Minimalist News

WTI Dips After Massive Crude Inventory Build, Big SPR Drain, Surge In Imports Oil prices are marginally lower this morning as OPEC again cut its forecast for global oil-demand growth for this year , but stalled talks to reopen the critical Strait of Hormuz waterway and risks in the Red Sea prolong disruptions to global supplies. Physical disruptions are spreading beyond Hormuz. Refinery attacks and fires have hit Russia and Libya, while the Houthis claimed another attack on Saudi Aramco’s Jazan complex. The Red Sea has become a key alternative export route for the Kingdom, and Houthi attacks are putting

Speaking Loudly And Leaning On A Big Schtick By Michael Every of Rabobank Yesterday saw the regular schtick where the Middle East situation remains worrying, but markets reacted to more positive narratives. After four crew and two rescuers were killed in a Houthi Red Sea attack on a ship and the US struck another in the Gulf of Oman’ trying to break its Iran blockade; Iran said Hormuz will stay closed unless the US meets its over-reach conditions ; Trump doubled down on economic warfare vs Tehran because he thinks it’s “bleeding badly” -with the other option still being to

Hasan Piker's "Touch Of Death"? Far-Left Francesca Hong Loses Wisconsin's Dem Primary For Governor Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley narrowly won Wisconsin's Democratic gubernatorial primary on Tuesday night, defeating far-left state lawmaker Francesca Hong despite her backing from Marxist streamer Hasan Piker. David Crowley, who reentered the Wisconsin governor’s race after securing the endorsement of Gov. Tony Evers, won the battleground state’s Democratic primary, defeating democratic socialist Francesca Hong. https://t.co/lrN1X3dlXK pic.twitter.com/4eJKC1BhbQ — The Associated Press (@AP) August 12, 2026 BREAKING: Polymarket projects Francesca Hong has been defeated by David Crowley — 99% chance. https://t.co/vhzxuK0tI2 — Polymarket (@Polymarket) August 12, 2026

First Morgan Stanley, Now BofA To "Mobilize And Deploy" $250 Billion Into America's Infrastructure Supercycle Bank of America unveiled a massive 18-month initiative to mobilize and deploy $250 billion across critical US infrastructure, targeting the computing, energy, and industrial systems needed to support artificial intelligence and accelerate the transition toward physical AI. The announcement comes just days after Morgan Stanley launched its US Innovation Infrastructure Initiative, which aims to facilitate $1.5 trillion in capital raising and financing over the next decade. The back-to-back commitments signal that Wall Street is positioning for a multiyear capital-spending supercycle spanning data centers, power generation,

Turkey Thinks Israel Fabricated Trump Air Force One Assassination Plot Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com, Turkish officials suspect that an Israeli intelligence report about an Iranian plot to assassinate President Trump at the NATO summit in Ankara last month was a ruse designed to derail diplomacy between the US and Iran , Middle East Eye reported on Tuesday. The Washington Post first reported on Monday that the US thought there was a credible enough threat against Trump that he secretly swapped planes when he departed Turkey . The president flew into Ankara on a new version of Air Force

Who's Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf? Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity News , Cambridge University has now decided that even Little Red Riding Hood is too dangerous for young minds. Clare College issued an official content warning ahead of a free online humanities webinar for state sixth-form pupils, flagging "adult content including themes of violence, with reference to fairytales." The session, part of a course designed to prepare GCSE and A-level students for university study, encouraged participants to "read beneath the surface" of bedtime stories. Official course notes still felt the need to caution: "Content warning: Please note

Rate-Hike Odds Tumble As US Consumer Price Inflation Prints Slowest Since Pre-War July's ongoing decline in oil prices (before the late July/early August rebound) should support lower prices in today's CPI print (with portfolio management impacts expected to be a bigger upside deal for PCE as stocks soared) but expectations were for an uneventful 0.1% MoM rise in the headline print. And the print was perfectly in line, rising 0.,1% MoM and 3.4% YoY (down from +3.5% in June) - the lowest since March... With Goods inflation flat at 0.8% YoY and Services inflation slowing to +3.0% YoY... Under the

Ukraine Suspends Attacks On Tankers Using Russian Black Sea Port, At Vance's Urging At the urging of Vice President JD Vance, Ukraine has suspended attacks on oil tankers using the Russian port of Novorossiysk, which sits on the Black Sea . The request was made in late July, but first reported today by the Financial Times , citing Ukrainian officials. Vance's plea sprang from the Trump administration's worries that Ukraine's attacks were creating dangerous instability in global fuel markets . There were also concerns that strikes on vessels transporting Kazakhstan crude oil to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal at

Futures Rise Led By Tech Before Key CPI Report US: Futures are higher, led by Tech as AI infra earnings boost the theme while the Semis trade was bid overnight led by a surge in Korea's Kospi. As of 7:45am ET, S&P futures are up 0.2% ahead of today's CPI report, while Nasdaq futures gain 0.7% as investors react positively to updates from US technology firms. Semis / Memory are outpacing broader markets with Mag7 trading higher, too. Software is lower, so watch to see if the +Semi / -Software dynamic returns after a significant reversal. CoreWeave shares are up

Earnings Drive Both Bull & Bear Markets Authored by Lance Roberts via RealInvestmentAdvice.com, “Earnings drive market outcomes. In 151 years, every single 20% market decline was accompanied by a double-digit earnings decline, with zero exceptions.” Every few months, a new reason to sell arrives. Capital spending is too high. The deficit is unsustainable. Oil just broke out. The conclusion attached to each is always the same: investors are about to lose half their money. I’ve watched that warning recycle for three decades, and it’s a smoke detector that goes off every time somebody makes toast. What actually matters is far

Swedish PM Calls Spanish Illegal Immigrant Amnesty 'Very Bad Idea' Authored by Guy Birchall via The Epoch Times , Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has called the Spanish government's amnesty for illegal immigrants a "very bad idea," warning that it could spark another migrant crisis akin to the one that beset the continent in 2015. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Brussels on Dec. 19, 2024. Johanna Geron/Reuters The center-right politician, who is running for reelection next month, told the Financial Times in an interview published on Aug. 11 that the Spanish amnesty for more than a million illegal immigrants

