Minimalist News

OpenAI Stops Providing AI Models To Cursor Amid Feud With Elon Musk Authored by Dylan Morgan via The Epoch Times , OpenAI said Friday that it plans to stop providing AI models to Cursor, the coding startup now owned by Elon Musk's SpaceX. This continues a years-long public feud between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Elon Musk, who was a cofounder and board member of OpenAI but left in 2018. SpaceX purchased Cursor for $60 billion in June. "We are making this choice because we cannot be confident that SpaceX will use our technology within our terms of service, based

Tropical Storm Edouard Takes Aim At America's Largest Refinery Hub The National Hurricane Center has issued a hurricane watch for parts of the Texas and Louisiana coasts as Tropical Storm Edouard strengthens in the Gulf of America and tracks directly toward one of America's most critical refining and LNG corridors. Edouard was approximately 90 miles southeast of Port Arthur, Texas, early Tuesday, with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph, according to the latest NHC update. The storm is expected to make landfall near the Texas-Louisiana border later Tuesday and could approach hurricane strength before reaching the coast. " Tropical Storm

Ugly JOLTs Report Hints At Another Negative Payrolls Print On Friday After five straight months of JOLTS beats, including two blowout prints for April and May and zero misses since 2025, last month's JOLTS report was a surprising miss (despite the previously discussed surge in government job openings). Fast forward to today when the latest JOLTS report made it two misses for two, with the BLS announcing moments ago that in July, the US had 7.271 million job openings, up from a downward revised 7.182 million ... ... and missing the consensus estimate of 7.313 for the second month in

G20 Plans "Death By A Thousand Cuts" For China's Economy By Benjamin Picton, senior market strategist at Rabobank The Natural Equilibrium G20 finance ministers, central bank governors and a handful of high-profile CEOs gathered in Asheville, North Carolina, yesterday. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent held court, telling allies that the only way out of heavy debt loads is growth, and that they needed to do more to confront China on its structural trade imbalances. The latter point is particularly salient as Bessent prosecutes new restrictions against trade with Iran under Operation Economic Outcast. China has been Iran’s most important trading partner

Russia Turns Up The Heat On Ukraine's Odesa As Port Strikes Intensify Throughout most of the more than four-year long Russia-Ukraine war, Russian forces have largely held off from any sustained and large-scale attack against the key southern port city of Odesa, but this restraint has clearly changed. Odesa since Monday has been getting pounded, with Ukrainian officials describing that Ukrainian port infrastructure and a border crossing with Romania was targeted overnight . This vital economic, food, grain, and trade lifeline to the outside world is under threat - and is the result of leaders in Kiev deciding to recently

New Orders Drop But US Manufacturing Surveys Still Signal 'Solid' Growth In August Despite sustained relative weakness in US 'hard data', US manufacturing operating conditions improved solidly again in August , according to the latest PMI data from S&P Global, but it's not all rainbows and unicorns... August S&P Global US Manufacturing PMI beat, flat at 53.9 from July's print, but up from the flash print of 53.2 and better than the 53.4 expected. August ISM US Manufacturing PMI miss, down from 55.6 to 54.6 (below 55.2 expectations). Still, despite the miss, ISM still printed near four year highs, with

Europeans Blindsided By Russian Finance Minister's Presence At G20 In Asheville Amid two days of talks among G20 finance ministers and central bank heads gathered in Asheville, North Carolina, an unexpected and deeply awkward issue (for some) has emerged. The whole session is being overshadowed by the fact that the White House welcomed Russia to the meeting, which has set off anger and frustration among the Europeans . Also, some key media outlets and prominent reporters have been banned from the summit. G20: an "unexpected" Russian guest. Late Monday, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov made an unexpected appearance after his

Judge To Rule Today On Whether Alleged Charlie Kirk Assassin Will Stand Trial Authored by Janice Hisle via The Epoch Times , A Utah judge has set a hearing for Sept. 1 to consider whether the high-profile case against conservative commentator Charlie Kirk's alleged assassin, Tyler James Robinson, 23, should go to trial. Judge Tony Graf Jr. also must weigh whether to uphold seven charges against Robinson, including one carrying a potential death sentence. Based on evidence presented during a five-day preliminary hearing in early July, prosecutors and defense lawyers will argue at 10 a.m. MDT in the Fourth District

Futures Tumble As Global Yields Hit Multi-Year HIgh, Oil Jumps On Iran Escalation Stock futures are set to start the new month on the backfoot - having weathered a variety of challenges to post a gain for August - with tech lagging as a global selloff pushes yields to the highest level since 2008. As of 8:00am ET, S&P futures are down 0.6%, while Nasdaq futures slide 1.2% following a reports of a strike by Micron’s labor unions in Taiwan, sending the stock 2% lower in pre-market. Semis / Memory are down 1.4% and 2.2%, respectively, with neither Mag7 nor

Cyber Group Finds Surveillance Backdoors In Routers Sold In US Authored by Arthur Zhang via The Epoch Times , Cybersecurity researchers have found surveillance backdoors in Chinese carrier routers made by Zbtlink and the same software in a different Zbtlink-made router sold through Amazon. Ethernet cables are connected to the back of a wireless router. Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images Chinese law requires telecom and internet companies to provide technical assistance to police and state-security agencies. In an Aug. 27 report , cybersecurity firm VulnCheck said it found two hidden programs in an $88 router bought through Amazon from a U.S. seller.

