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From Afghanistan to Taiwan, unprecedented deluge highlights devastating impact of climate breakdownIt rained for 10 days and 10 nights, non-stop - I'd never seen anything like it," says Anar Gul, a construction worker who lives in the remote district of Dur Baba in eastern Afghanistan.The houses in his village are built from stone and mud, which makes them extremely vulnerable to heavy rains. After days of rain, Gul's kitchen collapsed and his neighbour, Sayed Afsar Sadat, saw a large part of his house completely destroyed. Rains like this are coming heavier and earlier each year," says Sadat. They are destroying the roads and washing away our crops. It's impacting us directly." Continue reading...

Unions say basic needs still not being met a year after regulator told operators to improve facilitiesTrain drivers are considering strike action over a lack of toilets, with unions saying basic needs are still not addressed a year after the rail regulator told operators to provide more facilities and breaks.Aslef said it was putting the industry on notice". The train drivers' union added that companies had failed to deliver adequate toilets and reduce maximum driving times without a toilet break. Continue reading...

In normal times the Mashala shelter founder takes in strays, but in wartime, he is the only lifeline for animals in the areaDuring Israel's 2006 war against Hezbollah, Houssein Hamze woke up one night to the sound of barking. Alarmed, he got up to check on the dog - his first rescue pet. Moments later, a bomb dropped next to his home and a piece of shrapnel landed right where he had been sleeping.I swear to God, he really saved me from death. Animals always possess a sixth sense we don't have," Hamze said. Continue reading...

Michael O'Hara also tells corruption watchdog he was wrong to support young Liberals alleged to have solicited illegal donations, saying I made a mistake'

Carroll, who was elected to parliament in 2012 and says he has always been ambitious, has been sworn in as premier after Jacinta Allan resigned

Working Dog team behind the 1997 film reuniting to write new, fully updated' version for the stage, which will premiere in Melbourne in 2027An announcement that deserves to go straight to the pool room: the beloved Australian comedy The Castle is set to become a play, written by the team behind the original film.Working Dog's Rob Sitch, Tom Gleisner, Santo Cilauro and Jane Kennedy will write and co-produce the new theatrical production, which will again tell the story of the Kerrigan family and their fight against the Australian government to save their home from being bulldozed to make way for an airport expansion. Continue reading...

Allan stepped down from top job before expected spill, saying her deputy has her unqualified support'

The Houthi threat to Saudi oil exports comes as Japan, South Korea and the Philippines are still reeling from the closure of the strait of HormuzGovernments in Asia are scrambling to avoid their second major energy crisis in six months, as another maritime chokepoint in the Middle East faces a violent blockade, leaving only the Suez canal completely open for the free movement of gulf oil.Countries like Japan, the Philippines, Thailand and South Korea - which rely on Middle East oil for up to 90% of their imports - are working to secure supplies after Yemen's Houthis launched a blockade of Saudi Arabian shipping passing through the Bab al-Mandab strait, which forms the southern entrance to the Red Sea. Continue reading...

Leading assemblage artist was known for reclaiming Jim Crow-era memorabilia as images of Black liberationArtist Betye Saar, the pioneering figure of the Black arts movement, died on Sunday morning in her home town of Los Angeles. She was 99.Saar, a famous practitioner of assemblage, an artistic style that builds sculpture from everyday objects, was best known for reclaiming Jim Crow era memorabilia such as dolls and washboards and recasting them as images of Black liberation. Saar also worked in genres including printmaking and film, exploring themes from family to spirituality. Continue reading...

Secretary and president of Australian Council of Trade Unions announced surprise departures on Monday evening

Man and woman pronounced dead at Fistral beach in Newquay after large emergency responseTwo people have died after being pulled from the sea off a popular surfing beach in the Cornish resort of Newquay.A man and a woman were pronounced dead at Fistral Beach after a large emergency response involving coastguards, a rescue helicopter, an RNLI lifeboat, paramedics and police. Continue reading...

