugged or asleep, including some attacks he recorded. The defendant, aged in his 40s, who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared at Northampton crown court on Tuesday where he admitted the offences which happened over more than a decade between January 2014 and September last year. Continue reading...
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Defendant pleads guilty to crimes over the course of 12 years, some of which also involved ‘a person unknown’ A man has been told he faces a possible life sentence after pleading guilty to 32 sexual offences against his girlfriend while she was allegedly drugged or asleep, including some attacks he recorded.
TL;DR:
Defendant pleads guilty to crimes over the course of 12 years, some of which also involved ‘a person unknown’ A man has been told he faces a possible life sentence after pleading guilty to 32 sexual offences against his girlfriend while she was allegedly drugged or asleep, including some attacks he recorded.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 14:34
‘Catastrophic failure’: UK Covid families welcome inquiry findings on PPE
Campaigners feel vindicated by some of report’s conclusions but are unconvinced by its verdict on VIP lane In the slightly incongruous setting of south London’s splendid Kia Oval cricket stadium, Naomi Fulop gathered her strength to give the assembled British media her response to the damning findings of Heather Hallett’s latest Covid inquiry report. Reading a statement from her mobile phone, her voice quivering just a little, as fellow members of the Covid Bereaved Families for Justice (CBFFJ) group stood alongside her, Fulop recalled the terrible time when her mother died from coronavirus in January 2021. It was in the second lethal wave of the pandemic, a vaccine still a far-off aspiration, during the third national lockdown. Like so many other people, Fulop believes her mother died because those caring for her did not have adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), a belief supported by the findings of Lady Hallett, a former court of appeal judge. Continue reading...
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‘Catastrophic failure’: UK Covid families welcome inquiry findings on PPE. Reading a statement from her mobile phone, her voice quivering just a little, as fellow members of the Covid Bereaved Families for Justice (CBFFJ) group stood alongside her, Fulop recalled the terrible time when her mother died from coronavirus in January 2021.
TL;DR:
Campaigners feel vindicated by some of report’s conclusions but are unconvinced by its verdict on VIP lane In the slightly incongruous setting of south London’s splendid Kia Oval cricket stadium, Naomi Fulop gathered her strength to give the assembled British media her response to the damning findings of Heather Hallett’s latest Covid inquiry report.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 14:34
New York becomes first state to impose one-year pause on new AI datacenters
Governor Kathy Hochul issued an executive order enacting a moratorium on the large, resource-intensive AI facilities New York became the first US state to enact a moratorium on new datacenters on Tuesday. Governor Kathy Hochul issued an executive order mandating a one-year statewide pause on the large facilities used to power artificial intelligence products. Continue reading...
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Governor Kathy Hochul issued an executive order enacting a moratorium on the large, resource-intensive AI facilities New York became the first US state to enact a moratorium on new datacenters on Tuesday. Governor Kathy Hochul issued an executive order mandating a one-year statewide pause on the large facilities used to power artificial intelligence products. Continue reading..
TL;DR:
Governor Kathy Hochul issued an executive order enacting a moratorium on the large, resource-intensive AI facilities New York became the first US state to enact a moratorium on new datacenters on Tuesday.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 14:23
Church of England votes against plan to rewild 30% of its land by 2030
Campaigners criticise C of E for failing to show moral leadership as one of country’s biggest landowners The Church of England has voted against plans to restore 30% of its land for nature, with campaigners criticising its failure to show moral leadership. The C of E owns about 425,000 hectares (105,000 acres) of land, making it one of England’s biggest landowners. Currently just 3.5% of its land is used for nature restoration. Continue reading...
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Church of England votes against plan to rewild 30% of its land by 2030. The C of E owns about 425,000 hectares (105,000 acres) of land, making it one of England’s biggest landowners. Currently just 3.5% of its land is used for nature restoration.
TL;DR:
Campaigners criticise C of E for failing to show moral leadership as one of country’s biggest landowners The Church of England has voted against plans to restore 30% of its land for nature, with campaigners criticising its failure to show moral leadership.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 14:01
Politically engaged – but ‘very much’ worried about buying a home: study reveals young Australians’ anxieties
Growing Up in Australia report shows gen Z are more anxious about housing affordability than climate change or following a chosen career path Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Far more young people are worried about being able to buy a home than about climate change or finding a job in their chosen field, according to a study that also reveals gen Z’s deep distrust of politicians, political parties and the media. The latest insights from a major longitudinal study show high levels of participation in the political debate, challenging stereotypes that younger Australians are disengaged from public life. Continue reading...
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Growing Up in Australia report shows gen Z are more anxious about housing affordability than climate change or following a chosen career path Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Far more young people are worried about being able to buy a home than about climate change or finding a job in their chosen field, according to a study that also reveals gen Z’…
TL;DR:
Growing Up in Australia report shows gen Z are more anxious about housing affordability than climate change or following a chosen career path Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Far more young people are worried about being able to buy a home than about climate change or finding a job in their chosen field, according to a study that also reveals gen Z’s deep distrust of politicians, political parties and the media.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 13:53
Man in his 70s dies after being injured by cattle on Norfolk estate
Police investigate incident near 17th-century National Trust country house popular with walkers A man in his 70s has died after being injured by cattle on a National Trust estate in Norfolk. Police are investigating the death at Felbrigg Hall after paramedics were called to attend to the injured man shortly after midday on Monday. Despite the paramedics’ best efforts, the man succumbed to his injuries at the scene. Norfolk police said the victim’s next of kin had been informed. Continue reading...
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Man in his 70s dies after being injured by cattle on Norfolk estate. Police are investigating the death at Felbrigg Hall after paramedics were called to attend to the injured man shortly after midday on Monday. Despite the paramedics’ best efforts, the man succumbed to his injuries at the scene.
TL;DR:
Police investigate incident near 17th-century National Trust country house popular with walkers A man in his 70s has died after being injured by cattle on a National Trust estate in Norfolk.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 13:38
Spanish PM’s brother banned from public office after misconduct trial
Conviction over hiring by socialist-led council is one of a series of corruption claims facing Pedro Sánchez’s family The brother of Spain’s prime minister has been banned from holding public office for nine years after being found guilty of administrative misconduct relating to his hiring by a socialist-led council in the south-western region of Extremadura nine years ago. Corruption allegations involving Pedro Sánchez’s family, his government and his Spanish Socialist Workers’ party (PSOE) have triggered repeated opposition calls for a snap general election. All the accused have denied wrongdoing. Continue reading...
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Spanish PM’s brother banned from public office after misconduct trial. Corruption allegations involving Pedro Sánchez’s family, his government and his Spanish Socialist Workers’ party (PSOE) have triggered repeated opposition calls for a snap general election. All the accused have denied wrongdoing.
TL;DR:
Conviction over hiring by socialist-led council is one of a series of corruption claims facing Pedro Sánchez’s family The brother of Spain’s prime minister has been banned from holding public office for nine years after being found guilty of administrative misconduct relating to his hiring by a socialist-led council in the south-western region of Extremadura nine years ago.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 13:33
ICE identifies man agents fatally shot in Maine as Joan Sebastian Guerrero
Witnesses and officials have offered differing accounts of the shooting as questions remain The man killed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Maine on Monday has been identified as Joan Sebastian Guerrero, according to local news outlets . An immigration agent shot and killed the 26-year-old Colombian man on Monday morning in Biddeford, Maine. Continue reading...
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Witnesses and officials have offered differing accounts of the shooting as questions remain The man killed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Maine on Monday has been identified as Joan Sebastian Guerrero, according to local news outlets . An immigration agent shot and killed the 26-year-old Colombian man on Monday morning in Biddeford, Maine.
TL;DR:
Witnesses and officials have offered differing accounts of the shooting as questions remain The man killed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Maine on Monday has been identified as Joan Sebastian Guerrero, according to local news outlets .
Foreignpolicy
Jul 14, 13:29
The Pentagon Needs $1.5 Trillion
This issue is preventing our website from loading properly. Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . In his 2027 budget request, U.S.
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President Donald Trump has called for the largest U.S. defense spending since the Korean War—nearly double the country’s 2022 defense budget and more than the next 18 nations combined. President Donald Trump has called for the largest U.S.
TL;DR:
At a perilous moment, Washington is smart to invest in a bigger defense budget.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 13:27
US House committee advances bill to make daylight saving time permanent
Bid to end clock-changing has bipartisan support, including the backing of Trump and some Democratic cosponsors A bill to end the practice of changing clocks twice a year and make daylight saving time permanent passed a key committee in the US House of Representatives, setting it up for a potential full vote of the chamber. The bid to end clock-changing, dubbed the Sunshine Protection Act, has bipartisan support, including the backing of Donald Trump and some Democratic cosponsors. Continue reading...
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US House committee advances bill to make daylight saving time permanent. Bid to end clock-changing has bipartisan support, including the backing of Trump and some Democratic cosponsors A bill to end the practice of changing clocks twice a year and make daylight saving time permanent passed a key committee in the US House of Representatives, setting it up for a potential full v…
TL;DR:
The bid to end clock-changing, dubbed the Sunshine Protection Act, has bipartisan support, including the backing of Donald Trump and some Democratic cosponsors.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 13:09
British man injured during running of the bulls festival in Pamplona
86-year-old from West Midlands taken to hospital after eight-day event in which 57 people were injured An 86-year-old British man is among 57 people injured while taking part in the famous running of the bulls festival in the northern Spanish city of Pamplona. The man, from Halesowen in the West Midlands, was taken to hospital on Tuesday – the last morning of the eight-day annual event – after suffering injuries to his right hand, left elbow and right eyebrow. A spokesperson for the festival said the man, who has not been named, was being assessed by doctors but not thought to be badly hurt. Continue reading...
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British man injured during running of the bulls festival in Pamplona. The man, from Halesowen in the West Midlands, was taken to hospital on Tuesday – the last morning of the eight-day annual event – after suffering injuries to his right hand, left elbow and right eyebrow.
TL;DR:
86-year-old from West Midlands taken to hospital after eight-day event in which 57 people were injured An 86-year-old British man is among 57 people injured while taking part in the famous running of the bulls festival in the northern Spanish city of Pamplona.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 13:05
UK to continue sending potential trafficking victims to France despite court ruling
Court ruled last week against policy to reduce protections for asylum seekers facing removal under one in, one out scheme The Home Office is set to ignore a high court ruling and continue sending asylum seekers to France without looking into claims they have been trafficked, which last week was found to be unlawful. On Friday Mr Justice Sheldon ruled against the home secretary’s policy to reduce protections for trafficking victims earmarked for forced removal to France. Home Office sources told the Guardian that operational activity could continue despite the ruling. Home Office removed certain protections for this group because they could delay removals to France by at least 30 days. Continue reading...
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UK to continue sending potential trafficking victims to France despite court ruling. On Friday Mr Justice Sheldon ruled against the home secretary’s policy to reduce protections for trafficking victims earmarked for forced removal to France. Home Office sources told the Guardian that operational activity could continue despite the ruling.
TL;DR:
Court ruled last week against policy to reduce protections for asylum seekers facing removal under one in, one out scheme The Home Office is set to ignore a high court ruling and continue sending asylum seekers to France without looking into claims they have been trafficked, which last week was found to be unlawful.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 12:50
Bastille Day celebrations in France tempered by fear of more wildfires
Firework displays cancelled as Paris military parade asserts ‘France’s rearmament .. and Europe’s strategic awakening’ Europe live – latest updates Emmanuel Macron has presided over his final Bastille Day parade in Paris amid a searing heatwave and wildfires that forced authorities around the country to cancel traditional firework displays and balls celebrating France’s national day. The French president was joined for the annual military procession and flypast by his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, and two dozen other national leaders. Continue reading...
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Bastille Day celebrations in France tempered by fear of more wildfires. and Europe’s strategic awakening’ Europe live – latest updates Emmanuel Macron has presided over his final Bastille Day parade in Paris amid a searing heatwave and wildfires that forced authorities around the country to cancel traditional firework displays and balls celebrating France’s national day.
TL;DR:
Firework displays cancelled as Paris military parade asserts ‘France’s rearmament ..
Theguardian
Jul 14, 12:39
Inflation cools to 3.5% in June in relief brought by brief US-Iran deal
Recent strikes have sent oil prices climbing again, with average gas price per gallon up by 70 cents on last year Inflation cooled to an annual rate of 3.5% in June as the brief US-Iran ceasefire, which has since ended, brought energy prices down, according to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The consumer price index (CPI), which measures a basket of goods and services, has been elevated since the start of the war, largely because of higher energy prices. After mostly staying under 3% since mid-2024, CPI reached a three-year high of 4.2% in May – up from 2.4% in February. Stripping out volatile energy and food prices, core inflation decreased slightly to 2.6%. Continue reading...
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Inflation cools to 3.5% in June in relief brought by brief US-Iran deal. Recent strikes have sent oil prices climbing again, with average gas price per gallon up by 70 cents on last year Inflation cooled to an annual rate of 3.5% in June as the brief US-Iran ceasefire, which has since ended, brought energy prices down, according to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
TL;DR:
The consumer price index (CPI), which measures a basket of goods and services, has been elevated since the start of the war, largely because of higher energy prices.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 12:30
Anthony Albanese promises fast-track approvals for datacentres to shore up AI investment
PM to declare Australia the first country worldwide to bring economic, social, security and environmental issues from AI under single office in major speech Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese says the federal government will introduce faster approval processes for AI projects, including datacentres, across Australia, seeking to shore up investor certainty and maintain community confidence in the rapidly advancing technology . Announcing the creation of a new office of AI to be established within his department in a major speech on Wednesday, the prime minister will declare Australia is set to become the first country in the world to bring the economic, social, national security and environmental issues stemming from AI into a single, national framework. Continue reading...
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PM to declare Australia the first country worldwide to bring economic, social, security and environmental issues from AI under single office in major speech Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese says the federal government will introduce faster approval processes for AI projects, including datacentres, across Australia, seeking to shore…
TL;DR:
PM to declare Australia the first country worldwide to bring economic, social, security and environmental issues from AI under single office in major speech Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese says the federal government will introduce faster approval processes for AI projects, including datacentres, across Australia, seeking to shore up investor certainty and maintain community confidence in the rapidly advancing technology .
Theguardian
Jul 14, 12:27
New US Ebola patient arrives in Germany for treatment
Aid worker flown to Berlin as Trump administration bars Americans from traveling to US on commercial flights A US national who contracted Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has arrived in Germany for treatment, the health ministry in Berlin said on Monday, weeks after another American infected with Ebola in the DRC was treated in Berlin. Meanwhile, the Trump administration on Monday said it was blocking American citizens in the DRC from traveling to the US on commercial flights, Reuters reported, citing a White House official. Continue reading...
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Aid worker flown to Berlin as Trump administration bars Americans from traveling to US on commercial flights A US national who contracted Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has arrived in Germany for treatment, the health ministry in Berlin said on Monday, weeks after another American infected with Ebola in the DRC was treated in Berlin.
TL;DR:
Aid worker flown to Berlin as Trump administration bars Americans from traveling to US on commercial flights A US national who contracted Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has arrived in Germany for treatment, the health ministry in Berlin said on Monday, weeks after another American infected with Ebola in the DRC was treated in Berlin.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 12:13
Woman charged with aggravated arson over moorland fire in Greater Manchester
Shania Care-Slede, 20, arrested over incident at Dovestone reservoir on Saturday in which fireworks were launched A woman has been charged with arson in connection with a major moorland wildfire, as large parts of Manchester were covered with smoke. Shania Care-Slede, 20, from Hyde, was arrested on Monday by Greater Manchester police in Oldham. She has been charged with aggravated arson, being reckless as to whether life was endangered, and dangerous driving. Firefighters have declared a major incident near Dovestone reservoir, Greenfield, where fireworks were launched before a large moorland fire broke out on Saturday evening. Continue reading...
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Woman charged with aggravated arson over moorland fire in Greater Manchester. Shania Care-Slede, 20, from Hyde, was arrested on Monday by Greater Manchester police in Oldham. She has been charged with aggravated arson, being reckless as to whether life was endangered, and dangerous driving.
TL;DR:
Shania Care-Slede, 20, arrested over incident at Dovestone reservoir on Saturday in which fireworks were launched A woman has been charged with arson in connection with a major moorland wildfire, as large parts of Manchester were covered with smoke.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 12:01
‘If we die, we die together’: wife of Ryanair passenger almost sucked through window speaks
Svetlana Grković says she grabbed her husband’s legs while he was ‘outside up to his chest’ for two minutes Ryanair passenger almost sucked out of window during flight Ryanair has axed family seating policy – but kids’ fees add up A woman who saved her husband from being completely sucked out of a Ryanair plane mid-flight has said she thought as he held on to his legs: “If we die, we die together.” Ljubisa Karović was sucked out headfirst on the flight on Friday after an engine failure resulted in parts smashing the acrylic window. Continue reading...
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Svetlana Grković says she grabbed her husband’s legs while he was ‘outside up to his chest’ for two minutes Ryanair passenger almost sucked out of window during flight Ryanair has axed family seating policy – but kids’ fees add up A woman who saved her husband from being completely sucked out of a Ryanair plane mid-flight has said she thought as he held on to his legs: “If we…
TL;DR:
Svetlana Grković says she grabbed her husband’s legs while he was ‘outside up to his chest’ for two minutes Ryanair passenger almost sucked out of window during flight Ryanair has axed family seating policy – but kids’ fees add up A woman who saved her husband from being completely sucked out of a Ryanair plane mid-flight has said she thought as he held on to his legs: “If we die, we die together.” Ljubisa Karović was sucked out headfirst on the flight on Friday after an engine failure resulted in parts smashing the acrylic window.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 12:00
Trump ballroom donor to lead state department’s $200m Armenia fund
Konstantin Sokolov, who gave undisclosed sum and has not held government job before, to chair Tripp+ trade project Konstantin Sokolov, a Russian-born private equity investor in Chicago, will serve as chairman of a new state department enterprise fund overseeing more than $200m designated for a central Asia trade corridor, including investments in transportation, energy infrastructure and critical minerals, the Guardian has learned. The state department confirmed his appointment on Friday. Sokolov was one of 36 donors, including 21 corporations and 15 individuals and family foundations, who Trump said contributed over $350m to Donald Trump’s ballroom project. Continue reading...
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Trump ballroom donor to lead state department’s $200m Armenia fund. Konstantin Sokolov, who gave undisclosed sum and has not held government job before, to chair Tripp+ trade project Konstantin Sokolov, a Russian-born private equity investor in Chicago, will serve as chairman of a new state department enterprise fund overseeing more than $200m designated for a central Asia tra…
TL;DR:
Sokolov was one of 36 donors, including 21 corporations and 15 individuals and family foundations, who Trump said contributed over $350m to Donald Trump’s ballroom project.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 12:00
RFK Jr’s advisory panel overhaul stalled update on helping kids quit tobacco
US preventive services taskforce’s members have not issued binding recommendations since March 2025 The health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr’s overhaul of an influential federal advisory group has stalled an update that would have highlighted “encouraging” new evidence on helping children quit tobacco, according to a recently departed member of the group. The Trump administration has postponed or canceled all meetings of the US preventive services taskforce since March 2025, effectively preventing taskforce members from issuing binding recommendations for more than a year. As a result, 14 topics under consideration have been stalled – including on cervical cancer screening, perinatal depression and autism screening. Continue reading...
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RFK Jr’s advisory panel overhaul stalled update on helping kids quit tobacco. US preventive services taskforce’s members have not issued binding recommendations since March 2025 The health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr’s overhaul of an influential federal advisory group has stalled an update that would have highlighted “encouraging” new evidence on helping children quit tobacc…
TL;DR:
The Trump administration has postponed or canceled all meetings of the US preventive services taskforce since March 2025, effectively preventing taskforce members from issuing binding recommendations for more than a year.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 11:55
Tories deny purge as Lord Barwell hits back after losing party whip
Former minister says decision suggests ‘intolerance of criticism’ but source says it was for problems with conduct The Conservatives have denied they are purging prominent centrists after Gavin Barwell lost the whip in the wake of warnings from Kemi Badenoch that supporters of policies such as targets for net zero were no longer welcome in the party. Lord Barwell, who was an MP and minister before becoming Theresa May’s chief of staff, said he was saddened at the decision and that Badenoch risked putting off large numbers of potential voters because of her stance. Continue reading...
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Former minister says decision suggests ‘intolerance of criticism’ but source says it was for problems with conduct The Conservatives have denied they are purging prominent centrists after Gavin Barwell lost the whip in the wake of warnings from Kemi Badenoch that supporters of policies such as targets for net zero were no longer welcome in the party.
TL;DR:
Former minister says decision suggests ‘intolerance of criticism’ but source says it was for problems with conduct The Conservatives have denied they are purging prominent centrists after Gavin Barwell lost the whip in the wake of warnings from Kemi Badenoch that supporters of policies such as targets for net zero were no longer welcome in the party.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 11:38
Iran targets Bahrain and Jordan in retaliation as US strikes continue
US hits targets in port cities of Bushehr and Bandar Abbas while Iran attacks two tankers in strait of Hormuz Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US launched strikes on Iran for a third day and Iran retaliated with strikes on US allies and tankers, hours after Donald Trump said the US would take control of the strait of Hormuz and charge a toll to ships for safe passage. The US military said its five-hour operation early on Tuesday hit targets across Iran, including the port cities of Bushehr and Bandar Abbas. It shared videos of strikes that it said were meant to “degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping”. Continue reading...
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Iran targets Bahrain and Jordan in retaliation as US strikes continue. The US military said its five-hour operation early on Tuesday hit targets across Iran, including the port cities of Bushehr and Bandar Abbas. It shared videos of strikes that it said were meant to “degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping”.
TL;DR:
US hits targets in port cities of Bushehr and Bandar Abbas while Iran attacks two tankers in strait of Hormuz Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US launched strikes on Iran for a third day and Iran retaliated with strikes on US allies and tankers, hours after Donald Trump said the US would take control of the strait of Hormuz and charge a toll to ships for safe passage.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 11:07
BBC faces ‘real jeopardy’ as licence fee payments fall faster than expected
Director general, Matt Brittin, says funding model ties corporation to the past as number of licences falls by 539,000 The number of people paying the BBC’s licence fee has fallen faster than expected in the last year, with half a million more households opting out of the payment. Matt Brittin, the BBC’s director general, said the broadcaster faced a “moment of real jeopardy”, as the licence fee funding model “ties us to the past”. Continue reading...
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BBC faces ‘real jeopardy’ as licence fee payments fall faster than expected. Director general, Matt Brittin, says funding model ties corporation to the past as number of licences falls by 539,000 The number of people paying the BBC’s licence fee has fallen faster than expected in the last year, with half a million more households opting out of the payment.
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Matt Brittin, the BBC’s director general, said the broadcaster faced a “moment of real jeopardy”, as the licence fee funding model “ties us to the past”.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 11:00
Victims of Trump purge call supreme court ruling a ‘dagger in heart’ to civil service
Rebecca Slaughter, who was fired by Trump from the FTC in 2025, worries agencies will be undermined by threat of removal if a decision is contrary to president’s favor Federal officials fired by the Trump administration are calling the recent supreme court decision a “dagger in the heart” of the civil service that will open independent federal government agencies to corruption and manipulation at the whim of the president. Since Donald Trump took office again in January 2025, he has fired more than 50 officials from federal agencies as the Trump administration openly sought to have the supreme court overturn a landmark 1935 ruling that limited the president’s power over independent agencies, known as Humphrey’s Executor. Continue reading...
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Rebecca Slaughter, who was fired by Trump from the FTC in 2025, worries agencies will be undermined by threat of removal if a decision is contrary to president’s favor Federal officials fired by the Trump administration are calling the recent supreme court decision a “dagger in the heart” of the civil service that will open independent federal government agencies to corruption…
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Rebecca Slaughter, who was fired by Trump from the FTC in 2025, worries agencies will be undermined by threat of removal if a decision is contrary to president’s favor Federal officials fired by the Trump administration are calling the recent supreme court decision a “dagger in the heart” of the civil service that will open independent federal government agencies to corruption and manipulation at the whim of the president.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 11:00
‘Misuse’ of crowd control weapons on ICE protesters led to blindings and traumatic brain injuries, report finds
Doctors and human rights experts documented hundreds of incidents from June 2025 through May 2026 and estimate true number is ‘far greater’ It’s been a brutal tactic deployed by local and federal law enforcement officials time and again over the past year: using teargas, rubber bullets and pepper spray to control protests outside ICE detention centers or during enforcement operations. Now, a new report lays bare the scale of the use of these crowd control weapons during anti-immigration demonstrations across the US, including hundreds of incidents that resulted in lasting and traumatic injuries. Continue reading...
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Doctors and human rights experts documented hundreds of incidents from June 2025 through May 2026 and estimate true number is ‘far greater’ It’s been a brutal tactic deployed by local and federal law enforcement officials time and again over the past year: using teargas, rubber bullets and pepper spray to control protests outside ICE detention centers or during enforcement ope…
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Doctors and human rights experts documented hundreds of incidents from June 2025 through May 2026 and estimate true number is ‘far greater’ It’s been a brutal tactic deployed by local and federal law enforcement officials time and again over the past year: using teargas, rubber bullets and pepper spray to control protests outside ICE detention centers or during enforcement operations.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 11:00
Johnson government wasted ‘vast’ sums on PPE, Covid inquiry finds
Chair criticises use of ‘VIP lane’ to prioritise PPE contracts for companies with Tory connections in damning report Boris Johnson’s Conservative government wasted public money on a “vast” scale with flawed buying of personal protective equipment during the coronavirus pandemic, an official inquiry has concluded. The Covid-19 inquiry chair, Heather Hallett, also criticised the then government’s controversial “VIP lane”, which gave high priority for PPE contracts to companies with political connections to the Tories. Continue reading...
