Minimalist News

Why Are So Many Millionaires Leaving The UK? Authored by Mani Basharzad via the Foundation for Economic Education , Samuel Johnson once wrote that “when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life.” Today, however, there seems to be one group that is tired of London: millionaires. In the last week of June 2026, one of the world’s most famous antique fairs, the Treasure House Fair, took place in London, attracting collectors and dealers from around the globe. But this year, what attracted attention wasn’t only the antiques; it was the drop in foot traffic. At the

Watch: Aerial Drone Airlifts Kamikaze Ground Bot Into Battle As Warfare Automation Accelerates The evolution of autonomous warfare will center on teams of FPV drones, unmanned aircraft, and ground robots operating across a single network. Our view is that the battlefield of the 2030s has already been pulled forward by conflicts across Eurasia, from the Russia-Ukraine war to the US-Iran conflict. It was only a matter of time before Ukrainian forces paired heavy UAVs with unmanned ground vehicles to conduct offensive missions deep inside no-man's-land , where the majority of deaths are caused by kamikaze drones. Swamping human soldiers with

Europe's Heatwave Is Becoming An Energy Crisis Authored by Tsvetana Paraskova via OilPrice.com, Europe's heatwave is disrupting energy and transport, with low river levels restricting barge traffic on the Rhine and driving up shipping costs for fuel, coal, and other goods. High river temperatures have forced France to cut nuclear power generation, reducing electricity output as reactors face cooling constraints. The extreme weather is adding to Europe's energy challenges, increasing inflationary pressures and threatening economic growth alongside ongoing disruptions from the Strait of Hormuz crisis. The intense early summer heatwave in Europe is warming the biggest rivers and drying up

China Is Building A System To Track Asteroids That Could Potentially Smash Into Earth China is expanding its planetary defense efforts with a new asteroid detection network aimed at spotting dangerous space rocks long before they become a threat to Earth, according to the South China Morning Post . SCMP writes that the planned system will pair a network of powerful ground-based telescopes with satellites in orbit, giving scientists the ability to monitor the sky around the clock. Space-based sensors can also detect asteroids approaching from the sun's direction—objects that are especially difficult for Earth-based observatories to see. Li Mingtao,

How Long Will Burnham Last? Authored by Mark Littlewood via DailySceptic.org, Over the past decade our political system has chewed through and spat out Prime Ministers at a faster rate than Premier League football teams burn through managers. As Andy Burnham enters 10 Downing Street, why would we think there is any reason he will do much better – in terms of longevity – than his immediate predecessors? I’m keeping my eyes peeled for a bookmaker offering odds on Burnham being removed from office before the next election rather than at it. As the Labour Party slowly coalesced around a

'Convergence': Secret Labs Already Deployed Lifelike Female Androids While Public Watches Optimus Toy Demos Authored by Madge Waggy, Technology has an unusual habit of revealing itself twice. The first version appears quietly, almost unnoticed, inside research papers, patent filings, laboratory demonstrations and corporate presentations that attract little attention beyond specialists. The second version arrives years later, polished into a consumer product that suddenly convinces everyone the breakthrough happened overnight. History repeatedly favors this illusion. By the time society begins discussing a technological revolution, thousands of engineers have already spent years solving problems the public never realized existed. That gap between

'Going Dark': The High-Tech Tricks Behind Illegal Chinese Fishing In The Pacific Authored by AAP via The Epoch Times , The interception of a Chinese vessel accused of illegal fishing highlights the technical lengths many use to remain undetected across millions of square kilometres of open ocean. Tuvalu Police operating on a Sea Shepherd patrol boat boarded and arrested a Chinese longliner, the Lu Rong Yuan Yu 138, on July 9 for allegedly illegally operating within the small South Pacific nation's waters. In a supplied image, fish found on board Chinese longlining vessel, the Lu Rong Yuan Yu 138, at

India's Nuclear Push Further Strains The Massive Uranium Supply Gap Prime Minister Modi secured another major uranium supply line . During his visit to Australia this month, the two sides finalized the administrative arrangements needed to move Australian uranium to India under the previous 2014 nuclear cooperation agreement. The fuel must stay under IAEA safeguards for exclusively peaceful use . Australia holds roughly 28% of global uranium reserves . New Delhi has eyed those reserves for years, and now the yellowcake spigot can open. This follows the March deal with Canada's Cameco. That contract covers nearly 22 million pounds of