What Happens When A Metal The West Can't Live Without Runs Short At the end of last week, the Trump administration's halt to tungsten scrap exports took effect , as the U.S. and its allies confront a deepening supply crisis and race to find new supplies. China's export restrictions are accelerating the West's campaign to secure ex-China supplies , reinforcing our U.S.-China decoupling theme and placing a major spotlight on the largest Western tungsten miner: Almonty Industries . The miner operates in Portugal and is ramping up its prized Sangdong Mine in South Korea , which is expected to account

Trump's Venezuela Energy Gambit A 'Major Problem' For Europe Submitted by Thomas Kolbe In the end, it happened as it had to: The United States will likely play a decisive role in the future development and marketing of Venezuela’s oil and gas reserves. On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a corresponding deal on his Truth Social platform, describing it himself as "THE BIGGEST OIL DEAL IN WORLD HISTORY." According to the U.S. president, the United States secured “majority U.S. control” over more than 65 billion barrels of proven oil reserves in Venezuela, spread across 17 oil fields – and,

Restaurants Face GLP-1 Squeeze As Adopt-Or-Die Inflection Arrives Bernstein's latest GLP-1 tracker has Eli Lilly's Mounjaro leading script growth , with downstream effects compounding pressure on the restaurant industry already facing weakening consumer confidence, as gas prices nationwide remain above a politically sensitive $4 a gallon in late summer. Turning to UBS's latest note on the restaurant industry , Dennis Geiger, who covers U.S. restaurants and consumer discretionary names, wrote in a note on Sunday that restaurant investors are struggling to identify opportunities across the space amid sharp share-price volatility, weakening consumer confidence, growing uncertainty over the second-half outlook, and

Lavrov Says NATO Military Activity In Arctic Threatens Russia's Security Authored by Chris Summers via The Epoch Times , NATO military activity in the Arctic poses a direct threat to Russia's security and could lead to disastrous consequences , Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov wrote in an article published by the Russian Foreign Ministry on Monday. A Russian soldier stands guard beside a Pansyr-S1 air defense system on Kotelny Island, part of the New Siberian Islands archipelago located between the Laptev Sea and the East Siberian Sea, in Russia on April 3, 2019. Vladimir Isachenkov/AP In February, NATO conducted Arctic

Merz Warns Right-Wing Victory Will Hurt Germany, But Nomura Says Investors Aren't Buying It German Chancellor Friedrich Merz spent Sunday fearmongering on public broadcaster ARD , warning that a potential victory for Alternative for Germany in next Sunday's Saxony-Anhalt election could inflict economic damage on the region. Deutschland kann viel. Die Potenziale unseres Landes sind groß – und diese müssen wir nutzen. pic.twitter.com/4GFF5gtmyt — Bundeskanzler Friedrich Merz (@bundeskanzler) August 31, 2026 Merz's assessment conflicts with Nomura's political analysis , which suggests investors no longer reflexively fear right-wing victories. Instead, markets are increasingly focused on the economic consequences of left-wing policies

Former US Intel Officials: Dangerous Talk Of Putin's 'Loss' In Ukraine Authored by Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity MEMORANDUM FOR: The President FROM: Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS) SUBJECT: Dangerous Talk of Putin’s ‘Loss’ in Ukraine VIPS tells President Trump that once apprised of the reality on the ground (and in the air) by his intelligence advisors, he might choose to do what is in his power to end the disaster in Ukraine. Dear President Trump: The New York Times is reporting that the outlook for Russia in Ukraine is “bleak.” C.I.A. Director John Ratcliffe is said to have

Le Pen Would Beat Every Rival In 2027, Major French Poll Finds Marine Le Pen would win France's 2027 presidential election against every major rival now being measured, according to a major survey by Elabe published on August 29 for BFMTV and La Tribune Dimanche . Marine Le Pen, 2022. Albert Gea / Reuters France elects its president in two rounds: a crowded first round on April 18 cuts the field to the top two - no one will win outright - and the survivors meet again on May 2. Elabe has Le Pen at 34% to 35.5% in round

Is Germany Preparing To Unveil A Wealth Tax? Submitted by Thomas Kolbe Will 2027 be the year the wealth register is introduced? Labor Minister Bärbel Bas confirmed this week on Bild that her ministry plans a representative survey of citizens next year on their assets and their views on distributive justice . A classic about-face by this government: just three weeks earlier, Bas had categorically ruled out any such plans. Concretely, a tax-funded data collection effort involving roughly 5,000 citizens is planned. The rollout will run through an external research institute as part of an EU-wide tender, whose bidding deadline

Chinese Scientists Flagged Glacial Flood Danger One Year Before Nepal Catastrophe Authored by Sophia Lam via The Epoch Times , More than a year before the catastrophic flash flood devastated the China-Nepal border crossing at Gyirong last week, Chinese geologists had raised concerns about the impending danger. CCTV footage shows people running away as wall of mud and water destroys buildings in a valley at the Nepal-China border, in Gyirong, Tibet region, China, on Aug. 26, 2026. Social Media/via Reuters On August 26, a glacial-related collapse tore through Gyirong Port, one of the principal land crossings between Tibet and Nepal

Politician Busted After FBI Finds $62,900 Buried In His Backyard A Southern California corruption case unraveled in dramatic fashion after federal agents discovered tens of thousands of dollars hidden underground at the home of a longtime local politician, according to the NY Post . Ricardo Pacheco, a former Baldwin Park councilman, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for taking bribes while in office. Investigators recovered $62,900 buried in his backyard, part of more than $83,000 ultimately seized from him. Federal prosecutors said Pacheco used his position to help private interests win favorable treatment from the city. Much of the

Canadian PM is set to retaliate against tariffs levied by Donald Trump and criticized US officials over insults US politics live – latest updates Mark Carney has rebuked Donald Trump’s administration and urged officials in Washington to “start being serious” amid escalating trade tensions between the US and Canada. Days before Canada is due to retaliate against Trump’s sweeping tariffs with its own duties on US goods, the Canadian prime minister criticized US officials for insulting his country. “It is beneath their office,” he said. Continue reading...

Navigating app surpasses Google and Apple Maps on top-downloaded US chart after posting ‘we’re not changing it’ A pioneering online mapping app that defied Donald Trump by refusing to rename Lake Ontario has become the most in-demand navigation tool in the US. MapQuest, which was openly dismissive of the president’s 27 August executive order directing federal agencies to refer to the smallest of the Great Lakes as “Lake America” amid a trade spat with Canada, leapfrogged rivals Google Maps and Apple Maps to top the most-downloaded list, as first reported by TechCrunch . Continue reading...