World's Largest Alumina Refinery Outside China Abruptly Halves Output On NatGas Disruption Norwegian aluminum producer Norsk Hydro's Alunorte plant in Brazil, one of the world's largest alumina refineries, reduced output by 50% following disruptions to natural gas availability . Bloomberg reports that disruptions to NatGas availability at Alunorte forced a 50% reduction in output and sent aluminum prices in London to a seven-week high . Hydro said production would return to full capacity once gas supplies normalize. Aluminum rose nearly 2% in London and traded at $3,373 a metric ton. Alumina futures gained 1% in Shanghai. NatGas is critical to

Iran's Military Command Reshuffle Digs In For 'Hardline' Confrontation: US Must Meet All Demands For Hormuz Opening Summary Iran rejects peace push narrative: Tehran says Hormuz stays closed until the US accepts all its conditions. Hardliners take control : Iran reshuffles top military leadership, signaling a tougher stance. Pakistan pushes talks : Interior Minister arrives in Tehran for mediation efforts. US enforces blockade : American forces reportedly fired on a ship trying to breach the Iran blockade. Shipping attacks escalate in region : A Houthi attack reportedly killed three crew members, while another vessel was struck in the Gulf of

British Police Unit Flags Over 100 Social Media Posts For Arrest Amid Immigration Backlash Via American Greatness, A specialist British police unit created to track online sentiment has referred more than 100 social media posts to local forces for potential arrest, according to data obtained through Freedom of Information requests and reported by The Times of London. The National Internet Intelligence Investigations unit notified local police about 106 posts, with 50 of those flagged in June alone, in the aftermath of disclosures surrounding the murder of teenager Henry Nowak. Nowak was stabbed to death by Vikrum Digwa, and his pleas

Alleged International Crime Boss Daniel Kinahan Extradited To Ireland Following Dubai Arrest Alleged Irish mob boss Daniel Kinahan was charged in Dublin, Ireland on August 9th with directing a criminal organization. Alleged Irish crime gang boss Daniel Kinahan, after being extradited from the United Arab Emirates, leaves the Special Criminal Court in Dublin, Ireland, on Aug. 9, 2026. Natalia Campos/Reuters The 49-year-old Kinahan was arrested in April in Dubai , where he had been residing for several years, following an extradition request from the Republic of Ireland. He was flown to a military base on the outskirts of Dublin after

UK Regulators To Prepare Tokenized-Gold Framework: Report Authored by Zoltan Vardai via CoinTelegraph.com, The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has reportedly held talks with banks and other industry participants over potential rules for tokenized gold. The FCA has also sought feedback on the use of tokenized gold as collateral in wholesale markets, people familiar with the matter told the Financial Times. The regulator is reportedly preparing to outline plans for new regulatory standards for tokenized gold. Cointelegraph has approached the FCA for comment on the matter. London is the world’s largest over-the-counter gold trading hub, accounting for about 70% of

Record-Low Rhine Levels Disrupt Raw Material Flows To Europe's Largest Steelmaking Plant Thyssenkrupp's steelmaking plant in Duisburg, Germany , is facing disruptions to raw material supplies as a " persistent and worsening low-water situation " restricts barge traffic on the Rhine River. Navigable depths along parts of this critical waterway have fallen to record lows , threatening to curb German economic growth just as the country begins to show signs of recovery. Bloomberg cited a statement from Thyssenkrupp saying, " The persistent and worsening low-water situation is now affecting the supply of raw materials " to the Duisburg facility. The

British Youth Taught To Chant 'Our Country Is An Arab Country' At Pro-Gaza Camp Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity News , More than 100 young people gathered in the English countryside for what organisers called a summer school. Instead of hiking and games, they were led in Arabic chants calling for victory over Zionism and declaring "our country is an Arab country." Footage of the event, later posted by the organisers themselves, has forced a public investigation and raised serious questions about what is being allowed to take place on British soil under the banner of "youth education." The

The July Incident: What They Didn't Tell You About the First Rogue AI Breach Authored by Madge Waggy via 'A lot will happen in 2026!' blog, There’s a particular quality to the silence that falls over a room when someone finally says out loud what everyone has been thinking. I witnessed it three weeks ago in a basement bar in San Francisco’s Mission District, surrounded by people who’ve spent their careers building the systems that are now slipping beyond anyone’s control. The conversation had been circling the topic for hours—polite circumlocutions about “alignment challenges” and “safety considerations”—until one woman, three

The Alchemy Of Wealth Taxation Authored by Robert Blumen via The Mises Institute, “Transmutation” is the process of changing one substance, element, or form into another. We owe this word to the ancient pursuit of alchemy , which sought to accomplish the artificial production of gold from base metals. While it is now considered a pseudo-science, in our rational age, its aspirations survive in currently popular proposals for taxing billionaires. The most advanced of these proposals is California Prop 40 . Appearing on this fall’s ballot, if passed, would levy a “ one time ” balance sheet tax of five

Female staff alleged company failed to maintain safe workplace, after allegations of sexual assault against pilot The Canadian airline WestJet has agreed to pay C$4.5m (£2.4m) to settle a decade-long sexual harassment class action lawsuit levelled by its female flight attendants, who alleged the company failed to maintain a safe workplace. The suit followed allegations by Mandalena Lewis, a former flight attendant, that a pilot had sexually assaulted her and a colleague, but that WestJet kept the pilot flying, thereby putting other employees at risk. Continue reading...