478 Individuals Charged In Border-Related Enforcements In Texas, Arizona Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times , A total of 478 individuals have been charged across Texas and Arizona over the past week in cases involving border and immigration-related crimes. A United States Border Patrol agent enters through the United States border wall outside of San Diego, on Jan. 20, 2026. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times In Texas, 199 people, including 175 illegal immigrants, were charged in 194 cases between July 10 and 16 , according to a July 17 statement from the Department of Justice (DOJ). Authorities filed 146

The Data-Center Revolt Goes National: Tea Party Veteran Leads 142 Rallies Across 42 States The backlash against the AI data-center build-out - which we've been tracking since it was a smattering of county fights across 28 states - staged its first coordinated day of action on Saturday : 142 protests across 42 states, from Wasilla, Alaska to Naples, Florida, organized by Humans First, the nonprofit that Tea Party veteran Amy Kremer co-founded and chairs . The crowds spanned both sides of the aisle...uniting a MAGA stalwart in a 'faith, family, freedom' T-shirt in New Jersey, a first-time activist in Texas,

China's Moonshot Eyes IPO After Sparking Another "DeepSeek Moment" For US AI Stocks Chinese startup Moonshot AI sparked another DeepSeek-like moment for US AI stocks and hyperscalers last week. David Sacks, the former White House AI and cryptocurrency czar, warned that this is "very concerning." Moonshot AI debuted Kimi K3, which ranks number three on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index , trailing only OpenAI's GPT-5.6 Sol and Anthropic's Fable 5. This only shows the continued trend of open-weight models toward the AI frontier. Kimi K3 has emerged as a top challenger across reasoning and coding workloads, highlighting the rapid pace

Taiwan's President Ratchets Anti-China Rhetoric In Party Speech: Must Resist 'Red Terror' Of Beijing President Lai Ching-te said on Sunday that Taiwan must renew efforts to protect its democracy and never become part of China. He urged members of his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to oppose the "red terror" coming ‌from Beijing. The ruling DPP champions Taiwan's separate ​identity from China, and is working to combat what Lai called China's "legal warfare" . via Bloomberg "I also expect comrades within ‌the party to stand on the front lines, unite as one, and jointly oppose the ​threat posed by China's 'red

Judge Strikes Down Race-Based Provision In Biden-Era Internet Access Grant Program Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times , A federal judge ruled on July 15 that a race-based provision of the Digital Equity Act, signed by President Joe Biden in 2021 to close digital gaps, was unconstitutional. A judge's gavel rests on top of a desk in a courtroom in Miami, Fla., on Feb. 3, 2009. Joe Raedle/Getty Images The Digital Equity Act was part of Biden's Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which appropriated $2.75 billion to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to establish grant programs

NBA Boss Calls Caitlin Clark A "Political Football" Over Racism Controversy The WNBA has been the butt of jokes for decades. The women's league is a perpetual money pit, with annual losses of around $40 million per year, all subsidized by the men's league. The level of play is often tedious, the pace is much slower and the athleticism is lacking compared to the men's game. It's the reason why the WNBA has far less viewers, makes no profit and why the women athletes are paid far less. It's not sexism ad many of the players claim, it's just basic

Trump Endorses Graham's Sister For Full Term, Shattering Expectations Of Short Stay Following the sudden July 11 death of Senator Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster triggered eye-rolling across America when he appointed Graham's sister Darline Nordone to take over the seat. At the time, the appointment of the unqualified sibling was widely understood as a mere interim honor, with Nordone serving as a placeholder pending the outcome of a special primary election to choose a Republican candidate for November's previously-scheduled election for the seat. Now, President Trump has asked Nordone to run in that primary race and pursue

Judge Dismisses DOJ's New Mexico Voter Data Request Authored by Kimberly Hayek via The Epoch Times , A federal judge on July 14 rejected the Justice Department's attempt to obtain the private personal data of every registered voter in New Mexico , adding to the overall number of cases the DOJ has lost in which it has sought similar information. The U.S. Department of Justice in Washington on Aug. 7, 2025. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times U.S. District Judge Judith C. Herrera dismissed the latest voter roll lawsuit, ruling that the department's demand letter lacked facts, proof of a pattern of

Mamdani's New York: West Side Homeless Camp Stretching 12 Blocks Now Allegedly Stealing City Power You've likely seen it if you've the nearby Hell's Kitchen entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel... What began as a growing homeless encampment on Manhattan's West Side has now escalated to alleged utility theft, according to the NY Post . According to reports, one resident of the sprawling encampment was seen Tuesday tapping into city electrical lines to power a makeshift shelter near West 34th Street between 11th and 12th Avenue. The camp now stretches roughly a dozen blocks, from 34th Street to 46th Street near