Claims that Trump and Rubio are trying to influence result have parallels with CIA intervention 64 years ago The year was 1962 and the Kennedy administration was desperate to swing Brazil’s congressional elections against its leftwing president, João Goulart, as a way of countering the supposed communist threat sweeping a region the US considered its back yard. Historians say that in the lead-up to the vote, the CIA and the Department of State secretly channelled millions of dollars to opposition candidates and a group tasked with spreading rightwing propaganda and stirring up unrest. Continue reading...

Comments signal president prepared to use dispute to push UK to raise defence spending and Nato contributions Donald Trump has suggested he is reconsidering US support for Britain’s sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, in a move likely to strain the “special relationship” between Washington and London. “I always review every position – that’s just one of many,” the US president told reporters in the White House, in response to a question about whether he was reviewing the US’s position over the South Atlantic islands, an archipelago whose status has long been disputed by Argentina, which claims sovereignty. Continue reading...

Three projected victories are a message to US that Carney has support of the Canadian people, says one MP Canada’s ruling Liberal party has swept three byelections, a result that showed voters backing the prime minister, Mark Carney, after his face-off with Donald Trump . The Canadian Press, Canada’s national news agency, projected Liberal victories in Chicoutimi-Le Fjord in Quebec, Beaches-East York in Toronto and North Vancouver-Capilano in British Columbia. Continue reading...

Security stepped up in Pattaya before arrival of thousands of sailors and marines whose deployment was extended due to US war in Iran Authorities in the Thai resort city of Pattaya have stepped up security as they prepare to welcome thousands of sailors and marines from the USS Abraham Lincoln who have spent more than 270 consecutive days at sea . “About 600 officials will provide security and other necessary assistance,” the provincial governor, Narit Niramaiwong, told AFP. Continue reading...

Hong Kong flotation at $26bn by firm once valued at $100bn follows failure to list in US and UK Shares in the fast-fashion brand Shein slumped by as much as 10% as the China-founded company made its long-anticipated trading debut on the Hong Kong stock exchange. The Singapore-headquartered company, once valued at almost $100bn (£74bn), went public on Tuesday pricing shares at HK$48.56, valuing the business at just over $26bn. Continue reading...

Critically endangered New Zealand bird enjoys record breeding season triggered by mass fruiting of native tree, pushing its numbers to 325 The population of the world’s heaviest parrot, the kākāpō , has surpassed 300 birds for the first time in 75 years, after a record breeding season triggered by the mass fruiting of a native New Zealand tree. Ninety chicks were officially added to the population of the critically endangered birds on 1 September, pushing the total to 325 – a record high since recovery efforts began. Continue reading...

Workers thought to be stuck in underground areas at 11 sites after last week’s devastating flash floods Rescue teams are working to reach more than 900 missing hydropower workers, hundreds of whom are feared trapped in the tunnels and underground areas of 12 hydropower projects in Nepal after the devastating flash floods , ​the ⁠country’s disaster ​management authority has said. The death toll from the ⁠unprecedented deluge of ice, rock, mud ​and debris on Wednesday last week has risen to 939 people, with 16 more dead reported in Tibet. More than 4,400 are missing on the two sides of the

Rights group claims 300 homes were destroyed in Tibet and number of missing people is ‘far higher’ than Beijing admits A Tibetan advocacy group says hundreds of homes were destroyed on the Tibetan side of the border in last week’s deadly floods, raising questions about Beijing’s official account of the scale of the disaster. Public discussion about the flash floods has been restricted, with security officials in Tibet announcing on Sunday that it had penalised at least 10 people for sharing “false disaster information”. There was no further information on the nature of the penalties. Continue reading...

Seventy beaches across New South Wales are part of the $34m dawn-to-dusk drone monitoring program, which one expert has called ‘the best technology we have at the moment’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast “Hey Taha, what’s the visibility like?” shouts a man with a towel slung over his shoulder. “Uh, nice,” says Surf Life Saving New South Wales drone operator Taha Kafil-Hussain. Continue reading...

Use of sniffer dogs and searches will continue despite health and harm reduction groups arguing they could lead to riskier drug taking Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Drug testing will resume at New South Wales music festivals from October, but will not be rolled out into the wider community despite calls from peak health and harm reduction groups, while the controversial use of sniffer dogs and searches will continue. On Wednesday the state government announced NSW Health will consult with the music festival industry and harm reduction organisations to roll out pill testing

University’s move is part of trend that critics within academia say will lead to further staff cuts and the loss of ‘everything that makes the job worth doing’ An Australian university has swapped in-person classes with an AI chatbot, online quizzes and optional online tutorials in two subjects as institutions give the technology more teaching responsibilities. Macquarie University’s “Virtual Peer” is part of each week’s learning in two mandatory Psychology units, programmed to ask students questions and guide them through scenario-based exercises. Continue reading...

Cotality data reveals property prices are now falling in more than 90% of Australian suburbs, while analysts expect market downturn to continue Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The prospect of the steepest property market downturn in history will not stop the Reserve Bank from delivering a fourth interest rate hike as it battles to bring inflation back under control , economists say. New data from Cotality revealed house prices are now falling in more than 90% of Australian suburbs, amid a perfect storm of higher borrowing costs, a weak economy, and a once-in-a-generation

Brother of former treasurer and premier faces questions about texts that appear to indicate he was aware of fast-tracking policy before it was announced Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Did the former premier’s brother, Charles Perrottet, have prior knowledge of a Covid-era New South Wales government policy to introduce a fast track to approve major developments? Did he take steps to ensure that developments owned by the fugitive developer, Jean Nassif, were successful through the fast track? Continue reading...

Russia believed to be behind hybrid activities in Germany and Europe, minister says Over in Brussels, the European Commission is just starting its first midday briefing of the autumn. It opens with an announcement that Commission president Ursula von der Leyen will receive Nato’s Mark Rutte tomorrow. This comes amid growing scrutiny of Russia’s activities on the eastern flank. Continue reading...

