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Trump also claims he's actually making it much safer' for South Korea by scaling back joint military drills just days after North Korea test-fired ballistic missiles

President hosts Nathanial Rai and lifeguard Ryder Williams at White House after video of California rescue went viralNathanial Rai had been swept off his feet along the California coast, was rescued by a 16-year-old lifeguard - and was now sitting in the Oval Office with Donald Trump.Of the rescuer, Ryder Williams, Trump said to Rai: He's a real hero. I don't know if I'd do it. Continue reading...

US president's abrupt order to scale back joint exercises with Seoul is meant to flatter' North Korea's dictator, top Democrat says

Party wants to cut 50bn from UK welfare bill but charity says proposals would cause horrific levels of destitution'Hundreds of thousands of children would be tipped into poverty and destitution under plans unveiled by Reform UK to slash 50bn a year from the UK benefits bill, campaigners have warned.The warnings came after Reform published plans to drastically reduce disability payments, ban non-UK citizens from claiming benefits and introduce compulsory 20 hours a week unpaid workfare for thousands of long-term unemployed people. Continue reading...

Controversial project has faced bipartisan opposition by critics who say it mars pristine environmental area in TexasThe Trump administration says it is temporarily pausing construction of a controversial border construction project in Big Bend national park while the head of the agency tasked with building the wall visits Texas to do an on-the-ground evaluation".The project through the national park in southern Texas has faced fierce bipartisan opposition by critics who say it is marring a pristine environmental area, and that the region's rugged and remote terrain already serves as a deterrent to migrants and smugglers. Continue reading...

USS Benfold lost power after engineering casualty' leaving sailors without galley services, toilets and air conditioningA US guided-missile destroyer reportedly spent four days adrift and without power in the South China Sea in July, furthering concerns about strain being placed on deployed military members.The USS Benfold, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer which had been sailing with the George Washington carrier strike group, was reported to have been towed to Subic Bay in the Philippines, according to the US Naval Institute News, an independent military publication. Continue reading...

Revelation about security leak follows person pretending to be senior White House aide contacting prime ministerAt least three UK cabinet ministers have had their personal mobile phone numbers published online, amid mounting concern over the security of senior politicians after Andy Burnham was targeted by an impersonation scam.The defence secretary, Wes Streeting, the justice secretary, Alex Norris, and the Northern Ireland secretary, Chris Bryant, had their numbers available online with their names. Continue reading...

Prosecutors allege Duane Davis was on-site commander' in murder of Shakur who died after drive-by shooting in 1996The trial of a former gang leader accused of orchestrating the 1996 killing of rap star Tupac Shakur began in a Las Vegas courtroom on Monday morning.Duane Keffe D" Davis is on trial for murder for his alleged role in the shooting of Shakur, who died after a drive-by shooting. Prosecutors allege Davis was the on-the-ground, on-site commander of the effort to kill Tupac". Continue reading...

Government concedes significant opposition' requires new approach on quotas for medium-sized development sitesMinisters have dropped plans to relax affordable housing rules for developers in England after a backlash from housing experts who warned it could drastically cut the number of cheaper homes available in rural areas.The government said on Monday it would not go ahead with proposals to end affordable housing quotas for private builders on sites between 10 and 49 houses after a consultation triggered an overwhelmingly negative response. Continue reading...

BBC apologises to actor after review upholds some' of her allegations against dance partner Giovanni PerniceThe actor Amanda Abbington has reached a five-figure settlement with the BBC over bullying allegations she made about her time on Strictly Come Dancing.The programme was the subject of a review in 2024 after she alleged her professional partner, Giovanni Pernice, had bullied and harassed her. Continue reading...

US president makes threat in comments to Fox News, as his son-in-law meets the Israeli leader in Jerusalem in effort to push Gaza peace plan

Israeli PM again insists troops will not withdraw from strip until Hamas first disarms, but calls meeting constructiveBenjamin Netanyahu has told Donald Trump's son-in-law and envoy Jared Kushner there can be no progress on the stalled Gaza ceasefire deal or an Israeli withdrawal from the coastal strip until Hamas first disarms.An Israeli official said there had been no breakthrough in the meeting between the pair, saying Netanyahu had made it clear the IDF would not withdraw and would continue to carry out operations in Gaza. Continue reading...

Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner is on a diplomatic mission in the Middle East to meet Hamas officials and the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, in an attempt to salvage a ceasefire in Gaza.The talks come after Netanyahu rejected the US-backed 15-point peace plan for the territory in a rare public break with the Trump administration this month.Nosheen Iqbal speaks to global editor Devika Bhat - watch on YouTube Continue reading...