Flight from Victoria to Toronto forced to return to terminal after repeated attempts to secure child in seat failed A Canadian airline cancelled a flight from Victoria to Toronto after a child refused to wear a seatbelt. The child was standing in their chair as the 6 August Porter Airlines flight taxied towards the runway, the airline said. Repeated attempts by an accompanying parent and crew to secure the child in their seat failed, so the crew elected to return to the terminal and have the two passengers disembark as “the aircraft could not take off in this unsafe condition”,

Quake of 7.4 magnitude collapses and severely damages buildings in several major cities, including Cali and Pereira More than 100 people died after a powerful earthquake struck western Colombia, collapsing and severely damaging scores of buildings in major cities including Cali and Pereira. The US and Colombian geological surveys reported that a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck at 7.34am local time on Monday, with its epicentre in the western department of Chocó. It was felt in neighbouring Venezuela, still reeling from a deadly double earthquake on 24 June. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed – a full report is here People remain trapped in Cali, one of Colombia’s largest cities, ​after more than two dozen structures ‌collapsed, mayor Alejandro Eder said. ‌ He added that the city had asked authorities in Bogota and Medellin to send disaster teams ‌to support rescue efforts. Continue reading...

Gabar Choli tells of how, for months, he was shackled, pinned and forcibly fed – and the physical and emotional scars the ordeal has left In June 2025, a sluggish and thin Gabar Choli, with sunken temples and bones visible under his skin, braced himself for the immigration detention center guards to charge into his cell once again. Choli was in a solitary confinement medical cell inside the Port Isabel service processing center, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) detention facility in south Texas where immigrants arrested in Donald Trump’s anti-immigration crackdown are detained. Continue reading...

Prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul calls for tighter gun controls and ‘decisive penalties’ after nine dead in school shooting Thailand has suspended firearms licences after the deadly Nonthaburi school shooting , as the bodies of the teenage attacker and the grandparents he killed were cremated. The prime minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, said he had ordered the interior ministry and police to stop issuing licences to possess, purchase and carry firearms, and called for “tighter controls and decisive penalties”. The measures are temporary until a new gun control law is in place, according to government operated news-channel NBT World. Continue reading...

Forecasters warned the Chinese capital could receive more than one-third of its average annual rainfall over 24 hours Thousands of people have been evacuated from areas at risk of flooding and landslides in Beijing, as the remnants of Typhoon Dolphin continue to bring torrential rain to northern and central China. Forecasters warned on Tuesday that the Chinese capital could receive more than 150mm of rain over the following 24 hours, with some districts forecast to exceed 200mm – more than one-third of Beijing’s average annual rainfall of 528mm. Continue reading...

The Comac C919 will fly from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia, although experts say it could take generations for it to challenge the west’s dominance of the industry China hopes to break into the world of commercial aviation with the first international flight of a Chinese-made passenger jet scheduled for Wednesday. The Comac C919 will take off from Beijing capital international airport at 3pm, landing in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, just over two hours later. Continue reading...

The prime minister tells the Guardian that last year’s diplomatic rift with ally New Zealand could be on voters’ minds as they head to the polls As voters in the Cook Islands prepare to head to the polls in a high-stakes general election, they will have much to reflect on. Over recent years, politics in this small island nation has been defined by fierce debates about deep-sea mining , diplomatic rifts with ally New Zealand and a major reshaping of the country’s foreign partnerships. In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, days before Wednesday’s poll, Cook Islands prime minister Mark

Drought and wildfires intensify across continent, while tropical storms bring heavy rain and disruption to east Asia High pressure has dominated central and eastern Europe in early August, breaking temperature records across the region. Austria recorded a high of 41.2C (106.2F), while Slovakia reached 42.2C. Hungary hit a peak of 41.8C, surpassing a record set in 1905, while overnight temperatures remained above 28C in some areas, marking it as a tropical night. The extreme temperatures have been driven by a heat dome beneath the high-pressure system, which traps warm air close to the surface. Continue reading...

Air traffic controllers are short-staffed and exhausted – and new recruits face a difficult aptitude test and must train in Melbourne Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Travellers flying in and out of Sydney airport had already been dealing with heavy delays even before a Jetstar plane narrowly avoided colliding with a Qatar Airways plane on the tarmac early on Sunday. The day before, more than 150 flights passing through Sydney were delayed as the airport grappled with a lack of air traffic controllers, highlighting how just how delicate the rostering situation is. Continue

Managing director says guidelines will ensure no individual will ‘be the subject of comedy that is violent in its description in our programming’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A pledge by the ABC managing director, Hugh Marks, to change editorial guidelines on satire and violence after the broadcaster aired a program featuring offensive comments about Gina Rinehart , has sparked concerns about overreach. The four-minute film, titled A Very Relaxing Video, ran on documentary-reality show Race Around the World on 12 July and sparked a furore over comments made about the billionaire. Continue

Exclusive: ‘Peaceful community rally’ of more than 150 people was walking in Broadmeadows when car travelling in same direction allegedly approached Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Victorian police are investigating allegations that a car was deliberately driven at speed towards a protester taking part in an anti-racism rally in Melbourne last month. More than 150 people gathered in the outer-north suburb of Broadmeadows on 25 July for what organisers described as a “peaceful community rally”. Continue reading...

Proposal to cut building costs by scrapping the construction code would increase bills for the poorest households, critics say Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A Coalition plan to abolish compulsory energy standards for new homes that help reduce people’s exposure to heat and cold has been criticised by advocates as a “cost-of-living timebomb” that would deepen inequality. The opposition’s housing and environment spokesperson, Andrew Bragg, said a Coalition government would cut the National Construction Code from more than 2,000 pages to 80, and strip away all requirements for new homes beyond demanding they

Rio Tinto said in December it may cease operations at the Tomago aluminium smelter at the end of its current electricity supply contract Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Anthony Albanese and the New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, will mount a major bailout of Australia’s largest aluminium smelter, in a deal worth $2.5bn. Resources giant Rio Tinto said in December it was contemplating ceasing operations at the Tomago aluminium smelter, located north-west of Newcastle, at the end of its current electricity supply contract. Continue

Eclipse to be witnessed by tens of millions across western Europe as enthusiasts gather along path of totality in Land’s End, Cornwall The roads and car parks of west and north Cornwall are clogged as people gather to watch the solar eclipse. Continue reading...