Zelenskyy says Moscow is capitalising on shortage of US-made Patriot interceptors to lower morale in capital Europe live – latest updates At least 12 people have been killed in and around Kyiv overnight as Ukraine’s capital endured a sixth consecutive night of Russian drone and missile attacks aimed at shattering infrastructure and lowering the morale of the city. Eight of the dead were reported killed in Kyiv, including seven at a railway depot on the city’s left bank, and four were killed in Boryspil, to the east of the city, in a wave of strikes at about 2.30am after hours

Haakon VIII promises to uphold 1814 constitution but his queen misses ceremony because of post-surgery ‘complications’ King Haakon VIII swore an oath of allegiance before Norway’s parliament on Tuesday in the first major stage in the passing of the crown since the death of his father after 35 years on the throne. Wearing a ceremonial uniform, Haakon, who became king when Harald V died on Friday, promised to uphold Norway’s 1814 constitution with his 22-year-old daughter, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, by his side. Continue reading...

City council emphasises economic case for Madring amid local outrage over disruption and environmental impact Opponents of Madrid’s newly constructed Formula One circuit have accused the regional authorities of putting profit before people’s wellbeing after tests for the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix at the track later this month yielded noise levels that were many times the legal decibel limit. The regional government of Madrid and the city council are hoping that the 5.4km-long (3.3 miles) Madring circuit – which has been built in the north-east of the Spanish capital at a cost of €83m (£71m) – will attract visitors, boost

A yes to membership would have given Brussels a boost but Icelanders have not voted to isolate themselves Iceland’s 52.8% to 47.2% vote against reopening EU accession talks is, undeniably, a blow for Brussels. But claiming it as a Brexit-style victory for “national sovereignty” or evidence of broad rejection of the EU misrepresents the reality of the island’s relationship with the bloc. For the EU, Iceland was a dream candidate: small, stable, prosperous and strategically located in an increasingly contested Arctic. Eager as it is to wield more geopolitical clout and revive flagging momentum around enlargement, a vote in favour

Iran responded to an assault on its Larak Island by targeting US bases in Jordan Trump threatens further action as US and Iran exchange fire in new flare-up Coinciding with this week’s G20 meeting , the EU has issued a statement saying it will work with the US and other allied countries to maintain economic pressure against Iran. “The ‌EU welcomes efforts at ensuring that Iran ceases its destabilising activities and engages in peace negotiations with good ‌faith, also through additional economic pressure, including through ​the US-led Operation Economic Outcast,” it said in reference to the pressure strategy the White

Washington says it acted after observing Iran was planning to deploy fresh mines in strait of Hormuz The US and Iran have exchanged fire for the first time in a month, with missiles and drones fired at Iranian rocket launchers on an island in the strait of Hormuz, and Iran targeting US military bases in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates in response. The US president, Donald Trump, on Monday threatened further action. The US is trying to prise open Tehran’s grip on shipping going through the strait, which before the war accounted for a fifth of the world’s seaborne

Trump’s Operation Economic Outcast is expected to push many Iranians into deeper poverty as food inflation soars For many Iranians, the new US sanctions campaign, called Operation Economic Outcast, seems superfluous given the grim economic situation in their country. Iranians are facing runaway food inflation, closed petrol stations and a seemingly never-ending depreciation of the nation’s currency caused by a lack of foreign exchange reserves. Continue reading...

US attacks Iranian rocket launchers on island in strait of Hormuz and Tehran targets US bases in Jordan and UAE The US has reverted to military attacks on Iran for the first time in a month, firing missiles and drones at Iranian rocket launchers on an island in the strait of Hormuz, prompting the Iranian military to attack US military bases in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. US Central Command said it acted late on Sunday after it detected the Iranians planning to fire fresh mines into the strait. Last week Donald Trump claimed the US navy had cleared

Matt Bradley and crew assaulted while interviewing woman who said settlers had driven family out of home A Palestinian woman and an NBC News team are reported to have been attacked and injured by masked Israeli settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Saturday, amid worsening confrontations in the area. Benjamin Netanyahu said he condemned the violence committed “by a handful of rioters”. Continue reading...

Relatives of missing tourists asked for blood samples and photos, as efforts continue to rescue trapped hydropower workers Nepal-Tibet floods – latest updates Visual guide: How the Nepal-Tibet flash flood unfolded Nepali rescuers have built temporary bridges to reach remote areas and dug through the ruins of hydropower projects in the Himalayas to rescue hundreds of trapped workers, as the death toll passed 1,000 nearly ⁠a week after devastating ​floods left a trail of destruction across the country’s towns and valleys. About 600 people remain stuck in several devastated hydropower stations that have become the focus of rescue efforts. The

As families await news of missing loved ones, the disaster is a stark reminder of how the climate crisis is creating a fast-growing threat. Plus, the town considered India’s ‘Jurassic Park’ • Don’t get This is India delivered to your inbox? Sign up here It has been hard not to despair while watching the ruinous floods swallow parts of Nepal , and harder, still knowing that the agony compounds each passing day for dozens of Indian families whose members remain unaccounted for. Social media is awash with desperate pleas, photos and details of the young and old, men and women,

Organisers say people must revive spiritual relationship with food amid double threat of climate crisis and conflict Mending the broken food system under the threat of climate-driven weather extremes will require more than economic fixes and intensive agriculture, according to the organisers of a pioneering summit this week, who say the world must revive its spiritual relationship with food. Delegates from more than 60 countries and the UN will gather for the next five days in Paro in the tiny Himalayan nation of Bhutan for the world’s first “conscious food summit”, which will bring together governments and farmers, mindfulness experts

In today’s newsletter: As rescuers search for survivors after catastrophic floods, the disaster offers a stark warning about the climate risks facing the region, and the world Good morning. Over the weekend, rescue workers in Nepal and Tibet raced to find people who are still trapped in villages affected by catastrophic flash floods. As of this morning, the death toll stands at 903, and more than 4,000 people are missing. For those of you reading this in a place where life continues as usual, the scale of devastation is hard to fathom. In a matter of minutes, a torrent of

Total of 804 confirmed dead and more than 3,000 missing amid threat of fresh inundation ‘Their whole village has disappeared’: frantic hunt for survivors in Kathmandu hospital Rescuers in Nepal and Tibet have battled through leg-sucking mud amid the threat of fresh flooding to search for thousands of people still missing after a deadly wall of water swept through the Himalayan border zone, engulfing entire villages. The latest updates on Sunday put the number of missing at 3,048, including hundreds of foreigners. There was a total of 804 confirmed deaths across Nepal and Tibet, and reports of some bodies swept

Simon Galbraith says Rupert Lowe’s party can ‘spark a British renaissance’ if it gets into power UK politics live – latest updates The hard-right Restore Britain party has got its first major donation of £500,000 from an IT entrepreneur in a sign it may continue to pose a threat to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. Rupert Lowe, an MP who left Reform UK before starting his own party, announced on Tuesday that the British businessman Simon Galbraith had contributed two donations of £250,000 this year. Continue reading...