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Johnson government wasted ‘vast’ sums on PPE, Covid inquiry finds. Chair criticises use of ‘VIP lane’ to prioritise PPE contracts for companies with Tory connections in damning report Boris Johnson’s Conservative government wasted public money on a “vast” scale with flawed buying of personal protective equipment during the coronavirus pandemic, an official inquiry has conclude…
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The Covid-19 inquiry chair, Heather Hallett, also criticised the then government’s controversial “VIP lane”, which gave high priority for PPE contracts to companies with political connections to the Tories.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 10:22
First Thing: Trump threatens to impose US tolls on Hormuz shipping as strikes on Iran continue
Change of US position on free navigation comes as two tankers hit by Iranian cruise missiles. Plus, the international outpouring of love for the late actor Sam Neill Good morning. The US has launched its third consecutive night of strikes on Iran , hours after Donald Trump said Washington would reinstate a maritime blockade on the country and charge ships for safe passage. The UAE said two national tankers were targeted by two Iranian cruise missiles in the southern lane of the strait of Hormuz in Omani territorial waters, killing one Indian crew member and wounding eight others, including four seriously. Iran and the US are in theory nearly halfway through the 60-day period of an interim deal that was supposed to set up talks for a permanent end to the war, which began in February with the assassination of Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei. In reality, that deal has devolved into a series of attacks over the strait of Hormuz, resulting in the near-total collapse of an interim ceasefire and worrying world leaders that the conflict could fully resume. How has Trump changed his position on tolls? On Monday, Trump said the US would demand a 20% tariff on all cargoes shipped through the strait of Hormuz. Until now, the US had said the strait should remain open to all without tolls – as it was before Washington and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February. Any attempt by the US or Iran – which has also proposed tolls – to charge fees would violate global norms on freedom of navigation and would be likely to cause further economic disruption far beyond the region. What did Nordone say about her appointment? In brief remarks, Nordone, 64, said: “Lindsey has always been there for me, and now I will be there for him. I promise to work hard over the next several months to support the president and carry forward the efforts of my brother on behalf of the citizens of South Carolina and the United States. I think this is what Lindsey would have wanted, and I plan to honor him in this way. I miss you more than I can even put into words, but I’m going to do this. I got it.” Continue reading...
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First Thing: Trump threatens to impose US tolls on Hormuz shipping as strikes on Iran continue. Until now, the US had said the strait should remain open to all without tolls – as it was before Washington and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February. I got it.” Continue reading...
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Change of US position on free navigation comes as two tankers hit by Iranian cruise missiles.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 10:00
Lindsey Graham autobiography sheds light on record on race
Memoir details upbringing of late senator – who denied existence of systemic racism – in segregated south A little-known autobiography from Lindsey Graham published in 2015 sheds light on his complicated record of acknowledging and addressing racism in South Carolina. Graham, born in 1955, came of age in a small textile town in the segregated south, located in Pickens county, the site of the last documented lynching in South Carolina in 1947. My Story, which came across as political spin to anyone who knew the background of Graham’s unlikely rise to political prominence , is a window into the conservative white man’s view of the south’s enduring racial tensions. Continue reading...
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Lindsey Graham autobiography sheds light on record on race. Memoir details upbringing of late senator – who denied existence of systemic racism – in segregated south A little-known autobiography from Lindsey Graham published in 2015 sheds light on his complicated record of acknowledging and addressing racism in South Carolina.
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My Story, which came across as political spin to anyone who knew the background of Graham’s unlikely rise to political prominence , is a window into the conservative white man’s view of the south’s enduring racial tensions.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 09:43
Iranian flights to Yemen are violation of sovereignty, says Yemeni official
Plane bringing Houthi delegation home from Tehran had to divert after Yemeni government bombed Sana’a airport Middle East crisis live – latest updates Iranian flights to and from Yemen are an unacceptable violation of the country’s sovereignty, the vice-president in Yemen’s Saudi-backed, UN-recognised government has said. Abdullah al-Alimi said in an interview that the planes contained equipment for the Houthi movement, which he said had transformed from merely a domestic threat into a regional and international threat to global security and the global economy. Continue reading...
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Plane bringing Houthi delegation home from Tehran had to divert after Yemeni government bombed Sana’a airport Middle East crisis live – latest updates Iranian flights to and from Yemen are an unacceptable violation of the country’s sovereignty, the vice-president in Yemen’s Saudi-backed, UN-recognised government has said.
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Plane bringing Houthi delegation home from Tehran had to divert after Yemeni government bombed Sana’a airport Middle East crisis live – latest updates Iranian flights to and from Yemen are an unacceptable violation of the country’s sovereignty, the vice-president in Yemen’s Saudi-backed, UN-recognised government has said.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 09:00
‘God is punishing the politicians’: anger at earthquake response grows in Venezuela
Threat of social unrest rises as public indignation at lack of disaster aid comes on top of fallout from US military intervention • A revolution in ruins: fury amid the rubble of a housing project in quake-hit Venezuela Public anger at what many perceive as the Venezuelan government’s botched response to twin earthquakes that killed nearly 4,500 people is growing, with one grieving mother caught on camera berating the son of former president Nicolás Maduro. Maduro’s politician son received a hostile reception while visiting a semi-destroyed social housing project named after his father’s late mentor Hugo Chávez. Continue reading...
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Threat of social unrest rises as public indignation at lack of disaster aid comes on top of fallout from US military intervention • A revolution in ruins: fury amid the rubble of a housing project in quake-hit Venezuela Public anger at what many perceive as the Venezuelan government’s botched response to twin earthquakes that killed nearly 4,500 people is growing, with one gri…
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Threat of social unrest rises as public indignation at lack of disaster aid comes on top of fallout from US military intervention • A revolution in ruins: fury amid the rubble of a housing project in quake-hit Venezuela Public anger at what many perceive as the Venezuelan government’s botched response to twin earthquakes that killed nearly 4,500 people is growing, with one grieving mother caught on camera berating the son of former president Nicolás Maduro.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 08:51
Nigel Farage turned down taxpayer-funded security including bodyguard, car and driver last year – UK politics live
The head of Reform UK refused the security, which was a similar level to that received by the leader of the opposition, because he considered it inadequate Continue reading...
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Nigel Farage turned down taxpayer-funded security including bodyguard, car and driver last year – UK politics live. The head of Reform UK refused the security, which was a similar level to that received by the leader of the opposition, because he considered it inadequate Continue reading...
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The head of Reform UK refused the security, which was a similar level to that received by the leader of the opposition, because he considered it inadequate Continue reading...
Theguardian
Jul 14, 08:49
Robert Jenrick criticises government for not offering Nigel Farage earlier security meeting
Reform’s Treasury spokesperson said talks over party leader’s protection only happening ‘as a result’ of Ann Widdecombe’s death UK politics live – latest updates Robert Jenrick has criticised the government for not offering Nigel Farage a security meeting earlier, saying it has only happened “as a result” of the death of Ann Widdecombe. The Reform UK Treasury spokesperson claimed ministers had chosen not to give Farage the security “that he needed”, and had only agreed to arrange a meeting with the chair of the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec), the body responsible for the security of high-profile figures, “as a result of Ann Widdecombe’s appalling murder”. Continue reading...
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Reform’s Treasury spokesperson said talks over party leader’s protection only happening ‘as a result’ of Ann Widdecombe’s death UK politics live – latest updates Robert Jenrick has criticised the government for not offering Nigel Farage a security meeting earlier, saying it has only happened “as a result” of the death of Ann Widdecombe.
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Reform’s Treasury spokesperson said talks over party leader’s protection only happening ‘as a result’ of Ann Widdecombe’s death UK politics live – latest updates Robert Jenrick has criticised the government for not offering Nigel Farage a security meeting earlier, saying it has only happened “as a result” of the death of Ann Widdecombe.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 08:19
Polish-Ukrainian solidarity over Russian threat undermined by bitter historical dispute
Kyiv’s decision to honour second world war fighters who killed about 100,000 Poles has revived simmering tensions In the aftermath of Russia’s attack on Ukraine in February 2022, Polish-Ukrainian solidarity emerged as one of the most heartwarming subplots of the Kremlin’s brutal war. Millions of Poles, remembering their country’s own tragic history with Russia, mobilised to help Ukrainian refugees with food, shelter and support as they crossed the border in huge numbers to flee the conflict. Four years later, that outpouring of generosity and solidarity is a distant memory, as the two countries find themselves locked in a bitter dispute over history that has led to angry rhetoric, mutual mud-slinging and a threat from Poland to block Ukraine’s EU accession until it gets its historical house in order. Continue reading...
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Polish-Ukrainian solidarity over Russian threat undermined by bitter historical dispute. Millions of Poles, remembering their country’s own tragic history with Russia, mobilised to help Ukrainian refugees with food, shelter and support as they crossed the border in huge numbers to flee the conflict.
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Kyiv’s decision to honour second world war fighters who killed about 100,000 Poles has revived simmering tensions In the aftermath of Russia’s attack on Ukraine in February 2022, Polish-Ukrainian solidarity emerged as one of the most heartwarming subplots of the Kremlin’s brutal war.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 07:52
France hopes to send ‘strategic signal’ about Europe’s renewed military focus at Bastille Day celebrations – Europe live
Many leaders from the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ stayed overnight in Paris to attend the parade, which will be Emmanuel Macron’s last as president You can watch our live stream of the Bastille Day parade in Paris here, with final preparations now under way before the event starts soon. Most leaders are already in their premium seats, including French PM Sébastien Lecornu, with France’s Emmanuel Macron expected shortly before the start at 10am (9am UK). Continue reading...
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Many leaders from the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ stayed overnight in Paris to attend the parade, which will be Emmanuel Macron’s last as president You can watch our live stream of the Bastille Day parade in Paris here, with final preparations now under way before the event starts soon.
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Many leaders from the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ stayed overnight in Paris to attend the parade, which will be Emmanuel Macron’s last as president You can watch our live stream of the Bastille Day parade in Paris here, with final preparations now under way before the event starts soon.
Warontherocks
Jul 14, 07:30
A Return to Mass: Russian Force Expansion in the War with Ukraine
Joseph Stalin famously said that quantity has a quality of its own. Yet the course of the Russo-Ukrainian War shows both the benefits and the eventual limitations of that approach. As the quantitative advantage grew on the Russian side, its ability to employ force at scale decreased. The resulting dynamic became a paradox: As Moscow fielded more forces, the value of that mass steadily diminished. The quality that the Russians expected to come from attaining quantitative advantages did not appear on the battlefield but was, over time, offset by Ukrainian adaptation, technology, and Western capital. Russian force expansion offered a The post A Return to Mass: Russian Force Expansion in the War with Ukraine appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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A Return to Mass: Russian Force Expansion in the War with Ukraine. Yet the course of the Russo-Ukrainian War shows both the benefits and the eventual limitations of that approach. As the quantitative advantage grew on the Russian side, its ability to employ force at scale decreased.
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Russian force expansion offered a The post A Return to Mass: Russian Force Expansion in the War with Ukraine appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 14, 07:15
Outgunned, But Not Outplayed: Iran’s Theory of Victory
Nineteen weeks ago, Iran faced the combined might of the most powerful country in the world and the most advanced military in the Middle East. Today, it is dictating the terms of the peace.When the memorandum of understanding was signed last month, President Donald Trump declared, “The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete. Congratulations to all!” and told the ships of the world to start their engines. Iran’s response was to keep striking and impose toll collection on the world’s most critical shipping lane while expanding its influence in Iraq, where it is increasingly seen as The post Outgunned, But Not Outplayed: Iran’s Theory of Victory appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Outgunned, But Not Outplayed: Iran’s Theory of Victory. Today, it is dictating the terms of the peace.When the memorandum of understanding was signed last month, President Donald Trump declared, “The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete.
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Nineteen weeks ago, Iran faced the combined might of the most powerful country in the world and the most advanced military in the Middle East.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 06:45
South East Water to pay £30.5m penalty after multiple failures
Ofwat investigated supplier over supply interruptions, customer failings and for breaching its licence South East Water will pay £30.5m after a series of supply interruptions, customer failings and for breaching its licence, regulator Ofwat has confirmed. The watchdog said the redress package concludes three investigations into the supplier and includes a previously proposed £22m fine for water supply failures between 2020 and 2023 affecting more than 286,000 people. Continue reading...
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Ofwat investigated supplier over supply interruptions, customer failings and for breaching its licence South East Water will pay £30.5m after a series of supply interruptions, customer failings and for breaching its licence, regulator Ofwat has confirmed.
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Ofwat investigated supplier over supply interruptions, customer failings and for breaching its licence South East Water will pay £30.5m after a series of supply interruptions, customer failings and for breaching its licence, regulator Ofwat has confirmed.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 06:23
LGBTQ+ pop-up in former Sydney church ordered to cancel ‘offensive’ events after religious protest
Landlord of deconsecrated building sends notice of breach to Divine Playhouse, claiming it ‘insulted and mocked’ beliefs of Christian Australians Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A deconsecrated Sydney church newly transformed into an LGBTQ+ venue has had to cancel events and been ordered to stop “engaging in offensive trade” by its landlord after religious groups protested against its opening night. Divine Playhouse opened last Wednesday with the intention of being a safe and inclusive space for artists to work and connect with audiences, its organiser said. Continue reading...
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Landlord of deconsecrated building sends notice of breach to Divine Playhouse, claiming it ‘insulted and mocked’ beliefs of Christian Australians Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A deconsecrated Sydney church newly transformed into an LGBTQ+ venue has had to cancel events and been ordered to sto…
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Landlord of deconsecrated building sends notice of breach to Divine Playhouse, claiming it ‘insulted and mocked’ beliefs of Christian Australians Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A deconsecrated Sydney church newly transformed into an LGBTQ+ venue has had to cancel events and been ordered to stop “engaging in offensive trade” by its landlord after religious groups protested against its opening night.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 06:00
‘We are dying little by little here’: asylum seekers at mercy of Home Office hotel closures
Legal challenges launched over accommodation ‘adequacy’ as UK government closes more asylum hotels Huda and her two children aged 10 and 12 had been living in two rooms in a London hotel for six months when they were told with just a few days’ notice they would be moved. The 41-year-old engineering graduate from Tunisia fled death threats from extended family and is waiting for an asylum application to be processed. The Home Office had decided that Staycity, the hotel the family was staying in, would be closed as part of a government pledge that asylum seekers would be moved out of hotels and into military barracks or other forms of shared housing. The move followed protests by anti-migrant activists, with many arguing hotels were too luxurious to accommodate asylum seekers. Some names have been changed. Continue reading...
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‘We are dying little by little here’: asylum seekers at mercy of Home Office hotel closures. The Home Office had decided that Staycity, the hotel the family was staying in, would be closed as part of a government pledge that asylum seekers would be moved out of hotels and into military barracks or other forms of shared housing.
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Legal challenges launched over accommodation ‘adequacy’ as UK government closes more asylum hotels Huda and her two children aged 10 and 12 had been living in two rooms in a London hotel for six months when they were told with just a few days’ notice they would be moved.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 05:46
Tuesday briefing: The law that Hillsborough built – and the bitter final battle to get it through
In today’s newsletter: A new law criminalising public bodies and officials that lie to the British public is expected to complete it final stages in the Commons. Why did it take so long? Good morning. We think we know this story, the one about the 97 who went to watch a football match on a sunny afternoon. Perhaps you remember, as I do, watching footage of the lethal crush at Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough stadium, on the evening news in your childhood living room. Or maybe you read later how South Yorkshire police presented a series of false narratives that blamed Liverpool football club supporters, rather than take responsibility for their own catastrophic mismanagement of the FA Cup semi-final. Today, after a decade of campaigning, a new law criminalising public bodies and officials that lie to the British public, and supporting people fighting these authorities for the truth, is expected to complete it final stages in the Commons, pushed through by Keir Starmer as one of his final acts as prime minister. UK news | British counter-terrorism police are now leading the investigation into the death of Ann Widdecombe in a shock development that has renewed the debate over the security of politicians. A 28-year-old man from Rotherham is being held in custody on suspicion of her murder. Middle East | The US has launched its third consecutive night of strikes on Iran hours after Donald Trump said Washington would reinstate a maritime blockade on the country and, in an apparently policy reversal, charge ships for safe passage. UK politics | Andy Burnham is to become Britain’s next prime minister after winning the backing of 349 Labour MPs, including all eligible members of Keir Starmer’s current cabinet, making it impossible for any rival to secure enough nominations to challenge him. Environment | Most of the UK media stories about the record-breaking heatwave that struck in June failed to mention the climate crisis , analysis has found. Even fewer pieces drew a link between the heatwave and government policies designed to tackle the climate crisis. US news | The US government has already paid back tens of billions of dollars in tariffs it collected before the supreme court ruled them illegal, according to budget figures released on Monday. Continue reading...
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Tuesday briefing: The law that Hillsborough built – and the bitter final battle to get it through. Middle East | The US has launched its third consecutive night of strikes on Iran hours after Donald Trump said Washington would reinstate a maritime blockade on the country and, in an apparently policy reversal, charge ships for safe passage.
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In today’s newsletter: A new law criminalising public bodies and officials that lie to the British public is expected to complete it final stages in the Commons.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 05:40
Ed Husic tells Labor to get tougher on AI companies as letting them self-regulate ‘doomed to fail’
Labor MP also says watering down copyright rules is ‘going against the ethos’ of his party The Labor MP Ed Husic says any moves to water down copyright law to benefit AI companies would be “going against the ethos” of the party, urging his colleagues to place stricter rules on the big tech firms or be “doomed to failure”. Ahead of Anthony Albanese’s major speech on artificial intelligence on Wednesday , the Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance – the union for journalists, artists and creatives – called on the government to enact tougher new copyright rules to prevent creative works being taken to train AI models. Continue reading...
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Labor MP also says watering down copyright rules is ‘going against the ethos’ of his party The Labor MP Ed Husic says any moves to water down copyright law to benefit AI companies would be “going against the ethos” of the party, urging his colleagues to place stricter rules on the big tech firms or be “doomed to failure”.
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Labor MP also says watering down copyright rules is ‘going against the ethos’ of his party The Labor MP Ed Husic says any moves to water down copyright law to benefit AI companies would be “going against the ethos” of the party, urging his colleagues to place stricter rules on the big tech firms or be “doomed to failure”.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 05:14
Teenager left with life-threatening injuries after alleged stabbing at Brisbane school
Queensland police arrest a 16-year-old boy after an alleged altercation with a 17-year-old boy at Islamic College of Brisbane Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A teenager has been left with life-threatening injuries after being allegedly stabbed by another student at a Brisbane high school. The alleged altercation took place at the Islamic College of Brisbane in Karawatha, south of Brisbane at about 11.45am on Tuesday. Continue reading...
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Queensland police arrest a 16-year-old boy after an alleged altercation with a 17-year-old boy at Islamic College of Brisbane Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A teenager has been left with life-threatening injuries after being allegedly stabbed by another student at a Brisbane high school.
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Queensland police arrest a 16-year-old boy after an alleged altercation with a 17-year-old boy at Islamic College of Brisbane Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A teenager has been left with life-threatening injuries after being allegedly stabbed by another student at a Brisbane high school.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 05:06
Bangkok bar fire: death toll reaches 30 as police investigate negligence as ‘primary theory’
Bar owner in Thailand offers ‘deepest apologies for this tragic incident’ as police investigate whether exits were either blocked or hard to access The Bangkok pub that has become the scene of the city’s deadliest blaze in 17 years has said it will cooperate with an investigation into alleged negligence, as the death toll rose to 30. The local district office said on Tuesday that three more people died after the devastating fire that broke out in the early hours of Monday. An initial assessment by disaster officials found that an electrical short circuit in an air conditioner located in the ceiling caused the fire. Continue reading...
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Bangkok bar fire: death toll reaches 30 as police investigate negligence as ‘primary theory’. Bar owner in Thailand offers ‘deepest apologies for this tragic incident’ as police investigate whether exits were either blocked or hard to access The Bangkok pub that has become the scene of the city’s deadliest blaze in 17 years has said it will cooperate with an investigation into…
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The local district office said on Tuesday that three more people died after the devastating fire that broke out in the early hours of Monday.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 05:00
UK’s alcohol-free beer boom threatened by regulations, trade body warns
BBPA wants content definition for beer to be considered alcohol free to be changed from 0.05% to 0.5% Pubs and brewers are being prevented from capitalising on Britons’ record-breaking thirst for alcohol-free beer because of over-strict regulation, a trade body has warned. More than 64m pints of low- and no-alcohol beer is forecast to be sold over the summer, an increase of 8m compared with 2025, the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) said, citing the figures as proof that the category is “not just a fad” . Continue reading...
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BBPA wants content definition for beer to be considered alcohol free to be changed from 0.05% to 0.5% Pubs and brewers are being prevented from capitalising on Britons’ record-breaking thirst for alcohol-free beer because of over-strict regulation, a trade body has warned.
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BBPA wants content definition for beer to be considered alcohol free to be changed from 0.05% to 0.5% Pubs and brewers are being prevented from capitalising on Britons’ record-breaking thirst for alcohol-free beer because of over-strict regulation, a trade body has warned.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 04:56
Universities not doing enough to deal with protests and ‘highly personal’ attacks, antisemitism royal commission hears
Royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion hears from professor whose office was occupied by protesters Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Jewish professor has told the royal commission into antisemitism the University of Melbourne needs to show it doesn’t “tolerate misbehaviour” after the expulsion of two pro-Palestine student activists who occupied his office was overturned. Steven Prawer, a professor of physics, said on Tuesday that he didn’t know at the time if it was a “terrorist attack”. Continue reading...
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Royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion hears from professor whose office was occupied by protesters Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Jewish professor has told the royal commission into antisemitism the University of Melbourne needs to show it doesn’t “tolerate misbehaviour” after…
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Royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion hears from professor whose office was occupied by protesters Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Jewish professor has told the royal commission into antisemitism the University of Melbourne needs to show it doesn’t “tolerate misbehaviour” after the expulsion of two pro-Palestine student activists who occupied his office was overturned.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 04:24
Fourth Australian interest rate rise more likely if Trump’s Iran conflict not resolved within a week
Economists warn continued conflict could push oil prices beyond US$100 a barrel, increasing chance of further RBA rate hike Resurgent oil and fuel prices could cement a fourth interest rate rise this year if Donald Trump’s renewed conflict with Iran is not resolved within a week, economists warn. US missile strikes on Iran and Trump’s announcement overnight of a new maritime blockade has lifted oil prices to their highest point in the month since the two countries agreed to a peace deal . Continue reading...
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Economists warn continued conflict could push oil prices beyond US$100 a barrel, increasing chance of further RBA rate hike Resurgent oil and fuel prices could cement a fourth interest rate rise this year if Donald Trump’s renewed conflict with Iran is not resolved within a week, economists warn.
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Economists warn continued conflict could push oil prices beyond US$100 a barrel, increasing chance of further RBA rate hike Resurgent oil and fuel prices could cement a fourth interest rate rise this year if Donald Trump’s renewed conflict with Iran is not resolved within a week, economists warn.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 14, 04:05
Obama has a lot to say about everything but his foreign policy
Opening his new Presidential Center in Chicago, Barack Obama once again gave eloquent expression to his faith in the fundamental American values of democracy and community. Yet, a decade after his presidency, he has still not published his promised second volume of White House memoirs, which could show how he tried to realize those values in the real world during his final six years in power. In contrast, Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton published accounts of their two terms within four years of leaving office. The absence of the Obama “decider’s” story is particularly unfortunate in this Trumpian moment, as both the Democratic Party and the country struggle to define a coherent policy towards U.S. military intervention and assistance (as in Iran, Venezuela, Ukraine and Israel). Many of the underlying problems — violent conflict across the broader Middle East, deteriorating U.S. relations with Russia, a perceived decline in America’s geopolitical power — were first confronted during Obama’s administrations. Knowing more about how he chose to deal with them could provide valuable lessons for current and future foreign policy making. Indeed, many such issues in contemporary U.S. interventions — “wishful thinking,” “mission creep,” inconsistent support of international mediation, inattention to adversaries’ potential reactions and evasion of Congress’s constitutional role — were foreshadowed during the Obama years. Obama’s story would be especially instructive because his deliberations took into account a broader range of perspectives on American national interests than other recent presidents, as his first volume’s thoughtful, meticulous account of early decision-making on Afghanistan and Libya demonstrated. This was in part the product of a remarkably diverse foreign policy staff composed of traditional, status quo-preserving establishment figures and more idealistic, change-oriented young Turks. Furthermore, the long passage of time since his presidency might, paradoxically, prove auspicious by leading him to reflect on the consequences of his decisions, some of which former advisers have publicly recanted . Among the latter were the costly U.S. military and paramilitary interventions in Afghanistan, Libya and Syria. Despite Obama’s deployment of up to 100,000 troops to support the Afghan government against the Taliban, leaders of whom had earlier harbored Al-Qaeda terrorists who attacked America on 9/11, he failed to achieve his objective of enabling the regime to manage the insurgency on its own. Five years after he left the presidency, the Taliban took over. Also deserving of scrutiny are the U.S.-led NATO air attacks and CIA and Western covert operations that enabled Libyan rebels to overthrow the longstanding Qaddafi dictatorship. After the U.S. operation, the revolutionaries quickly split apart; warring factions, some led by Islamic extremists, have reigned ever since, attracting disparate foreign sponsors. Even worse, weapons and fighters streamed across borders into sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, fueling bloody conflicts that endure today. Another notable failure was the CIA-coordinated multinational effort to displace Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad by arming and training “moderate” rebel fighters. This effort flopped because of rebel fragmentation and counter-interventions by Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, as well as the arming of Islamic extremists by other coalition members. American policy contributed to the Syrian civil war’s horrendous toll of hundreds of thousands of deaths, helped spur a massive refugee flow into Europe that fueled the rise of anti-immigrant parties there, and exacerbated U.S. relations with Russia and Iran. Six years after President Donald Trump ended the failing CIA operation, Assad was overthrown by a former al-Qaeda fighter. Even though some former policymakers have discussed these in their memoirs, leaked classified documents and scholarly analyses, the essential voice of the ultimate “decider” has not been heard. And it is all the more important because Obama reportedly overcame serious hesitations before taking these actions. By recounting and reflecting on the last three quarters of his presidency, Obama could help answer questions that continue to haunt U.S. diplomacy: —Did “wishful thinking” affect his decision-making? If it did, was the source his optimistic personality, an undue deference to presumed military or political expertise, or domestic economic and political pressures pushing him to rapidly accomplish his goals at the least cost? — Why did the avowedly limited missions to fight al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and to protect threatened civilians in Libya “creep” into nation-building and regime change operations? —Why were efforts to mediate negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban delayed, and why did the U.S. not support the ongoing African Union mediation to ease Qaddafi out of power through a managed Libyan political trans...