Overloaded: From Trinkets To Compute And Market Structure By Peter Tchir of Academy Securities Last weekend we published that the market was sitting on Multiple Inflection Points . We were concerned that many of the inflection points would resolve themselves negatively for the market: Iran , which we didn’t even give the full “inflection” point treatment to, has deteriorated . While Brent finished the week at almost $90, up from just above $70, it seemed to be a “ side story ” at this stage. However, with the news of the U.S. service members killed on Friday in Jordan, the

Tropical Threat Emerges In Gulf Of America With US Refineries In Potential Crosshairs The National Hurricane Center has raised the probability of tropical development for Invest 91L to 80% over the next two to seven days. The broad area of low pressure off Florida's west coast in the Gulf of America should be tracked into the new week, as early Sunday model guidance suggests it could eventually threaten offshore oil and gas rigs and coastal refineries. NHC's latest Invest 91L update: A area of low pressure located over the northeastern Gulf of America continues to become better defined and the

Taylor Farms Announces Recall Of Lettuce Shipped To 27 States Over Cyclospora Risk Authored by Troy Myers via The Epoch Times, U.S. lettuce supplier Taylor Farms expanded on July 17 its voluntary recall of iceberg lettuce from central Mexico due to concerns over its link to a cyclospora outbreak affecting Americans across the country. Lettuce products that were possibly contaminated with the diarrhea-causing parasite were sent to 27 states, according to the company. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said July 18 the outbreak was linked to iceberg lettuce across five states and more than 1,000 people in the

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...

Authorities launch criminal investigation after passenger list – showing more than 100 passengers – was found to be inaccurate, complicating rescue efforts A massive search-and-rescue operation is under way after a ferry sank ⁠off the coast of Guyana in South America ⁠late on Saturday, in what has been described by officials as one of the country’s worst maritime disasters. Authorities launched a criminal investigation after a government official said the captain and a crew member of the ferry allegedly tested positive for marijuana and the vessel’s passenger manifest was found to be inaccurate. Continue reading...

More than 30 injured and 300 displaced after buildings collapse near Sicaya A 5.5-magnitude earthquake shook the Andes region of Peru, killing at least six people, authorities said Sunday. More than 30 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 (1.2 miles) west-south-west of the city of Sicaya in Huancayo province. It was 10km (6.2 miles) deep. Continue reading...

Poor air quality from wildfires continues to plague New York City as several 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...

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

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 say 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

Distillery owner could face only three months in jail over alleged poisoning of Australian teenagers Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Australian government has increased its travel alert level for Laos, advising travellers to “exercise a high degree of caution” due to the risk of methanol poisoning. It comes as a distillery owner in Laos was charged after a mass methanol poisoning incident killed six foreign nationals, including the Australian backpackers Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles. Continue reading...

Escaped flowerhorn cichlids 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...

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...

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 have struck across parts of Europe. While thunderstorms are typical during and after a period of extreme heat, the storms across countries such as France, Germany and Poland have been particularly severe, bringing flooding, strong winds and heavy showers with large balls of hail. Continue reading...

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.

This blog is now closed 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. I know who Pauline

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

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

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. 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...

Chinese retail platform handed penalty over listings for items such as counterfeit products and unsafe toys Business live – latest updates The Chinese online retail platform AliExpress 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...

From Nevada to Manchester, developers are trialling innovative solutions to clean energy’s biggest challenge In the deserts of the United Arab Emirates a sprawling clean energy project , stretching across an area roughly the size of 12,600 football fields, will play host to a breakthrough allowing solar energy to power the equivalent of half a million homes through the night. The Gulf state has been steadily combining 5.2GW of solar power capacity with 19GWh of battery storage to create the largest battery scheme in the world. Continue reading...

Fans evacuated from sold-out open-air show as organisers promise full refunds An open-air show by the Puerto Rican music star Bad Bunny was abandoned in Italy on Saturday night because of a violent hailstorm, but the organiser said ticketholders would be reimbursed. Videos posted on social media showed large hailstones hitting people 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...

