Franky ‘Flyman’ Zapata set for takeoff on invention that wowed Macron and MerkelThe French hoverboard star Franky Zapata will attempt to cross the Channel on Thursday using the invention that wowed world leaders and Champs-Élysées crowds on Bastille Day.The former jetski champion will attempt to make the 20-minute crossing on his turbo-powered hoverboard – the Flyboard Air – to mark the 110th anniversary of French aviator Louis Blériot’s first cross-Channel airplane flight. Continue reading...

Donald Trump is a fan of the incoming PM but it is unclear if there will be any real convergence on policy

When you’re the child of migrants, your forebears may as well have come from the moon. So I set out to rediscover mineGrowing up in Queensland as ABCs (Australian-born Chinese), my siblings and I would get our backs up whenever strangers complimented us on our English – which was often. “Why wouldn’t I be fluent?” I’d think, fuming. “I was born in Nambour.” It didn’t matter: white Australians around us seemed as impressed by our English, as much as our Hong Kong relatives pitied our butchered Cantonese.Yet I have an admission. Whenever I saw or encountered other Chinese-Australians speaking fluent English myself, my jaw would hang in disbelief. Seeing Chinese-Australians – or any Asian-Australians, really – on TV was rare in the 1980s and 1990s. But when people like Annette Shun Wah presented on SBS, Elizabeth Chong showed Bert Newton how to stuff a chicken with spring onions, or Dr Cindy Pan discussed prophylactics on Sex/Life – and with Australian accents, like mine! – my brain couldn’t process it. Weren’t my family the only ones? Continue reading...

The 1972 vintage ‘Moon Shoes’ were the top lot in a New York sale that included trainers inspired by Back to the Future Part IIA pair of 1972 running shoes, one of the first pairs made by Nike, has sold for $437,500, shattering the record for a pair of trainers at public auction.The so-called Nike “Moon Shoe,” designed by Nike co-founder and track coach Bill Bowerman for runners at the 1972 Olympics trials, was the top lot in the first-ever auction dedicated to sneakers at Sotheby’s auction house in New York on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Discovery in Gloucestershire comes as police hunt man who jumped into east London dockA body has been found in the hunt for a man missing at a water park, while an urgent search is under way to find a swimmer who has not been seen since jumping into an east London dock on Tuesday evening.The body was recovered at Cotswold Water Park shortly before 8.50pm, Gloucestershire police said. Police scrambled a helicopter and were helped in the search by fire and ambulance crews after the swimmer, who has not been named, was reported missing about seven hours earlier. Continue reading...

• @FootballerGay had intended to reveal identity on Wednesday

Police find pair in vehicle in Kidman Park, with 20-year-old woman dead and 49-year-old man with a serious abdominal injuryA man has been charged with murder after his daughter was found dead in a car in suburban Adelaide, while he suffered a serious abdominal injury.Police had been looking for the Mercedes Benz vehicle on Sunday night after concerns were raised about the pair. Just after 11.30pm that night, officers located the vehicle in Kidman Park. Continue reading...

PM has commanding lead over Labor leader in poll that also shows most Australians unaware of ban on climbing UluruAustralian voters are warming to both Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese, with approval of both the major party leaders increasing as the 46th parliament settles into its post-election tempo, according to the latest Guardian Essential poll.According to the latest survey of 1,091 respondents, the prime minister’s approval rating is five points higher than it was before the start of the election campaign. Continue reading...

Free tickets issued on Thursday for 16 August event including 3,000 members of the publicMore than 3,000 members of the public will play a part in marking the Peterloo massacre on the 200th anniversary of the bloody protest for parliamentary reform and political representation at St Peter’s Field in Manchester.There will be no passive spectators at From the Crowd, an immersive experience which will weave together eyewitness accounts of those present at Peterloo in 1819 and the words of contemporary protesters and poets. Continue reading...

US president said during meeting with Pakistani prime minister, Imran Khan, that India wanted him to mediateIndia’s foreign minister has firmly denied Donald Trump’s claim that the US president was invited by the Indian government to mediate in the Kashmir dispute, following a furious response from opposition MPs.Trump’s remarks, made sitting alongside the Pakistani prime minister, Imran Khan, on Monday, provoked uproar in the Indian parliament and demands for the prime minister, Narendra Modi, to respond. Continue reading...

Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, said the UK's incoming prime minister, Boris Johnson, should understand that his country ‘does not seek confrontation’. ‘Iran wants to have normal relations based on mutual respect,’ Zarif said, speaking during a visit to Nicaragua. His comments came amid growing tension between Iran and the UK after Iran seized a British-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday

Critics point to irony of UK calling on EU support while heading for BrexitPlans for a European-led maritime security force in the Gulf unveiled by the UK foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, hit choppy waters as the plan was rejected by Iran, met resistance from supporters of the incoming prime minister, Boris Johnson, and was seen by British shipping industry experts as not providing a short-term solution to the crisis facing UK-flagged shipping in the Gulf.On Monday, Hunt unveiled a plan for a European-led maritime security force, making clear he regarded a proposed rival plan for a US force as likely to be seen by the Iranians as an escalatory step, partly since Washington opposes the Iran nuclear deal. Continue reading...