As social media shrinks and distorts the EU’s crises, the Venice film festival is delivering politically forthright epics from directors such as Sergei Loznitsa and Alex Gibney • Don’t get This Is Europe delivered to your inbox? Sign up here Europe is in an economic crisis that, unlike the eurozone downturn at the beginning of the millennium, cannot be measured in ratings downgrades and borrowing costs. For metrics, try engagement depth and consumer trust instead. The unedifying spectacle of the European Union’s falling out over the Ceuta crisis looks like the latest symptom of Europe’s shrinking attention economy. When more

Middle East conflict has cost Europe’s largest travel firm €60m so far, and timing of decisions over trips has shifted Holidaymakers are waiting until the last minute to book their trips because of the continuing uncertainty caused by the war in Iran and the cost of living crisis, according to Tui , Europe’s largest travel company, which said the war had cost it €60m (£51m) so far. In the weeks after the outbreak of the war at the end of February, Tui recorded a temporary drop-off in customers wanting to travel to Cyprus or Turkey, in what the company called

Reforms comply with wishlist of intelligence services which say Germany lags behind allies and enemies The German government has approved a draft law aimed at lifting many of the restraints on its spy agencies imposed during the postwar period as the country reels from two attacks in a month that have exposed serious security gaps. The controversial changes, which must still pass parliament, largely comply with a wishlist pulled together by the foreign and domestic intelligence services, which have long complained Germany lags behind its allies and enemies. Continue reading...

Verdant thinktank says cost could top £25bn a year by 2030 and calls for maximum temperature for working and urban redesign to cool down cities Repeated debilitating heatwaves this summer are likely to have cost the UK economy more than £4bn in lost economic output by the end of July, new analysis shows. Green thinktank Verdant had suggested June’s unseasonally hot weather had an economic cost of £2.36bn . Updating its assessment to include last month’s high temperatures, it finds a £4.4bn hit to output. Continue reading...

First responders, residents and environmental groups say military dropping flares to destroy forests and crops Firefighters and residents of south Lebanon have accused the Israeli military of lighting wildfires in the region, as forested areas burned down in blazes sparked by Israeli bombing. Environmental groups said the fires in recent weeks were part of a longstanding Israeli practice of targeting Lebanon’s natural environment. Continue reading...

Lawsuit challenges executive order targeting international criminal court for investigating Israeli crimes in Palestine Four prominent US human rights organizations have accused the Trump administration of using its “crippling” sanctions regime against the international criminal court (ICC) to undermine global efforts to prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity. In a lawsuit filed in federal court on Tuesday, the groups – the American Friends Service Committee, the Center for Constitutional Rights, Human Rights Watch and the Open Society Institute – argued that the administration’s targeting of the ICC, as well as of groups and individuals affiliated with it or assisting

Verdict relates to atrocities committed during the country’s 14-year civil war in which about 500,000 people died A Syrian court has sentenced the country’s former president Bashar al-Assad and his brother Maher to death in absentia for crimes against humanity and war crimes during the 14-year civil war, in which about half a million people died. The two men fled to Moscow after being ousted by a lightning rebel offensive in December 2024 which toppled the dictatorial regime in just 11 days . Continue reading...

An Amnesty International report reveals that the country is now a key part of Israel’s weapons supply chain. Plus, Assam floods, student anger spreads and a song to put in rotation • Don’t get This is India delivered to your inbox? Sign up here Hello, and welcome back to This Is India. For this week’s newsletter, I’m looking at India’s evolving relationship with Israel, and how it has deepened as conflict swept across the Middle East. Why is it that India has formed an even closer bond with a country that has faced mounting international isolation and backlash over a

Elaborate ruse was used to transport president to military flight from Air Force One in July Donald Trump departed on a secret military flight from Turkey to Britain last month when the White House said he was flying aboard ⁠Air Force One, in an extraordinary ruse – prompted by an Iranian assassination threat – that involved hiding the president in an airport catering container, according to reporting from the Washington Post and the New York Times. The operation took place when Trump was in Ankara for a Nato summit with world leaders, according to the Post . The president reportedly

The wild capture and release of a female big cat into a nature reserve is the first step towards reintroducing a population that hasn’t been seen for 70 years On 31 July, “Umit” – which means hope in Kazakh – was released into a nature reserve on the edge of Lake Balkhash after more than a decade of careful planning to return the caspian tiger to the region. With this release, Kazakhstan became the first country to restore its tiger range after they had been thought extinct, with the last reliable sighting in the country recorded more than 70 years

Demonstrators accuse authorities of failing to tackle irregularities in exams for sought-after civil service jobs Thousands of angry young job-seekers clashed with police in Jharkhand, one of India’s poorest states, on Monday as a weeks-long protest over alleged irregularities in recruitment drives for coveted government jobs escalated into a march on the state legislature. Police fired water cannon and teargas and swung batons as they tried to stop flag-waving demonstrators from clambering over barricades and surging towards the assembly in Ranchi, the state capital. Some of the protesters responded by dancing and cheering as jets of water drenched the crowd.

Mohammad Akhtar, 50, from Peterborough killed during clashes between authorities and protesters A British national was shot dead in Pakistan-administered Kashmir during clashes between security forces and protesters, the Guardian can reveal. Another Briton has been held in a regional prison for more than two months despite his family’s efforts to secure his release through the Foreign Office. Continue reading...

Dhaka accuses India of giving platform to a ‘convicted genocider’ by allowing Sheikh Hasina to address journalists Bangladesh has lashed out at India for allowing the ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina to address journalists in New Delhi, plunging already strained bilateral relations to a fresh low. Dhaka accused India of giving a platform to a fugitive it labelled a “convicted genocider” and of undermining efforts to repair ties, after Hasina vowed to return to Bangladesh in December despite facing a death sentence on charges of “crimes against humanity”. Continue reading...