Attack on Ukraine’s capital and other cities leaves at least six people dead and dozens injured Russia has carried out one of its biggest ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, launching a five-hour assault that left at least six people dead and dozens injured, and caused fires and damage across the capital. Ukrainian officials said the capital had been hit with about 40 Iskander-M and hypersonic Zircon missiles. Residents heard an air raid siren at 1.30am. There was the sound of air defences, followed minutes later by a series of booms and explosions. Continue reading...

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 the ruling Tisza party of the prime minister, Péter Magyar. 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 the former prime minister Viktor Orbán’s nationalist Fidesz party. Continue reading...

US military says it is ‘holding Iran accountable’ as maritime agency reports a vessel on fire in strait US launches ninth night of Iran strikes as strait of Hormuz standoff sees oil price pass $90 a barrel The price of oil jumped in early Asian trade on Monday after the US carried out its latest wave of strikes on Iran and a vessel caught fire in the strait of Hormuz. Brent crud e for September delivery rose 2.72% to $90.50 a barrel by around 0100 GMT, after briefly crossing $91 – its highest price since June. CENTCOM assets targeted Iranian

US military confirms third service member killed in current round of fighting, as price of oil passes $90 a barrel Middle East crisis live – latest updates The US has expanded its aerial offensive against Iran, hitting a city hosting a nuclear power plant, while Iran has responded with strikes on Bahrain and Kuwait, as diplomats insist talks are ongoing. Iranian media on Monday reported strikes around Tabriz, believed to hold underground missile bases, as well as Bushehr, home to the country’s only operational civilian nuclear power plant as the US military said it had struck “military command centers, air

This live blog is now closed. US says another troop killed as Israel warns Tehran’s attacks coming close Two US troops killed and one missing in Jordan after Iranian attacks Jordanian authorities ⁠have not issued any decision ⁠to ​evacuate the airport or ⁠seaport in the city of Aqaba, and have not detected ⁠any potential threats ​in ‌the past ‌hours, the state ‌news agency cited the government spokesperson as saying. This denial comes in response to the US embassy in Jordan earlier saying the airport and seaport in Aqaba had been evacuated by Jordanian authorities because of a “specific and credible

US military says service member was killed in Iraq during ‘controlled detonation’ as it launches more airstrikes at Iran Middle East crisis live: follow latest updates 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...

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...

Youth-led movement calls on education minister to quit in one of India’s largest anti-government rallies in years Tens of thousands of protesters have 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 Z-ers, 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...

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...

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...

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...

Eleven reported dead as flooding also brings danger of snakes, while buildings collapse in Mumbai amid heavy rain As the first typhoon to make landfall in China for the 2026 season, Maysak has caused devastating damage in southern and central regions. The Guangxi region received intense downpours of up to 280mm in 12 hours, causing rivers to swell and dam walls to break. By Monday morning, flooding across the city of Nanning and surrounding areas had resulted in many people being stranded on rooftops. Flood waters pose additional threats in China because of the presence of wild and farmed snakes.

Burnham now formally PM and will form a new government after Keir Starmer met with king earlier to offer his formal resignation Andy Burnham becomes UK prime minister after meeting King Charles Andy Burnham may see banners urging the government not to allow the proposed Rosebank oil field development in the North Sea as he drives to Buckingham Palace and the No 10 today. Here is a banner on Whitehall. Continue reading...

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 that voters could decide whether they back 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...

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...

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 at 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

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...

Former state legislator in strong position to become Democratic candidate after several appointments drop out over the weekend 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

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

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...

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...

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

US President Donald Trump ⁠said that he told Canadian ⁠Prime Minister Mark Carney that Canada must do better at controlling Ontario wildfires whose smoke has affected several US states. The day after threatening to levy additional tariffs ‌on Canadian goods to punish Canada over the wildfire smoke, Trump said he spoke to Carney at the Fifa World Cup final that both of them attended on Sunday. “I have a good relationship with Mark Carney, but we’ve got to ⁠stop the fires up there,” Trump told...

The United States conducted a new round of air strikes early on Monday targeting Iran after announcing the death of another American service member, hitting around a northwestern city believed to be home to underground missile bases. Iran responded by launching an attack targeting Bahrain, the home of the US Navy’s 5th Fleet, and Kuwait. The latest attacks again showed how, step by step, the US and Iran have inched closer to all-out war as last month’s interim deal meant to permanently end the...