One topic will dominate the premiership of the new Tory leader: Brexit. But what are Johnson’s options? We look at the four most likely outcomes Continue reading...

Seoul and Moscow at odds over alleged violation of airspace above disputed islands

Leadership candidate told he is on collision course with parliament over no-deal BrexitBoris Johnson has been put on notice by rebel Conservatives that he will not survive long as prime minister unless he drops his no-deal Brexit agenda, as he stands on the brink of entering Downing Street.Johnson is expected to be announced as the choice of the Conservative party to be the next prime minister on Tuesday morning after running a campaign against Jeremy Hunt that promised to take the UK out of the EU by the end of October “do or die”. Continue reading...

Protesters in Sibiu have been staging a daily demonstration outside the ruling PSD party’s HQEvery day when the Lutheran church bell strikes noon, people fall silent in a leafy street in the Transylvanian city of Sibiu. For more than 500 days, in snow, drizzle and scorching sun, a group of residents has staged a silent protest in the centre of the picturesque city. Always at the same time, and always at the same place: outside the headquarters of Romania’s ruling Social Democrat party (PSD), which is embroiled in corruption scandals and accused by Brussels of flouting democratic values.The message to the PSD is simple, says Ciprian Ciocan: “We know what you are doing and we are watching every move that you do, and we are here to defend the rule of law.” He says he never knows how many people will show up to protest. Continue reading...

The CBI and BCC wring their hands at a budget overrun of £30bn – but then keep on insisting it must be builtOne thing as predictable as an increase in the projected cost of building HS2 is the response from business lobby groups. Sure enough, as the high-speed railway was reported last week to be hurtling towards a potential cost overrun of almost £30bn, trade bodies barely paused to consider this astonishing figure and instead insisted that HS2 should be built anyway.To be scrupulously accurate, the CBI nodded to the idea that “taxpayers’ money should always be spent wisely” and that HS2 should “strive” to stay on budget. And the British Chambers of Commerce opined that “no public project should be written a blank cheque”, a notably abstract form of words. Continue reading...

Readers share their views on relations between Britain, the US and IranWhat on earth did the UK government expect to happen (Iran stokes tensions in the Gulf by seizing British-linked oil tankers, 20 July)? By detaining the Iranian tanker Grace 1 weeks ago, apparently at the behest of the US, the UK immediately put at risk not only the safety of all British-flagged shipping operating in the Gulf, but also the efforts to rescue the nuclear deal with Iran.The sensible approach, using all diplomatic means to organise a quid pro quo deal on the tankers, with the future release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe also included, is probably asking too much of a government so in thrall to Trump’s Twitter account. Instead Britain’s response will more likely be one aimed at getting his approval, threatening Iran with dire consequences without, of course, stating what they might be. Continue reading...

The extraordinary story of how the man who said he was the victim of a VIP paedophile ring ended up on the run in Sweden

UK-based owners of .eu domains could use transfer loophole to keep nameLeave.EU will be allowed to keep its name after a no-deal Brexit, the European commission has announced – but only if it transfers ownership of the domain name to an EU citizen.The ruling is a backtrack from a previous decision in March this year, which said that, in the event of a no-deal Brexit, all UK-based owners of .eu domains would have to either physically move to the EU, or lose their website address permanently. Continue reading...

Wall Street Journal says US officials have seen pact but Cambodian PM denies moveChina has signed a secret deal to allow its military troops to be stationed at a naval base in Cambodia, according to reports.The Wall Street Journal, citing US officials who had seen a pact drawn up between the two countries, reported that the Cambodian prime minister, Hun Sen, has agreed to give China access to Cambodia’s Ream naval base on the Gulf of Thailand. Continue reading...

La Minerve, which vanished in 1968 with 52 sailors on board, discovered off ToulonThe French navy has located one of its submarines that disappeared more than 50 years ago with 52 crew on board.La Minerve was discovered on the seabed in the Mediterranean off the port of Toulon. Continue reading...

Police accused of doing nothing to stop suspected triads storming train station and beating peoplePro-democracy activists and lawmakers in Hong Kong have accused the police of standing by as men dressed in white attacked commuters and protesters late on Sunday, leaving 45 hospitalised, including one who is critically injured.Video footage showed dozens of men, most in masks, storming a mass transit station in Yuen Long, chasing passengers and beating them with rods. Among those hurt in the attack were demonstrators returning from a large anti-government rally, as well as a pregnant woman and a woman holding an infant, according to witnesses. Continue reading...