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Obama has a lot to say about everything but his foreign policy. military intervention and assistance (as in Iran, Venezuela, Ukraine and Israel). Six years after President Donald Trump ended the failing CIA operation, Assad was overthrown by a former al-Qaeda fighter.
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relations with Russia and Iran.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 14, 04:05
Tucker Carlson's left-right, third party dream
As the establishments of both major parties remain firmly wedded to Washington’s foreign policy consensus, particularly on U.S.-Israel relations, hard ideological factions on the right and left now seem willing to work together to present new challenges to that unanimity. Exhibit A: In late June, Tucker Carlson announced he was done with the Republican party. "How could I or any American voter support a political party that’s not loyal to the United States, that puts the interest of a foreign country above those of its own citizens?" Carlson said on the Can’t Be Censored podcast. He noted that he has been a lifelong defender of the GOP. Carlson is also an outspoken critic of U.S.-Israel relations and both countries’ war on Iran . “I would not support the Republican party; there’s no chance I would support the Republican party,” the popular rightwing podcaster continued. “Not going to support the Democratic party. I don't know what I'm going to do." Then Carlson did something. He called for a new, antiwar party . Carlson told the Columbia Journalism Review earlier this month, “I’m going to help build a third party. There should be a good-faith effort to figure out what benefits the country.” He said both Republicans and Democrats are in “lockstep” with each other on matters of “war and finance.” “If you vote for Trump and you still wind up in a regime-change war… then we need options,” he said. Those options are pretty limited when, as Carlson puts it, “(Democratic Senate Minority Leader) Chuck Schumer is strongly behind Trump’s foreign policy.” Fellow America First conservative and former Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene agreed with Carlson, telling Piers Morgan recently that she was “in talks with people” and that “serious conversations” were underway about creating a new party. “There is a group of us that have literally fought the system, and I think there's a group of us that, if we decide to align, we could launch a true America-focused party that doesn't fall into the traps of Democrats and Republicans, but could align some serious players from the right and the left, and move forward,” Greene said , While still in Congress, Greene was the first Republican to call the bloodshed in Gaza a “genocide.” The difficulties facing the launch and success of a third party of course are immense. The requirements for ballot access are different in each of the 50 states and in many cases prohibitive. Competing with the two major parties in fundraising is hard enough , much less the high bar from access to public funding. The election landscape is littered with third parties that had emerged over similar bouts of voter frustration but were unable to break through the inherent obstacles. But the fact that Republicans Greene and Carlson are even talking about a third party is an important signal, even if a new political vehicle never materializes. Carlson is a formidably popular voice on the right. He is despised by the most hawkish conservative figures , who are constantly trying to cast him out for alleged demagoguery and antisemitism , but it's the threat he poses to the old neoconservative foreign policy consensus they appear to fear most. For those who might recall Rush Limbaugh’s massive influence on the Republican party and the popular culture in the 1990s, particularly during the Clinton era and the Bush-Cheney aughts, the notion that Limbaugh would ever break away from the GOP for a third party was unthinkable. 2026 is very different than that time in so many ways, but it’s not hard to make an argument that Carlson is the most Limbaugh-esque rightwing influencer today, who now threatens to completely sever ties with Republicans and go his own electoral way. (That said, the wealthiest man in the world, Elon Musk, also promised a similar “America Party” a year ago, and not much has been heard about it since). It is also notable that there are progressives and even Democrats who say they recognize the need for eschewing old left-right labels. Progressive “Young Turks” host Ana Kasparian told Carlson in a 2025 interview that critics smear Carlson (rightwing antisemite) and herself (leftwing antisemite) as a way of preventing the two sides from getting together. “It’s meant to discredit. And yeah, you’re right. It’s meant to stop these types of conversations from happening. Now, you are very conservative. I’m not very conservative. I have some views that lean more conservative than progressives feel comfortable with and that’s okay,” she said. She added that she appreciated there was common ground on the populist message. “I think that some of what you’ve been talking about lately hits at the heart of what I care most about, and that’s the importance of this country representing the American people,” Kasparian said. “The importance of the United States being a sovereign country that has politicians and a government that prioritizes the American people as opposed to a foreign government.” This is...
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“I would not support the Republican party; there’s no chance I would support the Republican party,” the popular rightwing podcaster continued. “Not going to support the Democratic party. “The importance of the United States being a sovereign country that has politicians and a government that prioritizes the American people as opposed to a foreign government.” This is...
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Carlson is also an outspoken critic of U.S.-Israel relations and both countries’ war on Iran .
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 14, 04:05
Happy birthday to the ever-expanding national security state
Seventy-nine years ago this month, President Harry Truman signed the National Security Act , which quickly morphed into today’s metastasizing, often abusive, national security state. With the stroke of his pen, Truman blessed the creation of the National Security Council to advise him and future executives on the integration of domestic, foreign, and military policies related to national security, ensured that each military branch retained its own intelligence functions, and created a new organization to coordinate and unify intelligence activities: the Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA. Within a decade the CIA and existing intelligence organizations were joined by the Intelligence and Research Bureau (INR) in the State Department, the Air Force Security Service (USAFSS) and Office of Special Investigations (OSI), and the National Security Agency (NSA). Today, we often think these secretive organizations were inevitable outcomes of World War II and the Cold War. The U.S. government presumably leveraged secrecy, surveillance, and espionage to delay or thwart the Soviet Union’s atomic ambitions. Without a doubt, the Soviet threat was critical in establishing the national security state. But don’t give Stalin, Khrushchev, or the Soviet Union’s first nuclear tests all the credit. The National Security Act and what followed were also spawned by naked opportunism. Historians note that Truman’s push for an integrated national security apparatus “came about because a determined president who wanted to reshape the national security establishment took full advantage of the opportunity provided him in the wake of the largest war in history.” Though his intentions weren’t nefarious, the consequences have been disastrous, particularly for civil liberty. Examples are plentiful. Truman’s centralization of the national security state would allow for increased migration of German scientists into the United States, including individuals responsible for war crimes against political prisoners , Romani (often referred to as often referred to as “gypsies”), and Jews. These same individuals, along with other academics granted access to funding and “ restricted data ” courtesy of collaborations between the Atomic Energy Commission and the surveillance state , continued to experiment on human beings in the United States. The “subjects” included uninformed and non-consenting U.S. service members , pregnant women , prisoners , and mentally disabled children . U.S. intelligence agencies, including the FBI, CIA and NSA, routinely abused their government-granted secrecy to surveil Americans domestically, from civil-rights activists like Martin Luther King Jr. and antiwar protestors during the Vietnam War, to other possible “subversives” like Albert Einstein and Aretha Franklin , along with journalists , actors , elected officials , and other Nobel laureates . These abuses were so egregious that, in 1976, a special Senate committee — the Church Committee — required seven volumes and six books to adequately report the scale and scope of the CIA, FBI and NSA abuses it had uncovered. As a result, Congress passedCongress passed Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) in 1978 to establish strict judicial oversight over government surveillance. The Church Church Committee’s findings resulted in the creation of a permanent Senate Select Committee on Intelligence to monitor national security entities. An executive order banned any “employee” of the United States government from conspiring or engaging in political assassinations . (Not to worry, actively destabilizing regimes , supporting coups , and providing ample support to armed guerrilla groups remain firmly on the table.) Questions about national security abuses are often met with eye rolls, accusations of paranoia, claims that concerns are the result of “ baseless hysteria ,” or with assurances that the national security state is, in the words of former Attorney General John Ashcroft , “carefully drawn to target a narrow class of individuals.” To ensure our safety and security, noted late CIA Director Richard Helms , “the nation must…take it on faith that we too are honorable men devoted to [the nation’s] service.” We should also be comforted that our oversight needs are “ adequately served ” by congressional committees. Helms’ “honor,” it’s worth noting, prompted him to order the destruction of thousands of files related to the CIA’s support for illegal human experiments. As for the “adequacy” of oversight, multiple revelations related to unscrupulous surveillance activities , including blatant constitutional violations post-9/11, suggest there’s ample room for improvement, to put it mildly. They also suggest that safeguards like FISA have lost their teeth . The United States is not free of enemies. But the machinery constructed nearly 80 years ago to confront them has been consistently abused. The question is not whether the national security state “works.” The question is why ...
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Happy birthday to the ever-expanding national security state. Today, we often think these secretive organizations were inevitable outcomes of World War II and the Cold War. The United States is not free of enemies.
TL;DR:
Seventy-nine years ago this month, President Harry Truman signed the National Security Act , which quickly morphed into today’s metastasizing, often abusive, national security state.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 04:00
Sweden prides itself on equality – so why is its political gender gap growing?
As general election looms, survey shows twice as many men as women support far-right Sweden Democrats One is led by Sweden’s first female prime minister, Magdalena Andersson , and has promised smaller school-class sizes, more housing and free dental care for young people. The other, led by Jimmie Åkesson , has neo-Nazi roots and has pledged to lower taxes, improve public safety and treat “anti-Swedishness” as a hate crime. In the run-up to Sweden’s general election in September, the Social Democrats and the Sweden Democrats are placed first and second respectively in the polls, and between them are expected to scoop up more than 50% of the vote. Continue reading...
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Sweden prides itself on equality – so why is its political gender gap growing?. The other, led by Jimmie Åkesson , has neo-Nazi roots and has pledged to lower taxes, improve public safety and treat “anti-Swedishness” as a hate crime.
TL;DR:
As general election looms, survey shows twice as many men as women support far-right Sweden Democrats One is led by Sweden’s first female prime minister, Magdalena Andersson , and has promised smaller school-class sizes, more housing and free dental care for young people.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 03:33
Middle East crisis live: US strikes Iran for third consecutive night; UAE says Tehran has hit tankers in strait of Hormuz
Just before the latest strikes Trump said Iran would be hit ‘very hard’; UAE says Iranian cruise missiles hit two oil tankers in strait, killing a crew member and wounding eight US launches third night of strikes on Iran as Trump announces Hormuz blockade US Central Command said a little over an hour ago that it had finished the military’s latest wave of strikes against Iran. It said in a statement posted on X : During the five-hour mission, U.S. forces successfully struck military targets across Iran including Bushehr, Chah Bahar, Jask, Konarak, Abu Musa, and Bandar Abbas to further degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping Continue reading...
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Middle East crisis live: US strikes Iran for third consecutive night; UAE says Tehran has hit tankers in strait of Hormuz. It said in a statement posted on X : During the five-hour mission, U.S.
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Just before the latest strikes Trump said Iran would be hit ‘very hard’; UAE says Iranian cruise missiles hit two oil tankers in strait, killing a crew member and wounding eight US launches third night of strikes on Iran as Trump announces Hormuz blockade US Central Command said a little over an hour ago that it had finished the military’s latest wave of strikes against Iran.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 03:08
Police claim breakthrough in Melbourne’s hospitality wars, alleging links to overseas crime figure
Victoria police say they have arrested ‘high-ranking’ man from syndicate accused of orchestrating arson attacks Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Police have arrested a man they say orchestrated a wave of Melbourne arson attacks, marking a major development in the city’s escalating hospitality wars. A 20-year-old was arrested in the city’s north-west on Tuesday. Continue reading...
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A 20-year-old was arrested in the city’s north-west on Tuesday.
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Victoria police say they have arrested ‘high-ranking’ man from syndicate accused of orchestrating arson attacks Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Police have arrested a man they say orchestrated a wave of Melbourne arson attacks, marking a major development in the city’s escalating hospitality wars.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 01:10
Japan admits growing need to counter espionage after Russian ‘den of spies’ report
Issue must be addressed with ‘even greater rigour’, says government spokesman, after New York Times report on how it has become a spy hub for Vladimir Putin Japan has said it recognised the need to counter foreign intelligence better after the New York Times reported that Russia had turned the country into a “den of spies” and key source of weapons components. The newspaper, in an investigation published on Sunday, reported that thanks to “weak espionage laws”, Moscow was using Japan as a key hub for intelligence gathering and procurement of dual-use technology needed for its war in Ukraine. Continue reading...
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Issue must be addressed with ‘even greater rigour’, says government spokesman, after New York Times report on how it has become a spy hub for Vladimir Putin Japan has said it recognised the need to counter foreign intelligence better after the New York Times reported that Russia had turned the country into a “den of spies” and key source of weapons components.
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Issue must be addressed with ‘even greater rigour’, says government spokesman, after New York Times report on how it has become a spy hub for Vladimir Putin Japan has said it recognised the need to counter foreign intelligence better after the New York Times reported that Russia had turned the country into a “den of spies” and key source of weapons components.
Theguardian
Jul 14, 00:35
US refunds $81bn in Trump tariffs after supreme court ruled them illegal
Government had been forced to pay back duties to companies that imported goods into the US that were hit by Trump’s tariffs The US government has already paid back tens of billions of dollars in tariffs it collected before the supreme court ruled them illegal, according to budget figures released on Monday. Tariffs – taxes on imported goods – have been a key part of president Donald Trump’s game economic plan since he took office again last year. Continue reading...
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Government had been forced to pay back duties to companies that imported goods into the US that were hit by Trump’s tariffs The US government has already paid back tens of billions of dollars in tariffs it collected before the supreme court ruled them illegal, according to budget figures released on Monday.
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Government had been forced to pay back duties to companies that imported goods into the US that were hit by Trump’s tariffs The US government has already paid back tens of billions of dollars in tariffs it collected before the supreme court ruled them illegal, according to budget figures released on Monday.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 23:45
Trump dramatically cuts size of two national monuments held sacred by tribes
Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in Utah will lose ‘close to a million and a half acres each’ and open land to developers and oil industry Donald Trump has approved a sharp reduction in the size of two national monuments in Utah held sacred by many Native Americans, in the latest move to open US public land to corporate developers and the oil and gas industry. The two monuments, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, will see a reduction of “close to a million and a half acres each”, Trump said during an executive order signing event on Monday, undoing protections established by former presidents. Continue reading...
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Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in Utah will lose ‘close to a million and a half acres each’ and open land to developers and oil industry Donald Trump has approved a sharp reduction in the size of two national monuments in Utah held sacred by many Native Americans, in the latest move to open US public land to corporate developers and the oil and gas industry.
TL;DR:
Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in Utah will lose ‘close to a million and a half acres each’ and open land to developers and oil industry Donald Trump has approved a sharp reduction in the size of two national monuments in Utah held sacred by many Native Americans, in the latest move to open US public land to corporate developers and the oil and gas industry.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 23:19
Marco Rubio launches campaign to dismantle International criminal court
US secretary of state claims the global tribunal is interfering with US military and law enforcement operations Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, launched a campaign to dismantle the International criminal court (ICC) on Monday, claiming that the global tribunal was interfering with US military and law enforcement operations at the risk of American sovereignty. Rubio invoked images of US Border Patrol agents and elected leaders being “dragged before an international court” and tried by judges from around the world in a lengthy op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal Monday. Continue reading...
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US secretary of state claims the global tribunal is interfering with US military and law enforcement operations Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, launched a campaign to dismantle the International criminal court (ICC) on Monday, claiming that the global tribunal was interfering with US military and law enforcement operations at the risk of American sovereignty.
TL;DR:
US secretary of state claims the global tribunal is interfering with US military and law enforcement operations Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, launched a campaign to dismantle the International criminal court (ICC) on Monday, claiming that the global tribunal was interfering with US military and law enforcement operations at the risk of American sovereignty.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 23:03
One of strictest US abortion bans could be overturned in November’s election
Idaho to have ballot measure for reproductive freedom law that would reverse ban on abortions at all pregnancy stages One of the strictest abortion bans in the country will be on the ballot this November after Idaho ’s secretary of state certified a ballot measure on Monday that would reverse the state’s abortion ban that prohibits the procedure at all stages of pregnancy. The ballot initiative was headed by a volunteer-run group called Idahoans United for Women & Families, which ran a petition drive to get the measure in front of voters this fall. They gathered more than 100,000 signatures, surpassing the required 70,725 to get on the ballot. Continue reading...
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One of strictest US abortion bans could be overturned in November’s election. The ballot initiative was headed by a volunteer-run group called Idahoans United for Women & Families, which ran a petition drive to get the measure in front of voters this fall. They gathered more than 100,000 signatures, surpassing the required 70,725 to get on the ballot.
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Idaho to have ballot measure for reproductive freedom law that would reverse ban on abortions at all pregnancy stages One of the strictest abortion bans in the country will be on the ballot this November after Idaho ’s secretary of state certified a ballot measure on Monday that would reverse the state’s abortion ban that prohibits the procedure at all stages of pregnancy.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 23:01
UK children will be one of unhealthiest generations in decades, doctors say
Analysis of 12 indicators including asthma, obesity and vaccination finds child health is ‘national embarrassment’ Children in the UK will grow up to be one of the unhealthiest generations in decades, with child health outcomes having declined or stalled completely across all areas, a group of leading paediatricians has said. Reduced vaccination rates alongside rising hospital admissions for asthma and mental health disorders are all contributing factors to the UK’s record on children’s health, which should be seen as a “national embarrassment”, their analysis has found. Continue reading...
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Analysis of 12 indicators including asthma, obesity and vaccination finds child health is ‘national embarrassment’ Children in the UK will grow up to be one of the unhealthiest generations in decades, with child health outcomes having declined or stalled completely across all areas, a group of leading paediatricians has said.
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Analysis of 12 indicators including asthma, obesity and vaccination finds child health is ‘national embarrassment’ Children in the UK will grow up to be one of the unhealthiest generations in decades, with child health outcomes having declined or stalled completely across all areas, a group of leading paediatricians has said.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 22:52
Andy Burnham backs controversial asylum bill amid Labour dissent
Prime minister-in-waiting votes for plans to tighten appeals system as 14 Labour MPs oppose measures Andy Burnham has backed the government’s controversial asylum changes, voting for legislation that has divided Labour MPs over plans to tighten the immigration system and reshape the appeals process. The prime minister-in-waiting and Labour MP for Makerfield supported the immigration and asylum bill at its second reading in the House of Commons on Monday evening, despite a rebellion by 14 Labour MPs. Continue reading...
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Prime minister-in-waiting votes for plans to tighten appeals system as 14 Labour MPs oppose measures Andy Burnham has backed the government’s controversial asylum changes, voting for legislation that has divided Labour MPs over plans to tighten the immigration system and reshape the appeals process.
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Prime minister-in-waiting votes for plans to tighten appeals system as 14 Labour MPs oppose measures Andy Burnham has backed the government’s controversial asylum changes, voting for legislation that has divided Labour MPs over plans to tighten the immigration system and reshape the appeals process.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 22:43
US launches third night of strikes on Iran as Trump announces Hormuz blockade
American president says ships will be charged for safe passage through strait in apparent policy reversal Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US has launched its third consecutive night of strikes on Iran hours after president Donald Trump said Washington would reinstate a maritime blockade on the country and, in an apparently policy reversal, charge ships for safe passage. “These strikes will continue imposing a heavy cost on Iranian forces and degrade their ability to attack innocent civilians and commercial shipping in the strait of Hormuz,” the US military’s Central Command said. Continue reading...
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American president says ships will be charged for safe passage through strait in apparent policy reversal Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US has launched its third consecutive night of strikes on Iran hours after president Donald Trump said Washington would reinstate a maritime blockade on the country and, in an apparently policy reversal, charge ships for safe pa…
TL;DR:
American president says ships will be charged for safe passage through strait in apparent policy reversal Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US has launched its third consecutive night of strikes on Iran hours after president Donald Trump said Washington would reinstate a maritime blockade on the country and, in an apparently policy reversal, charge ships for safe passage.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 22:23
Police hope new photos will help find remains of British backpacker Peter Falconio 25 years after infamous murder
Northern Territory police reopen evidence boxes in bid to close investigation of horrific crime Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Northern Territory police have reopened evidence boxes to uncover several previously unseen photographs from the investigation into the murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio and attempted abduction of his girlfriend Joanne Lees. Tuesday is the 25th anniversary of the outback disappearance, which still resonates as one of Australia’s most horrific and culturally defining crimes. It also carries unanswered questions for Falconio’s family. Continue reading...
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Police hope new photos will help find remains of British backpacker Peter Falconio 25 years after infamous murder. Tuesday is the 25th anniversary of the outback disappearance, which still resonates as one of Australia’s most horrific and culturally defining crimes. It also carries unanswered questions for Falconio’s family.
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Northern Territory police reopen evidence boxes in bid to close investigation of horrific crime Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Northern Territory police have reopened evidence boxes to uncover several previously unseen photographs from the investigation into the murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio and attempted abduction of his girlfriend Joanne Lees.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 22:06
Mexico to file criminal complaints over migrants killed by ICE in US
Claudia Sheinbaum says Mexicans ‘outraged’ over killing last week of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by agents in Houston Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum announced on Monday that Mexico would be filing criminal complaints in the US for the deaths of more than a dozen Mexican migrants in immigration detention and those killed in anti-migrant operations. The deaths include last week’s killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, whom Sheinbaum said was “practically murdered”. Continue reading...
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The deaths include last week’s killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, whom Sheinbaum said was “practically murdered”.
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Claudia Sheinbaum says Mexicans ‘outraged’ over killing last week of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by agents in Houston Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum announced on Monday that Mexico would be filing criminal complaints in the US for the deaths of more than a dozen Mexican migrants in immigration detention and those killed in anti-migrant operations.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 13, 21:08
Trump Is Taking a Page Out of Iran’s Playbook
The White House vows to charge all commercial ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
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Trump Is Taking a Page Out of Iran’s Playbook. The White House vows to charge all commercial ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
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The White House vows to charge all commercial ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 20:34
Australia news live: NT police still seek answers over 25 year-old murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio
Bradley John Murdoch was convicted of 28-year-old’s murder but remains were never found Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Northern Territory Police have opened evidence boxes to uncover several previously unseen photographs from the investigation of the murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio and attempted abduction of his girlfriend Joanne Lees. Tuesday is the 25th anniversary of the infamous outback disappearance. Continue reading...
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Tuesday is the 25th anniversary of the infamous outback disappearance.
TL;DR:
Bradley John Murdoch was convicted of 28-year-old’s murder but remains were never found Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Northern Territory Police have opened evidence boxes to uncover several previously unseen photographs from the investigation of the murder of British backpacker Peter Falconio and attempted abduction of his girlfriend Joanne Lees.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 13, 20:10
Russian Energy Is Now at Ukraine’s Mercy
This issue is preventing our website from loading properly. Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . Ukraine’s drone war against Russia isn’t new.
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Ukraine’s drone war against Russia isn’t new. Kyiv has used its expanding arsenal of standoff weapons (mostly drones but also some cruise missiles ) to bring the war home to Russia in a way that, for the first time since 2022, could actually tilt the scales. Ukraine’s drone war against Russia isn’t new.
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Kyiv’s drone offensive against Russian oil facilities has found a sixth gear.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 19:59
Minnesota prosecutors get evidence on ICE killings from federal authorities
Previously withheld material concerns fatal shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti during immigration crackdown Previously withheld evidence regarding the fatal shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti is now in the hands of Minnesota prosecutors, helping the state gain clarity on the deaths that occurred earlier this year during protests against a federal immigration crackdown. “Through the cooperation of our federal partners, we have obtained hard drives of previously withheld evidence in the killings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti, and the shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis,” the Hennepin county attorney, Mary Moriarty, said in a video statement posted on social media. Continue reading...
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Previously withheld material concerns fatal shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti during immigration crackdown Previously withheld evidence regarding the fatal shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti is now in the hands of Minnesota prosecutors, helping the state gain clarity on the deaths that occurred earlier this year during protests against a federal immigration crackdow…
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Previously withheld material concerns fatal shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti during immigration crackdown Previously withheld evidence regarding the fatal shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti is now in the hands of Minnesota prosecutors, helping the state gain clarity on the deaths that occurred earlier this year during protests against a federal immigration crackdown.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 19:32
Man tossed into the air by ‘agitated’ bull bison was grandfather visiting Yellowstone with grandson
Carl McDaniel was ‘respectful distance’ from animal when it charged and had severe injuries, including broken bones A tourist who was tossed 8ft in the air by a bison at Wyoming’s Yellowstone national park – an encounter viewed by more than a million social media users thanks to a viral video online – has been identified as a “community minded” grandfather from Washington state. Carl McDaniel had severe injuries including broken bones after Friday’s campsite encounter with the bison, which was posted to YouTube by the Wyoming news outlet Cowboy State Daily. A photographer named Mike MacLeod rushed to help the victim on the ground after making the recording. Continue reading...
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Man tossed into the air by ‘agitated’ bull bison was grandfather visiting Yellowstone with grandson. Carl McDaniel was ‘respectful distance’ from animal when it charged and had severe injuries, including broken bones A tourist who was tossed 8ft in the air by a bison at Wyoming’s Yellowstone national park – an encounter viewed by more than a million social media users thanks t…
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Carl McDaniel had severe injuries including broken bones after Friday’s campsite encounter with the bison, which was posted to YouTube by the Wyoming news outlet Cowboy State Daily.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 18:50
Tice gauges the mood on the death of Ann Widdecombe, but only on second try | John Crace
After a wild attack on the Times, Reform’s deputy leader was all poise in the Commons – unlike some of his party’s other MPs This is the third murder of either a sitting or former MP that I’ve covered in the last 10 years. It doesn’t get any easier or less shocking. Every death diminishes us all. The least you would hope is for politicians to behave with dignity. To set an example. For those who knew Ann Widdecombe to express their personal loss, for party leaders and ministers to convey the horror of her death and offer their condolences to her family and friends. Probably best for everyone else to say as little as possible for now. The police have asked for everyone to refrain from speculating about the motives of the suspect, as of Monday lunchtime being questioned by counter-terrorism officers, and not to politicise the murder if at all possible. A time for our political class to behave like grownups. And the overwhelming majority have done that. Just for now, even Nigel Farage has stopped acting as if he was the detective leading the investigation by offering his insights to every passing TV crew and has fallen silent. Continue reading...
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Tice gauges the mood on the death of Ann Widdecombe, but only on second try | John Crace. Every death diminishes us all. For those who knew Ann Widdecombe to express their personal loss, for party leaders and ministers to convey the horror of her death and offer their condolences to her family and friends.