Ukraine said on Sunday that Russian missile strikes on a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying grain had killed six people, hours after Moscow fired a fresh barrage of missiles at Kyiv. Ukraine’s navy said Russia had launched three cruise missiles at the Golden Leo, which flies the flag of Guinea-Bissau, as it was “leaving the combat zone with a cargo of grain”. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said the crew had included citizens of Syria and India, while Prime Minister Sergiy Koretsky said the vessel...

An ageing ferry carrying more than 100 people capsized off the coast of Guyana, with rescue teams saving 67 people, officials said, as the search continued into Monday. The ferry MV Barima left the small English-speaking country at the northeast corner of South America Saturday afternoon with at least 133 people aboard for a trip from the capital Georgetown to Port Kaituma. Port Kaituma is inland in the oil-rich Essequibo region, and the ferry travels along the coast in the Atlantic before...

The US military on Sunday reported the death of another US soldier, bringing the total US military death toll in the Iran war to 17. In a post on social media, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said a soldier was killed in northern Iraq on Saturday during a controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance from a downed Iranian one-way attack drone. A second soldier sustained minor injuries and is continuing to receive medical treatment, it said. This came a day after the US military reported that two...

Musical headliners Madonna, Shakira, Justin Bieber, BTS and Coldplay were joined by Brazilian football icons and Ted Lasso actors in a spectacular first-ever Fifa World Cup final half-time show on Sunday. The star-packed, Super Bowl-style extravaganza – a first for football’s showpiece event – also featured a tribute to football icon Pele, and a rendition of “Seven Nation Army” led by Gustavo Dudamel and featuring musicians from the US, Venezuela and Iran. Sesame Street and The Muppets...

Thousands of Israelis, including settlers and right-wing activists, marched towards the border with Gaza on Sunday, calling on the government to re-establish Israeli settlements in the war-shattered Palestinian territory, an Agence France-Presse journalist reported. The demonstrators gathered near the border before walking in large numbers towards the fence overlooking northern Gaza, where Israeli security forces deployed to prevent participants from advancing further. Agence France-Presse...

Football fans launched a unique protest against US President Donald Trump and Fifa chief Gianni Infantino at Sunday’s World Cup final. Red cards were handed out in New York and New Jersey to those on their way to the MetLife Stadium for the Spain v Argentina clash. Protest organisers hope fans will hold up the red cards during the handing over of the trophy to demonstrate their anger at Trump and Infantino. The duo are set to give the winning captain the World Cup trophy. The red cards featured...

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday denounced New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani after he said he is considering whether to arrest the Israeli leader during a coming United Nations summit. “Mr Mamdani should focus on fixing the damage his policies have caused New York,” Netanyahu’s office said, in a post on its official X account. “Like Karim Khan, Mamdani appears interested in diverting public attention from his follies and attacking the leader of the Jewish state and...

The Chinese company that formerly owned British Steel demanded on Sunday compensation from the UK government for investment losses following the nationalisation of the manufacturer last week. The British government took operational control of the company last year after Jingye Group said it was considering closing the blast furnaces at its Scunthorpe plant in northern England, the last in the United Kingdom to make “virgin steel” from raw materials. Jingye Group said in a WeChat statement that...

At least six people were killed and 21 injured after two earthquakes struck a mountainous region of Peru, the country’s civil defence chief said ‌on Sunday. The earthquakes, measuring magnitudes 5.1 and 3.7, hit on Saturday night in Chupaca province in the Junin region, about 300km (186 miles) east of Lima, according to Peru’s National Seismological Centre post on social media. The ⁠first earthquake struck at a depth of 24km (15 ‌miles) and the second at 18km, the centre said. The...

US President Donald Trump has said people in the Scottish city of Aberdeen will be “dancing in the streets” following reports Andy Burnham could back new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea. The incoming UK prime minister, dubbed the “King of the North” for his work as ‌the mayor of Greater Manchester in northwestern England, has not confirmed reports that he is considering approving new fossil fuel production, particularly in the North Sea’s Rosebank and Jackdaw fields. But in a post on his...

Russia battered Ukraine’s capital Kyiv overnight with one of its biggest ballistic missile barrages of the war, killing at least one person and wounding 16 others, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday. A series ‌of powerful explosions thundered across the darkened city in an attack that involved 41 missiles of various types and ravaged buildings across several districts. Residential buildings, warehouses, a supermarket and a dormitory were among the structures damaged, said Kyiv Mayor...

China and Russia are not formal allies, but their ties have grown significantly closer in recent years. The two countries have been “comprehensive strategic partners of coordination for a new era” since 2019, often sharing the goal of countering Western dominance in the international arena. But which nation holds the upper hand in this relationship? Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, commenting on an article in The Wall Street Journal on relations between Moscow and Beijing, said on July 14 that...