India’s mission to the moon has blasted into space one week after a technical glitch forced scientists to abruptly halt its scheduled launch. Thousands gathered to watch Chandrayaan-2 take off on Monday from Satish Dhawan space centre in Sriharikota, north of Chennai. It will travel to the little-explored south pole of the moon

Liberal MPs Dean Smith and Russell Broadbent are calling for the unemployment payment to be liftedLiberal MPs have joined a group of Nationals calling for a lift to the Newstart payment, with one suggesting funds be diverted from the multibillion-dollar Jobactive system.The Victorian MP Russell Broadbent, who represents the regional seat of Monash, said he was concerned the current Newstart rate could be entrenching disadvantage by stopping people entering the workforce. Continue reading...

Fresh protests to mark half a year after he declared himself interim leader, but Nicolás Maduro remains in powerSol Castro Sánchez was a picture of elation as she took to the streets of Caracas in the days after Juan Guaidó launched his dramatic bid to topple Nicolás Maduro on 23 January.“I guess this is what people in Germany felt in 1989 when the wall came down,” the retired professor enthused as she marched through Venezuela’s capital with tens of thousands of jubilant protesters and a homemade placard that read: “Enough is enough! We want them out!” Continue reading...

Move follows long battle over buildings, which court ruled were too close to barrierIsraeli work crews have begun demolishing dozens of Palestinian homes in an East Jerusalem neighbourhood in one of the largest operations of its kind in years.The demolitions capped a years-long legal battle over the buildings, built along the invisible line straddling the city and the occupied West Bank. Israel says the buildings were erected too close to its West Bank separation barrier. Residents say the buildings are on West Bank land, and the Palestinian Authority gave them construction permits. Continue reading...

Volodymyr Zelenskiy expected to command outright majority with 42% of the voteUkraine’s comedian-turned-president is on course for full domination of the country’s political scene after early results from Sunday’s parliamentary elections suggest his newly founded Servant of the People party will win a majority of seats.Volodymyr Zelenskiy, a political neophyte whose only previous experience was playing the president in a television sitcom also called Servant of the People, won presidential elections in April and called for early parliamentary elections soon after his inauguration. Continue reading...

The government said ‘hostile forces’ wanted to break China apart and called the region of Xinjiang an ‘inseparable’ part of ChinaThe far northwestern region of Xinjiang is an “inseparable” part of China despite efforts by extremists to distort history and facts in a bid to split the country, the Chinese government said in a document published late on Sunday.The government said in a white paper published by the State Council Information Office it was wrong to suggest members of Xinjiang’s minority Uighur Muslim community were descended from Turks, noting they had become the political tool of pan-Turkic and pan-Islamic groups. Continue reading...

Jacinda Ardern was among those cheering the Silver Ferns on as they faced the Australian Diamonds in a nail-biting finishWhat a difference a week makes.Seven days ago, New Zealand was in despair, mourning the loss of a Cricket World Cup final that will go down as one of the most dramatic in history. Continue reading...

Travellers told to claim for all delays after only 35% of those eligible made claims in 2017-18Rail passengers have been urged to claim compensation for every delay they suffer after missing out on an estimated £100m in payouts last year.Transport Focus, the UK industry watchdog, said passengers should send a message to train operators that reliability must keep improving by claiming their full entitlement. Continue reading...

Pakistani PM in Washington seeking concessions on military aid and sanctions

Monday: Home affairs minister sets up a battle over national security laws as parliament returns. Plus: Australia retain Women’s AshesGood morning, this is Eleanor Ainge Roy bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Monday 22 July. Continue reading...

Widespread conflict erupts on pro-democracy march, with Beijing liaison office targetedA major anti-government march in Hong Kong descended into chaos late on Sunday, as police fired teargas on protesters and unidentified masked men attacked commuters returning from the demonstration.The protesters had surrounded China’s liaison office in the city, where they barricaded the building’s entrance and wrote graffiti its walls. Continue reading...

One man taken to hospital and another man arrested after incident at service in DundalkA man was seriously injured when a car drove at speed through a cemetery while thousands of people were attending an annual blessing of the graves service in Ireland.Police said a man aged in his 20s believed to be the driver was arrested at the scene at St Patrick’s cemetery in Dundalk, Co Louth, on Sunday afternoon. Continue reading...

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About 1,800 firefighters struggle to contain blazes that have injured at least 20 peopleAbout 1,800 firefighters have been struggling to contain wildfires in central Portugal that have injured 20 people, including eight firefighters.The fires broke out on Saturday across three fronts in the district of Castelo Branco, about 125 miles (200km) north-east of Lisbon, Portugal’s civil protection agency said. Continue reading...