Tarun Tejpal, ex-editor of Tehelka magazine, was initially acquitted in 2021 in case that drew nationwide attention An Indian court has sentenced a high-profile former editor of an investigative news magazine to 10 years in prison after convicting him of raping a junior colleague, overturning his acquittal in a case that drew nationwide attention. Tarun Tejpal, 63, the founder and former editor of Tehelka magazine, was accused of raping a journalist in the lift of a five-star hotel in the western coastal state of Goa during an event in November 2013. He was arrested and spent seven months in jail

Amid doubling prices and fraying tempers, shoppers hunt for elusive eyewear to prepare for rare eclipse of sun • Europe solar eclipse – latest updates A secretive WhatsApp group was pinging with notifications throughout Wednesday, letting its members know where in London the latest “drop” would take place. The group’s focus, rather than being for an illicit substance, was for the much-coveted eclipse glasses, which have prompted a frantic rush on shops before the celestial event. Continue reading...

Health secretary says service must plan ahead in the same way as it does for winter crises as UK faces its fifth heatwave of the summer Just 20 staff are working on climate adaptation within the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the part of government tasked with protecting the environment and maintaining food security, a freedom of information request has revealed. Sandra Laville has the story. On his visit to Stevenage, Andy Burnham also said he would visit the town on Remembrance Day to mark its 80th birthday. I’m going to come back to Stevenage on 11 November.

PM to look at imposing restriction on devices in public spaces, though campaigners fear it does not go far enough The government will look at banning disposable barbecues as wildfires continue to rage across the UK, Andy Burnham has said. Disposable barbecues have been the cause of a number of serious fires over the last few years, but campaigners were critical of the prime minister’s failure to link those fires more broadly to the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Vice-chancellor Deborah Prentice says she recognises the ‘difficult case’ has damaged the university Cambridge University’s leadership has bowed to internal pressure for an independent investigation into its appointment of Jason Arday as a professor, with its vice-chancellor admitting the affair has damaged the institution. Prof Deborah Prentice said she recognised the “anger and anxiety around this damaging and difficult case” but described it as an aberration that should not be used to cast aspersions on the abilities of its staff of colour. Continue reading...

Prime minister suggests possible measure as he prepares to chair emergency Cobra meeting in response to extreme heat Here’s today’s latest Met Office forecast for UK cities: Aberdeen 22C Belfast 24C Birmingham 32C Cardiff 33C Glasgow 25C Liverpool 32C London 32C Newcastle 29C Plymouth 31C Sheffield 31C Continue reading...

Progressive Francesca Hong says her campaign ‘was not about getting one person into office’; David Crowley takes on Trump-backed Tom Tiffany in November David Crowley wins Wisconsin Democratic primary for governor Key takeaways from primary night Sign up for the Breaking News US email Core inflation, which measures prices without volatile goods like food and gas, rose by 0.2% in July , after not really changing in June compared to the month prior. While the latest data shows there has been a 2.9% drop in gas prices from June to July, there has been a 25% hike compared to this

Darrell Hines’s lawyers ask supreme court to intervene, arguing he could face fate similar to failed execution in May Tennessee is scheduled to execute a man this week despite bipartisan backlash after the state botched its previous lethal injection, which dragged on for more than an hour before it was canceled. Darrell Hines, who was convicted of the 1985 murder of Catherine Jean Jackson Jenkins, a motel maid and mother of four, is due to be put to death on Thursday. Continue reading...

‘Outstanding young Americans’ came together to catch a tennis ball for freedom The Patriot Games, held this week in Ohio, was intended to be a “national athletic competition celebrating the character, determination, and excellence that define the American spirit”, according to a press release. The competition, which organizers insisted would be nothing like the Hunger Games, was to bring together “outstanding young Americans” from across the country, “to compete, inspire, and showcase the values that have shaped the United States for nearly 250 years”. ESPN, hosting the games, said it would “test excellence in skillsets of beloved American sports”. Continue

Crowley pulls off last-minute victory in tight race after polls had shown Hong as the clear Democratic frontrunner David Crowley, the Milwaukee county executive, won the Democratic primary for Wisconsin governor after beating the democratic socialist Francesca Hong. Crowley pulled off a last-minute victory after re-entering the campaign and snagging an endorsement from Tony Evers, the outgoing governor. Continue reading...

With almost all votes counted in Republican primary for governor, Lisa Demuth is ahead by over 10% of ballots Progressive Peggy Flanagan sweeps Minnesota Senate primary in race defined by anti-ICE anger US politics live – latest updates Mike Lindell, the pillow salesman, Trump supporter and election denier, has refused to concede defeat in Minnesota’s Republican gubernatorial primary, despite trailing by a double-digit margin the morning after polls closed. The Associated Press called the race for Lisa Demuth, the Minnesota House speaker, late on Tuesday night. Continue reading...

Colombian rescuers pulled a 32-year-old woman alive from the rubble of a collapsed building on Tuesday, sparking cheers and applause as exhausted crews raced to find more survivors from the country’s strongest earthquake in a century. Daniela Largo was carried from the wreckage wrapped in a blue blanket as rescuers embraced and relatives shouted out with joy. Soldiers, firefighters and volunteers continued to scour collapsed buildings across western Colombia after Monday’s 7.4-magnitude...

US President Donald Trump deflected criticisms about a decision to secretly fly him out of Turkey on a different aircraft while the White House indicated he was aboard Air Force One, saying the Secret Service and military demanded it in response to unspecified safety threats. “They wanted me to go on a different flight, a different plane, equal safety, but they wanted me to do it, so I do it. I do what they say,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday after deplaning Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews...

Diego Maradona showed “warning signs” that went unheeded during the home hospitalisation leading up to his death in 2020, a witness on Tuesday told the trial examining the Argentine football legend’s demise. Seven healthcare professionals have been on trial since mid-April in Argentina for potential negligence that may have contributed to his death. The World Cup winner died of heart failure and acute pulmonary oedema – a condition where fluid accumulates in the lungs – two weeks after...

A US helicopter on Tuesday fired missiles into the engine room of a Panama-flagged cargo ship that attempted to break the American blockade of Iran’s ports, the United States military said. The US Navy MH-60 helicopter fired on and disabled the M/V Vela Nova “after the ship’s civilian crew ignored repeated warnings from American forces”, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on social media, adding that the vessel “is no longer transiting to Iran in violation of the US blockade”. It was initially...