PM says he has a ‘clear diagnosis of what has gone wrong’ with UK, and pays tribute to Keir Starmer after his predecessor quit parliament My colleague Richard Partington , the Guardian’s senior economics correspondent, grew up, like Andy Burnham, in the Warrington suburb of Culcheth. He has been home to find out what people there are saying about the new PM. Yesterday, Kemi Badenoch announced a reshuffle, replacing Mel Stride with Andrew Griffith as shadow chancellor and Priti Patel with Tom Tugendhat as shadow foreign secretary. Continue reading...

Meteorologists say mean average temperature of 16.5C was made 130 times more likely by climate crisis This year’s summer was the UK’s hottest on record, according to provisional data, and the Met Office said the season’s mean temperature was made 130 times more likely by the climate crisis. Record-breaking and back-to-back heatwaves have scorched much of Europe. In England, temperatures peaked at 38.1C (100.1F) at Kew Gardens in London on 13 August, and June had already been confirmed as the country’s hottest since records began in 1884 . Scientists have said these heatwaves are only possible because of the climate

James Dyson says ‘complete dental system’ will also include toothpaste and mouth rinse that each cost £8.50 It is the live stream you never wanted to see but may find impossible to resist: rolling footage beamed live from inside your mouth while you are cleaning your teeth. Dyson, the home appliance maker that made its name inventing bagless vacuums and bladeless fans, has turned its attention to oral hygiene with a £420 all-singing, all-dancing toothbrush that can clean, floss and even spray tiny jets of mouthwash. Continue reading...

Yield on 30-year gilts highest since 1998 as rout triggered by global factors underlines tricky backdrop John Healey faces Business live – latest updates The chancellor’s headroom against Labour’s fiscal rules could be almost halved at his first budget if the current global bond sell-off persists into the autumn, economists say. The UK’s long-term borrowing costs jumped to their highest level since early 1998 on Tuesday as investors dumped government bonds, betting on higher inflation. Continue reading...

PM Mark Carney responds to US officials who blame Canada for trade war; Jamieson Greer says trade tension with Canada is ‘more their emergency than ours’ Sign up for the US Breaking News email Democratic senator Chuck Schumer is introducing a bill that would reverse Donald Trump’s most recent tariffs, among them the new 50% duty on Canadian goods, MS Now reported . While the Senate minority leader’s proposed legislation has virtually no chance of becoming law, Schumer hopes that his proposal shows that Democrats are actively fighting the affordability crisis. Schumer first shared his proposed legislation with MS Now.

Exclusive: Two congressmembers respond to revelations of government snooping on journalists, non-profits and unions Two congressional Democrats asked a government watchdog Tuesday to investigate the Trump administration’s use of an obscure law to secretly collect records on journalists, non-profits and unions without judicial oversight. The request from the senator Ron Wyden of Oregon and the representative Pramila Jayapal of Washington seen by the Guardian comes amid mounting scrutiny over the way the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently used its power to issue administrative summonses related to customs matters to make extraordinary unilateral demands for information. They sent their request

Buddy Stephens, who was featured on Last Chance U, publicly criticized his school and league hierarchy A college football coach who rose to prominence in a Netflix documentary series about student athletes trying to make the big time on their final opportunity has been fired after publicly calling officials “idiots” for changing the structure of the league in which his team competed. Buddy Stephens, the coach in question, starred in the first two seasons of the gritty reality show Last Chance U that chronicled the struggles endured by football players at East Mississippi Community College (EMCC) as they juggled academics,

More than 170 Jewish artists, also including Joel Coen, Hannah Einbinder and Miranda July, have supported the actor after he criticized Paramount A collective of more than 170 prominent Jewish artists – including Todd Haynes , Joel Coen , Miranda July , Hannah Einbinder , Wallace Shawn and Naomi Klein – have signed an open letter supporting Mark Ruffalo . The actor had been accused of invoking antisemitic tropes after he criticized Paramount Skydance, the media company owned by David Ellison, a Donald Trump ally. Ruffalo had spoken out about the $111bn merger with Warner Bros Discovery (WBD). Continue reading...

US senator says that project, a key part of Trump’s voting restrictions, is ‘perilously rushed and potentially unlawful’ A new system to screen millions of mail-in ballots for this November’s US midterm elections was thrown together so hastily, and tested so little, that a single scanning glitch could see entire batches of ballots turned away, a whistleblower has told Congress. The project – a key part of Donald Trump’s new restrictions on voting – is “perilously rushed and potentially unlawful”, according to the US senator Richard Blumenthal, who disclosed the warning in a letter to David Steiner, the postmaster general,

Norway’s King Haakon VIII took an oath before parliament on Tuesday, the first major institutional step of his reign, though his wife, still convalescing after a lung transplant, was unable to attend. Dressed in a ceremonial uniform, the 53-year-old Haakon, who became king when his father King Harald V died on Friday morning aged 89, swore to abide by the Scandinavian country’s constitution, under which the royals have a primarily symbolic function. “I promise and swear that I will govern the...

The US threat of sanctions on China because of Beijing’s relationship with Iran isn’t credible. The artificial intelligence bubble and its own precarious bond market make the US more vulnerable to a shock than China. Even if the US risks massive self-harm and kicks major Chinese institutions off SWIFT, the global messaging system enabling dollar-based cross-border payments, it will merely accelerate the yuan’s rise. China’s trading partners can easily switch to the perfectly functional yuan...