Pop star is celebrated as one of the defining cultural figures of her generation' by gallery, which acquires Brat-era portrait by Harley WeirA portrait of Charli xcx has been added to the National Portrait Gallery's collection, in the week that she hopes for a No 1 chart position for her new album Music, Fashion, Film.The photograph by Harley Weir was taken in 2023 and became one of the key images associated with Charli's Brat era: the 2024 album that became a pop cultural phenomenon for its candour and debauchery. Continue reading...

Doctors and MPs urge more scrutiny of 300m deal for company behind system used by most GPs in England

Lawyers predict more suppression and no active investigations' but victims' groups determined to continue fightAs Donald Trump's former defense lawyer Todd Blanche appears poised for confirmation as attorney general, numerous Jeffrey Epstein survivors have sounded the alarm that a US justice department helmed by him would derail their pursuit of justice.In a letter urging Republican senators Thom Tillis and John Cornyn to reject his nomination, these survivors said that Blanche's handling of the Epstein case as acting attorney general was characterized by misstep after misstep. Continue reading...

Mass hearings, removal orders in absentia' - judges are wrapping up immigration cases in unprecedented numbersThe second Trump administration recorded its highest number of immigration arrests so far last month. One significant and alarming reason that is far less noticeable than armored, masked agents swaggering in the streets with weapons may be a sudden change in America's immigration courts.Here, in recent months, accelerated mass hearings are giving people facing existential questions about their future little time to prepare for their cases, and judges are often ordering vulnerable immigrants deported without them even being in the courtroom. Continue reading...

Top House Democrat says US president failed to deliver' on campaign promises to lower costs and avoid overseas warsDonald Trump's Republican party has nothing to run on" for the congressional midterm elections after the president broke promises to lower costs and avoid starting war overseas, Hakeem Jeffries has said.The House minority leader, a New York congressman, made those comments on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday, exactly 100 days from the 3 November midterms, when Jeffries and his fellow Democrats are aiming to take control of the US House and Senate from their Republican opponents. Continue reading...

Kumanjayi White died after being restrained by plain-clothes police in the lolly aisle of an Alice Springs supermarketWarning: This article contains references to Indigenous Australians who have died

Relaxed rules mean members only have to wear a top to meetings and activities after extensive feedbackGirlguiding has fully redesigned its uniform across all groups for the first time in more than 30 years, with a focus on self-expression, belonging and confidence".The new range, launched on Monday, has relaxed previous rules: Guides, Rainbows, Brownies and Rangers now only have to wear a top to meetings and activities to be considered in uniform" after feedback from thousands of girls who said they felt most comfortable" when allowed to wear what they wanted. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Experts say policy could also cause shortages of school teachers and drive some universities to bankruptcyReform UK's plan to make employers pay an annual levy for overseas staff would harm the NHS and social care, cause a shortage of schoolteachers, and could push some universities into bankruptcy, experts have warned.Nigel Farage's party has pledged a migrant worker surcharge", which would involve a higher rate of employer national insurance as well as a separate annual charge. It would apply to any employees without a UK passport, including EU nationals with settled status, with the exception of Irish passport holders. Continue reading...

Ukrainian president will be first overseas visitor for new British prime ministerVolodymyr Zelenskyy will become Andy Burnham's first overseas visitor as prime minister, in a visit that Burnham said underlined Britain's unwavering" backing for Ukraine.Less than two weeks after Keir Starmer travelled to Kyiv for the final foreign visit of his prime ministership, the Ukrainian president will on Monday join Burnham at a naval base where Ukrainian forces have been receiving training. Continue reading...

From TikTok appearances to sugar rush' policies, new prime minister is taking different approach to predecessorSix weeks ago Andy Burnham was not even an MP; now the former mayor of Greater Manchester is the most important political figure in Britain. After orchestrating a bloodless coup against Keir Starmer, in which he was crowned as Labour leader unopposed, the new prime minister has started his tenure in Downing Street with some eye-catching policies and a radically different approach to communication. A week into the job, how do their leadership styles compare? Continue reading...

Union calls for museum to become accredited London living wage employer and let staff carry water during shiftsWorkers at one of the world's leading art and design museums are balloting for heatwave" strike action.The ballot at V&A is taking place because of concerns about soaring temperatures and access to drinking water, along with pay and conditions. Continue reading...