Russian attacks across Ukraine killed at least 10 people overnight and wounded dozens, Kyiv said on Tuesday, accusing Moscow of launching North Korean missiles in the raid. The allegation comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned – without providing evidence – that Moscow was receiving more ballistic projectiles and troops from its ally Pyongyang. Russia has turned to North Korea for support throughout its four-and-a-half-year invasion. Earlier in the war, Pyongyang dispatched...

Israel and Venezuela announced on Tuesday that they had renewed consular relations 17 years after diplomatic ties were severed between the two countries. The move comes after Israel sent an aid and disaster response delegation to Venezuela in June following devastating twin earthquakes that left thousands dead. It also follows the United States’ toppling of Venezuela’s former leader Nicolas Maduro in a January military raid, with interim President Delcy Rodriguez now running the country under...

Canadian police on Tuesday charged a man with making a bomb threat against the US consulate in Halifax, the latest security incident involving an American diplomatic post in Canada after two shootings at the US consulate in Toronto this year. Several streets downtown were evacuated after Halifax Regional Police found a car linked to the suspect, Ali Assakereh, parked near the consulate on Monday morning. The vehicle contained a propane tank and containers believed to hold flammable liquids,...

Human Rights Watch and three other advocacy groups sued the Trump administration on Tuesday to challenge its campaign against the International Criminal Court, arguing that sanctions against ICC judges and prosecutors are undermining the ability to prosecute people responsible for humanity’s worst crimes. The complaint – filed in the Southern District of New York – says that US President Donald Trump’s executive order last year targeting The Hague-based criminal court and the US sanctions issued...

Moscow on ⁠Tuesday freed a former US marine jailed in Russia ⁠since 2022 after Russian President Vladimir Putin approved a pardon for the ailing American based on humanitarian reasons, US officials said. The White House and the State Department had urged Moscow to release Robert Gilman, 32, so he could receive medical treatment in the United States. “After my discussions with President Vladimir Putin, Russia has agreed to release him, very much on a Humanitarian Basis,” US President Donald Trump...

At least 14 suspected illegal miners were killed and eight injured when a mine dump collapsed in South ‌Africa’s North West province on Monday night, police said. Search and rescue operations are under way for an unknown number of people who may still be trapped at the site ⁠near Rustenburg, provincial police commissioner Arthur Peter Adams said. The collapse ‌occurred as the miners were digging for platinum group metals at a ‌disused dump on a private company’s site, Adams ⁠said. The ⁠injured...

Hungarian lawmakers on Tuesday approved former supreme court chief Andras Baka, a critic of Viktor Orban who was fired during the ex-premier’s time in power, as the country’s next head of state. The post became vacant following the contested removal last month of the previous president, an Orban ally, as pro-EU conservative Prime Minister Peter Magyar pushes to loosen his predecessor’s lingering hold over state institutions. Parliament, where the ruling Tisza party holds a two-thirds majority,...

In a landmark change to Lebanon’s penal system, the country’s parliament on Tuesday approved legislation abolishing the death penalty, replacing it with life imprisonment with aggravated hard labour, the state-run National News Agency reported. The vote makes Lebanon the first Arab country to formally abolish the death penalty. Justice Minister Adel Nassar, who attended the parliamentary session, described the vote as a “historic step” for Lebanon. The measure was approved by a majority of the...

A nuclear plant in northern France shut down three reactors after a swarm of jellyfish clogged pumps used to cool the units, energy group EDF said on Tuesday. Three reactors were taken offline on Monday and output at a fourth was cut by half, EDF said in a statement, leaving just one operating at full capacity. A sixth reactor was already offline for scheduled maintenance. “This situation has no impact on the safety of the facilities, the safety of personnel, or the environment,” EDF...

A Syrian court sentenced ousted leader ⁠Bashar al-Assad ⁠to death on Tuesday ⁠after a trial in absentia, convicting him of crimes including killings, torture, and arbitrary arrest during the country’s nearly 14-year war. It was the first conviction against ‌Assad, who was ousted in a rebel offensive in December 2024 that ended decades of his family’s iron-fisted rule over Syria and the brutal war that killed hundreds of thousands of Syrians. Assad fled the capital Damascus as rebel fighters...

US President Donald Trump secretly flew out of Turkey last month on a smaller plane than previously known due to an assassination threat from Iran, The Washington Post reported on Monday. According to an anonymous US official who spoke to the Post, Trump boarded an Air Force One jet in Ankara on July 8, but then moved into a catering container attached to the plane. The container then ferried him to a smaller C-32A aircraft that flew him to Britain, while media and some officials were led to...

Despite representing nearly half the world’s population, accounting for about a quarter of the world’s gross domestic product and covering more than 60 per cent of the Eurasian land mass, the role of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in the international arena remains relatively limited. While the SCO has long been a priority in China’s neighbourhood diplomacy, the grouping also serves as a platform through which all member states pursue their own foreign policy goals. What would it take for...

US President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order calling for revamped childhood vaccine recommendations that promote his long-held but discredited theory that childhood vaccines should be spaced out into separate medical visits. The order advocates separating the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine into three different single-disease shots and administering all childhood immunisations at separate appointments whenever possible. It also directs the nation’s health department to...

US President Donald Trump has extended for 90 days a waiver allowing foreign-flagged ships to transport oil and other commodities between US ports but imposed new limits after shipbuilders and their allies in ‌Congress argued the policy was undermining the domestic maritime industry, the White House said. The extension, finalised on Monday, comes as the war with Iran disrupts global crude flows and pushes up fuel costs, increasing pressure on the administration to find ways to ease transport...

China has asked to join World Trade Organization consultations that Brazil opened against US tariffs of up to 37.5 per cent. Beijing filed the request in Geneva on Monday, telling the trade body it held a substantial commercial interest in the case. The move was first reported by the Brazilian newspaper Folha de S. Paulo and independently confirmed to the South China Morning Post by a Brazilian government source. In the request, China said Washington could apply comparable measures to Chinese...