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s party swept to victory in special elections on Monday, boosting the leader’s parliamentary majority as a trade war with the United States escalates. Carney’s Liberal Party secured three seats, taking the district of Chicoutimi-Le Fjord in French-speaking Quebec from the opposition Conservatives, and two other districts in Ontario and British Columbia that were previously held by the Liberals. Carney congratulated the winning candidates in a post on X, saying...

Twelve people were killed and several more injured in Russian air attacks on Kyiv and the surrounding region on Tuesday, authorities said, in the sixth consecutive day of ‌strikes on the Ukrainian capital. Attacks both in Ukraine and Russia continue as efforts are ongoing to find a solution to end the deadliest conflict on the European continent since World War II, which started with Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. Eight people were killed and another five wounded in Kyiv, three...

Chinese President Xi Jinping ended August in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, kick-starting a potential run of overseas trips after what has so far been a quiet year for foreign travel. Xi met the presidents of Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Russia and Uzbekistan in Bishkek on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. He may hold talks with other attendees, possibly including Iran’s Masoud Pezeshkian. After the summit, the Chinese president will fly to Egypt, where he will meet...

A woman randomly stabbed two people in New York City’s Times Square on Monday, killing one woman, and then was fatally shot by police, according to officials. The shooting happened just before 4.30pm next to a New York Police Department substation, just outside One Times Square, the building that hosts the city’s annual New Year’s Eve ball drop celebration. It is one of the most heavily touristed and policed spots in all of New York. The 49-year-old woman from Queens pulled out two knives from a...

US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months on the job, the White House said Monday, in the latest departure of a top military leader during the Trump administration. No reason was given for the departure of Driscoll, who is a friend of US Vice-President J.D. Vance, but tensions with US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth have been widely reported. It marks the latest in a series of shake-ups of the military leadership, with the US Army especially seeing major upheaval. “Secretary...

The US Supreme Court on Monday allowed President Donald Trump to continue construction of his White House ballroom, granting him a major victory as he works to leave a permanent mark on Washington. The conservative-dominated court ruled 5-4 to lift a lower order demanding most construction be halted, saying that the plaintiff in the case likely did not have legal standing to sue. Chief Justice John Roberts joined the court’s three liberals in dissenting, writing in an opinion that the major...

Jurors in the Lindsay Clancy trial on Monday spent a third day deliberating without reaching a verdict on whether the former labour and delivery nurse is criminally responsible for killing her three children in 2023 – a case that has drawn attention to maternal mental health after childbirth. The jurors began discussing the case on Thursday in Plymouth County Superior Court in Massachusetts after hearing testimony from more than 70 prosecution witnesses, including her former husband, and 10...

A Chilean court on Monday fined a Chinese man caught with cocaine inside a Santiago prison, where he is being held on charges of homicide, kidnapping and drug trafficking. It was the second such ruling in five involving a Chinese inmate in five months, with prosecutors linking the two men to the same criminal network. Officers had searched Haifeng Tang at Santiago Uno prison on August 12, a day before his move to La Laguna, the maximum-security jail at the centre of President Jose Antonio Kast’s...

A man refusing to eat food while jailed on charges he shot two National Guard troops near the White House, killing one of them, can be fed against his will under a judge’s emergency order. US District Judge Amit Mehta agreed on Saturday to order “non-consensual” nutrition and medical treatment for Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who was rushed to a hospital in July after he stopped eating. Mehta said Federal Bureau of Prisons medical staff can feed Lakanwal intravenously or through a medical tube to save...

Top fashion designer John Galliano announced on Monday he is cancelling an exhibition of his work that was to kick off New York’s Met Gala next spring, following criticism from donors and political leaders over his past antisemitic remarks. “After much reflection and discussion with all those involved, I have decided, with great sadness, that it is best for the exhibition not to take place at this time,” Galliano, 65, wrote on Instagram. “I remain fully accountable for the pain caused by my...

Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda said he has been briefed by the US on the content of CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s talks in Moscow, describing the visit as aimed at reducing regional tensions. “I can say at this stage that the meeting achieved its stated objectives, and it was aimed at reducing tensions in the region,” Nauseda said in Vilnius, according to Lithuanian media reports on Monday. “I very much hope that this message reached the Kremlin regime in good time.” He did not provide...

An ex-street gang leader accused of orchestrating the drive-by shooting death of hip-hop star Tupac Shakur three decades ago in Las Vegas was convicted of murder on Monday for his role in a long-unsolved crime that silenced one of rap music’s most influential voices. A jury in Clark County, Nevada, ‌deliberated for nearly three hours before finding Duane “Keffe D” Davis, 63, guilty of a single count of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon, capping an 11-day trial in a downtown Las Vegas...

US President Donald Trump will meet oil refining executives on Tuesday as he tries to tame fuel prices sent spiralling by the Iran war ahead of midterm elections in November, the White House said. The talks at the White House also come days after Trump announced a deal for a huge US stake in the oil reserves of Venezuela, whose leader Nicolas Maduro was toppled by US forces in January. Republicans fear voters will punish them in November’s crucial US midterm elections after high fuel prices...

France will from Tuesday impose a fee on ultra-fast fashion items that will eventually reach almost €20 (US$23.20) per garment, as the government targets major Asian e-commerce platforms including Shein. The levy follows legislation passed by the French parliament in June to regulate “ultra-fast fashion” companies, known for selling large volumes of lower-quality clothing at rock-bottom prices. It is part of a push to rein in Asian e-commerce giants including Shein, Temu and AliExpress, which...

We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering Latin American relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Chinese executive filmed taking cash on Colombia metro project Colombian prosecutors are investigating allegations that executives of a Chinese state-owned contractor building the Bogota metro demanded cash from a local subcontractor in exchange for releasing payments owed for work on...

We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering US-China relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Harvard, MIT among 30 US universities ordered to audit China research ties Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Johns Hopkins University were among 30 American institutions ordered to audit their foreign research relationships, according to US officials, as...