The leaders of Germany and France announced on Friday that the German military would participate in a nuclear exercise under a French initiative to deepen European nuclear cooperation. The move by both countries to deepen nuclear cooperation underscores growing European defence self-reliance amid concerns about the future of US security commitments to the continent. “We will have German conventional forces participate in a nuclear exercise conducted by the French armed forces before the end of...

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will make ⁠his first trip to the White House this week to present a plan to US President Donald Trump on how to disarm Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah and secure Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon. Aoun, who served as the commander of Lebanon’s US-backed army before being elected president last year, is the first Lebanese head of state in nearly 20 years to visit the White House, where he will meet Trump face-to-face for the first time. Tuesday’s meeting comes...

Hong Kong has embarked on the path of drawing up its first five-year plan – a significant moment in its history. Hong Kong’s first five-year plan should be more than a local economic blueprint. Properly conceived, it should define how the city contributes to China’s national development while preserving the global connections that make Hong Kong uniquely valuable. Success will depend on three mutually reinforcing pillars – deeper integration with the mainland, seamless connectivity across the...

Influencer brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate, whose social media empire promoting wealth, male dominance and misogyny has made them among the world’s most polarising internet personalities, were arrested on Saturday in Miami as British authorities sought their extradition on rape and sex trafficking charges. The brothers were taken into custody by the US Marshals Service on a sealed warrant, agency spokesman Brady McCarron said, placing the United States at the centre of an international legal...

Prominent Cuban dissident artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara flew to exile on Saturday in the United States after serving a five-year sentence on the island, as Washington urged Havana to release more than 700 political prisoners. Otero Alcantara, 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. He landed in Miami, the capital of the Cuban diaspora, after a short...

The recent resignation of Keir Starmer as Britain’s prime minister has reignited a debate over the United Kingdom’s post-Brexit identity – and talk of rejoining the European Union. Over the past decade, has Britain’s decision to exit the EU returned the UK to its splendid isolation – or merely a splendid squalor? It may seem a far-fetched idea but what if the UK were to become a special sovereignty within the EU? And in that case, what can post-Brexit Britain learn from Hong Kong, which has been...

Former Apollo Global Management Chief Executive Officer Leon Black told Congress he paid US$21 million to a woman he accused of blackmailing and extorting him. The billionaire investor said during a June 26 interview with the US House Oversight Committee that he paid the money to the woman, with whom he had had an affair, after she demanded US$100 million because he “ruined her life”. Black’s appearance at the voluntary interview was part of the congressional investigation into the late...

In Iran war news with major US political implications, two US soldiers were killed and several wounded by an Iranian drone, the Pentagon announced on Saturday. The tragedy, the first US combat deaths in months, came as US President Donald Trump has tried to downplay or distract attention from the hugely unpopular war that he started in late February, as his polling numbers tank four months in advance of a hugely consequential midterm election. “Two US service members in Jordan were killed in...

Israeli Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman has reclassified crocodiles from wild animals to “captive-bred wildlife”, a move that clears the way for the reptiles to be used for security purposes, including to deter prison escapes. Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir – who reportedly proposed in December surrounding a prison for Palestinian detainees with crocodiles, a la Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration detention facility – welcomed the decision. “Are you...

The Canadian military was preparing on Saturday to evacuate a remote community of 600 people threatened by forest wildfires that have spread, choking smoke across a broad swathe of the United States. Federal Emergencies Minister Eleanor Olszewski said late on Friday that the armed forces would use aircraft to evacuate the inhabitants of Fort Hope in sparsely populated northwestern Ontario, where some of the most intense fires are burning. The region has few roads and relies heavily on air...

Germany plans to scale back renewable-energy subsidies in a sweeping overhaul of its funding system, as surging solar output puts growing strain on the country’s power grid. From 2027, new renewable generators should receive support “in a way that benefits both the market and the system,” according to a draft law published by the Economy Ministry late on Friday. That means rewarding projects that respond more closely to electricity demand and do not worsen grid congestion. Fixed feed-in tariffs...

As Norwegian World Cup footballer Erling Haaland’s herbal drink advertising blitz captivates millions, his home country has emerged as a popular destination for Chinese travellers. An increasing number of Chinese citizens have visited Norway over the past two years, with interest surging during this summer’s international football competition. The draw was largely Norway’s scenic allure, but in recent weeks Haaland’s social-media stagecraft had amplified the appeal, tourism professionals...