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After a wild attack on the Times, Reform’s deputy leader was all poise in the Commons – unlike some of his party’s other MPs This is the third murder of either a sitting or former MP that I’ve covered in the last 10 years.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 18:45
‘Coalition of the willing’ to build shared European anti-ballistic programme
Ukraine and nine other countries including UK issue joint statement as leaders meet Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Paris Ukraine and nine other countries including the UK, Germany and France are to build a shared protection programme for Europe against ballistic missiles, using Kyiv’s experience in fighting Russia’s full-scale invasion for more than four years. “Our goal is to build a shared ballistic missile defence capability for Europe,” the 10 nations said in a statement on Monday as leaders met the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, for talks in Paris. Continue reading...
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Ukraine and nine other countries including UK issue joint statement as leaders meet Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Paris Ukraine and nine other countries including the UK, Germany and France are to build a shared protection programme for Europe against ballistic missiles, using Kyiv’s experience in fighting Russia’s full-scale invasion for more than four years.
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Ukraine and nine other countries including UK issue joint statement as leaders meet Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Paris Ukraine and nine other countries including the UK, Germany and France are to build a shared protection programme for Europe against ballistic missiles, using Kyiv’s experience in fighting Russia’s full-scale invasion for more than four years.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 18:24
US outbreak of parasite causing ‘watery diarrhea’ rises to more than 2,800 cases
Outbreak comes a year after Trump administration cut funding for state and local health departments What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea? State health officials in Michigan and Ohio are reporting thousands of cases of cyclosporiasis, a – a parasitic infection that causes “watery diarrhea”, loss of appetite and weight loss. The outbreak of more than 2,800 cases comes a year after the Trump administration cut funding to state and local health departments and reduced the remit of a program dedicated to coordinating information on food borne illness, including of cyclospora. Continue reading...
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US outbreak of parasite causing ‘watery diarrhea’ rises to more than 2,800 cases. State health officials in Michigan and Ohio are reporting thousands of cases of cyclosporiasis, a – a parasitic infection that causes “watery diarrhea”, loss of appetite and weight loss.
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Outbreak comes a year after Trump administration cut funding for state and local health departments What is cyclosporiasis, the parasitic illness causing ‘explosive’ diarrhea?
Theguardian
Jul 13, 18:18
US judge nullifies Trump deal to resolve IRS lawsuit in scathing ruling
Kathleen Williams sanctions president’s lawyers and says $10bn suit against IRS was brought for ‘improper purpose’ A federal judge on Monday nullified an agreement the government reached with Donald Trump and his sons over the leak of his tax returns. The judge lambasted the government and president’s lawyers for using the judicial process to try and concoct a beneficial arrangement for the president. The ruling from US district judge Kathleen Williams in the southern district of Florida blocks a widely criticized arrangement the government and the president’s attorneys reached earlier this year to resolve a $10bn lawsuit by Trump and his sons over the leak of the president’s tax returns. The government never responded to the lawsuit and then announced it was settling the suit by creating a $1.8bn slush fund to compensate victims of “government weaponization” and giving the president, his family, and related entities immunity from tax audits. Continue reading...
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US judge nullifies Trump deal to resolve IRS lawsuit in scathing ruling. The judge lambasted the government and president’s lawyers for using the judicial process to try and concoct a beneficial arrangement for the president. The government never responded to the lawsuit and then announced it was settling the suit by creating a $1.
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Kathleen Williams sanctions president’s lawyers and says $10bn suit against IRS was brought for ‘improper purpose’ A federal judge on Monday nullified an agreement the government reached with Donald Trump and his sons over the leak of his tax returns.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 18:08
Mahmood offers Farage security meeting after Ann Widdecombe’s death
Home secretary insists all MPs treated equally but that security of former MPs and non-Westminster politicians is a concern Shabana Mahmood has offered Nigel Farage a personal meeting with the Home Office unit that works on security for high-profile politicians, insisting all MPs are treated equally in how they are offered protection. Addressing the Commons after the death of Ann Widdecombe, the Reform spokesperson whose body was found with serious injuries by the ambulance service at her home in Devon, the home secretary said the incident raised questions about the security of former MPs and politicians from smaller parties, including those not in parliament. Continue reading...
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Home secretary insists all MPs treated equally but that security of former MPs and non-Westminster politicians is a concern Shabana Mahmood has offered Nigel Farage a personal meeting with the Home Office unit that works on security for high-profile politicians, insisting all MPs are treated equally in how they are offered protection.
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Home secretary insists all MPs treated equally but that security of former MPs and non-Westminster politicians is a concern Shabana Mahmood has offered Nigel Farage a personal meeting with the Home Office unit that works on security for high-profile politicians, insisting all MPs are treated equally in how they are offered protection.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 18:08
Israel sets October date for first elections since Hamas attacks in 2023
Vote will allow Israelis to pass judgment on Benjamin Netanyahu and his handling of conflicts in Gaza and Iran Middle East crisis live – latest updates Israel will hold national elections in late October, giving its citizens their first chance to pass judgment on the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his coalition since the Hamas-led attacks of 7 October 2023. The Knesset, Israel’s parliament, will be dissolved on Friday. With just a few days left in session, the most far-right government in Israel’s history is now rushing to pass several controversial laws in a bid to bolster its position before polling day, which is set for 27 October. Continue reading...
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Israel sets October date for first elections since Hamas attacks in 2023. The Knesset, Israel’s parliament, will be dissolved on Friday. With just a few days left in session, the most far-right government in Israel’s history is now rushing to pass several controversial laws in a bid to bolster its position before polling day, which is set for 27 October.
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Vote will allow Israelis to pass judgment on Benjamin Netanyahu and his handling of conflicts in Gaza and Iran Middle East crisis live – latest updates Israel will hold national elections in late October, giving its citizens their first chance to pass judgment on the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his coalition since the Hamas-led attacks of 7 October 2023.
Warontherocks
Jul 13, 18:05
Big Promises, Bigger Blind Spots for Ukraine’s Security
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.American coverage often narrows the view to the battlefield — these pieces widen it, revealing the texture of daily life, politics, and public argument in a nation at war. The perspectives gathered here are varied, candid, and often surprising, together forming a more complete picture of Ukraine as it really is.Frontline and StrategyОбозреватель — The post Big Promises, Bigger Blind Spots for Ukraine’s Security appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Big Promises, Bigger Blind Spots for Ukraine’s Security. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.
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Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 18:05
Lancashire chemicals factory facing potential legal claim announces closure
More than 90 residents have expressed interest in contamination claim against AGC Chemicals Europe A Pfas factory in Lancashire has announced plans to close down, just days after the Guardian revealed that more than 90 residents have signed up to be involved in a potential legal claim over contamination of the local area. AGC Chemicals Europe Ltd is consulting with employees and their union representatives about plans to cease operations at its manufacturing plant in Thornton-Cleveleys, Lancashire. The consultation is expected to last for at least 45 days. Continue reading...
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Lancashire chemicals factory facing potential legal claim announces closure. AGC Chemicals Europe Ltd is consulting with employees and their union representatives about plans to cease operations at its manufacturing plant in Thornton-Cleveleys, Lancashire. The consultation is expected to last for at least 45 days.
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More than 90 residents have expressed interest in contamination claim against AGC Chemicals Europe A Pfas factory in Lancashire has announced plans to close down, just days after the Guardian revealed that more than 90 residents have signed up to be involved in a potential legal claim over contamination of the local area.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 17:59
Airline pilot skywrites ‘I’m bored’ over north-west England
The pilot, who had taken up the Piper Tomahawk to test a replacement part, wrote the message at around 1,100 feet A mischievous airline pilot spelled out his tedium by skywriting “I’m bored” over an estuary in north-west England. The message was captured on the airline tracking website Flight Radar 24. Continue reading...
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The pilot, who had taken up the Piper Tomahawk to test a replacement part, wrote the message at around 1,100 feet A mischievous airline pilot spelled out his tedium by skywriting “I’m bored” over an estuary in north-west England. The message was captured on the airline tracking website Flight Radar 24. Continue reading...
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The pilot, who had taken up the Piper Tomahawk to test a replacement part, wrote the message at around 1,100 feet A mischievous airline pilot spelled out his tedium by skywriting “I’m bored” over an estuary in north-west England.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 17:36
Israel courted Iran’s former hardline president for post-regime role, reports claim
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reportedly wooed by Mossad agents after distancing himself from Khamenei Middle East crisis live – latest updates Israel tried to recruit Iran’s intensely anti-Zionist former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to lead a new post-Islamic regime in Tehran, even going as far as sending its top spy to Budapest to meet him, according to media reports. The remarkable quest to turn a leader who had denied the Holocaust and called for Israel’s erasure began in 2022, according to reporting by the New York Times and the Israeli newspaper Haaretz , and continued even after Israel became engaged in a brutal campaign in Gaza against Hamas, a key Iranian ally. Continue reading...
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Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reportedly wooed by Mossad agents after distancing himself from Khamenei Middle East crisis live – latest updates Israel tried to recruit Iran’s intensely anti-Zionist former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to lead a new post-Islamic regime in Tehran, even going as far as sending its top spy to Budapest to meet him, according to media reports.
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Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reportedly wooed by Mossad agents after distancing himself from Khamenei Middle East crisis live – latest updates Israel tried to recruit Iran’s intensely anti-Zionist former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to lead a new post-Islamic regime in Tehran, even going as far as sending its top spy to Budapest to meet him, according to media reports.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 17:35
Hegseth announces joint taskforce with DoJ to target and prosecute press leaks
US defense secretary says taskforce will ‘combat dangers’ of leaks in latest escalation of White House press crackdown The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, announced on Monday that the Pentagon and the US Department of Justice have created a “joint taskforce to identify and prosecute” what he called the “unauthorized disclosure of sensitive” information to the press, marking the latest escalation in the Trump administration’s effort to crackdown on leaks. In a video posted on X , Hegseth said that “to combat the dangers that leaks pose, effectively immediately, I have delegated tasking authority to the war department’s office of general counsel, empowering OGC to request and receive all information, records and support across the department concerning media leak investigations”. Continue reading...
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US defense secretary says taskforce will ‘combat dangers’ of leaks in latest escalation of White House press crackdown The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, announced on Monday that the Pentagon and the US Department of Justice have created a “joint taskforce to identify and prosecute” what he called the “unauthorized disclosure of sensitive” information to the press, m…
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US defense secretary says taskforce will ‘combat dangers’ of leaks in latest escalation of White House press crackdown The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, announced on Monday that the Pentagon and the US Department of Justice have created a “joint taskforce to identify and prosecute” what he called the “unauthorized disclosure of sensitive” information to the press, marking the latest escalation in the Trump administration’s effort to crackdown on leaks.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 17:27
C of E’s £100m plan to address historical links to slavery faces legal challenge
General Synod hears that Project Spire has not been abandoned but staff have received ‘vile abuse’ from critics What is Project Spire and why is it dividing the Church of England? The Church of England is facing a legal challenge over Project Spire , its £100m plan to further reparative justice for historical links to enslavement, as staff come under “vile abuse” from critics. At the General Synod in York over the weekend, Stephen Cottrell, the archbishop of York, defended the project as a “work of healing, justice and repair”. Continue reading...
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C of E’s £100m plan to address historical links to slavery faces legal challenge. The Church of England is facing a legal challenge over Project Spire , its £100m plan to further reparative justice for historical links to enslavement, as staff come under “vile abuse” from critics.
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General Synod hears that Project Spire has not been abandoned but staff have received ‘vile abuse’ from critics What is Project Spire and why is it dividing the Church of England?
Theguardian
Jul 13, 17:18
US justice department investigating UAW president over corruption allegations
Shawn Fain calls allegations ‘bogus’ and says attorney holds a ‘grudge’ against him over union’s ‘anti-war stance’ on Gaza The US Department of Justice is probing allegations against United Auto Workers (UAW) president Shawn Fain that he put pressure on another high-ranking union official to provide benefits to his fiancee and sister and then retaliated against the official who refused to approve it. On Sunday, Fain, who is running for his second term as union president, said the accusations are false and a part of election interference against him. Continue reading...
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Shawn Fain calls allegations ‘bogus’ and says attorney holds a ‘grudge’ against him over union’s ‘anti-war stance’ on Gaza The US Department of Justice is probing allegations against United Auto Workers (UAW) president Shawn Fain that he put pressure on another high-ranking union official to provide benefits to his fiancee and sister and then retaliated against the official wh…
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Shawn Fain calls allegations ‘bogus’ and says attorney holds a ‘grudge’ against him over union’s ‘anti-war stance’ on Gaza The US Department of Justice is probing allegations against United Auto Workers (UAW) president Shawn Fain that he put pressure on another high-ranking union official to provide benefits to his fiancee and sister and then retaliated against the official who refused to approve it.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 16:51
Reform UK triggers row over MPs’ safety – podcast
After Ann Widdecombe’s murder, Reform UK has criticised the Commons speaker Lindsay Hoyle and suggested its MPs are not given enough security. Pippa Crerar tells Kiran Stacey what Hoyle’s team have been telling her Please keep sending your comments and questions to Pippa and Kiran at [email protected] Please follow and subscribe to the Politics Weekly YouTube channel here Continue reading...
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Reform UK triggers row over MPs’ safety – podcast. After Ann Widdecombe’s murder, Reform UK has criticised the Commons speaker Lindsay Hoyle and suggested its MPs are not given enough security. Pippa Crerar tells Kiran Stacey what Hoyle’s team have been telling her Please keep sending your comments and questions to Pippa and Kiran at politicsweeklyuk@theguardian.
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After Ann Widdecombe’s murder, Reform UK has criticised the Commons speaker Lindsay Hoyle and suggested its MPs are not given enough security.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 16:42
Tom Cruise unveils remarkable transformation in Digger trailer: ‘I’ve never had something that could challenge me in this way’
The new Alejandro González Iñárritu film sees Cruise playing an eccentric oil baron on a mission to save the world The first full length trailer for Alejandro González Iñárritu ’s hotly anticipated comedy-drama Digger has been released, and with it audiences’ first look at Tom Cruise ’s least recognisable role since he donned a fatsuit and prosthetics for 2008’s Tropic Thunder. The film will be released worldwide in early October and stars Cruise as Digger Rockwell, “the most powerful man in the world” on a mission to save the world from an ecological disaster. Continue reading...
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Tom Cruise unveils remarkable transformation in Digger trailer: ‘I’ve never had something that could challenge me in this way’. The new Alejandro González Iñárritu film sees Cruise playing an eccentric oil baron on a mission to save the world The first full length trailer for Alejandro González Iñárritu ’s hotly anticipated comedy-drama Digger has been released, and with it au…
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The film will be released worldwide in early October and stars Cruise as Digger Rockwell, “the most powerful man in the world” on a mission to save the world from an ecological disaster.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 16:38
Trump backs Lindsey Graham’s sister to serve rest of Republican’s Senate term
President says appointing Darline Graham Nordone would be ‘fabulous tribute’ to Republican who died on Saturday Graham’s death triggers a scramble to replace him – what happens next? Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Donald Trump recommended that Lindsey Graham’s sister be named as the senator’s temporary replacement after his death on Saturday. Trump posted on social media that the South Carolina governor, Henry McMaster, should appoint Darline Graham Nordone to fulfill the rest of Graham’s term, which expires in January. Continue reading...
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Trump backs Lindsey Graham’s sister to serve rest of Republican’s Senate term. Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Donald Trump recommended that Lindsey Graham’s sister be named as the senator’s temporary replacement after his death on Saturday.
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President says appointing Darline Graham Nordone would be ‘fabulous tribute’ to Republican who died on Saturday Graham’s death triggers a scramble to replace him – what happens next?
Theguardian
Jul 13, 16:21
US state attorneys general file lawsuit in effort to block Paramount merger
A bipartisan group argue in lawsuit that $110bn merger would hurt competition and lead to thousands of job losses A bipartisan group of US state attorneys general are seeking to block the $110bn merger of Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery, arguing in a lawsuit filed on Monday that it would hurt competition and lead to higher prices for consumers. The coalition behind the lawsuit is led by the California attorney general, Rob Bonta, who has been a staunch critic of the merger since it was agreed to in February after a bidding war between David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance and Netflix. Continue reading...
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A bipartisan group argue in lawsuit that $110bn merger would hurt competition and lead to thousands of job losses A bipartisan group of US state attorneys general are seeking to block the $110bn merger of Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery, arguing in a lawsuit filed on Monday that it would hurt competition and lead to higher prices for consumers.
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A bipartisan group argue in lawsuit that $110bn merger would hurt competition and lead to thousands of job losses A bipartisan group of US state attorneys general are seeking to block the $110bn merger of Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery, arguing in a lawsuit filed on Monday that it would hurt competition and lead to higher prices for consumers.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 13, 16:20
Stop Overreacting to China’s Missile Test
It was a milestone for Beijing’s nuclear forces—but not necessarily the provocation many analysts have made it out to be.
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Please review the following troubleshooting tips or contact us at [email protected] . Some Australian analysts even argued that the test was a direct response to Australia’s surprise defense treaty with Fiji, which was signed that day.
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It was a milestone for Beijing’s nuclear forces—but not necessarily the provocation many analysts have made it out to be.
Foreignpolicy
Jul 13, 15:43
Washington Shouldn’t Fear NATO Expansion
New allies bring powerful assets—whatever Donald Trump thinks.
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Washington Shouldn’t Fear NATO Expansion. New allies bring powerful assets—whatever Donald Trump thinks.
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New allies bring powerful assets—whatever Donald Trump thinks.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 15:28
Police arrest 12 over suspected far-right threat against Islamic event in Suffolk
Three of those arrested were detained on suspicion of conspiracy to murder, say counter-terrorism police Twelve people have been arrested, including three on suspicion of conspiracy to murder, over a suspected far-right threat against an Islamic event held this weekend, police have said. Counter-terrorism police are leading the investigation which they said was related to “extreme rightwing terrorism” targeting an event held at Shrubland Hall in Suffolk. Continue reading...
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Three of those arrested were detained on suspicion of conspiracy to murder, say counter-terrorism police Twelve people have been arrested, including three on suspicion of conspiracy to murder, over a suspected far-right threat against an Islamic event held this weekend, police have said.
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Three of those arrested were detained on suspicion of conspiracy to murder, say counter-terrorism police Twelve people have been arrested, including three on suspicion of conspiracy to murder, over a suspected far-right threat against an Islamic event held this weekend, police have said.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 15:00
Australia banned vape ads more than two years ago – so why are they still all over social media?
Posts promoting illegal products appear across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube as expert says platforms ‘aren’t doing the job they promised they would do’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Illegal vape sellers have turned to social media to promote nicotine-filled products, with experts calling for a crackdown including stronger penalties for the platforms. Guardian Australia has identified a network of posts across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube promoting the sale of illegal products to Australian audiences. Continue reading...
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Guardian Australia has identified a network of posts across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube promoting the sale of illegal products to Australian audiences.
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Posts promoting illegal products appear across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube as expert says platforms ‘aren’t doing the job they promised they would do’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Illegal vape sellers have turned to social media to promote nicotine-filled products, with experts calling for a crackdown including stronger penalties for the platforms.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 15:00
Layla Jeffery, 13, was ‘somewhat shy’ and ‘well-liked’. A Victorian town is struggling with her alleged murder
Donald – a small community about 280km from Melbourne – is grieving after a missing teenager was found dead Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast In the week after Layla Jeffery failed to return home in the early hours of 4 July, residents in the tiny Victorian town of Donald worriedly shared posts about the missing 13-year-old girl. One woman, who was receiving chemotherapy treatment in the town last week, wrote on Facebook that she felt “sick” at the thought of something happening to Layla. Others shared a post from police, asking for any information about her whereabouts. Continue reading...
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Layla Jeffery, 13, was ‘somewhat shy’ and ‘well-liked’. One woman, who was receiving chemotherapy treatment in the town last week, wrote on Facebook that she felt “sick” at the thought of something happening to Layla. Others shared a post from police, asking for any information about her whereabouts.
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Donald – a small community about 280km from Melbourne – is grieving after a missing teenager was found dead Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast In the week after Layla Jeffery failed to return home in the early hours of 4 July, residents in the tiny Victorian town of Donald worriedly shared posts about the missing 13-year-old girl.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 15:00
Dolphin deaths in South Australia spike after algal bloom decimates food sources
The March 2025 marine disaster may be linked to a high number of dolphin deaths in the region, scientists say Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The number of dead dolphins washing up on South Australian beaches spiked in 2025, according to long-term data that reveals mortalities during the state’s devastating algal bloom were the highest in 12 years. Last year, at least 70 carcasses of common and bottlenose dolphins were found across South Australia, with a further 20 reported in 2026, including the recent death of a popular Port River dolphin known as Zoom. Continue reading...
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The March 2025 marine disaster may be linked to a high number of dolphin deaths in the region, scientists say Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The number of dead dolphins washing up on South Australian beaches spiked in 2025, according to long-term data that reveals mortalities during the state’s devastating algal bloom were the highest in 12 years.
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The March 2025 marine disaster may be linked to a high number of dolphin deaths in the region, scientists say Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The number of dead dolphins washing up on South Australian beaches spiked in 2025, according to long-term data that reveals mortalities during the state’s devastating algal bloom were the highest in 12 years.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 15:00
Albanese to compare pivotal moment in AI to renewable energy transition as he outlines approach
Labor sources say the PM will discuss safety concerns in speech this week but will not provide an update on copyright reforms to protect artists Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese will describe the progress of AI as an inflection point for society on par with the renewable energy transition, but is not expected to detail progress on copyright reforms to protect creative industries. The prime minister will deliver a highly anticipated speech in Sydney on Wednesday to address growing concerns around social license and the necessary policy guardrails for AI, datacentres, and the ability of big tech to profit from Australian intellectual property. Continue reading...
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Labor sources say the PM will discuss safety concerns in speech this week but will not provide an update on copyright reforms to protect artists Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese will describe the progress of AI as an inflection point for society on par with the renewable energy transition, but is not expected to detail progress on c…
TL;DR:
Labor sources say the PM will discuss safety concerns in speech this week but will not provide an update on copyright reforms to protect artists Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese will describe the progress of AI as an inflection point for society on par with the renewable energy transition, but is not expected to detail progress on copyright reforms to protect creative industries.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 15:00
Hello from the outside: heat domes impeding radio and other signals in US midwest
Higher temperatures can cause radio, TV and microwave signals to travel hundreds of miles farther, upsetting communications It was 3am in north-east Indiana’s Huntington county when the outdoor emergency alarm went off on 1 July. The only issue? There wasn’t a storm, tornado or any other emergency weather event forecast or present anywhere for hundreds of miles. Continue reading...
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Higher temperatures can cause radio, TV and microwave signals to travel hundreds of miles farther, upsetting communications It was 3am in north-east Indiana’s Huntington county when the outdoor emergency alarm went off on 1 July. There wasn’t a storm, tornado or any other emergency weather event forecast or present anywhere for hundreds of miles.
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Higher temperatures can cause radio, TV and microwave signals to travel hundreds of miles farther, upsetting communications It was 3am in north-east Indiana’s Huntington county when the outdoor emergency alarm went off on 1 July.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 14:42
Person killed in shooting involving ICE agents in Maine, reports say
Shooting occurs days after man killed by immigration agent during traffic stop in Texas US politics live – latest updates A person was killed on Monday in a shooting involving US immigration agents in Maine , media outlets reported citing a prominent state lawmaker, days after a man was killed by an immigration agent during a traffic stop in Texas. Media reports of the shooting in Biddeford, Maine, cited a post by the Maine state house’s speaker, Ryan Fecteau, on a personal Facebook page. Continue reading...
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Shooting occurs days after man killed by immigration agent during traffic stop in Texas US politics live – latest updates A person was killed on Monday in a shooting involving US immigration agents in Maine , media outlets reported citing a prominent state lawmaker, days after a man was killed by an immigration agent during a traffic stop in Texas.
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Shooting occurs days after man killed by immigration agent during traffic stop in Texas US politics live – latest updates A person was killed on Monday in a shooting involving US immigration agents in Maine , media outlets reported citing a prominent state lawmaker, days after a man was killed by an immigration agent during a traffic stop in Texas.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 14:26
JP Morgan boss pressed by US senator about bank’s contact with Jeffrey Epstein
Elizabeth Warren asked Jamie Dimon if he took advice from child sex offender while lobbying against UK tax on bankers’ bonuses A leading Democratic senator has written to the JP Morgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon to request clarification on the bank’s contact with the child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein . Elizabeth Warren, the top Democrat on the senate banking committee, wrote to the Wall Street grandee last week to ask if he took advice from Epstein while lobbying against a UK tax on banker bonuses, in a letter published by the US senate’s banking, housing and urban affairs committee . Continue reading...
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Elizabeth Warren asked Jamie Dimon if he took advice from child sex offender while lobbying against UK tax on bankers’ bonuses A leading Democratic senator has written to the JP Morgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon to request clarification on the bank’s contact with the child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein .
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Elizabeth Warren asked Jamie Dimon if he took advice from child sex offender while lobbying against UK tax on bankers’ bonuses A leading Democratic senator has written to the JP Morgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon to request clarification on the bank’s contact with the child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein .
Theguardian
Jul 13, 14:19
Two teens arrested after five members of family killed in Illinois shooting
Suspects, aged 15 and 16, taken into custody but not formally charged in ‘targeted mass shooting’ in East St Louis Two teenagers were arrested Sunday in connection with a “targeted mass shooting” that killed five members of the same family and wounded two others in East St Louis, Illinois , according to state police. The 15- and 16-year-old suspects were taken into custody at Holten State Park, a recreation area east of the city, Illinois state police director Brendan Kelly said at a Sunday news conference – but they had not immediately been formally charged with a crime. Continue reading...
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Suspects, aged 15 and 16, taken into custody but not formally charged in ‘targeted mass shooting’ in East St Louis Two teenagers were arrested Sunday in connection with a “targeted mass shooting” that killed five members of the same family and wounded two others in East St Louis, Illinois , according to state police.