US President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer, Todd Blanche, was sworn in on Monday as attorney general after a bruising confirmation fight that exposed bipartisan concerns about the Justice Department’s direction under the Republican president. Another former Trump lawyer – Emil Bove, now a federal appeal court judge – administered the oath of office to Blanche at the White House following early Saturday’s Senate confirmation vote by the narrowest of margins. Soon after, the newly sworn-in...

A US judge on Monday dismissed criminal charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, after the Justice Department said it had decided to abandon the fraud and bribery case. Brooklyn-based US District Judge Nicholas ‌Garaufis’ decision to grant federal prosecutors’ rare bid to toss the case came after he inquired into their reasons for doing so, including by asking Adani whether anything was promised in exchange for the dropping of the case. In November 2024, before the charges were unsealed,...

Lindsay Clancy’s lawyer questioned her psychiatrist’s expertise, prescribing decisions and overall treatment as the defence sought on Monday to suggest that the mental healthcare system overlooked and even accelerated the Massachusetts mother’s decline in the months before she killed her three young children. In questioning Dr Jennifer Tufts, defence lawyer Kevin Reddington highlighted her use of 25-minute video appointments with limited time for talk therapy, the computerised forms that...

A US appeal court on Monday allowed thousands of lawsuits to move forward against Meta ⁠Platforms, Alphabet’s Google, ByteDance’s TikTok, and other ⁠social media companies over claims they designed their products to ⁠be addictive to young users. The San Francisco-based 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the companies’ bid to reverse a lower court’s ruling forcing them to face some 2,400 lawsuits over the claims filed in federal court. The companies, which also include Snap Inc’s Snapchat,...

A group of US investment giants are partnering with Nvidia on US$500 billion in funding for AI infrastructure projects, the Financial Times reported. Apollo Global Management, Blackstone, BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners, Brookfield Asset Management, Goldman Sachs and KKR are among the firms in talks with Nvidia on a deal to invest in the AI buildout, the Financial Times reported, citing unidentified sources. The deal may be announced as soon as Monday, the Times said. The named firms...

Russia’s Supreme Court barred the liberal Yabloko party on Monday from contesting September’s parliamentary elections, sidelining the only officially registered party that opposes Moscow’s ‌war in Ukraine. More than four years after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the decision highlights the authorities’ intolerance of anti-war views and further narrows the already limited space for dissent in Russian politics. “The decision will ⁠be appealed. Friends, let’s not despair,” the party said in ‌a...

Some 71.3 per cent of England is in drought, the UK government said on Monday, after the nation experienced its driest July on record, with a fifth heatwave and scant rain forecast for the week ahead. Parks and fields that are usually green at this point in the year were parched and yellow, according to Agence France-Presse photos, as river levels dwindled and farmers battling low crop yields warned of possible food shortages. “Almost three-quarters of England is now in drought as conditions...

The fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record started in February, months before it was officially declared in mid-May, the World Health Organization said on Monday, as responders in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) struggle to catch up. The WHO regional director for Africa, Mohamed Yakub Janabi, told a press conference that sequencing indicated the outbreak’s start. He said some cases early in the outbreak were wrongly attributed to malaria and typhoid. “So we are chasing the virus,...

Colombian volunteers and rescuers sifted through rubble with bare hands and buckets on Monday, hunting for survivors following a massive 7.4 magnitude quake that has claimed the lives of at least 181 people and levelled more than a hundred homes and office buildings. The quake struck several cities across Colombia’s picturesque coffee region and Pacific shortly after 7.30am (local time), sending panicked residents onto the streets and damaging at least 1,500 buildings. “People ran out naked,...

Thames Water has handed a delayed £1 million (US$1.35 million) “golden handshake” payment to its chief financial officer and agreed controversial retention payouts to top bosses despite its battle to secure its financial future. The stricken supplier, which is sinking under a debt pile of more than £20 billion, disclosed in a letter to the Environmental, Food and Rural Affairs Committee that it had made the so-called signing-on payment to Steve Buck at the end of July from an emergency lending...

At least 13 people were killed, including a child, and 39 injured in a Ukrainian drone attack on industrial and ‌civilian targets in the Russian city of Nizhnekamsk, authorities said on Monday, one of the heaviest civilian tolls in the country in months. The city is a major oil-refining and petrochemical centre in the Tatarstan republic, according to local officials. Its refining and petrochemical sites have been attacked multiple times in the past. The city is home to two major oil refineries,...

Beijing has issued a preliminary ruling that the United States and Mexico are dumping pecans into the Chinese market and harming domestic producers, according to the Ministry of Commerce. “Over the injury investigation period, the volume of dumped imports rose by a cumulative 104.56 per cent and their share of the domestic market increased by 9.69 percentage points,” the ministry said in a statement on Monday. “The import price of the dumped products fell by a cumulative 9.15 per cent and...

The ⁠United States is ⁠not disengaging from Asia and ⁠is instead “digging in” to maintain a favourable balance of power in the Indo-Pacific, but wants its partners to shoulder more responsibility for their defence, a senior Pentagon official said on ‌Monday. Seeking to counter concerns about Washington’s reliability, Elbridge Colby, Undersecretary of Defence for Policy, reiterated the US interest in the region as he called for greater burden-sharing and “partnership, not dependency”. “America is...

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. Why Beijing struggles to win Indian hearts and minds despite diplomatic thaw Though the relationship between the Chinese and Indian governments has been thawing, Beijing has yet to win over the Indian public as it lacked a long-term strategy and communication channels, according to Chinese...

Pakistan’s foreign minister said a new defence agreement his country signed with Saudi Arabia and Turkey was not directed against any country and remained open to other nations in the region. The landmark Mecca Joint Defence Agreement was signed on Friday by the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif as the three countries seek to deepen security cooperation amid heightened tensions between the United States and...

US President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that his new White House counsel will be Will Scharf, the staff secretary who as the Trump-appointed head of the National Capital Planning Commission helped secure approval for the US$400 million ballroom project. Trump said that, beginning September 1, Scharf will be replacing David Warrington, who will be leaving the administration to join the private sector. Trump noted that Scharf previously served as a federal prosecutor and represented him in a...