The resumption of US strikes against Iran has thrust incoming UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham into a potential day one decision on how much to support Britain’s closest ally in its controversial military campaign. Even as Burnham was installed as leader of the governing Labour Party on Friday, outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government was engaged in high-level talks about renewed US attacks on Iran, according to people familiar with the matter. The prime minister-in-waiting was kept...

Geography has handed the United Arab Emirates quite the quandary: its government wants to cut dependence on the Strait of Hormuz to “zero”, yet the ports that power its economy sit squarely inside the waterway it hopes to avoid. Jebel Ali and Khalifa ports collectively handle most of the UAE’s US$1 trillion in annual non-oil trade, much of which flows to and from Asia. Together, they form the single most vital link in a logistics corridor stretching from Singapore to Europe – a status not easily...

The historian A.J.P. Taylor wrote one of the most powerful openings of any book. “In the state of nature which Hobbes imagined, violence was the only law, and life was ‘nasty brutish and short’,” he wrote in The Struggle for Mastery in Europe, 1848-1918. “Though individuals never lived in this state of nature, the Great Powers of Europe have always done so. Sovereign states have distinguished European civilisation, at any rate since the end of the fifteenth century. Each individual state in...

Donald Trump’s social media company has discussed charging Wall Street traders and investment firms as much as US$100,000 a month for faster access to the US president’s posts on his Truth Social platform, according to people familiar with the matter. Trump Media & Technology Group, which owns Truth Social, has in recent weeks also pitched a discounted plan of US$60,000 per month if the firms sign up for a three-year plan, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the ‌discussions are...

European policymakers have watched Chinese carmakers roll in like a slow but unstoppable tide over the past few years: affordable, polished and threatening one of the continent’s proudest industrial legacies. Many have warned about the dismantling of their automotive prides following the new China shock. A crown jewel of Europe’s industrial output, the automotive sector represents directly and indirectly a total of more than 13 million jobs in the EU. It was no accident that electric vehicles...

A ⁠few hundred people in Venice protested ⁠on Friday against US Ambassador to ⁠Italy Tilman Fertitta as he arrived in the lagoon city aboard his superyacht, drawing criticism of President Donald Trump’s policies. Activists also objected to the heightened security measures put in place by local authorities as Venice prepares for one of its most important festivals. Fertitta, a billionaire businessman appointed by ‌Trump, is touring the Italian peninsula aboard his 117-metre (384-foot) yacht,...

US President Donald Trump on Friday blamed Canada for wildfire smoke spreading across the United States and said he would add the “incalculable cost” ‌of dealing with the pollution to existing tariffs on Canadian goods. Heavy smoke from hundreds of Canadian fires enveloped a swathe of the US from the Midwest to the Northeast on Thursday and Friday, prompting warnings to residents to stay indoors. Detroit on Friday remained the most polluted city in the world, according to tracker IQAir....

Iran launched more attacks on Washington’s Gulf allies and Jordan on Saturday after a seventh straight night of US strikes on Iranian military targets, including logistics hubs, escalating the war one week after a ceasefire collapsed. Kuwait came under sustained attack, with a desalination plant hit and operations at Kuwait International Airport suspended due to repeated missile and drone threats. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had struck a US military support centre at Camp...

A powerful magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck off the coast of Mexico’s southernmost state of Chiapas on Friday, shaking buildings as far away as Guatemala and El Salvador, though authorities said there were ‌no immediate reports of casualties or major damage. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said emergency protocols were activated but that neither Chiapas nor the neighbouring state of Tabasco reported issues, and Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo said there were no deaths. In some parts of...

Britain’s charities regulator is looking into concerns about an Amnesty International report that branded a women’s centre for sexual violence victims founded by Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling as “anti-rights”. The bestselling writer, who has been at the forefront of the debate about gender identity and has previously denounced trans activism, leading to accusations of transphobia, on Friday said she was angry at the label. “I’m often tickled by press articles asserting that I’m furious about...

Andy Burnham vowed Friday to “give hope” back to the British people as he was confirmed as the ruling Labour Party’s new leader, set to be the next UK prime minister. “People and places … have been waiting too long for politics to let them hope again … We’re going to give them hope back,” he vowed at a special party conference. “I am for us, for all of us,” he told cheering delegates. Burnham takes over from Keir Starmer, who resigned last month after months of political turmoil, scandal and...