TL;DR:
Suspects, aged 15 and 16, taken into custody but not formally charged in ‘targeted mass shooting’ in East St Louis Two teenagers were arrested Sunday in connection with a “targeted mass shooting” that killed five members of the same family and wounded two others in East St Louis, Illinois , according to state police.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 14:00
Killings continue on Del Monte farm in Kenya, families say, after G4S hired for security
Exclusive: Three men killed in incidents over past year allegedly involving G4S guards, who replaced in-house team after previous deaths Bereaved families and politicians have raised alarm about continued killings on Del Monte’s pineapple farm in Kenya despite the company hiring G4S to replace its in-house security team after previous deaths were exposed by the Guardian. Del Monte appointed G4S to guard the farm, which is estimated to cover at least 40 sq km, the area of a small city, after the Guardian detailed allegations of brutal assaults and killings of people suspected of trespassing on its land. Kenyan police have been working with G4S to guard the site. Continue reading...
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Killings continue on Del Monte farm in Kenya, families say, after G4S hired for security. Del Monte appointed G4S to guard the farm, which is estimated to cover at least 40 sq km, the area of a small city, after the Guardian detailed allegations of brutal assaults and killings of people suspected of trespassing on its land.
TL;DR:
Exclusive: Three men killed in incidents over past year allegedly involving G4S guards, who replaced in-house team after previous deaths Bereaved families and politicians have raised alarm about continued killings on Del Monte’s pineapple farm in Kenya despite the company hiring G4S to replace its in-house security team after previous deaths were exposed by the Guardian.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 14:00
Britons to use e-gates in Switzerland as Starmer seals £5.2bn trade deal
Roaming charges also scrapped and trading terms continue for medicines, cars, art, jewellery and other goods British nationals can expect shorter passport queues at Swiss airports and border crossings after a £5.2bn trade deal was sealed by Keir Starmer, likely his last big international agreement as prime minister. As part of the deal they will be able to use e-gates from later this year, starting with exit checks at Zurich airport and with Basel and Geneva, a leading airport for business and winter sports travel, to follow next year. Continue reading...
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Roaming charges also scrapped and trading terms continue for medicines, cars, art, jewellery and other goods British nationals can expect shorter passport queues at Swiss airports and border crossings after a £5.2bn trade deal was sealed by Keir Starmer, likely his last big international agreement as prime minister.
TL;DR:
Roaming charges also scrapped and trading terms continue for medicines, cars, art, jewellery and other goods British nationals can expect shorter passport queues at Swiss airports and border crossings after a £5.2bn trade deal was sealed by Keir Starmer, likely his last big international agreement as prime minister.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 14:00
Pilot fighting Colorado wildfire dies as plane crashes into reservoir
Body of pilot involved in tackling Gold Mountain fire recovered by divers from Silver Jack reservoir A pilot who was helping to fight a wildfire in Colorado has died after the aviator’s aircraft crashed into a reservoir, local authorities said. The Gunnison county sheriff’s office said in a statement that it was notified of the deadly crash at about 5.17pm local time on Sunday. Gunnison’s regional communications center received a call reporting that the aircraft involved in the crash went down in the Silver Jack reservoir located in the county’s south-western portion. Continue reading...
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Pilot fighting Colorado wildfire dies as plane crashes into reservoir. The Gunnison county sheriff’s office said in a statement that it was notified of the deadly crash at about 5.17pm local time on Sunday.
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Body of pilot involved in tackling Gold Mountain fire recovered by divers from Silver Jack reservoir A pilot who was helping to fight a wildfire in Colorado has died after the aviator’s aircraft crashed into a reservoir, local authorities said.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 13:42
VW chief confirms plan to cut 50,000 jobs as board rejects plant closures
Oliver Blume tells staff restructuring proposal includes ‘controversial decisions’ but he has broad support Business live – latest updates The chief executive of Volkswagen has confirmed plans to cut 50,000 more jobs despite the carmaker’s supervisory board rejecting his plan to shut four factories in Germany. Oliver Blume told staff on Monday that proposals for a sprawling restructuring was “the most comprehensive realignment in the company’s history” and revolved around “12 initiatives, approximately 150 pages and 45 individual resolutions” for change. Continue reading...
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Oliver Blume tells staff restructuring proposal includes ‘controversial decisions’ but he has broad support Business live – latest updates The chief executive of Volkswagen has confirmed plans to cut 50,000 more jobs despite the carmaker’s supervisory board rejecting his plan to shut four factories in Germany.
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Oliver Blume tells staff restructuring proposal includes ‘controversial decisions’ but he has broad support Business live – latest updates The chief executive of Volkswagen has confirmed plans to cut 50,000 more jobs despite the carmaker’s supervisory board rejecting his plan to shut four factories in Germany.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 13:38
Burnham expected to vote in favour of Mahmood’s asylum system changes
Home secretary also set to outline plans to enable deportation of grooming gang ringleader Shabir Ahmed UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham is expected to vote for the immigration bill on Monday night in the Commons, with his team indicating that he backs Shabana Mahmood’s changes for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) and on refugee settlement. The bill returns to the Commons on Monday for its second reading, where Mahmood is also expected to announce plans to make it possible to deport the ringleader of a grooming gang, Shabir Ahmed, a move publicly backed by Burnham. Continue reading...
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Burnham expected to vote in favour of Mahmood’s asylum system changes. Home secretary also set to outline plans to enable deportation of grooming gang ringleader Shabir Ahmed UK politics live – latest updates Andy Burnham is expected to vote for the immigration bill on Monday night in the Commons, with his team indicating that he backs Shabana Mahmood’s changes for indefinite…
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The bill returns to the Commons on Monday for its second reading, where Mahmood is also expected to announce plans to make it possible to deport the ringleader of a grooming gang, Shabir Ahmed, a move publicly backed by Burnham.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 12:52
Ursula von der Leyen pledges EU-wide social media ban for children
European Commission president’s commitment comes after panel of experts calls for restriction for under-13s The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has pledged an EU-wide social media ban for children after an expert group called for restrictions for under-13s. “It is clear we need age-appropriate restrictions to platforms,” von der Leyen told reporters after the publication of a report on child safety online. Continue reading...
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European Commission president’s commitment comes after panel of experts calls for restriction for under-13s The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has pledged an EU-wide social media ban for children after an expert group called for restrictions for under-13s.
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European Commission president’s commitment comes after panel of experts calls for restriction for under-13s The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has pledged an EU-wide social media ban for children after an expert group called for restrictions for under-13s.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 12:16
Keystone pipeline operator agrees to pay $26.9m penalty over Kansas oil spill
Proposed legal settlement over 2022 oil spill would resolve allegations that South Bow violated clean water laws A proposed legal settlement with the US government would require the Keystone pipeline system’s operator to pay a $26.9m civil penalty over a large oil spill in Kansas in December 2022 and spend about $40m more to prevent future accidents. The agreement would resolve allegations from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Kansas that South Bow, based in Canada, violated US and state clean water laws. The rupture dumped nearly 13,000 barrels of heavy crude oil into a creek running through a rural pasture in Washington county, Kansas, about 150 miles (241km) north-west of Kansas City. Continue reading...
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Keystone pipeline operator agrees to pay $26.9m penalty over Kansas oil spill. Proposed legal settlement over 2022 oil spill would resolve allegations that South Bow violated clean water laws A proposed legal settlement with the US government would require the Keystone pipeline system’s operator to pay a $26.
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The agreement would resolve allegations from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Kansas that South Bow, based in Canada, violated US and state clean water laws.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 12:00
Trump officials accused of stacking top chemical safety board with industry ‘mouthpieces’
Public health advocates warn of conflicts of interests and say panel likely to provide justification for key rollbacks The Trump administration has stacked a top chemical safety board with industry-aligned scientists who have a range of financial conflicts of interest and stand to profit from deregulation, public health advocates say. The Environmental Protection Agency’s science advisory committee on chemicals (SACC) is slated to review research for dozens of toxic chemicals during the new members’ terms. At least 13 proposed Trump appointees are probably conflicted on the chemicals that will be reviewed, comments filed with the EPA by a coalition of public health advocacy groups alleges. Continue reading...
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Trump officials accused of stacking top chemical safety board with industry ‘mouthpieces’. The Environmental Protection Agency’s science advisory committee on chemicals (SACC) is slated to review research for dozens of toxic chemicals during the new members’ terms.
TL;DR:
Public health advocates warn of conflicts of interests and say panel likely to provide justification for key rollbacks The Trump administration has stacked a top chemical safety board with industry-aligned scientists who have a range of financial conflicts of interest and stand to profit from deregulation, public health advocates say.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 12:00
Young men report more ‘sextortion’ than any other age group, Australia’s online safety watchdog says
In six months last year, more than 2,000 such complaints were made to eSafety Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A new report by Australia’s online safety regulator has found “significant gaps” in how major tech platforms tackle online sexual extortion and child sexual exploitation, as “reports of this abuse continue to rise”. The findings come from eSafety’s latest transparency report, examining how tech companies – including Apple, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Snap, Discord and WhatsApp – are addressing child sexual exploitation and abuse. Continue reading...
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In six months last year, more than 2,000 such complaints were made to eSafety Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A new report by Australia’s online safety regulator has found “significant gaps” in how major tech platforms tackle online sexual extortion and child sexual exploitation, as “reports of this abuse continue to rise”.
TL;DR:
In six months last year, more than 2,000 such complaints were made to eSafety Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A new report by Australia’s online safety regulator has found “significant gaps” in how major tech platforms tackle online sexual extortion and child sexual exploitation, as “reports of this abuse continue to rise”.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 11:46
Ann Widdecombe death: counter-terrorism police take over investigation
Officers say decision made after ‘new information and evidence has come to light’ Counter-terrorism police are now leading the investigation into the death of the the former MP and Reform spokesperson Ann Widdecombe after “new information and evidence has come to light”, counter-terrorism policing south east said. Widdecombe’s body was found with “serious injuries” by the ambulance service at her home in Haytor, Devon, at 11.40am on Thursday, Devon and Cornwall police said. Continue reading...
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Officers say decision made after ‘new information and evidence has come to light’ Counter-terrorism police are now leading the investigation into the death of the the former MP and Reform spokesperson Ann Widdecombe after “new information and evidence has come to light”, counter-terrorism policing south east said.
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Officers say decision made after ‘new information and evidence has come to light’ Counter-terrorism police are now leading the investigation into the death of the the former MP and Reform spokesperson Ann Widdecombe after “new information and evidence has come to light”, counter-terrorism policing south east said.
Theguardian
Jul 13, 11:42
UK to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as terrorist organisation
Home Office announces ban on support for Iranian military group in escalation of diplomatic tensions with Tehran The UK will list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation, ministers have announced, in a major escalation of the diplomatic tensions with Tehran. The Home Office said on Monday it would ban support for the IRGC, a central branch of the Iranian military, after years of political division over the issue . The move is equivalent to proscription, though not legally identical. Continue reading...
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UK to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as terrorist organisation. The Home Office said on Monday it would ban support for the IRGC, a central branch of the Iranian military, after years of political division over the issue . The move is equivalent to proscription, though not legally identical.
TL;DR:
Home Office announces ban on support for Iranian military group in escalation of diplomatic tensions with Tehran The UK will list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation, ministers have announced, in a major escalation of the diplomatic tensions with Tehran.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 13, 09:33
A new US-Iran war would end where the last one did
For all practical purposes, the U.S.-Iran Memorandum of (Mis)Understanding is over. The dispute over how to manage the Strait of Hormuz in the interim has pushed the two sides back into open war. But to what end? There is little reason to believe another round of fighting can alter the fundamentals enough to change the reality from which the two sides must ultimately negotiate. If they are fortunate, the MOU’s collapse may yield another round of talks in which the allure of reshaping facts on the ground through force has finally faded. As I have written elsewhere , the dispute over the Strait turns, at least on the surface, on Paragraph 5 of the MOU: whether Iran is responsible for safe passage throughout the Strait for the duration of the agreement, or only for the waterway’s northern corridor. Beneath the surface, however, lies a more fundamental strategic disagreement. Even before the MOU was signed, Tehran believed Washington's objective was to establish a southern shipping corridor through Omani waters that would gradually erode Iran's control over the Strait. Such a corridor would require Oman's cooperation, which may explain why Trump at one point threatened to bomb Oman unless it abandoned its proposal for joint management of the Strait, with administrative fees collected by Muscat and Tehran. The corridor would remain operational even if war resumed and Iran sought once again to close the Strait. From Tehran's perspective, Washington used the MOU to strengthen this alternative route, and the U.S. military's escort of commercial shipping without coordinating with Iran marked a significant step in that direction. If successful, the strategy would deprive Iran of its most important source of leverage — which is precisely why it appeals to Washington. This is why Tehran has insisted that all ships transiting the Strait — regardless of the corridor they use — coordinate with Iran, consistent with its reading of Paragraph 5 of the MOU. Washington, by contrast, argues that the MOU merely assigns Iran responsibility for ensuring the safe passage of commercial vessels, without granting it operational control over all maritime traffic. Before the funeral of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, the two sides explored a compromise under which ships would coordinate their transit with both Iran and a designated Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) state. As I wrote in my Substack, “Under such an arrangement, ships would notify Tehran while also reporting to a GCC maritime authority, balancing Iran's demand for oversight with Washington's desire to avoid granting Tehran exclusive control.” But no agreement was reached before diplomacy was suspended for the duration of the funeral. Accounts of what transpired in Muscat over the weekend naturally differ, but three proposals emerged. Iran advanced a variation of the earlier compromise: a dual-notification system for all vessels transiting the Strait. Qatar proposed three channels—an Iranian corridor in the north, an Omani corridor in the south, and a neutral corridor in the middle. For Tehran, this was a nonstarter, as it would effectively restore the Strait to its pre-February status. According to Tehran, the United States and Oman favored separate management of the Iranian and Omani corridors: Iran could require coordination for vessels using its corridor, while Oman's would remain unrestricted. Tehran saw this as an attempt to formalize what it had long suspected was Washington's strategy: creating a southern corridor through the Strait beyond Iran's influence, leaving Tehran no means of challenging it short of war with Oman. Iran also contends that Muscat advanced the proposal only under intense U.S. pressure, noting that Oman had previously supported a joint management system. Washington disputes this account. U.S. officials maintain they were open to several arrangements, provided commercial vessels could transit the Strait safely. According to the American version, the talks unraveled only after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi consulted Tehran regarding a joint Iranian-Omani statement declaring the Strait open. From Washington's perspective, negotiations had been progressing until Araghchi was overruled by hardliners in the IRGC, who chose confrontation over compromise. Whether such a fracture proved decisive in this instance is unclear. What is clear is that the outlook of Iranian strategists has hardened markedly in recent weeks as they have become increasingly convinced that Trump intends to restart the war. Several developments have reinforced that belief. First, Trump's rhetoric shifted dramatically : he called the Iranians "scum," declared the ceasefire over, and said he might resume bombing to "finish the job." Second, as I argued here , Tehran believes Washington brokered the Lebanese-Israeli agreement — which contradicts the U.S.-Iran MOU by conditioning Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon on Hezbollah's disarmament — to enable Israel to reta...
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A new US-Iran war would end where the last one did. The dispute over how to manage the Strait of Hormuz in the interim has pushed the two sides back into open war. This is why Tehran has insisted that all ships transiting the Strait — regardless of the corridor they use — coordinate with Iran, consistent with its reading of Paragraph 5 of the MOU.
TL;DR:
The corridor would remain operational even if war resumed and Iran sought once again to close the Strait.
Warontherocks
Jul 13, 07:30
An Unlearned Lesson: The Sorry Record of Regime Change Operations in the Middle East
On Feb. 28, 2026, President Donald Trump announced the commencement of Operation Epic Fury, a joint U.S.-Israeli military operation against Iran. Among the mission’s goals was the overthrow of the Islamic Republic. “When we are finished,” Trump told the Iranian people, “take over your government. It will be yours to take.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoed Trump’s message, saying: “Our joint action will create the conditions for the brave Iranian people to take their destiny into their own hands.” To be sure, Washington and Jerusalem had other objectives — above all, preventing the Islamic Republic from acquiring nuclear weapons The post An Unlearned Lesson: The Sorry Record of Regime Change Operations in the Middle East appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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An Unlearned Lesson: The Sorry Record of Regime Change Operations in the Middle East. “When we are finished,” Trump told the Iranian people, “take over your government. It will be yours to take.
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28, 2026, President Donald Trump announced the commencement of Operation Epic Fury, a joint U.S.-Israeli military operation against Iran.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 13, 04:05
The Houthis are increasingly setting their own agenda
In early July, an Iranian civilian aircraft landed in Houthi-controlled Sana’a, breaching a Saudi air blockade in place for nearly a decade. Then, as the Saudi-led coalition publicly threatened strikes of "unprecedented force" against targets such as Hodeidah port and Sana’a airport, Houthi forces launched their deadliest ground assault in years south of Hodeidah, briefly overrunning government positions before a counterattack repelled them. The developments show what the war on Iran clarified about Yemen's Houthis: a movement long dismissed as a mere Iranian proxy has emerged as an increasingly autonomous partner of Tehran, calibrating its involvement in regional activism and consolidating its domestic power base. The faction launched its first attacks of the war on Israeli territory on March 28, a month after initial U.S.-Israeli airstrikes began. The Houthis then conducted limited strikes until the April 7 ceasefire, when it also paused its military actions. On June 8, as violence flared back up, the Houthis fired two missiles at Eilat and warned of a “total ban” on Israeli-linked commercial shipping on the Red Sea. Interestingly, the Houthis had until then refrained from deploying their greatest weapon: the campaign against Red Sea shipping that they pursued during Israel’s war on Gaza. That was despite Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz as leverage against Washington. Israel's 2025 bombardment undoubtedly weakened the Houthis, hammering critical infrastructure, degrading its missile and drone capabilities and killing senior and political leaders, leaving the movement under severe military and economic pressure, compounded by a U.S. terrorist designation and sanctions. However, weakness alone doesn’t explain the pattern. The Houthis’ initial restraint during the war also reflected that, rather than fully committing their assets to aid Iran, the movement prioritized investment into domestic control. The Houthis’ recent Hodeidah offensive makes that principle even more visible. Their use of force applied inside Yemen carries fewer risks with Washington and Riyadh than force applied at sea, which could jeopardize the diplomatic roadmap they have spent years securing. With that constraint in mind, the Houthis have prioritized consolidation. Prior to the latest flare-up in Hodeidah, the Houthis paraded their General Mobilization Force structure, modeled on Iran's Basij paramilitary militia and built to cement control and project an image of strength across its territories in northern Yemen. Since the Gaza ceasefire of late 2025, the Houthis have quietly rebuilt their missile capabilities and have even developed their domestic production capabilities in contrast to their past dependence on missiles produced in Iran. A May 2026 study by Conflict Armament Research , examining over 800 missile and UAV components recovered from Red Sea seizures in 2024 and 2025, described the shipments as self-assembly kits: Iranian-coordinated packages with Tehran's designs and designations, arriving in parts for assembly in Yemen. CAR asserts that this evidence indicates ongoing Iranian supply networks. The design makes the shipments harder to detect, thus helping to ensure a steady stream of components to the Houthis. And it requires a Houthi workforce able to turn crates of components into functioning anti-ship and air-defense weapons, suggesting that the group is expanding its technical capabilities. This dual dynamic — strategic value to Iran coupled with increasing Houthi autonomy — underpins the faction’s approach. They have been careful not to trade away their gains, including the Oman-brokered Houthi ceasefire with Washington in May 2025 to pause the Red Sea campaign. The late but eventual entry into the Iran war signals a view that their assets should be deployed on their own timetable. However, the group has already threatened Saudi Arabia, itself left vulnerable by Iranian strikes, and the Houthis are using that as leverage in Yemen’s stalled peace process — the U.N.-mediated roadmap , agreed in principle in late 2023, that envisioned Riyadh paying public-sector salaries, sharing oil revenue, and the reopening of Sana’a International Airport and Hodeidah port in exchange for a lasting ceasefire. The threat of renewed military action allows the Houthis to press Riyadh to implement those roadmap concessions that they might otherwise struggle to achieve through negotiations alone. And having watched Iran confidently threaten Hormuz instead of crumbling under U.S. pressure, the Houthis are likely to sense an opening of their own to threaten the Bab Al-Mandeb in the future. As Danny Citrinowicz, a prominent Iran analyst at the Institute for National Security Studies in Israel, has argued , the prospect of a joint Hormuz–Bab al-Mandeb blockade may increase the Houthis' strategic value from Tehran's perspective. Critically however, it may also strengthen the movement's leverage within that partnership, given the Ho...
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The Houthis are increasingly setting their own agenda. The faction launched its first attacks of the war on Israeli territory on March 28, a month after initial U.S.-Israeli airstrikes began. Interestingly, the Houthis had until then refrained from deploying their greatest weapon: the campaign against Red Sea shipping that they pursued during Israel’s war on Gaza.
TL;DR:
The late but eventual entry into the Iran war signals a view that their assets should be deployed on their own timetable.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 13, 04:05
The earthquake sprung Trump's Venezuela trap
When the Trump administration decided to "run" Venezuela through Acting President Delcy Rodríguez, the aim was to keep things quiet following its January 3 raid to snatch the country’s president, Nicolas Maduro. Stability, oil, no messy transition, no open-ended commitment. The June 24 earthquakes have turned that calculation on its head. The United States now finds itself tied to a government that cannot deliver, in a country that needs years of reconstruction, facing exactly the long-term entanglement the January arrangement was designed to avoid. The deal made sense to both parties because each got something it badly wanted. Trump got a foreign policy win he could point to and a claim on Venezuelan oil, which he described as "our oil." Rodríguez got resources, sanctions relief, and the legitimacy that comes from visible U.S. backing.Trump needed Rodríguez to make the story of a successful intervention hold together. Rodríguez needed Trump to stay in power. The earthquakes have revealed how fragile such an arrangement can be. You can see how much the administration has riding on its relationship with Delcy in the way the president talks about Venezuela. The day before the quakes, Trump said Venezuelans were "happy in the country" with “smiles” on their faces, insisting they were sharing in the economic rewards of the new arrangement. That claim did not match the reality even then. Francisco Rodríguez of the Washington-based Center for Economic and Policy Research found that Venezuela's economy grew at an annualized 2.5% in the first quarter, the weakest in years, even as oil exports jumped 25%. His read of the Central Bank data is that Washington has been keeping a chunk of the oil money rather than sending it to Caracas. So, the promised recovery had not reached ordinary Venezuelans even before the earthquakes; yet the president was out there telling the world they are thrilled. When the buildings came down, the government the United States has supported had few resources to respond. Neighbors dug through rubble with their bare hands, resorting to garbage bags because body bags weren’t available, while the armed forces stayed largely out of sight for two days. When military finally deployed in numbers, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello justified the militarization as necessary to maintain order, move ambulances and heavy machinery, and prevent congestion from volunteers pouring in, a revealing hierarchy of priorities for what was supposed to be a rescue operation. Phil Gunson, the Caracas-based analyst of the International Crisis Group, put it bluntly: Venezuela has "the worst of both worlds" – an authoritarian state without even the authoritarian competence to run a crisis. None of this would have surprised anyone who has watched the place for years. But it apparently surprised the Trump administration. In a July 1 State Department briefing, one week after the quakes, the U.S. chargé d'affaires in Caracas, John Barrett, offered as a reason for confidence that the earthquake "did not impact the country's oil and gas sector," so production continues, and the revenues keep flowing into the specialized accounts controlled by U.S. Treasury. With thousands dead and many more missing, the U.S. mission wanted the world to know that the crude was fine. The administration wants to minimize its financial and security exposure, keep the oil flowing, and avoid getting pulled into a reconstruction it never signed up for. Direct physical damage from the earthquakes is estimated at about $6.7 billion, close to 6% of Venezuela's GDP . Against that, the State Department says the U.S. financial commitment now tops $386 million , delivered through agencies such as Catholic Relief Services, UNICEF, and the World Food Program, with more than 400 metric tons of supplies moved and a new weekly air bridge running relief flights from Miami, with freight covered by Amazon. In addition, the USS Fort Lauderdale sat off La Guaira for weeks, Navy personnel helped assess the damaged port, and American search-and-rescue teams worked alongside crews from 29 countries pulling survivors from the rubble. That is real capacity, and it moved quickly. It is also, by the State Department's own account, mostly finished. The American search-and-rescue teams have already gone home , their job, in the Department's words, complete. The variable the Trump administration has struggled to manage was tested in the days after the quake. María Corina Machado, the country's most popular political figure and last year's Nobel Peace Prize winner, tried to fly home from Curaçao and then from Panama and asked Washington for help getting there. Two U.S. officials told the Associated Press that the administration talked her out of it (despite the president's recent denial ), apparently out of concern that she intended to lead protests when the priority was supposed to be stabilization and recovery. For her part, Rodríguez wasn’t inclined to rely solely on W...
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When the buildings came down, the government the United States has supported had few resources to respond. But it apparently surprised the Trump administration. Against that, the State Department says the U.S.