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday there were signs Russia and Israel had spread the disinformation over Spain’s migration policy that triggered last month’s rush of migrants into Ceuta, but no evidence of Moroccan involvement. Over 72,000 migrants irregularly crossed ‌from Morocco into the tiny Spanish territory between July 30 and 31 in an unprecedented surge at one of the European Union’s only two land borders with Africa, prompting alarm across the bloc. At least 100 people...

Israel signed a multibillion-dollar weapons deal with Greece, the largest between the two Mediterranean countries, as Israeli defence exports soar. Israel’s Defence Ministry said on Monday the nearly €3 billion (US$3.5 billion) defence export deal, coined Achilles Shield, was one of the country’s largest and included a multilayered air defence system for Greece using Israeli technology. “Israel and Greece share common strategic interests and face shared regional challenges. At a time when actors...

A UN committee has said countries are legally obliged to consider reparations for the transatlantic slave trade and take other measures to address the enduring legacy of racial discrimination it says persists today. Guidance published on Monday by the Committee on the Elimination of ‌Racial Discrimination stated that the obligations arise from a legally binding 1965 convention on racial discrimination, not from the legal standards that existed when the slave trade took place. The committee...

We have put together stories from our coverage last weekend to help you stay informed about news across Asia and beyond. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. What Japan’s coming fighter jet deployment to India means for China Japan plans to deploy fighter jets in India for the first time next month, a decision experts say reflects Tokyo’s desire to strengthen security cooperation with “like-minded” countries in the Indo-Pacific region as it ramps up...

Google has updated its maps application to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America” for users in the United States, reflecting a recent order by US President Donald Trump that changed the name of the lake, the global technology giant said. The Google Maps update comes days after Trump’s order amid an escalating trade war with Canada that has led both countries to impose billions of dollars in added tariffs on each other’s goods. It echoes what Google did in 2025 when Trump issued an order to rename...

At least one person was killed and around 15 others are missing after a flash flood at the Grand Canyon, one of the most popular tourist sites in the United States, the National Park Service said in a statement on Sunday. The floods hit the Bright Angel Canyon and Phantom Ranch area on Saturday, forcing dozens of people to evacuate and damaging the sole water pipeline serving the park. The body of a 46-year-old man was recovered on Sunday evening near Crystal Rapids along the Colorado River in...

US forces struck Iranian rocket launchers on the Strait of Hormuz in their first military action in a month on Sunday, breaking a lull in fighting during an intermittent war that has lasted more than six months. Vowing to retaliate for what it called a deadly attack, Iran later said it had launched missiles at US sites in Jordan. Forces with the Revolutionary Guard Corps were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the strait, according to Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for the US...

A prominent leader of the dissident factions of the defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia who operated in a volatile area in the country’s southwest region was killed on Sunday during a military operation, said President Abelardo de la Espriella. The president said the death of a man known as “Felipe” or “Arcadio” was a “crushing blow” to the dissident faction led by a man who goes by “Ivan Mordisco”. De la Espriella posted a video on social media presumably showing a person in a body...

US President Donald Trump on Sunday threatened a prominent NBC broadcast journalist with possible punishment by US media regulators as the Republican expressed disappointment with coverage of his candidate endorsements ahead of November’s midterm elections. Trump took to his Truth Social platform to attack Kristen Welker as the “unpopular ‘hostess’ of the once great Meet the Press” talk show. He objected to her having said the president had had “mixed results” on his endorsement of political...

Ukraine is preparing for a new round of talks with representatives of US President Donald Trump, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday, expressing hope that diplomacy can prevent open conflict from remaining the only path forward. “There will be more details tomorrow. We will do everything we can so that war does not remain the only option for how events unfold further,” Zelensky said in a televised address. “It is important that America shares many of our views on the situation”. US-led...

Iceland’s voters rejected restarting negotiations to join the European Union in a referendum that pitted concerns about geopolitical stability against keeping national control of Iceland’s prized fisheries, officials said on Sunday. Opponents defeated the measure by a margin of 52.8 per cent to 47.2 per cent, the National Electoral Commission said. The result puts the divisive issue to rest for now – more than a decade after a Eurosceptic government ended EU talks that had begun after the 2008...

A passenger ferry capsized and sank off Northern Cyprus Sunday, killing at least eight people and leaving more than a dozen missing, officials and media reports said, as police took the captain and seven crew members into custody. Several rescued passengers told local media a blast had gone off at the bow of the ferry before it rolled over, and said the boat had an insufficient supply of life-vests. The vessel capsized 6.5km (4 miles) off the coast of Cyprus, shortly after leaving a Northern...

Andy Burnham has enjoyed a honeymoon first month as UK prime minister, but the hard trade-offs involved in governing are about to get real as parliament returns from its summer break in the coming days. Since succeeding Keir Starmer on July 20, Burnham has pleased voters with several low-cost sweeteners, including cutting electricity bills and bus fares, while burnishing his casual man-of-the-people vibes. He has poured pints of beer with his finance minister, played guitar in Ukraine, and kept...

Earlier this month, when US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent threatened sanctions against any nation continuing to purchase Iranian crude oil, he did not name China. He did not need to. China, the Islamic Republic’s largest oil customer, is squarely in Washington’s crosshairs. The US has already unveiled new sanctions against 60 individuals, companies and vessels linked to Iranian trade, including some in mainland China and Hong Kong. Just three months after the May summit between President Xi...

Venezuelan hardliners and opposition forces alike criticised acting president Delcy Rodriguez for agreeing to grant the US exclusive access to the country’s valuable oil resources. She may be betting that the deal with US President Donald Trump is her ticket to a tighter grip on power. One potential advantage for Rodriguez is if the deal to give the US majority control over 65 billion barrels of Venezuelan crude hems in the Trump administration’s incentive to press for swift election. “I think...

Zurich, Aug 31, 2026 (AFP) -A 43-year-old Swiss man was arrested on Monday on “strong suspicion” of being behind a rare deadly gun attack at a rave in Switzerland, police said. Gunfire erupted in the early hours of Sunday morning as an annual rave was winding down at the racecourse in Aarau, capital of Switzerland’s northern canton of Aargau. The attack triggered an international manhunt for the shooter, who left an Italian woman dead and wounded five others, some seriously. “A 43-year-old Swiss...

Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said he did not believe ⁠Russia would risk ⁠an attack against a Nato country, ⁠telling Germany’s Bild newspaper it would “make no sense” to test the resolve of the alliance. Western officials have warned of a growing risk of Russian hybrid operations, including cyberattacks, against European countries potentially leading to a direct ‌confrontation with the Nato alliance. German officials have said they assess Russia would be in a position to attack a Nato...

From trolling Canada about a lake to suddenly talking about Kim Jong-un, US President Donald Trump’s recent distractions speak louder than words. The former reality television star has long been known for his reliance upon a simple tactic: when you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation. But the 80-year-old’s recent stunts appear to be even more targeted than usual at wrestling the news away from the Iran war and the economy as difficult midterm elections loom in November. “This...

British far-right commentator Milo Yiannopoulos has been deported back to the UK after his arrest by American immigration authorities, US officials said on Saturday. The US Department of Homeland Security said Yiannopoulos was returned to his home country on Friday after being accused of overstaying after entering the US legally in May 2019. An immigration judge had issued a final order of removal on July 22 after he failed to show up for an immigration hearing, a Homeland Security spokesman...

Scientists in South Africa are investigating why masses of sardines have washed up dead or dying along parts of the country’s west and south coast – and if a herpes virus detected in the fish is responsible. The mass mortality of sardines this month has so far stumped the country’s Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, though scientists have come to at least one conclusion: it is the first time that the virus in question – pilchard herpesvirus, or PHV – has been identified in...

Mutinying soldiers led armed clashes in Niger’s capital on Saturday, alarming residents, but the ruling junta said it had largely wrested back control after hours of heavy exchanges around some of its most sensitive sites. While the fighting had subsided later on Saturday, the rebel troops were said by a regional security source and an African diplomatic source to be holed up in an airbase near the capital’s airport. Niger’s ruling junta declared, in a statement read on state television, that it...

At least 37 people have died after a Russian drone struck a depot near Kyiv’s western suburbs overnight, sparking a huge fire and explosions, authorities said on Saturday. The depot, near the capital’s western suburbs, appeared to have been storing “explosive objects”, Ukrainian prosecutors said, as President Volodymyr Zelensky suggested ammunition was to blame. “Those who allowed this to happen must be held accountable for their decisions... ammunition cannot be stored near homes or other...

Norway’s new King Haakon VIII on Saturday addressed Norwegians for the first time since taking the throne, paying tribute to his 89-year-old father who died the day before. “Above all, you were a person who always stayed true to your values and commitments,” Haakon said of the late King Harald V in a televised speech. The new regent said it had been a “powerful and moving experience” to see the thousands of Norwegians who had gathered since Friday outside the Royal Palace in Oslo with “flowers,...

Mukti Patel has huddled with family and friends at her parents’ Richmond, Virginia, home since her dad, sister and two other relatives went missing in the catastrophic flash floods along the Nepal-China border. She knows the hotel they were staying in was swept away. But as she shared memories of them on Friday, she caught herself. “I shouldn’t talk in past tense yet,” she said. “We don’t know anything.” As rescuers continued pulling survivors from the mud, family members of some of the more...

Iranian leaders are acknowledging the economic toll of war with the United States, with the supreme leader calling on the government to address the hardship while the president reported foreign trade has shrunk 35 per cent due to the American sanctions and blockade. The warnings came even as other leaders threaten the US with military retaliation and declarations that the Iranian navy maintains control of the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway giving Iran ‌leverage through its ability to...

A former White House teleprompter operator accused of using inside knowledge to make bets on the prediction market Kalshi has been ordered to turn over more than US$100,000 in profits and pay a US$65,000 fine as part of a settlement with federal authorities. The settlement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, announced on Friday, also dealt Gabriel Perez a three-year trading ban. Perez was placed on unpaid leave from his job at the White House after reports emerged that he used his...

In contemporary discourse, the bogeyman of “debt traps” is almost exclusively tied to Beijing. Western media, think tanks, NGOs and policymakers from Washington to Brussels frequently warn developing nations of the perils of bilateral loans from China. Yet, Grenada’s debt dispute from a decade ago and St Vincent and the Grenadines’ (SVG) current troubles offer a starkly different, and often ignored, counter-narrative: the weaponisation of debt by Taiwan. For years, Grenada has grappled with...

Jurors said they were deadlocked after 18 hours, but the judge pushed them to keep trying to reach a verdict in the high-profile case of a mother who strangled her three children.

After Justice Scalia died, the justices held private negotiations about locking away their papers. We may not see the ultimate record of the Roberts court for decades.

The Weeknight 100 is back, with so many fast, delicious dinner ideas for busy times.

The vice president is attempting to unite conservative Jews with their antagonists in one coalition, as one appearance in Nevada on Monday showed. Some are uneasy about it.

Senator Edward Markey, who began his congressional career in 1976, faces a challenge from Representative Seth Moulton.

Dayna Mooney chose alternative remedies over the recommendations of her son’s doctors. Was that her right as a parent or a threat to his care?

While journalists can report freely on grief and anger in Nepal, China’s official media have presented a sanitized disaster aftermath in Tibet.

Rajendra Dawadi had less than 15 minutes to act on a warning of approaching floodwaters. His swift evacuation plan saved hundreds of lives.

Novo Nordisk’s chief executive, Mike Doustdar, is a year into a corporate turnaround. He says investors are still underestimating the promise of the company’s drugs.

The country said Moscow was behind an explosive-laden drone found near a Ukrainian plane at a German airport last month. Russia did not immediately comment.

We must be honest about the seriousness of the situation we’re in.

The Met shouldn’t have canceled the Galliano exhibition.

We explain the scandal over John Galliano and the Met Gala.

Have a burning question about the news? Or are you still confused after a lecture? We’ll try to help.

The police fired at the woman, who was holding two knives, after trying to use less lethal force, officials said. A woman, 32, was killed, and a man, 68, is in stable condition.