Sitting by the Tanjung Aru beach in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, watching one of the most stunning sunsets in the world, I reflected on what it would take to prioritise the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. I had just finished an intense three days with 170 local and global organisations, such as the conservation organisation WWF, businesses, investors and policymakers on how the world should expand the scale of impact investing in the Sustainable Development Goals in Sabah and...

A Russian activist who spent years targeting opponents of the Kremlin before unexpectedly denouncing President Vladimir Putin and his Ukraine offensive was arrested on Friday, state media reported. Ilya Remeslo, 42, faces charges of “spreading fakes on the Russian army”, under censorship laws Moscow introduced when it sent troops to Ukraine, according to the TASS news agency. The charge carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison. Sergei Badamshin, named by independent media as his...

⁠Armed assailants are believed to have boarded the chemical tanker Asana off the southern coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden on Friday and are in control of the vessel, according to maritime ‌security sources. Based on initial assessments, the incident appeared to be related to ‌Somali piracy rather than Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi militia, one of the maritime security sources said. The small tanker, which had no confirmed flag, had listed the Somali port of Bosaso as its next destination, ship...

Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed the dual nature of artificial intelligence’s opportunities and challenges, calling for a principle of “openness” and regulations to keep the technology “secure and controllable” in a speech at the country’s flagship annual AI conference. Xi’s first speech to the World AI Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai showed AI is a national strategic priority as China seeks to build greater technological self-reliance amid its tech rivalry with the United States. Earlier...

China’s companies have mastered social media marketing playbooks. Now, they must learn to win the trust of artificial intelligence (AI) agents that will increasingly shape what consumers discover, consider and ultimately buy. These personal concierges are starting to determine the best choices for each user by balancing price, quality, reliability, sustainability and individual preferences. Tell an AI agent you want to go “somewhere”, and it can autonomously choose the destination and book...

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. The young Chinese scientist behind ‘impossible’ breakthrough on sodium batteries Scientist Lu Yaxiang, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Physics, has spent a decade working to make sodium-ion batteries...

Across the US this week, different disasters – from Canadian wildfire smoke darkening the skies in the Midwest and northeast to extreme heat along the east coast to catastrophic flooding in Texas – are disrupting daily life and putting people’s health at risk. When multiple weather catastrophes play out like this at the same time, or in quick succession, experts refer to them as compound events. As climate change makes compound events more likely, experts warned that grappling with them is...

President Donald ⁠Trump has ramped up US air strikes on Iran and threatened broader escalation, but there is ⁠little sign that a military strategy that has already failed to extract concessions from Tehran will succeed this time. With the collapse of an interim ceasefire deal reached a month ago, Trump finds himself in a bind as he seeks to break Iran’s grip on the vital Strait of Hormuz and force Tehran to accept his demands. While the two sides have so far avoided a return to full-scale...

Andy Burnham has not yet met President Trump, but the two men will be expected to speak shortly after Mr. Burnham becomes prime minister.

Chinese companies are offering artificial intelligence that is nearly as good as the leading U.S. technologies, but it’s still America’s race to lose.

Troy Jackson’s emergence as the clear front-runner to replace Graham Platner spares the party some challenges but points to some new ones.

Some Republicans fear the party is poised to repeat past mistakes by nominating candidates in Tuesday’s primaries who are viewed as too extreme to sway moderate voters.

Mr. Lasher, the likely successor to Representative Jerry Nadler, has an unusual back story: As a teenager, he was a prodigy who performed magic tricks on national television.

Some people have fought Ebola containment measures in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Scholars have seen similar responses across societies and throughout history.

Demonstrators and many soldiers want President Volodymyr Zelensky to reaffirm the vision of drone warfare laid out by the defense minister he fired last week.

At a conference on reconstruction, the focus shifted to private investment, not donor assistance.

What is essential reading? Texas has an answer: Classics, including the Bible.

Nicolas Cage, Diane Kruger and Justin Bartha raced from conspiracy theory to conspiracy theory in this 2004 blockbuster about stealing the Declaration of Independence.

World leaders are marching us toward an uncertain era of new warfare — fast.

The recent debate over the new pied-à-terre tax in the city offers a useful case study.

We look at political donations, housing and the national debt.

A Massachusetts mother charged in the killing of her children goes on trial on Monday. The small coastal town of Duxbury is preparing to relive a case focused on postpartum mental health.