TL;DR:
When the Trump administration decided to "run" Venezuela through Acting President Delcy Rodríguez, the aim was to keep things quiet following its January 3 raid to snatch the country’s president, Nicolas Maduro.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 13, 04:05
Euroskeptics in France, Germany suddenly gain steam in elections
The European reaction to an American pullback from its leading role in continental defense has sparked a drive to coordinate a pan-European response with a large role for the European Union. But this effort has met resistance from a broadly Euroskeptic 'sovereigntist' countercurrent in European politics. The Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) anticipates a chance to lead — either alone or in coalition — at least one of the two state elections in Germany’s east in September. Either of the two potential candidates from France’s Rassemblement National or National Rally (RN) comfortably leads the large field of candidates to succeed Emmanuel Macron next April. A Quincy Institute Brief published on June 30 examines the potential for and the obstacles to the efforts by the EU and the European members of NATO to enhance European defense capabilities, and the choices this presents to American foreign policy. In many EU and NATO countries, populist nationalist parties oppose the centralizing ambitions of the EU and defend the prerogatives of national governments in the realm of defense and security. These parties generally favor a strong and capable national defense and some increase in defense spending but do not justify this by pointing to an imminent threat of invasion from Russia. They tend not to treat the Russia-Ukraine war as an existential contest for Europe as a whole. France’s RN party, led by Marine Le Pen and her protégé Jordan Bardella, continues to lead the list of contenders to succeed Emmanuel Macron by a wide margin. A final appeal by Le Pen to be able to run for president decided Tuesday that she will be eligible to run. She announced she will do so, with Bardella campaigning at her side as prime minister in waiting. In an interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Bardella suggested that he would seek close relations with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to cooperate on economic reforms and the European defense buildup. The popularity of RN among its core supporters (about a third of French voters) is based on a frustration with the political deadlock of the last several years of Macron’s presidency, immigration policies, and traditional nationalism at odds with the European Union. As leader of the Patriots of Europe faction in the European parliament, Bardella has twice led votes of no confidence in Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, while Macron has been ardently pro-EU. Le Pen is more likely than Bardella to oppose any reinforcement of common foreign and security policy led by the Commission. The AfD is Germany’s single most popular party, surpassing the ruling CDU-CSU by about six points in the most recent polls. A federal election is not required until 2029, but Merz’s approval ratings stand at only about 15%. A sluggish economy, high energy costs, and declining competitiveness of German industry are the widely cited explanations for the sour public mood. The AfD held its national party conference in Erfurt — capital of the eastern state of Thuringia — on July 4-5. Some 20,000 demonstrators from across Germany converged on the city to denounce the AfD. The demonstrations were largely peaceful and did not disrupt the conference itself, given the effective police presence outside. Speakers at the conference avoided polarizing anti-migrant rhetoric that justifies — in the minds of AfD critics — the drive to ban the party as anti-constitutional. Instead, the AfD wrapped itself in the flag, literally and figuratively, defining itself as patriotic, pragmatic, and prepared to govern. The party leadership emphasized the acceptability of the party as a democratic party of the right, clearly aiming to maximize the chance of winning at least one of the September elections to be held in Saxony-Anhalt (September 6) and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (September 20), both in eastern Germany. In Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD polls at about 40%, well ahead of the second-place CDU-CSU. The election arithmetic makes it very unlikely a majority coalition can be formed without AfD. In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, a popular Social Democrat (SPD) incumbent governs with the Linke (Left) party. Polls show AfD in the lead, but plausible combinations of SPD with other parties seem likely to be able to form a coalition without AfD. The prospect of AfD winning the right to govern in Saxony-Anhalt would breach the so-called firewall that has held since AfD was launched. This could have consequences for the party’s ambitions to lead in elections to come. The left-populist Bundnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) has offered to join AfD-led governing coalitions in either Saxony-Anhalt or Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The AfD leadership clearly aims to induce CDU-CSU ultimately to admit AfD into a national governing coalition. Chancellor Merz and the CDU-CSU leadership oppose this, in large part because AfD seeks rapprochement with Russia, opposes military aid to Ukraine, and supports reinforcing the European role in NATO only insofar as its aim...
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They tend not to treat the Russia-Ukraine war as an existential contest for Europe as a whole. The AfD held its national party conference in Erfurt — capital of the eastern state of Thuringia — on July 4-5.
TL;DR:
The European reaction to an American pullback from its leading role in continental defense has sparked a drive to coordinate a pan-European response with a large role for the European Union.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 12, 16:20
When Democrats were smearing socialists over war
In his message to Congress asking for a declaration of war against Germany and thereby bringing the United States into World War I, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed “The world must be made safe for democracy.” Yet a war to ostensibly save democracy abroad, resulted in it nearly being snuffed out at home. As a result of the passage of the Espionage and Sedition Acts , supported by the progressive Democrat Wilson, the freedoms of speech, press, and assembly were heavily restricted. Government-sponsored propaganda efforts sought to boost the war and impugn its critics. Eric T. Chester’s brisk read, Silencing ‘Fighting Bob’: The Attack on Antiwar Progressives During the First World War , brings to light efforts by government agencies to spy on, harass, and prosecute war critics like the Jewish socialists around the Yiddish “Forverts” newspaper (now known as Forward ), the People’s Council of America for Democracy and the Terms of Peace (PCA), Wisconsin’s Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette, and the Nonpartisan League (NPL). Despite the title, this is not the biography of one man, but an exposure of wartime state repression. The Wilson Administration drafted ex-muckraker George Creel to lead the Committee for Public Information (CPI) during the war. The CPI had a dual role. Publicly, it sponsored 75,000 speakers to give four minute-long pro-war speeches. Privately, it subsidized pro-war front groups and worked with the predecessor of the FBI, the Bureau of Investigation (BI), military intelligence, and various nongovernmental organizations to suppress the war’s critics. Creel remarked to Wilson that the socialist Forverts was the “most dangerous influence” in New York City. In order to avoid the fate of other magazines that continued to criticize the war and were banned from the mail, the Forverts agreed, under government pressure, to no longer oppose the war in its pages. This tepid support was not enough for Creel, and the CPI purchased its own Yiddish newspaper in an effort to supplant the Forverts and more forthrightly promote the war. To better oppose the war, the Socialist Party sought allies among religious pacifists and the wider progressive movement through the PCA. Some 20,000 people attended the Council’s inaugural meeting in New York. Pro-war union chieftain Samuel Gompers (with ample CPI subsidy) created the competing front group the American Alliance for Labor and Democracy , an association of union bureaucrats, pro-war intellectuals, and ex-Socialists. The ALLD, Chester writes, was “directly controlled by” the CPI. The AALD worked to marginalize the PCA, including pressuring local governments to cancel its Minneapolis meeting in favor of an AALD meeting. The BI and military intelligence also harried the PCA. The BI raided its San Francisco office and kept chairman Scott Nearing under extensive surveillance, leading to his prosecution for violating the Espionage Act. That San Francisco office was burglarized numerous times, which Chester attributes to military intelligence operating on US soil. By 1918, the PCA was essentially defunct. Republican Senator Robert La Follette was the most famous elected official to oppose U.S. entry into World War I. Chester describes La Follette as a uniquely dangerous threat to the Wilson administration and pro-war forces given his national stature and appeal to all sections of the peace movement. Had he been more decisive, La Follette could have founded an independent antiwar party in time for the 1918 elections tothreaten the Wilson administration’s congressional allies. The CPI passed along confidential information to the American Defense Society for activities “which a government agency could not handle,” namely smearing La Follette. The Society was a pro-war organization whose membership included former president Teddy Roosevelt. It pledged to expel La Follette from the Senate , claiming he “preached sedition” and helped “paid spies and agents of Germany” work against the United States After being subject to what he described as “a campaign of libel and character assassination,” as well as an unsuccessful effort to kick him out of the Senate, La Follette backed down from his explicit criticism of the war. By war’s end, “Fighting Bob” had temporarily hung up his gloves. Domestic political considerations also influenced the campaign against the National Partisan League. The League’s main appeal was to farmers in the Midwest, which Wilson saw as a threat to the Democrats’ electoral prospects. The Minnesota NPL ran ex-congressman Charles Lindbergh Sr. for governor in the Republican primary on a platform of public ownership of grain mills, elevators, and other agricultural enterprises. Lindbergh’s patriotism was repeatedly questioned. He was dubbed a “Gopher Bolshevik” by the New York Times , while the Chicago Tribune said his book , “Why is Your Country at War?” should bear “a German trademark.” To fend off these attacks, Lindbergh scrupulously avoided directly...
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When Democrats were smearing socialists over war. The Wilson Administration drafted ex-muckraker George Creel to lead the Committee for Public Information (CPI) during the war. In order to avoid the fate of other magazines that continued to criticize the war and were banned from the mail, the Forverts agreed, under government pressure, to no longer oppose the war in its pages.
TL;DR:
entry into World War I.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 12, 13:53
Lindsey Graham, last great Cold War warrior, dead at 71
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who had just returned from another trip to Ukraine to pledge U.S. assistance to its war with Russia, has died of a "brief and sudden" illness. His office has not released any additional details. He was 71, a young Boomer, and one of the last real Cold War warriors on Capitol Hill. His death drew swift condolences from President Donald Trump, who called the South Carolina senator “one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “Lindsey understood that the security of Israel and America are inseparable. Israel has lost one of its greatest friends.” This was an understatement. Graham could be counted as the greatest champion of Israel and Ukraine, in their respective wars, in American politics. From the beginning, he pushed alongside Netanyahu for war with Iran, a cause for which he was successful, even if the U.S.-Israel military operations in June of last year and February this year failed to deliver decisive victories. On Ukraine, Graham has for well over a decade promoted aggressive policies against Russia and for an open door for Kyiv into NATO. Before Trump, he would regularly criticize President Barack Obama for being too soft on Russian President Vladimir Putin . When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, he went into high gear to help Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, with whatever means necessary. It's that last inclination — "whatever means necessary" — that has made him a blazing torch for Zelensky and Netanyahu's Likud party, plus hawks and neoconservative figures here Washington, while making him a target of criticism for everyone else. His Manichaean foreign policy — white hats versus black hats — made him an easy proponent of troop escalation in seemingly every conflict the U.S. had a direct or tangential interest in. He supported the Iraq War with gusto . Even after that war was essentially lost and the intervention had created ISIS, he and Sen. John McCain successfully supported putting thousands of American troops back into Iraq and Syria, where they remained for another decade. In 2017 he said war with North Korea might be inevitable to stop their nuclear program. He was criticized for his callousness. “If thousands die, they’re going to die over there. They’re not going to die here. And [Donald Trump’s] told me that to my face.” Later he said "all the damage" that would come from a conventional war with North Korea "would be worth it in terms of long-term stability and national security." On Gaza, he once suggested Israel might firebomb the territory like Tokyo and Dresden in World War II to defeat Hamas. Whether it be pushing for the invocation of Article 5 under myriad circumstances against Russia, or supporting no-fly zones over foreign conflicts that would assuredly draw the U.S. into wars, Graham was ready to fight — and use American forces to do so. More recently he was criticized for asking South Carolina to send their "sons and daughters" to the Middle East, to "step forward and say this is their fight too." As for Ukrainians, he made waves when he encouraged a lowering of the draft age there so more men could fight and die in that conflict. Graham, a former JAG officer for the U.S. Air Force and later a member of the South Carolina National Guard, was known for his patriotism and for supporting the troops. Some might say his approach became less "America First" than Ukraine- and Israel-first, given the number of days in the last four years he spent in both capitals supporting their wars and offering American blood and treasure for them. No doubt the Congress has lost one of its loudest and proudest Cold War warriors — a foreign policy born in an era of Ronald Reagan but for all intents and purposes burning out under George W. Bush and Obama. Graham never gave up the ghost though. For some this was a comfort and inspiration; for others, he was a symbol of everything that went wrong over the last 25 years. Each will honor him their own way, today.
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Lindsey Graham, last great Cold War warrior, dead at 71. assistance to its war with Russia, has died of a "brief and sudden" illness. In 2017 he said war with North Korea might be inevitable to stop their nuclear program.
TL;DR:
He supported the Iraq War with gusto .
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 11, 04:05
Trouble with Persia? Ask the Romans
Donald Trump is far from the first foreign ruler to come to grief after launching an ill-advised military operation against Iran. At least four Roman triumvirs and emperors, driven by hubris and ignorance, launched military attacks on Persia that ended in disaster. In each failure there are lessons for our own time. Crassus: A prop in a Greek tragedy In 53 BCE, Roman Triumvir and real estate magnate Marcus Licinius Crassus launched a campaign against the Parthians in search of military glory to match that of his fellow triumvirs, Caesar and Pompey. According to Plutarch’s account, Crassus ignored the counsel of his Armenian ally King Artavasdes, who advised him to send his forces from Syria into Parthia via a northern route through Armenia, where mountainous terrain would favor Roman infantry. Crassus, whose only military experience was suppressing a slave revolt, convinced himself he was a military genius on a level with his fellow triumvirs. He ignored Artavasdes’ advice and led his legions directly east across the North Syrian plains. At the famous battle of Carrhae (modern Harran in southern Turkey), the Parthians caught Crassus’ army in the open, and their mounted archers, equipped with stirrups and with an effective supply chain of arrows, destroyed seven Roman legions. In Plutarch’s account, the Parthians killed Crassus, and a messenger took his head to the Persian king, who was visiting the Armenian capital to celebrate a marriage alliance between his son and King Artavasdes’ sister. There it became a prop in a performance of Euripides’ drama The Bacchae. Marc Antony: Beaten by General Winter Seventeen years later, in 36 BCE, another triumvir, Marc Antony, sought both military glory and revenge for Carrhae when he led an expedition against Parthia. King Artavasdes of Armenia, having once more switched sides, supported Antony’s advance through his territory into the Persian province of Media Atropatene (today’s Iranian Azerbaijan). But Antony’s army lost its baggage train to Parthian attacks, leaving it with limited supplies. After an indecisive attack on the provincial center of Praaspa (today’s Maragheh, in northwestern Iran) the Romans were forced to make a disastrous winter retreat through the mountains of Azerbaijan and Armenia. In the end, Marc Antony had not only failed to take revenge for Carrhae, but his folly had also cost about 30,000 Roman lives. A Captured Valerian: And an unexpected national hero Nearly 300 years later, in the early third century, the powerful Sassanian dynasty replaced the Parthians in Persia. Rome faced this strong rival at a time of internal chaos and civil wars – the so-called “crisis of the third century.” As Rome endured frequent military rebellions and changes of emperor, the powerful kings Ardashir I (r. 224-242) and Shahpur I (r. 240-270) led the Persians. Syria, Armenia, and border towns such as Amida (today’s Diyarbakir in southeastern Turkey) became battlegrounds. By the middle of the century, a rising Persia and a weakened Rome were fighting for control of Armenia, long ruled by the Parthians, bitter enemies of the Sassanians. Shahpur I first defeated Emperor Gordian in 244 and forced his successor, Philip the Arab (r. 244-249), to pay tribute and cede Armenia and Mesopotamia. Most memorably, in 260, Shahpur defeated a Roman army at Edessa (today’s Urfa) and captured Emperor Valerian. The capture of a Roman emperor was a momentous event in the ancient world, and Shahpur wanted it properly commemorated. Numerous rock carvings on the Iranian plateau (see above from Naqsh-e-Rostam) depict a mounted Shahpur triumphant over two defeated Romans: Valerian and Philip the Arab. During the recent fighting in Iran, the Islamic Republic revived this image to celebrate its “victories” over the U.S. and Israel. The irony was plain: a theocratic state built on Islam and opposition to both monarchy and nationalism had to go deep into its pre-Islamic past to find a hero of Iranian resistance — an absolute monarch whose dynasty later became known for resisting Islam’s expansion into Iranian territory. Julian: The myth of regime change In the fourth century, the Romans repeated earlier mistakes by pursuing regime change in Persia. They backed an exiled Sassanian pretender, Prince Hormozd (known in Western sources as Hormisdas), a relative of King Shahpur II (r. 309–379). Hormozd had spent decades in Constantinople, where he made influential friends and became fluent in Greek. He persuaded his Roman supporters and Emperor Julian (r. 360–363) that, if he returned to Persia with Roman military backing, resistance would collapse, Persian nobles would turn against Shahpur and welcome him as king. Despite unfavorable omens from sacrifices at Antioch, Julian launched his invasion in 363. According to the account of the Roman soldier and historian Ammianus Marcellinus, who accompanied Julian on his eastern operation, the campaign ended in disaster. The Persian cities remained loya...
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At least four Roman triumvirs and emperors, driven by hubris and ignorance, launched military attacks on Persia that ended in disaster. Crassus, whose only military experience was suppressing a slave revolt, convinced himself he was a military genius on a level with his fellow triumvirs.
TL;DR:
Donald Trump is far from the first foreign ruler to come to grief after launching an ill-advised military operation against Iran.
Theguardian
Jul 10, 13:43
Protests engulf Indian state after rape and murder of 11-year-old girl
Innocent man lynched by mob in West Bengal as police killing of suspect further escalates tensions Protests have engulfed the Indian state of West Bengal after the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl, the subsequent lynching of an innocent man and the police killing of one of the accused. Outrage erupted on Sunday after the body of a missing girl was recovered from a pond in a town just outside the state capital, Kolkata. Continue reading...
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Innocent man lynched by mob in West Bengal as police killing of suspect further escalates tensions Protests have engulfed the Indian state of West Bengal after the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl, the subsequent lynching of an innocent man and the police killing of one of the accused.
TL;DR:
Innocent man lynched by mob in West Bengal as police killing of suspect further escalates tensions Protests have engulfed the Indian state of West Bengal after the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl, the subsequent lynching of an innocent man and the police killing of one of the accused.
Warontherocks
Jul 10, 07:30
Going Over the Brink: How Hizballah’s Risk Strategy Made Lebanon Impossible to Ignore
When the United States and Iran announced their framework agreement on June 15, attention focused on the direct U.S.-Iran dimensions of the deal, including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade, and the fate of Iran’s nuclear program. But the agreement also included a commitment to the “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon.” Washington had spent months treating Lebanon as a separate issue in negotiations, even as the Israel-Hizballah conflict remained active under a nominal ceasefire in place since April 16.It was ultimately this second front that The post Going Over the Brink: How Hizballah’s Risk Strategy Made Lebanon Impossible to Ignore appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Going Over the Brink: How Hizballah’s Risk Strategy Made Lebanon Impossible to Ignore. naval blockade, and the fate of Iran’s nuclear program. But the agreement also included a commitment to the “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon.
TL;DR:
When the United States and Iran announced their framework agreement on June 15, attention focused on the direct U.S.-Iran dimensions of the deal, including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the lifting of the U.S.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 10, 04:05
China just got one step closer to its own nuclear triad
On Monday, China test-fired a long-range submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) toward the South Pacific Ocean, drawing nervous reactions from countries across the Asia-Pacific region. While Beijing has described the maneuver simply as “ routine ” training, it is all but routine in China’s missile-testing record. This marked only the third time China launched a long-range missile directly into the Pacific; the first was in 1980 , and the most recent was in September 2024. Several strategic and geopolitical motives might have driven the latest missile test. First, there is a military technical factor. Missile testing is a common practice for nuclear powers. For instance, the United States , India , and Russia regularly test ballistic missiles of various platforms. These tests serve useful purposes in evaluating capabilities and maintaining readiness, and cannot be seen as mere provocations. China, a rapidly expanding nuclear power, has capabilities it would like to test and validate. China has typically conducted missile tests on highly lofted trajectories within its own territory to avoid overflying other countries or landing in international waters. However, these lofted vertical tests cannot fully replicate the conditions of an intercontinental flight. Open-ocean launches into the Pacific would allow Beijing to collect data that shorter domestic tests cannot validate, including guidance accuracy across intercontinental distances and full-trajectory flight performance. What makes the latest missile test more noteworthy from a technical standpoint is that it was launched from a nuclear-powered submarine; previous tests were from ground-based launchers. This underscores China’s steady progress toward achieving more mature, survivable nuclear forces and, eventually, a more reliable “second-strike” capability, or the ability to deliver a devastating retaliation against a nuclear attack on China. While ground-based nuclear forces are generally easier to track by satellite, nuclear-powered submarines operating in deep water are far more difficult to detect, granting China the ability to retaliate even if its land-based forces are destroyed. Nuclear experts have observed the submarine-based leg as the weak link of China’s nuclear triad, which also includes ground-based launchers and air-to-ground weapons. As China works to achieve a fully developed nuclear triad, it will continually want to validate its capabilities, and countries should expect major tests like the latest one to recur in the future. Aside from the technical factor, there were presumably geopolitical motives behind the missile test. Beijing denied that the test was intended as a signal to any particular country, and the claim is not entirely baseless, given that such a test requires months of advance planning. But even if it is a pre-planned test, Beijing retains flexibility regarding the precise launch window. The timing of the launch — several days after a reported U.S. deployment of an Iron Dome-type missile defense system in Japan and just hours after Australia and Fiji signed a formal mutual defense treaty — is therefore interesting. China cannot be happy that more layers are being added to the U.S. regional missile defense architecture or that Pacific Island nations are deepening security ties with rival militaries. The test offered an opportunity to express displeasure, though only Beijing knows whether it was intentionally timed with these events in mind. What seems relatively clear is that Beijing sees a persistent need to demonstrate its resolve against Washington and its regional allies amid an increasingly hostile security climate in the Asia-Pacific. Though Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to improve bilateral ties at their May summit , U.S-China relations remain largely confrontational. And tensions between China and U.S. regional allies over the flashpoints of Taiwan, the South China Sea, and the East China Sea continue to rise. Over the past few months, the security environment in the Asia-Pacific has rapidly become more tense and volatile. Following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s November 2025 remarks linking the defense of Taiwan to Japan's national survival, China has adopted a more aggressive diplomatic and military posture toward Japan, prompting Tokyo to harden its own posture toward China and deepen military integration with the United States and the Philippines . The Philippines, for its part, has also hardened its diplomatic stance toward China amid escalating territorial disputes in the South China Sea and has doubled down on military cooperation with the United States and Japan to counter China. Meanwhile, China has enhanced joint military activities and exercises with Russia to counter the growing U.S. and allied military engagement. The overall trend here illustrates a sharpening security dilemma in the Asia-Pacific. From the perspective of Washington and U.S. regiona...
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China just got one step closer to its own nuclear triad. First, there is a military technical factor. China, a rapidly expanding nuclear power, has capabilities it would like to test and validate.
TL;DR:
regional allies over the flashpoints of Taiwan, the South China Sea, and the East China Sea continue to rise.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 10, 04:05
China and Russia and the US icebreaker race
At a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Arctic security in March, Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.) argued that “the U.S. cannot afford to fall behind Russia and China” in Arctic icebreakers. This framing has become a familiar refrain in Washington. As Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) put it in January, “We have two (icebreakers). One is broken and the Russians have 54. It’s time to close that Icebreaker gap.” The United States is right to address its long-standing lack of icebreaking capabilities by investing in new ships. But the case for building these new icebreakers should focus on preventing accidents, protecting communities, and keeping the Arctic safe as ice melts and traffic grows – not countering Russia or China. The scale of the recent investments is significant. On July 3, the U.S. Coast Guard finalized $3.3 billion in contracts for six new Arctic Security Cutters (icebreakers): four will be built in Louisiana, two in Finland. Back in May, the Trump administration announced contracts totaling another $3.5 billion to build five Arctic Security Cutters in Texas and Canada. These investments are part of the Icebreaker Collaboration Effort ( ICE Pact ), a trilateral partnership launched in 2024 between the U.S., Canada, and Finland that combines shipbuilding expertise to modernize their respective fleets. As Arctic shipping and resource extraction are expected to surge in the coming decades, partnering with states that have deep Arctic expertise is wise, as is expanding our fleet. The problem is that the conversation around these icebreakers is being framed as another front in great power competition and a contest where America must not fall behind. The dubious “icebreaker gap” Coast Guard and Department of Homeland Security officials have called the ICE Pact “a major milestone in the race to secure the Arctic against our adversaries.” In their view, the Arctic Security Cutters are necessary “to uphold U.S. sovereignty against adversaries’ aggressive economic and military actions in the Arctic.” When the ICE Pact was first announced, the Biden administration presented it primarily as a trilateral industrial partnership, with Russia and China as implicit competitive motivations. The Trump administration has reframed it as an explicit assertion of American “Arctic dominance,” subordinating functional cooperation to great power confrontation. Commentators have amplified this narrative, invoking an “ icebreaker gap ” to highlight the stark contrast between America’s tiny fleet and Russia’s fleet of more than 40 icebreakers, with more on the way. This comparison echoes the Cold War “ missile gap ” — the perception, later revealed to be overstated, that the Soviet Union held a decisive advantage over the U.S. in its ballistic missile arsenal, which in turn spurred the U.S. to expand its own missile stockpiles. Counting icebreakers without context distorts policy in much the same way and risks driving procurement decisions based on competitive anxiety rather than operational need. The reality is Russia’s massive icebreaker fleet is a function of its Arctic geography and economy. The Russian Arctic coastline stretches thousands of miles and accounts for roughly 6% of Russia’s GDP and 10% of its exports. Approximately 2.5 million people live in the Russian Arctic , compared to about 50,000 in the U.S. Arctic . Russia needs icebreakers for its commercial activities and to service northern communities, not to threaten the U.S. Matching Russia ship-for-ship would be wasteful and would distract from America’s actual needs. Lost in the great power framing are the people most immediately affected by these challenges: the roughly 50,000 residents of Alaska’s Arctic communities, the majority of whom are Alaska Native. For villages like Utqiaġvik, Kotzebue, and Nome (accessible only by air or sea for much of the year), icebreakers are crucial tools for receiving fuel, food, and medicine. Alaska Native organizations have long called for expanding the Coast Guard’s Arctic presence to ensure that maritime services reach the communities that depend on them. Icebreakers are also necessary tools for navigating the Arctic’s environmental transformation . The region is warming at roughly four times the global average. Permafrost is collapsing beneath roads and buildings. Storms are eroding coastlines that sea ice once protected. Shifting ice is creating new maritime hazards. Reframing Arctic security None of this means that military concerns don’t exist. Russia has begun arming some of its icebreakers, and China is steadily expanding its Arctic activities. On July 3, China launched its 16th scientific expedition to the Arctic Ocean, sending three icebreakers to the region. The line between research and surveillance is increasingly blurred, especially as advanced sensors and dual-use technologies become standard on research vessels. Even Russia is reportedly uneasy about potential Chinese intelligence activities in its se...
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China and Russia and the US icebreaker race. cannot afford to fall behind Russia and China” in Arctic icebreakers. Russia has begun arming some of its icebreakers, and China is steadily expanding its Arctic activities.
TL;DR:
At a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Arctic security in March, Rep.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 10, 04:05
Is Lebanon hurtling towards a Libya-style civil war?