Simon Coveney says there is no chance of backstop being scrapped under new UK leaderA change in British prime minister will not shift the fundamental realities of Brexit, Ireland’s deputy PM has warned, saying there is no chance of the EU ditching or watering down the Irish backstop.Wholesale changes to Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement have been suggested by some as a way of avoiding a no-deal Brexit, but Coveney told BBC One’s The Andrew Marr Show on Sunday: “If the approach of the new British prime minister is that they’re going to tear up the withdrawal agreement, I think we’re in trouble. I think we’re all in trouble, quite frankly. Continue reading...

Rising inflation has hit those already struggling with food, fuel and medicine shortagesMillions of people in Zimbabwe face hardship, hunger and chaos as the economy comes close to “meltdown” and drought worsens.More than 18 months after the military coup that removed Robert Mugabe from power, the new government is struggling to overcome the legacy of the dictator’s 30 years of repressive rule and the consequences of its own failure to undertake meaningful political reform. Continue reading...

Country says MT Riah, which stopped transmitting location on 14 July, ‘deliberately violated international regulations’

Chef says he worked 20-hour shifts in Melbourne restaurant for $12 an hour and slept on pastry bench

We must understand the Gulf state’s point of view instead of rushing into conflictAn incoming prime minister could be forgiven for feeling that the fates have been a touch unkind. As well as no majority in parliament, an uncertain domestic agenda and the vortex of Brexit, now a fully formed international crisis sits in the in-tray marked “Iran”. It will be an early test of diplomatic dexterity.We should not be here. As always, it helps to see the world as others see it, without compromise or acceptance of another’s perceptions. Iran has long and complex relationships all round. A Shia state surrounded by Sunni states, it sees its history as one requiring constant vigilance to survive in a world that stood by when it was attacked by Iraq and lost perhaps up to a million people, and one where economic sanctions threaten its people and government stability. Continue reading...

In an open letter to Jeremy Hunt, the foreign secretary, and Jeremy Wright, the culture secretary, the Observer’s editor, charities and campaigners urge new legislation to stop the abuse of defamation lawFollowing the recent global conference on media freedom held in London by the UK government, we write to draw your attention to what appears to be a growing trend to use strategic litigation against public participation (“SLAPP”) lawsuits as a means of intimidating and silencing journalists working in the public interest.Such legal threats are designed to inhibit ongoing investigations, and prevent legitimate public interest reporting. Abuse of defamation law, including through SLAPP lawsuits, has become a serious threat to press freedom and advocacy rights in a number of countries, including the UK. Continue reading...

Services to Egyptian capital halted for seven days to allow for security review, says airlineBritish Airways has suspended all flights to Cairo for seven days as a security precaution.The airline made the surprise announcement last night that all flights into the Egyptian capital were halted. Continue reading...

Legal threat comes as campaigners warn UK government that courts are being used to intimidate journalistsLetter: press freedom campaigners call for action on ‘vexatious lawsuits’Related: The Great Hack: the film that goes behind the scenes of the Facebook data scandalThe businessman Arron Banks and the unofficial Brexit campaign Leave.EU have issued a legal threat against streaming giant Netflix in relation to The Great Hack, a new documentary about the Cambridge Analytica scandal and the abuse of personal data. Continue reading...

March takes place three days before Boris Johnson is expected to become Tory leaderThousands of demonstrators from across the country assembled in central London today to march against Brexit, and Boris Johnson’s likely move into No 10, as well as to push for a second Brexit referendum.At first sight, the message of the “No to Boris, yes to Europe” march, taking place three days before Johnson is expected to become Tory leader, seemed to be unambiguous. Continue reading...

Hundreds gather in Trafalgar Square and around the city after team win Africa Cup of NationsHundreds of Algeria fans took to the streets of London to celebrate the national football team’s first Africa Cup of Nations title in 29 years.Footage posted on social media showed huge crowds gathering in Trafalgar Square to light flares after the side’s 1-0 win over Senegal on Friday night. Continue reading...

With the seizure of a supertanker off Gibraltar, distracted UK government was set up by John Bolton as collateral damageJohn Bolton, White House national security adviser and notorious Iraq-era hawk, is a man on a mission. Given broad latitude over policy by Donald Trump, he is widely held to be driving the US confrontation with Iran. And in his passionate bid to tame Tehran, Bolton cares little who gets hurt – even if collateral damage includes a close ally such as Britain.So when Bolton heard British Royal Marines had seized an Iranian oil tanker off Gibraltar on America’s Independence Day, his joy was unconfined. “Excellent news: UK has detained the supertanker Grace I laden with Iranian oil bound for Syria in violation of EU sanctions,” he exulted on Twitter. Continue reading...