PM's team can be seen as backward step even though in some ways it is more diverse. Yet its makeup points to wider access to power

President harks back to red scare of his childhood to attack US left - but will such language resonate beyond Maga base?Perhaps above all else, Donald Trump is a child of the cold war.Three months before the US president was born, Winston Churchill delivered a historic speech in Fulton, Missouri, that ushered in a generations-long existential struggle between western capitalism and Soviet communism. Continue reading...

Court fillings show grants denied to states if they didn't back Trump's re-election, but administration claims it's a misrepresentation'

Wave of optimism' is sparked by prospect of new PM, England football team's progress and hot weatherConsumer confidence in the UK jumped this month by its biggest margin for nearly three years as the prospect of Andy Burnham becoming prime minister became almost certain.The data company GfK said a Burnham bounce" along with a strong run by the men's England football team at the World Cup and sunny weather had lifted the mood of consumers in its long-running monthly survey. Continue reading...

1974 book led to making of seminal documentary and introduced Arnold Schwarzenegger to the worldCharles Gaines, the author whose book and documentary Pumping Iron helped bring professional bodybuilding into the mainstream and introduce Arnold Schwarzenegger to the world, has died. He was 84.Gaines died on Tuesday, according to Greta Gaines, the author's daughter. She did not reveal a cause. Continue reading...

Up to 25 tonnes of nurdles, the raw material for plastic manufacturing, have spread further than initially fearedApproximately a billion tiny plastic nurdles have entered the River Tyne after a devastating spill", with the pellets thought to have spread much further than first thought.Nurdles are tiny pellets, usually about 1-5mm in size, that act as the raw material to manufacture most plastic products. Continue reading...

Former PM's supporters question pledge to end factional infighting after more than half his cabinet removed or demotedAllies of Keir Starmer have questioned Andy Burnham's pledge to end factional infighting after he removed or demoted more than half of the outgoing prime minister's cabinet in his first reshuffle.This was a deeply factional cabinet reshuffle," one said. The idea it was anything else is ridiculous." Continue reading...

From the Treasury to the Home Office, we look at who is heading up key departments in new PM's government

This blog is now closed - our live coverage of the Middle East crisis continues hereThe price of oil jumped in early Asian trade on Monday after the US carried out its latest wave of strikes on Iran and a vessel caught fire in the strait of Hormuz.Brent crude for September delivery rose 2.72% to $90.50 a barrel by around 0100 GMT, after briefly crossing $91 - its highest price since June.CENTCOM assets targeted Iranian military command centers, air defense and coastal surveillance sites, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and communications networks to further diminish Iran's ability to attack commercial vessels and civilian mariners transiting the Strait of Hormuz.The U.S. military is holding Iran accountable at the Commander in Chief's direction. Continue reading...

Experts urge ministers to update legislation to prevent intended parents resorting to riskier arrangements abroadSurrogates, parents and children are being failed by the UK's archaic laws, which are creaking at the seams" as demand for surrogacy grows rapidly, experts have said.Figures obtained by the Guardian show there were just under 1,000 children born to surrogates in 2025, double the number in 2015. The rise has been driven by a rise in the number of gay couples seeking to be parents, increasing infertility and shifting cultural attitudes. Continue reading...

As the climate crisis fuels more intense blazes, pushing them to new parts of the world, those tackling them are forced to ration resources and decide which to fightCesar Alcaraz had only just become a firefighter in the late 1990s when he found himself ambushed by a fast-moving blaze. Barely able to breathe and with no more water left in his truck, he and his colleagues fled an inferno ravaging Spain's Montgo mountain region, wishing their bosses had sent more support.But nearly three decades on, as an officer with Alicante's provincial firefighters, Alcaraz has more sympathy for the agonising choices that commanders have to make. When wildfires overwhelm an area, his job resembles that of a doctor in an emergency room with too few ventilators. Continue reading...

MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich cleared over incident at London members' club in 2023A Conservative MP has been cleared of sexually assaulting two women at the Groucho Club in London after claiming that he just wanted to give them a hug.Patrick Spencer was seen on camera coming up behind two women and putting his arms around them at the private members' club during a night out in August 2023, less than a year before he was elected to the seat of Central Suffolk and North Ipswich. Continue reading...