In a recent interview, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, claimed that the Lebanese army was marginalizing Shiite military personnel in its ranks because of their reluctance to go after Hezbollah. “There are elements within the LAF, the Lebanese Armed Forces, that didn’t have the will to confront Hezbollah, because you have about 25% to 30% of the army which is Shia, and of the Shia Muslims you have anywhere between 30% and 50% support for Hezbollah,” Leiter told a podcast hosted by the Jewish Public Policy Institute. “The solidification of the government now has moved those elements within the army to the side.” While there has been no official Lebanese denial of these statements, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun refuted the claims that a new Lebanese military brigade was being formed to implement the recent framework agreement between Lebanon and Israel, which links a potential Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon to the disarmament of Hezbollah. Aoun also denied the existence of a U.S.-led plan to vet the Lebanese army so that it could take action against Hezbollah. Regardless of the credibility of the Israeli envoy’s statements, sidelining a sizable segment of the Lebanese army based on sectarian affiliation is likely to have disastrous consequences. The military is the country’s only genuinely multi-confessional state institute and hence the best guarantor of Lebanon’s internal stability. Upsetting its sectarian balance could have a disastrous impact. “Marginalizing the Shiite component would hollow out the only institution [the army] still capable of embodying sovereignty” in Lebanon, explained veteran war correspondent Elijah Magnier in an interview with RS. “In Lebanon’s fragile balance, weakening the army’s multi-confessional character would exponentially increase the risk of civil strife.” For Israel, such a situation may be worth the risk if it helps curtail or eliminate Hezbollah. Some Israeli voices have openly said that civil war in Lebanon has been a long-standing objective. “It seems we’re leading Lebanon to a civil war. Maybe it’s not so bad for us, let the Lebanese government fight Hezbollah,” an Israeli journalist for Channel 13 recently said . Another prominent journalist replied that this had been the Israeli aim “from the start.” Whether civil strife in Lebanon would be worth the risk to American interests, however, is an entirely different matter. In order to better understand this, it is worth recalling Vice President J.D Vance’s comparison between the war in Iran and the 2011 NATO-led intervention in Libya, which helped unleash a civil conflict that continues to consume the country. "I'll tell you right now, is Iran turning into a Persian Libya good for the United States of America? Absolutely not," said Vance in a podcast interview last month, whilst hinting that some in Israel see the situation differently. The logic behind Vance’s assessment is straightforward, stemming from the fact that Iran — notwithstanding the latest escalation — does not pose a significant enough threat to U.S. interests to justify risking its descent into chaos. Given its strategic location and large population, Iran becoming a failed state akin to Libya would pose a serious threat to U.S. interests in more ways than one. This includes the potential disruption of the free flow of oil from the Persian Gulf, which remains a vital U.S. interest, as recent events in the Strait of Hormuz have shown. Chaos and lawlessness in Iran would also likely empower terrorist groups that have openly expressed their desire to attack the United States. Based in neighbouring Afghanistan, the ISIS-Khorasan [ISIS-K] terror group is widely considered the most dangerous extant ISIS affiliate, and one of the most likely to plan external attacks that could target the United States. Iran turning into a failed state would likely enable ISIS-K to expand its presence inside the country, providing the group with a larger haven from which to operate. A failed state in Iran also threatens to destabilize neighbouring Iraq, in whose stability Washington has heavily invested. Though Lebanon pales in comparison to Iran in terms of size and population, the Libyan analogy can also be applied in its case. Like Iran, Hezbollah does not pose an imminent and significant enough threat to the U.S. and its interests to justify risking the repercussions of Lebanese civil strife. “Hezbollah is not seeking confrontation with the United States. It is focused on its position in Lebanon,” said CIA veteran and Quincy Institute non-resident fellow Paul Pillar. “If the United States stays out of Lebanese affairs, Hezbollah does not pose a threat to the United States.” Some of the potential repercussions of a failed state in Lebanon are strikingly similar to those of a failed state in Iran. Just as ISIS is active in neighbouring Afghanistan in Iran’s case, so too is it active in neighbouring Syria in Lebanon’s case. This raises the specter of...
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Is Lebanon hurtling towards a Libya-style civil war?. Like Iran, Hezbollah does not pose an imminent and significant enough threat to the U.S. “If the United States stays out of Lebanese affairs, Hezbollah does not pose a threat to the United States.” Some of the potential repercussions of a failed state in Lebanon are strikingly similar to those of a failed state in Iran.
TL;DR:
“It seems we’re leading Lebanon to a civil war.
Warontherocks
Jul 9, 18:20
Fraying Deals and Rising Strikes
Welcome to The Adversarial. Every other week, we’ll provide you with expert analysis on America’s greatest challengers: China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and jihadists. Read more below.***IranThree weeks after it was signed, the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran seems to be quickly unravelling. The two sides skirmished after an April ceasefire and continued to do so after the memorandum of understanding was reached, but had managed to keep those tit-for-tat exchanges from escalating into a full-on return to hostilities. Their agreement nonetheless faced death by a thousand cuts over mutual claims of violations and bad faith.A string The post Fraying Deals and Rising Strikes appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Fraying Deals and Rising Strikes. Read more below.***IranThree weeks after it was signed, the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran seems to be quickly unravelling. Their agreement nonetheless faced death by a thousand cuts over mutual claims of violations and bad faith.
TL;DR:
Welcome to The Adversarial. Every other week, we’ll provide you with expert analysis on America’s greatest challengers: China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and jihadists.
Warontherocks
Jul 9, 08:00
The Pentagon’s Sprint to Get Tech Out of the Lab and to the Warfighter
Joe Jewell left academia and his role directing hypersonic wind tunnels to oversee the Pentagon’s science and technology enterprise. He wants more researchers to make the same move. He joins Jonathan to discuss the Pentagon’s science enterprise, why he thinks academia is the envy of America’s closest allies, and how his office gets technology from the lab into the hands of the warfighter.Image: Gabriella White via DVIDS. The post The Pentagon’s Sprint to Get Tech Out of the Lab and to the Warfighter appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Joe Jewell left academia and his role directing hypersonic wind tunnels to oversee the Pentagon’s science and technology enterprise. He wants more researchers to make the same move. He joins Jonathan to discuss the Pentagon’s science enterprise, why he thinks academia is the envy of America’s closest allies, and how his office gets technology from the lab into the hands of the…
TL;DR:
The post The Pentagon’s Sprint to Get Tech Out of the Lab and to the Warfighter appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 9, 07:45
The Pentagon’s AI Strategy Has a Funding Problem
In the span of two weeks, the White House issued two of the most ambitious artificial intelligence directives in American history. On June 2, President Donald Trump signed an executive order mandating rapid AI adoption and hardened cyber defense across the government. Three days later, National Security Presidential Memorandum 11 directed every element of the national security enterprise to accelerate AI adoption, anchored by four pillars: adoption, adaptation, assurance, and accountability.The strategy is sound. The harder challenge is execution, and a fiscal squeeze on the Fiscal Year 2026 operations and maintenance accounts threatens to stall it before it begins. On The post The Pentagon’s AI Strategy Has a Funding Problem appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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In the span of two weeks, the White House issued two of the most ambitious artificial intelligence directives in American history. On June 2, President Donald Trump signed an executive order mandating rapid AI adoption and hardened cyber defense across the government.
TL;DR:
On The post The Pentagon’s AI Strategy Has a Funding Problem appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 9, 07:30
Victory for al-Qaeda’s Affiliate in Mali Would be a Catastrophe
Mali is not Syria, and Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin is not Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham.While the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime and the rise of the Ahmed al-Sharaa government in Damascus, Syria can be seen as a net positive for regional security in the Levant, a Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin victory in Mali would devastate the region.Unlike Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin is a horizontally integrated transnational coalition committed to dismantling existing international borders, with a rank and file too radical to accept an Islamic Emirate of Mali as a terminal goal. Iyad Ag Ghali, the leader of The post Victory for al-Qaeda’s Affiliate in Mali Would be a Catastrophe appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Victory for al-Qaeda’s Affiliate in Mali Would be a Catastrophe. Mali is not Syria, and Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin is not Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham.While the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime and the rise of the Ahmed al-Sharaa government in Damascus, Syria can be seen as a net positive for regional security in the Levant, a Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin victory…
TL;DR:
Iyad Ag Ghali, the leader of The post Victory for al-Qaeda’s Affiliate in Mali Would be a Catastrophe appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 9, 04:05
Eying 2028, Rahm Emanuel test drives tough love message in Israel
Former Mayor of Chicago and potential 2028 Democratic presidential candidate Rahm Emanuel delivered a speech Wednesday at Tel Aviv University that was called a “ thunderclap ” and a “ demonstration of how far the party has shifted ” on the question of the U.S.-Israel relationship. “For too long, American policy towards Israel operated under the assumption that the best thing Washington can do for Jerusalem is to blindly, to silently stand behind your government without conditions, without demands, without consequences, even when we disagree,” Emanuel said . “That has been our mistake, and it's been not a favor to you.” After relaying his version of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, for which he almost exclusively blamed Palestinians for the failure to find a peaceful compromise, Emanuel reserved much of his scorn for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government, which he declared had led Israel “into a dead end.” He blamed the current government for helping the Palestinian group Hamas accomplish what he said was its goal of killing the two-state solution “not by being too soft, but by being so reckless and unwilling to plan for a day after in Gaza, which would have created and offered an alternative beyond occupation and isolation” Emanuel, whose father was a member of a Zionist paramilitary group, has long been seen as a strong supporter of Israel within the Democratic party. His evolving position is unquestionably a reaction to increasing anti-Israel public sentiment, particularly on the American left. An Associated Press-NORC poll from Tuesday, for example, showed that roughly half of Democrats believe that Israel committed a genocide in Gaza, at that almost 60% believe the U.S. is “too supportive” of the Jewish state. But Democrats are responding to that shift in different ways. Some want a break with Israel. Emanuel, critics say, is a case study in another line of response — using tough rhetoric not to exit the relationship but to save it. As Erik Sperling, executive director of Just Foreign Policy, told RS editor-in-chief Kelley Vlahos on Tuesday, many supporters of Israel realize that the country cannot maintain support from the U.S. on its current path. As a result, these supporters will try to “use aggressive criticism and restrictions to guide [Israel],” in an effort to keep some pro-Israel voters and donors from leaving the Democratic Party. Yousef Munayyer, head of the Palestine/Israel Program at the Arab Center, saw Emanuel’s speech as part of that effort. Responding to a post by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton praising Emanuel’s remarks, Munayyer wrote on X that the speech was intended for “pro-Israel donors clintonworld hopes to convince to stay in the Democratic fold by providing a sophisticated management strategy for this crisis period in US-Israel relations.” Emanuel made a similar point himself, saying his goal was "to maintain the strength" of the relationship — a framing underscored by his choice to deliver the speech in Israel rather than at home. “It is still an overwhelmingly Israel-centric message,” Khaled Elgindy, senior research fellow in the Middle East program at the Quincy Institute, told RS. The emphasis was on Israel to stop committing atrocities for its own sake, according to Elgindy. “And that, to me, is indicative of the total denial that is so prevalent in the Democratic Party establishment,” he added. The reaction of most people who saw the war livestreamed for the last 33 months is not “bending over backwards to view the people who committed these atrocities in the best possible light.” On substance, many of the proposals put forward by the former Chicago mayor place him squarely within the liberal mainstream. Similar ideas — notably phasing out taxpayer-funded U.S. military aid — are part of the platform at J Street, the pro-Israel, pro-peace lobby group. The group approvingly shared Emanuel’s recent op-ed in the Wall Street Journal in advance of the speech and later claimed that the speech reflected “many of the principles J Street has been advancing for years.” But the idea of moving on from American assistance to Israel has also been pushed by Israeli Netanyahu himself, as well as Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), one of the most pro-Israel Senators in the U.S. Senate. To be sure, the fact that an establishment Democrat like Emanuel, who also served as White House Chief of Staff under President Barack Obama, is willing to criticize the Israeli government in fairly harsh terms is notable, as were some of his policy prescriptions. “Aid conditionality and sanctions four or five years ago was only in the margins of the Democratic Party, and now it is clearly the mainstream,” Elgindy said. “Not because they’ve had an epiphany, but because Rahm Emanuel, like others, has correctly read the room. The base has shifted so dramatically that it would be absurd to maintain the line that heard so much from Biden,” about an ”unbreakable” commitment to Israel.
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Eying 2028, Rahm Emanuel test drives tough love message in Israel. Former Mayor of Chicago and potential 2028 Democratic presidential candidate Rahm Emanuel delivered a speech Wednesday at Tel Aviv University that was called a “ thunderclap ” and a “ demonstration of how far the party has shifted ” on the question of the U.S.-Israel relationship.
TL;DR:
Some want a break with Israel.
Responsiblestatecraft
Jul 9, 04:05
Trump acquired at least $10 million in defense stocks last year
Brokers representing President Donald Trump purchased between $9.7 million and $24.3 million in stocks from a dozen arms manufacturers and other Pentagon contractors in 2025, including Palantir, Lockheed Martin, and General Dynamics, according to an RS analysis of a new financial disclosure released by the president last week. The disclosure comes as the Trump administration launches new strikes on Iran, oversees a historic weapons stockpiling effort at home, and calls for a $1.5 trillion defense budget, all of which benefit many of the companies in which he has invested. Trump’s brokerage firms are prohibited from accepting trade requests from the president and his family. However, he has not put his assets into a blind trust, meaning Trump could know what stocks he owns and influence policy to benefit those companies. His income quadrupled from 2024 to 2025, his first year in office. According to the filing, Trump’s brokers purchased between $1.6 and $3.9 million in stock of Palantir, the surveillance technology company that developed Maven Smart System, the AI system used to strike 1,000 targets in Iran in the first 24 hours of the war. Palantir has been a key beneficiary of the Trump administration’s embrace of artificial intelligence, earning a $10 billion contract last year to handle the Army’s “software and data needs” for the foreseeable future. The president also acquired up to $3 million in stock from GE Aerospace, which manufactures parts for a wide variety of aircraft used by the U.S. and Israel in their attacks on Iran; up to $1.4 million in stock from Lockheed Martin, which manufactures F-35 and F-22 jets deployed against Iran; up to $1 million in stock from General Dynamics, which manufactures heavy bombs and missiles used in attacks on Iran; and more than $800,000 in stock from RTX, which manufacturers the Tomahawk missiles used in the strike that killed more than 120 schoolgirls in Iran. Many of these companies have received large contracts to rebuild stockpiles of weapons that were depleted during the war against Iran that was launched February 28. A few weeks into the war, the Pentagon requested to shift $373 million in previously approved funding to buy 23 new Standard Missile-3 IB interceptors from RTX. After Iran successfully destroyed several U.S. THAAD radar systems across the Middle East, Lockheed Martin was awarded a $35 billion contract to quadruple production. Some contractors in Trump’s investment portfolio also do business directly with Israel. Boeing — a prime military contractor from which Trump purchased more than $700,000 worth of stock in 2025 — sold $8.6 billion in F-15 jets to Israel less than three months before the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran. The disclosure revealed that Trump’s team invested more than $1.2 million in both Kratos Defense and Honeywell, and more than $200,000 a piece in Howmet Aerospace and in L3Harris. Trump also acquired more than $800,000 worth of stock in TransDigm, an aerospace manufacturing company that the Pentagon’s Inspector General revealed in a 2021 report was engaged in price-gouging, in one case for 9,400% in excess profit for a metal pin. Almost all of these stocks rose significantly in the first year of the Trump administration. Palantir’s stock rose by 135%, Kratos 188%, GE Aerospace 84%, and Raytheon 61% in 2025. In April, Trump posted about Palantir stock on Truth Social, causing the share price to rise by 3% within minutes. “Palantir Technologies (PLTR) has proven to have great war fighting capabilities and equipment. Just ask our enemies!!!” Trump wrote. All of these stock purchases were part of a larger financial disclosure which revealed that Trump generated $2 billion through private ventures last year, including approximately $1.4 billion through cryptocurrency sales. The filing also raises questions of foreign influence over the Trump administration. The president profited $799 million last year from World Liberty Financial — a joint cryptocurrency venture between the families of Trump and his top Middle East and Russia/Ukraine envoy Steve Witkoff — which is backed by the United Arab Emirates. Sheikh Tahoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, brother of both the Emirati president and foreign minister, invested $500 million in World Liberty Financial just days before Trump’s 2025 inauguration. Later that spring, Tahnoon’s firms invested $2 billion into cryptocurrency platform Binance using “USD1,” the coin issued by World Liberty Financial and the proprietary cryptocurrency of the Trump family. In an April report, Public Citizen warned that the UAE’s investment in the Trump fund “creates a massive conflict of interest for the conduct of U.S. foreign policy.” The UAE has consistently warned against U.S. diplomatic engagement with Tehran, even participating in dozens of strikes against Iran as it aligns itself closer with Israel. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Emirati royal family’s investments in World Liberty Financial may ...
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Trump acquired at least $10 million in defense stocks last year. Many of these companies have received large contracts to rebuild stockpiles of weapons that were depleted during the war against Iran that was launched February 28. Boeing — a prime military contractor from which Trump purchased more than $700,000 worth of stock in 2025 — sold $8.
TL;DR:
Almost all of these stocks rose significantly in the first year of the Trump administration.
Warontherocks
Jul 8, 17:30
A Fresh Look at the Houthi Threat to Maritime Shipping
In 2024, Allison Minor wrote, “Solving the Houthi Threat to Freedom of Navigation,” where she argued the international response to Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea has so far been inadequate and proposed a U.N.-led solution. Two years later, with global attention once again focused on maritime shipping activity, we asked Allison to review her arguments. Image: Petty Officer 1st Class Jonathan Word via DVIDSWhen you wrote about the Houthi threat in 2024, the activities in the Red Sea commanded high global attention. Two years on, that attention has largely shifted to the Strait of Hormuz. What has been The post A Fresh Look at the Houthi Threat to Maritime Shipping appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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In 2024, Allison Minor wrote, “Solving the Houthi Threat to Freedom of Navigation,” where she argued the international response to Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea has so far been inadequate and proposed a U.N.-led solution. Two years later, with global attention once again focused on maritime shipping activity, we asked Allison to review her arguments.
TL;DR:
What has been The post A Fresh Look at the Houthi Threat to Maritime Shipping appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 8, 08:00
The Davis Wing, the B-24 Liberator, and the Self-Made Bet That Paid Off
Editor’s note: This is the second article in a limited series celebrating American defense technologies born from wartime and their effects on broader national security, politics, and society. This series will run for several weeks to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, and winners will be selected by a reader vote undertaken through our newsletter later this summer. Prior installments can be found at the Arsenal of Innovation page.The most produced American military aircraft of World War II was not a small fighter, a trainer, or a simple utility airplane — it was a complex four-engine heavy bomber called the B-24 Liberator. Over the course The post The Davis Wing, the B-24 Liberator, and the Self-Made Bet That Paid Off appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Editor’s note: This is the second article in a limited series celebrating American defense technologies born from wartime and their effects on broader national security, politics, and society. This series will run for several weeks to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, and winners will be selected by a reader vote undertaken through our newsletter later this summer.
TL;DR:
Over the course The post The Davis Wing, the B-24 Liberator, and the Self-Made Bet That Paid Off appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 8, 07:30
Somali Pirates Are Back — But the Coalition That Beat Them Isn’t Coming
Numerous recent pirate attacks, especially the hijacking of three merchant vessels off the Horn of Africa, are a stark reminder that the conditions for resurgence can return quickly.It took years of sustained, coordinated effort by multinational naval coalitions, the shipping industry, and international organizations to get rid of pirates in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden. Since 2016, many observers have viewed Somali piracy as yesterday’s problem. Shipping companies increasingly treated the threat as manageable, and Western navies no longer prioritized it. However, piracy did not disappear, it simply went dormant. Somali piracy is now re-emerging amid The post Somali Pirates Are Back — But the Coalition That Beat Them Isn’t Coming appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Numerous recent pirate attacks, especially the hijacking of three merchant vessels off the Horn of Africa, are a stark reminder that the conditions for resurgence can return quickly.It took years of sustained, coordinated effort by multinational naval coalitions, the shipping industry, and international organizations to get rid of pirates in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gu…
TL;DR:
Somali piracy is now re-emerging amid The post Somali Pirates Are Back — But the Coalition That Beat Them Isn’t Coming appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 7, 08:00
Gathering Clouds: Building Digital Strategic Depth in the Compute Age
The wars in Ukraine and the Middle East have exposed a strategic reality that military planners are only beginning to confront: In a data-centric age, digital infrastructure has become part of the battlespace. Data centers and cloud regions are now the digital backbone of military power and economic prosperity. As such, they present attractive targets for rapidly proliferating long-range strike systems, drones, and cyber capabilities. As the protective value of physical distance erodes, strategic depth — once conceived in geographical terms — must now be measured in the resilience of data and compute.Alex Rough detailed the physical vulnerability of data The post Gathering Clouds: Building Digital Strategic Depth in the Compute Age appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Gathering Clouds: Building Digital Strategic Depth in the Compute Age. Data centers and cloud regions are now the digital backbone of military power and economic prosperity. As the protective value of physical distance erodes, strategic depth — once conceived in geographical terms — must now be measured in the resilience of data and compute.
TL;DR:
The wars in Ukraine and the Middle East have exposed a strategic reality that military planners are only beginning to confront: In a data-centric age, digital infrastructure has become part of the battlespace.
Warontherocks
Jul 7, 07:30
Sinews of War at Sea: The Armed Services Need a Common Watercraft Family
To sustain future maritime operations, the U.S military will need to run supplies through an environment that spans thousands of miles of open ocean, denied ports, contested straits, and archipelagic chokepoints against adversaries that have spent decades studying how to target American logistics. That problem does not require one identical vessel for every mission. It does require a more common family of watercraft for the manned ships that carry cargo and vehicles inside a theater, built for scale, interoperability, and wartime replacement. Getting this right is arguably the most important acquisition problem the joint force faces in the next decade.So The post Sinews of War at Sea: The Armed Services Need a Common Watercraft Family appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Sinews of War at Sea: The Armed Services Need a Common Watercraft Family. That problem does not require one identical vessel for every mission. It does require a more common family of watercraft for the manned ships that carry cargo and vehicles inside a theater, built for scale, interoperability, and wartime replacement.
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Getting this right is arguably the most important acquisition problem the joint force faces in the next decade.So The post Sinews of War at Sea: The Armed Services Need a Common Watercraft Family appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 6, 16:35
Ukrainian Writers Take Aim at Government Narratives
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.American coverage often narrows the view to the battlefield — these pieces widen it, revealing the texture of daily life, politics, and public argument in a nation at war. The perspectives gathered here are varied, candid, and often surprising, together forming a more complete picture of Ukraine as it really is.Frontline and StrategyЕспресо — The post Ukrainian Writers Take Aim at Government Narratives appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Ukrainian Writers Take Aim at Government Narratives. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.
TL;DR:
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members.
Warontherocks
Jul 6, 07:30
A Catholic Security Scholar’s Case for Responsible Military AI
What do you do when two identities that make up your deepest self find themselves on opposite sides of a moral and spiritual battlefield?I am Catholic. I have been one for over 20 years since I made the life-altering decision to join a friend for Mass one day. My faith became a spiritual and ethical foundation at a time I sorely needed it, so much so that for a time, I contemplated entering the priesthood, which replaced my previous career goal of entering the CIA. I eventually realized that teaching was my true calling and decided to pursue that path The post A Catholic Security Scholar’s Case for Responsible Military AI appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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What do you do when two identities that make up your deepest self find themselves on opposite sides of a moral and spiritual battlefield?I am Catholic. I have been one for over 20 years since I made the life-altering decision to join a friend for Mass one day.
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I eventually realized that teaching was my true calling and decided to pursue that path The post A Catholic Security Scholar’s Case for Responsible Military AI appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 4, 07:30
Happy 250th Birthday, America!
Editor’s Note: Few rivalries in American history have been as consequential — or as personal — as the one between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. The two men could hardly have been more different. Adams, the stocky and combative Massachusetts lawyer, was blunt to a fault and quick to suspicion. Jefferson, the tall, elegant Virginia planter, was reserved and idealistic. The two held diverging political philosophies as well. Adams preferred a strong, central government while Jefferson favored states’ rights and limited government. This rift eventually led to an epic falling out, culminating in the presidential election of 1800, as Jefferson The post Happy 250th Birthday, America! appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Happy 250th Birthday, America!. Editor’s Note: Few rivalries in American history have been as consequential — or as personal — as the one between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Adams preferred a strong, central government while Jefferson favored states’ rights and limited government.
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appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 3, 08:00
The Integrated Circuit and the Future of American AI Leadership
Editor’s note: This is the first article in a limited series celebrating American defense technologies born from wartime and their effects on broader national security, politics, and society. This series will run for several weeks to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, and winners will be selected by a reader vote undertaken through our newsletter later this summer. Prior installments can be found at the Arsenal of Innovation page.The history of the semiconductor is an origin story for modern computing but also reveals a recurring pattern in American innovation: government helps underwrite technological breakthroughs, and commercial markets transform them into general-purpose technologies. And yet, The post The Integrated Circuit and the Future of American AI Leadership appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Editor’s note: This is the first article in a limited series celebrating American defense technologies born from wartime and their effects on broader national security, politics, and society. This series will run for several weeks to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary, and winners will be selected by a reader vote undertaken through our newsletter later this summer.
TL;DR:
And yet, The post The Integrated Circuit and the Future of American AI Leadership appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 3, 07:30
Misguided and Misunderstood: Trump’s Approach to U.S. Troops in Europe
For many observers, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s speech on the future of NATO, delivered in Brussels on June 18, 2026, constituted a perfect example of how the Trump administration is angrily abandoning the longstanding U.S. commitment to European security. The prevailing picture is that the administration is eager to shift the burden of Europe’s defense and is thus moving to withdraw U.S. forces from the continent, even though Europe is moving to do more militarily. Hegseth stated, “we’re doubling down on our effort to make NATO what it always was supposed to be, a balanced alliance with Europe in The post Misguided and Misunderstood: Trump’s Approach to U.S. Troops in Europe appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Misguided and Misunderstood: Trump’s Approach to U.S. For many observers, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s speech on the future of NATO, delivered in Brussels on June 18, 2026, constituted a perfect example of how the Trump administration is angrily abandoning the longstanding U.S.
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Troops in Europe appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 2, 07:30
The Blind Spots in Chinese Military Studies
During a recent conference on the People’s Liberation Army, I heard the same question posed to attendees and paper writers: “How would China react to U.S. force posture change X, Y, or Z?” or “How would the Chinese military respond to U.S. strikes in certain locations?” Having participated in dozens of unclassified wargames at the RAND Corporation and elsewhere, I hear a similar refrain when playing the “red team.”This is a reasonable and legitimate question. Policymakers and war planners should understand likely Chinese responses in studying and preparing for possible contingencies between China and the United States.To make well-grounded assessments The post The Blind Spots in Chinese Military Studies appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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During a recent conference on the People’s Liberation Army, I heard the same question posed to attendees and paper writers: “How would China react to U.S. force posture change X, Y, or Z?” or “How would the Chinese military respond to U.S. strikes in certain locations?