The Canadian federal government said on ⁠Sunday it would ⁠help British Columbia ⁠as raging wildfires forced thousands of people to evacuate by providing shelter and accommodation for residents displaced in regions around Summerland and Peachland. The Bald Range wildfire, which prompted British ‌Columbia to declare a provincial state of emergency and evacuate about 18,000 people, had spread to more than 10,300 hectares by at the weekend as firefighters continued to battle the blaze. “Last night,...

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has vowed to crack down on hard-to-cancel subscriptions and fake discounts as part of measures to tackle the cost-of-living crisis, Downing Street said on Sunday. The announcement came as the new Labour leader was set to return to work after a holiday and begin a tour of the country to talk to people about their financial pressures, his office said. Burnham said in a statement that “people are sick and tired of rip-off discounts and subscription traps”, where...

Russia and Ukraine exchanged strikes overnight that killed civilians and injured many others on both sides, local authorities reported on Sunday. Large-scale Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian cities have become almost routine in recent weeks, with Moscow exploiting Ukraine’s critical shortage of interceptors for the US-made Patriot systems – the sole air defence weapon in its arsenal able to shoot down ballistic missiles. In the latest attacks, Ukrainian drones killed five people and injured...

US President Donald Trump signalled on Sunday he is prepared to let economic pressure mount against Iran, apparently backing away from ordering more military strikes even as Tehran issues tough demands. “We are low-keying it,” Trump said, according to the news outlet Axios, which said it spoke to him in a brief phone call. Only a week ago Trump made the latest of his series of threats to hit Iran hard, only to back off, as he presses for a deal to end the war he started along with Israel on...

Alleged Irish crime gang boss Daniel Kinahan was charged with directing a criminal organisation by prosecutors in Dublin on Sunday amid tight security at a special court sitting following his extradition from the United Arab Emirates. Kinahan, who was ‌arrested in Dubai in April, was named by the United States in 2022 as one of three leaders of the Kinahan Organised Crime Group. US authorities offered a US$5 million reward for their arrests. He was handed over to Irish authorities in Dubai...

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis attacked Saudi Aramco’s Jazan refinery, ⁠they said on Sunday, two days after the kingdom signed a defence pact with Turkey and Pakistan in response to growing regional instability from the US-Israeli war on Iran. The alliance with Sunni Muslim US allies, Turkey and Pakistan, was intended to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression and stipulates that an armed attack against any of the three would be regarded as an attack on all. It was not clear...

A fast-moving wildfire was raging in southern France on Sunday, forcing evacuations as more than 200 firefighters raced to contain the blaze. The fire broke out around 12.45pm in the Lozere region, about 140km (85 miles) northwest of Montpellier, and was likely sparked by a vehicle catching fire on a local road. By late afternoon, the uncontained blaze had burned some 90 hectares (220 acres). Backed by four Canadair water bombers and a Dash aircraft, around 220 firefighters were deployed to the...

Around 10,000 people gathered in Cologne on Sunday for a demonstration in support of the queer community following the Islamist attack at Berlin Pride. The organisers of Cologne’s own Pride celebrations called for the rally two weeks after the shocking attack in the German capital. Participants gathered in the Deutz district on the eastern side of the Rhine River and marched across to the city centre, with turnout significantly higher than the 2,000 registered with police in advance. A dpa...

The operator of a boat that capsized in New York Harbor, killing a mother and her infant daughter, is facing criminal charges and authorities are investigating whether the vessel was an illegal charter, the US Coast Guard said on Sunday. The 22-foot Bayliner speedboat overturned at 10.25pm on Saturday near Liberty Island, home to the Statue of Liberty, the US Coast Guard said. Twelve people were rescued from the water before police arrived and police divers later located the 27-year-old woman...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday rejected a US-led Gaza plan endorsed by Hamas, putting distance between himself and President Donald Trump as he tries to shore up his base ahead of close elections. After more than a week of gradually escalating criticism of the plan, and despite receiving assurances that Israel would not need to start withdrawing in Gaza immediately, Netanyahu explicitly opposed the deal following pushback from his right-wing allies. “Israel rejects the...

Even if a cease-fire materializes, Gulf exporters recognize that relying strictly on the Strait of Hormuz is a risk they can no longer take.

Franz Welser-Möst, the Cleveland Orchestra’s music director, takes us on a tour through the handwritten score of Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony.

Though energy prices fell last month after their spring surge, other factors pushed up costs as the Fed considers raising interest rates.

The latest Consumer Price Index report helped to reinforce the patient approach adopted by many officials at the Federal Reserve about raising rates, but it has not resolved the debate altogether.

At a speech in Lancaster County, Robert F. Kennedy mocked the threat of measles. Now local officials are racing to contain one of the largest outbreaks in the country.

The order, whose legal power is unclear, recommended narrowing the use of vaccinations against several diseases that can be life-threatening.

Paul Theroux traced the British coastline in 1982 for his book “The Kingdom by the Sea.” This year he walked parts of the new King Charles III England Coast Path, a continuous route along the country’s seashore.

As the Trump administration sends a growing number of immigrants to countries they have no connection to, some find themselves imprisoned with no way out.

A Times reporter spoke with detainees in southern Africa using a cellphone one of them obtained after a hunger strike.

About half a dozen states explicitly protect workers from excessive heat. And some others, like Texas, prevent local governments from passing their own laws.

With temperatures set to soar as high as 109 degrees Fahrenheit (43 Celsius) this week, Europeans and tourists say that summer in Europe has lost its appeal.

The president has not been looking well. Americans should get answers to these seven questions.

I, like many a young woman, was once wildly judgmental about plastic surgery. Now I’m not so sure.

We look at President Trump’s exit from Turkey after last month’s NATO summit.

“Everyone was, like, ‘Well, at least he has one exit plan,’” the “Tonight Show” host said.

As a vice premier and then premier, he helped transform China into the world’s leading manufacturing power and led his country into the World Trade Organization.