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The incoming prime minister showed his oratorical skill and that he is prepared to borrow from populism

Incoming PM has deigned to answer some quickfire TikTok questions - also revealing his stance on socks with sandals

Move comes as prediction platforms rapidly gain popularity and offer opportunities to bet on virtually anythingKalshi is expanding its wagers to include bets on drug trial results, an expansion into new predictions territory as platforms continue to rapidly gain popularity and offer opportunities to bet on virtually anything.The betting platform said the expansion into clinical trials and FDA regulatory decisions would help surface information on drug trials that otherwise go unreported. A publicly listed contract on a drug trial would produce a continuously updated, public probability that reflects the weight of the evidence, rather than the preferred message of the trial sponsor", the company said. Continue reading...

President says he had to choose one side or the other' after breakdown of relations between ministry and military leadersUkraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has defended his decision to dismiss the country's popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, and confirmed reports that relations had broken down between the ministry and the country's top army leadership.Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv with the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, Zelenskyy said there had been a challenging dialogue" between Fedorov - widely seen as a reformist and moderniser - and the military's commander in chief, Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi. Continue reading...

Agreement, without admission of liability, ends 19-month high court dispute that small-business owners said left them with large debtsVodafone has settled a long-running legal claim filed by 62 of its former franchisees who alleged the mobile phone group unjustly enriched" itself at their expense by up to 85m.The small-business owners - some of whom said they had suffered suicidal thoughts because of the pressure exerted by the telecoms group - launched the high court claim in 2024 after running up large personal debts they said had been caused by their deals with the company. Continue reading...

Dawood Safi, 28, mounted a frenzied' and deadly rampage while in the grip of a psychotic episodeAn Uber driver who stabbed a dog walker to death in a frenzy of violence" while in the grip of a psychotic episode has also been found guilty of trying to murder his landlord.Dawood Safi, 28, killed 49-year-old Wayne Broadhurst in the random knife attack last October, just minutes after attacking his landlord, Shahzad Farrukh, and a boy of 14. Continue reading...

Former economy minister Chris Cardona and ex-chief of staff Keith Schembri named as being involved in 2017 murder of journalistTwo political figures who previously held powerful government roles in Malta were accused of plotting to kill the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia during court testimony on Wednesday.The allegations, against a former economy minister and a former chief of staff to the prime minister, were made during a chaotic day at the courts of justice in Valletta, where the businessman Yorgen Fenech is on trial for ordering the assassination of Caruana Galizia in 2017. Continue reading...

Documents of concern' found at child's home in the capital, with no other suspects soughtA 14-year-old boy from south London has been charged with an offence linked to extreme rightwing terrorism" after a police search uncovered an alleged plot to target two mosques.The boy was arrested on 9 July on suspicion of criminal damage to a vehicle, but officers dispatched to his address found a number of documents of concern" during a search, according to the Metropolitan police. Continue reading...

Tehran shuts strait of Hormuz and carries out retaliatory strikes as Trump threatens to attack site linked to Iran's nuclear programme

England World Cup winner died in 2020 but his death was never reported by authorities to the coroner's officeEngland World Cup winner Nobby Stiles died with a brain condition caused by repeatedly heading a football, a coroner has ruled.Stiles, a tenacious, tough-tackling midfielder described by Geoff Hurst as the heart and soul" of the 1966 World Cup-winning team, died in 2020 but his death was not reported by authorities to the coroner's office. Continue reading...

Pubs code adjudicator says it has reasonable grounds to believe group has breached industry regulationsThe owner of the Slug & Lettuce and Be At One chains is being investigated over concerns about possible unfair" treatment of landlords who run more than 3,000 of its venues.Stonegate Group, Britain's biggest chain of bars and pubs, could be fined up to 1% of revenue, more than 16m, if it is found to have breached the pubs code", legislation governing how pub-owning companies treat their tenants. Continue reading...

Former leader was last month convicted of 18 sex offences, including one count of rape

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