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Policymakers and war planners should understand likely Chinese responses in studying and preparing for possible contingencies between China and the United States.To make well-grounded assessments The post The Blind Spots in Chinese Military Studies appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 1, 17:30
From Shin Bet to Mossad, Netanyahu Reshapes Israeli Intelligence
Editor’s Note: Rewind and Reconnoiter is one of our weekly members-only newsletters. To access the full archive of Rewind and Reconnoiter as well as our other members-only content, including podcasts, newsletters, and exclusive access to the War on the Rocks app, sign up using the link in the graphic below.In 2025, Ofek Riemer, Daniel Wajner, and Ehud Eiran wrote, “Populists vs. Spies in Israel and Beyond,” where they argued that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s relationship with Israel’s intelligence agencies could have grave consequences for Israel’s democracy. A year later, we asked them to revisit their arguments.Image: U.S. Department of State via Wikimedia The post From Shin Bet to Mossad, Netanyahu Reshapes Israeli Intelligence appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Editor’s Note: Rewind and Reconnoiter is one of our weekly members-only newsletters. To access the full archive of Rewind and Reconnoiter as well as our other members-only content, including podcasts, newsletters, and exclusive access to the War on the Rocks app, sign up using the link in the graphic below.
TL;DR:
Department of State via Wikimedia The post From Shin Bet to Mossad, Netanyahu Reshapes Israeli Intelligence appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 1, 15:15
How a Team of Marines Built the Corps’ FPV Drone Training Program from a Cold Start
Last fall, the U.S. Marine Corps had virtually no first-person view attack drones. That’s changed quickly. This episode is about how a team of marines at Weapons Training Battalion at Quantico went from a cold start to building a Marine Corps-wide first-person view drone training system. Ryan was pleased to welcome some great marines onto the show: Col. Scott Cuomo, CWO5 Steve Pearsoll, CWO3 (Gunner) Troy Hotaling, GySgt Jude Stewart, GySgt Justin Creasman, and Sgt Timothy Brockup.Since we recorded this episode, Cuomo has changed command and is off to his next assignment.This episode was brought to you by Onebrief. Learn The post How a Team of Marines Built the Corps’ FPV Drone Training Program from a Cold Start appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Marine Corps had virtually no first-person view attack drones. This episode is about how a team of marines at Weapons Training Battalion at Quantico went from a cold start to building a Marine Corps-wide first-person view drone training system. Ryan was pleased to welcome some great marines onto the show: Col.
TL;DR:
Learn The post How a Team of Marines Built the Corps’ FPV Drone Training Program from a Cold Start appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 1, 08:00
Trojan Spirit, the Army’s Intelligence Backbone, Needs a Successor
In 1990, the idea that deployed commanders could access the latest intelligence from three-letter agencies in the middle of nowhere was radical. But the Army was starting to make this idea real through a program called Trojan Spirit, so they could address a major strategic barrier: There were too many systems and databases for intelligence collection and analysis, some centralized and some forward deployed, and little access to practical insights. During Operation Desert Storm, the early Trojan system transitioned out of development and into operational deployment. Trojan Spirit’s first introduction to warfighters during the Gulf War fundamentally changed the battlefield. The post Trojan Spirit, the Army’s Intelligence Backbone, Needs a Successor appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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In 1990, the idea that deployed commanders could access the latest intelligence from three-letter agencies in the middle of nowhere was radical. But the Army was starting to make this idea real through a program called Trojan Spirit, so they could address a major strategic barrier: There were too many systems and databases for intelligence collection and analysis, some central…
TL;DR:
The post Trojan Spirit, the Army’s Intelligence Backbone, Needs a Successor appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jul 1, 07:30
The Hizballah Predicament: Why An Integrated Approach Is Necessary
Join War on the Rocks and gain access to content trusted by policymakers, military leaders, and strategic thinkers worldwide.
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The Hizballah Predicament: Why An Integrated Approach Is Necessary. Meeting openly for the first time in decades, Lebanese and Israeli representatives have negotiated on security and political tracks while extending various truces. Moreover, Israeli forces and Hizballah have since continued to clash , despite a tentative U.S.
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Join War on the Rocks and gain access to content trusted by policymakers, military leaders, and strategic thinkers worldwide.
Warontherocks
Jul 1, 07:15
The Three Nevers: To Invade Taiwan, China Would Have to Make Military History Thrice
The amphibious invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, remains the largest and most complex amphibious operation in history. On the first day alone, Allied forces landed eight divisions, including five amphibious assault and three airborne, totaling roughly 160,000 personnel. That force more than doubled within days.Normandy was unprecedented in scale but not in kind. A Taiwan invasion would present the reverse problem: Taiwan’s size is not the unprecedented part — the operational challenges are. Analysis of a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan typically emphasizes the People’s Liberation Army’s rapid modernization and the possibility of strategic surprise. Far less attention The post The Three Nevers: To Invade Taiwan, China Would Have to Make Military History Thrice appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The amphibious invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, remains the largest and most complex amphibious operation in history. A Taiwan invasion would present the reverse problem: Taiwan’s size is not the unprecedented part — the operational challenges are.
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Far less attention The post The Three Nevers: To Invade Taiwan, China Would Have to Make Military History Thrice appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 30, 17:45
The Shifting Fortunes of the Kurds
The Kurds’ fortunes have ebbed and flowed in recent years, but the fall of the Assad regime in Syria in December 2024, the 2025 decision by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to dissolve and engage in talks with the Turkish government, and the 2026 U.S.-Israeli war with Iran had enormous ripple effects on the lives of Kurds in the Middle East and Kurdish hopes for autonomy. We asked four experts to assess how recent regional events are presenting risks and opportunities for the Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, Syria, and Iran.Read more below. Gönül TolSenior Fellow at the Middle East InstituteThe Iran The post The Shifting Fortunes of the Kurds appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The Shifting Fortunes of the Kurds. The Kurds’ fortunes have ebbed and flowed in recent years, but the fall of the Assad regime in Syria in December 2024, the 2025 decision by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to dissolve and engage in talks with the Turkish government, and the 2026 U.S.
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We asked four experts to assess how recent regional events are presenting risks and opportunities for the Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, Syria, and Iran.Read more below. Gönül TolSenior Fellow at the Middle East InstituteThe Iran The post The Shifting Fortunes of the Kurds appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 30, 08:00
Mapping America’s Domestic Drone Supply Chain
The extent of China’s drone dominance — and how to decouple from it — has long been a source of debate and anxiety in Washington. Last month, the Wall Street Journal reignited controversy by publishing a visual analysis of military quadcopter components, exploring China’s advantages in parts manufacturing and cost. The director of the Defense Innovation Unit objected to the report, stating on X that “By leaving out the dozens of U.S. companies that have plunged into drone component manufacturing, this article disappoints.”Underlying this debate is disagreement about how to measure drone supply chain security. At the very top of The post Mapping America’s Domestic Drone Supply Chain appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The extent of China’s drone dominance — and how to decouple from it — has long been a source of debate and anxiety in Washington. Last month, the Wall Street Journal reignited controversy by publishing a visual analysis of military quadcopter components, exploring China’s advantages in parts manufacturing and cost.
TL;DR:
At the very top of The post Mapping America’s Domestic Drone Supply Chain appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 30, 07:30
Lost in Translation: How A Premier Chinese Think Tank Views U.S.-Chinese Competition
On May 13, 2026, Air Force One landed in Beijing for President Donald Trump’s first state visit to China in nearly a decade. That same morning, the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations published a report titled The Evolving World and the Right Way to China-US Coexistence. The summit dominated global media coverage for two days. The report received almost none.The Beijing summit produced familiar imagery: honor guards, a state banquet in the Great Hall of the People, and carefully choreographed warmth. Chinese leader Xi Jinping announced that both sides had agreed to “strategic stability” as a framework for the The post Lost in Translation: How A Premier Chinese Think Tank Views U.S.-Chinese Competition appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Lost in Translation: How A Premier Chinese Think Tank Views U.S.-Chinese Competition. That same morning, the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations published a report titled The Evolving World and the Right Way to China-US Coexistence.
TL;DR:
On May 13, 2026, Air Force One landed in Beijing for President Donald Trump’s first state visit to China in nearly a decade.
Warontherocks
Jun 29, 16:00
The Ukrainian Push for Long-Term Strategic Planning
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.American coverage often narrows the view to the battlefield — these pieces widen it, revealing the texture of daily life, politics, and public argument in a nation at war. The perspectives gathered here are varied, candid, and often surprising, together forming a more complete picture of Ukraine as it really is.Frontline and StrategyОбозреватель — The post The Ukrainian Push for Long-Term Strategic Planning appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The Ukrainian Push for Long-Term Strategic Planning. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.
TL;DR:
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members.
Warontherocks
Jun 29, 08:00
The Defense Industrial Alliance Washington Is Throwing Away
As the relationship between the United States and Canada continues to degrade, it now comes at the expense of each country’s industrial security.Last month, the Pentagon announced the unilateral suspension of the 86-year-old Canadian Permanent Joint Board on Defense in response to what the White House sees as Ottawa’s failure to present a credible plan to spend 3.5 percent of GDP on defense by 2035. And the opening of the gleaming new bridge between Detroit and Windsor has been long delayed in the tense run-up to the continental trade deal review.What many policymakers in Washington fail to realize is that The post The Defense Industrial Alliance Washington Is Throwing Away appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The Defense Industrial Alliance Washington Is Throwing Away. As the relationship between the United States and Canada continues to degrade, it now comes at the expense of each country’s industrial security.
TL;DR:
And the opening of the gleaming new bridge between Detroit and Windsor has been long delayed in the tense run-up to the continental trade deal review.What many policymakers in Washington fail to realize is that The post The Defense Industrial Alliance Washington Is Throwing Away appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 29, 07:30
A New Force Posture Concept for Europeanizing Extended Nuclear Deterrence
During the Cold War, Europe kept asking whether Washington would risk an American city to save a European one. It was an impolite question, but a useful one, which is why it never quite left the room. It has now packed its bags and moved east. Earlier this year, French President Emmanuel Macron created quite a stir with an important speech on French nuclear weapons policy. Under what he called a new path of dissuasion avancée, or “forward deterrence,” he declared that just as French strategic submarines “dilute naturally in the oceans, guaranteeing a permanent-strike capability,” so also now will The post A New Force Posture Concept for Europeanizing Extended Nuclear Deterrence appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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A New Force Posture Concept for Europeanizing Extended Nuclear Deterrence. Earlier this year, French President Emmanuel Macron created quite a stir with an important speech on French nuclear weapons policy.
TL;DR:
During the Cold War, Europe kept asking whether Washington would risk an American city to save a European one.
Warontherocks
Jun 29, 07:15
The Art of Statecraft in an Age of Strategic Failure
Jack Watling, Statecraft: The New Rules of Power in a Divided World (Macmillan, 2026)The war against Iran exposed a multitude of forced errors and own goals in the conduct of statecraft. The purpose of sound statecraft is the integrated application of a state’s tools and its repertoire of governmental instruments of power to gain its desired outcomes in international relations. The yet-to-be-resolved contest against the Islamic Republic of Iran reveals a litany of shortfalls in the conduct of U.S. statecraft.It is unlikely that the present U.S. government will conduct a candid assessment of its shortcomings. Acknowledging the failure to achieve The post The Art of Statecraft in an Age of Strategic Failure appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Jack Watling, Statecraft: The New Rules of Power in a Divided World (Macmillan, 2026)The war against Iran exposed a multitude of forced errors and own goals in the conduct of statecraft. The yet-to-be-resolved contest against the Islamic Republic of Iran reveals a litany of shortfalls in the conduct of U.S. government will conduct a candid assessment of its shortcomings.
TL;DR:
Acknowledging the failure to achieve The post The Art of Statecraft in an Age of Strategic Failure appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 26, 14:15
Not Imaginary: The Deterrence Gap is Real and America Needs Low-Yield Nukes
Nuclear policy debates are at their best when they force hard questions about risk, deterrence, and military necessity. They are at their worst when disagreement is recast as bad faith. In 2018, as an outgrowth of a rigorous policy review process, the Trump administration’s Nuclear Posture Review identified a need for supplemental low-yield nuclear capabilities to augment the U.S. nuclear arsenal. This was presented as an effort to raise the nuclear threshold of adversaries who may believe they could employ nuclear weapons in limited ways to escalate their way out of failed or failing conventional conflict.To address this concern, the The post Not Imaginary: The Deterrence Gap is Real and America Needs Low-Yield Nukes appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Not Imaginary: The Deterrence Gap is Real and America Needs Low-Yield Nukes. In 2018, as an outgrowth of a rigorous policy review process, the Trump administration’s Nuclear Posture Review identified a need for supplemental low-yield nuclear capabilities to augment the U.S.
TL;DR:
Nuclear policy debates are at their best when they force hard questions about risk, deterrence, and military necessity.
Warontherocks
Jun 26, 07:30
Misreading Myanmar’s War: Why the Junta’s Recent Gains Don’t Mean Imminent Victory
To understand how close Myanmar’s pro-democracy resistance came to victory last year — and how far it has slipped since — there is no sharper microcosm than the story of a Gen Z sniper. In April 2025, a female teenager, Anina, enraptured the world, her youth-driven “Spring Revolution” a vivid foil to the sclerotic forces of military dictator Min Aung Hlaing (officially called the Tatmadaw). When her unit captured the town of Falam, fortune seemed on the resistance’s side. Yet, a year later, regime troops stormed Anina’s hometown, a stunning blow to the resistance.Many observers had predicted the junta’s impending The post Misreading Myanmar’s War: Why the Junta’s Recent Gains Don’t Mean Imminent Victory appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Misreading Myanmar’s War: Why the Junta’s Recent Gains Don’t Mean Imminent Victory. In April 2025, a female teenager, Anina, enraptured the world, her youth-driven “Spring Revolution” a vivid foil to the sclerotic forces of military dictator Min Aung Hlaing (officially called the Tatmadaw).
TL;DR:
To understand how close Myanmar’s pro-democracy resistance came to victory last year — and how far it has slipped since — there is no sharper microcosm than the story of a Gen Z sniper.
Warontherocks
Jun 26, 07:15
The 2026 War on the Rocks Summer Fiction Reading List
You can tell a lot about a person from what fiction they keep on their nightstand. Once a year, we make the staff, contributing editors, and show hosts of War on the Rocks tell on themselves.Kerry AndersonThe Midnight Library, Matt Haig (2020). Drawing on evergreen themes from books and movies such as Sliding Doors or It’s a Wonderful Life, The Midnight Library puts a fresh spin on questions like what’s the meaning of life, how does our presence (or absence) in the world affect those around us, what would have happened if we had made different choices, and are there The post The 2026 War on the Rocks Summer Fiction Reading List appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The 2026 War on the Rocks Summer Fiction Reading List. You can tell a lot about a person from what fiction they keep on their nightstand. Drawing on evergreen themes from books and movies such as Sliding Doors or It’s a Wonderful Life, The Midnight Library puts a fresh spin on questions like what’s the meaning of life, how does our presence (or absence) in the world affect tho…
TL;DR:
Once a year, we make the staff, contributing editors, and show hosts of War on the Rocks tell on themselves.Kerry AndersonThe Midnight Library, Matt Haig (2020).
Warontherocks
Jun 25, 19:45
Open Strait, Unsettled Waters
Welcome to The Adversarial. Every other week, we’ll provide you with expert analysis on America’s greatest challengers: China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and jihadists. Read more below.***IranOn June 17, U.S. President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian separately signed a memorandum of understanding. Mediated by Pakistan and Qatar, the agreement ends hostilities and provides early returns for both sides: Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is ticking up, oil prices have been coming down, and Washington has issued a 60-day waiver on Iranian oil and petrochemical sales. But diverging claims on nearly every point the two sides spent weeks litigating The post Open Strait, Unsettled Waters appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Open Strait, Unsettled Waters. President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian separately signed a memorandum of understanding. But diverging claims on nearly every point the two sides spent weeks litigating The post Open Strait, Unsettled Waters appeared first on War on the Rocks .
TL;DR:
Welcome to The Adversarial. Every other week, we’ll provide you with expert analysis on America’s greatest challengers: China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and jihadists.
Warontherocks
Jun 25, 08:00
The U.S. Navy’s Subsea Rare Earth Vulnerability
The Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine is the next generation of American nuclear deterrence. Twelve of these boats will replace the aging Ohio-class fleet, entering service over the 2030s and 2040s, each carrying 16 Trident IIs and driven by a ghost-quiet electric motor that renders them acoustically invisible to any adversary. What makes all of that possible — the propulsion, the stealth, the strike precision — depends almost entirely on rare earths refined in China. This is perhaps the Navy’s most consequential and least discussed vulnerability.The dependency runs through every layer of the capability stack. The sub’s permanent magnet motor requires The post The U.S. Navy’s Subsea Rare Earth Vulnerability appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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The Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine is the next generation of American nuclear deterrence. What makes all of that possible — the propulsion, the stealth, the strike precision — depends almost entirely on rare earths refined in China. This is perhaps the Navy’s most consequential and least discussed vulnerability.
TL;DR:
Navy’s Subsea Rare Earth Vulnerability appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 25, 07:30
The Importance of the Battle of the Little Bighorn
On June 25, 1876, Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and an entire battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment rode to their deaths and into American legend on the ridges north of Montana’s Little Bighorn River. The battle was decided in a few hours. Its meaning remains contested 150 years later.Little Bighorn stands alongside Yorktown, Gettysburg, and D-Day in the pantheon of iconic American battles. But it is a curious addition there, in that it was a small engagement, fought by just a few hundred men on a compact piece of terrain. More curiously still, it was a loss. Not just The post The Importance of the Battle of the Little Bighorn appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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George Armstrong Custer and an entire battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment rode to their deaths and into American legend on the ridges north of Montana’s Little Bighorn River. Its meaning remains contested 150 years later.Little Bighorn stands alongside Yorktown, Gettysburg, and D-Day in the pantheon of iconic American battles.
TL;DR:
Not just The post The Importance of the Battle of the Little Bighorn appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 24, 17:30
Nuclear Stability in the Age of AI
In 2024, Paul Scharre and Michael Depp wrote, “Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear Stability,” where they argued integrating artificial intelligence into the nuclear chain of command presents both opportunities and risks. Two years later, as AI becomes increasingly integrated into military systems and processes, we asked them to revisit their arguments. Image: Senior Airman Jason Wiese via Wikimedia CommonsIn 2024, you argued that integrating artificial intelligence into the nuclear chain of command presents both opportunities and risks. Where does that integration stand today? Is nuclear AI a priority for the Department of Defense, or does it currently take a back seat The post Nuclear Stability in the Age of AI appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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In 2024, Paul Scharre and Michael Depp wrote, “Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear Stability,” where they argued integrating artificial intelligence into the nuclear chain of command presents both opportunities and risks. Two years later, as AI becomes increasingly integrated into military systems and processes, we asked them to revisit their arguments.
TL;DR:
Is nuclear AI a priority for the Department of Defense, or does it currently take a back seat The post Nuclear Stability in the Age of AI appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 24, 08:30
Designing Drones for Africa
This exclusive Cogs of War interview is with Maxwell Maduka, the co-founder and chief engineer of Terra Industries, an African defense technology company building autonomous drone and counter-drone systems designed for the continent’s operating conditions. As cheap imported airframes flood African markets and non-state actors employ drones across the Sahel, we asked Max why Terra is betting on Africa building its own defense industrial base.Cheap Turkish and Chinese drones and sensor systems have proliferated across Africa for years. Where do those systems fall short, and what capabilities do you hope to add to the crowded unmanned market?Imported Turkish and Chinese The post Designing Drones for Africa appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Designing Drones for Africa. This exclusive Cogs of War interview is with Maxwell Maduka, the co-founder and chief engineer of Terra Industries, an African defense technology company building autonomous drone and counter-drone systems designed for the continent’s operating conditions.
TL;DR:
Where do those systems fall short, and what capabilities do you hope to add to the crowded unmanned market?Imported Turkish and Chinese The post Designing Drones for Africa appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 24, 08:00
AI Agents and the Unseen Work of War
Armies run on more than what happens at the front. Behind every operation is a vast amount of coordination, administration, logistics, and judgment. Bill Pessin, senior vice president of national security at Salesforce and a former U.S. Army logistics officer, joins Jonathan to discuss how military organizations can use AI agents, what makes these tools different from ordinary software, and why safety and accountability matter when new technology enters national security work. They also discuss what Pessin learned early in his Army career about the gap between plans, systems, and the people who have to make them work. Image: Petty The post AI Agents and the Unseen Work of War appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Bill Pessin, senior vice president of national security at Salesforce and a former U.S. Army logistics officer, joins Jonathan to discuss how military organizations can use AI agents, what makes these tools different from ordinary software, and why safety and accountability matter when new technology enters national security work.
TL;DR:
Image: Petty The post AI Agents and the Unseen Work of War appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 24, 07:30
From Vietnam to Iran: Wartime Diplomacy and Secret Deals
Wars rarely end in a single act of diplomacy. More often, they pass through a succession of ceasefires, frameworks, understandings, as well as provisional and even secret arrangements before anyone can determine whether peace is actually at hand. The Trump administration’s memorandum with Iran is best understood in those terms. In both form and logic, it recalls an earlier American effort to negotiate an exit from an unpopular conflict: the Paris Peace Accords of 1973.The four primary parties to the Vietnam War (1965 to 1975) — the United States, South Vietnam, North Vietnam, and the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the The post From Vietnam to Iran: Wartime Diplomacy and Secret Deals appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Wars rarely end in a single act of diplomacy. More often, they pass through a succession of ceasefires, frameworks, understandings, as well as provisional and even secret arrangements before anyone can determine whether peace is actually at hand. The Trump administration’s memorandum with Iran is best understood in those terms.
TL;DR:
In both form and logic, it recalls an earlier American effort to negotiate an exit from an unpopular conflict: the Paris Peace Accords of 1973.The four primary parties to the Vietnam War (1965 to 1975) — the United States, South Vietnam, North Vietnam, and the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the The post From Vietnam to Iran: Wartime Diplomacy and Secret Deals appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 23, 17:30
Adapting to Uncertainty in the Strait of Hormuz
Iran’s threats to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — in response to the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran that began on Feb. 28 — effectively closed the strait, sending economic shockwaves around the world. As part of negotiations between Tehran and Washington, Iran has eased restrictions, and shipping traffic has picked up in recent days — albeit well below pre-war levels.Whatever the outcome of negotiations, Iran has clearly demonstrated its ability to shut down the strait. It could happen again. That reality significantly increases incentives for many countries to reduce their reliance on the strait. We asked five The post Adapting to Uncertainty in the Strait of Hormuz appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Iran’s threats to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — in response to the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran that began on Feb. As part of negotiations between Tehran and Washington, Iran has eased restrictions, and shipping traffic has picked up in recent days — albeit well below pre-war levels.
TL;DR:
We asked five The post Adapting to Uncertainty in the Strait of Hormuz appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 23, 07:30
A Claim to Lead, a Hesitation to Act: Germany’s New Military Strategy
In the public perception, it seems like a big deal for Germany to publish a military strategy for the first time. But let me pour a little cold water on that. A form of military strategy has always existed. Where today we have a National Security Strategy paired with a military strategy and Plan for the Armed Forces, the past offered the White Paper, Defence Policy Guidelines, and the Bundeswehr concept, which spelled out the armed forces’ structure in more concrete terms. Yet even the new military strategy, released in late April, reads more as analysis than as a clear The post A Claim to Lead, a Hesitation to Act: Germany’s New Military Strategy appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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In the public perception, it seems like a big deal for Germany to publish a military strategy for the first time. A form of military strategy has always existed. Where today we have a National Security Strategy paired with a military strategy and Plan for the Armed Forces, the past offered the White Paper, Defence Policy Guidelines, and the Bundeswehr concept, which spelled ou…
TL;DR:
Yet even the new military strategy, released in late April, reads more as analysis than as a clear The post A Claim to Lead, a Hesitation to Act: Germany’s New Military Strategy appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 22, 16:00
Is There a Place in Ukrainian Media for War Skeptics?
Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. Each Monday, we bring you a curated selection of articles from Ukrainian media offering insight into how Ukrainians themselves debate the issues shaping their country.American coverage often narrows the view to the battlefield — these pieces widen it, revealing the texture of daily life, politics, and public argument in a nation at war. The perspectives gathered here are varied, candid, and often surprising, together forming a more complete picture of Ukraine as it really is.Frontline and StrategyЦензор.НЕТ — The post Is There a Place in Ukrainian Media for War Skeptics? appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Is There a Place in Ukrainian Media for War Skeptics?. Welcome to The Ukraine Compass, a weekly digest of Ukrainian commentary and analysis from across the political spectrum only for War on the Rocks members. The perspectives gathered here are varied, candid, and often surprising, together forming a more complete picture of Ukraine as it really is.Frontline and StrategyЦензор.
TL;DR:
appeared first on War on the Rocks .
Warontherocks
Jun 22, 07:30
Too Big To Break Again: India, Italy, and the Defense Partnership That Almost Wasn’t
A single bribe nearly ruined a defense partnership most people didn’t know even existed. It took India and Italy almost a decade to recover.The story of how that rupture happened — and what it exposed about Italy’s quiet but deep role in India’s military — is essential to understanding why both countries now treat their renewed ties as something too valuable to lose again.When Indian authorities cancelled the AgustaWestland helicopter contract in 2014, the fallout went far beyond the headlines. Torpedo supplies to the Indian Navy’s Scorpène-class submarines froze, upgrades to over 20 Sea King helicopters stalled, and a naval The post Too Big To Break Again: India, Italy, and the Defense Partnership That Almost Wasn’t appeared first on War on the Rocks .
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Too Big To Break Again: India, Italy, and the Defense Partnership That Almost Wasn’t. It took India and Italy almost a decade to recover.The story of how that rupture happened — and what it exposed about Italy’s quiet but deep role in India’s military — is essential to understanding why both countries now treat their renewed ties as something too valuable to lose again.
TL;DR:
A single bribe nearly ruined a defense partnership most people didn’t know even existed.