Belgium wildfire creeps closer to German border, as 104 firefighters and 36 vehicles from France help with Spain wildfire effortAs flagged earlier, Belgium's King Philippe is now visiting the emergency coordination centre looking after the firefighters tackling the major fire in the eastern part of the country (9:39).The European Commission has deployed assistance to Belgium and Spain as part of the bloc's civil protection mechanism. Continue reading...

Industrial output and retail sales slump in July after one of the country's weakest quarterly growth rates everChina's economy is showing signs of extending a slowdown with a slump in industrial output and retail sales in July, adding to pressure on Beijing to intervene with measures to support activity.After the world's second largest economy posted one of its lowest quarterly growth readings on record in the three months to June, the latest figures suggest it continued to falter in July. Continue reading...

Party's welfare to work' policy would force long-term claimants to do community work or face losing benefitsRobert Jenrick went on to say that long-term benefits claimants will be made to clean up their local high street and do charity work or face having their benefits taken away.He said as part of the party's welfare to work" policy, long-term claimants, who are fit to work, will be forced to do 20-hours of work a week in the community.They'll work to clean up high streets and parks, to beautify neglected places, to carry out minor repairs, to staff libraries and community centres to perform many other tasks from the list that we've published today.We'll also embrace local charities and community groups and ask them to help us and take part. If claimants refuse to participate or fail to show up, they'll face penalties. Continue reading...

At least 2,325 people have died from the virus, according to official data, with outbreak on track to be biggest in historyThe Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is now the deadliest in the country's history with at least 2,325 people dead, according to government data, surpassing the toll from the 2018-20 outbreak.The DRC's public health institute said confirmed cases had risen to 4,945, including 101 detected in the previous 24 hours. Continue reading...

Campaigners demand greater transparency into water companies' plans not made public due to security reasons'The UK government has been accused of a lack of transparency and of acting irresponsibly for refusing to publish the emergency drought plans that are produced by water companies.Water firms are required to publish statutory drought plans every five years to detail the actions needed to ensure public water supply is maintained and the environment is protected during drought. Continue reading...

President issues threat to bomb the shit out of them' after previously threatening Gulf ally in MayDonald Trump has again threatened to bomb Oman if it gets in the way" of his effort to end the US-Israel war on Iran.If Oman gets in the way, we'll bomb the shit out of them," Trump told Fox News on Monday, the second time he has directed such a threat at Muscat, a longtime US strategic partner that has traditionally served as a key backchannel between Washington and Tehran. Continue reading...

Billionaire CEO of world's biggest bank says any windfall tax on sector's bumper profits could harm jobs in City

Crowdfund passes 150,000, while Cambridge chancellor criticises racist feeding frenzy' around academic's deathA Windrush campaigner who launched a fundraiser for Jason Arday's family has said the outpouring of support shows Britain still cares".Arday, who was found dead on Friday, had resigned the previous week from his post as professor of sociology of education at the University of Cambridge after allegations of plagiarism were made against him. Continue reading...

Andrei Klepach of VEB said Russia's economy was falling behind China, US and in some respects Ukraine'

Coalition leader tells Anthony Albanese that delaying repeal of cruel' measure is unconscionable'

Kemp's ridley sea turtle, near death on Welsh beach in 2023, is thriving in Houston despite lingering pneumoniaA Kemp's ridley sea turtle native to the Gulf of Mexico is largely thriving after he was found nearly dead on a beach in Wales in late 2023, nursed back to health and then flown to Houston recently to continue recovering - though scans revealed signs that the creature has been grappling with lingering pneumonia, according to his caretakers.Rhossi's condition was detailed in a blogpost on Friday from the Houston zoo, whose veterinary team was tasked with caring for the creature - believed to be no older than age four - and giving him the best chance possible at an eventual, successful return to the wild. Continue reading...

The new measure falls short of calls for gambling ads to move to an opt-in model, or for an outright ban

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The leftwing commentator has been invited to appear on the Planet America program on Monday nightThe ABC is set to air the return of its Planet America program on Monday night as the US midterm elections gain steam, with a new episode featuring the leftwing commentator Hasan Piker.Host John Barron said the episode will focus on the rise of Democratic socialists and the populist left", with Piker speaking about what it's like in the eye of a political storm". But the appearance quickly sparked the ire of conservatives in Australia. Continue reading...

Lawyer for the entertainment industry and AFL figure says his career is destroyed' following conviction

Salaries will rise 28.3% to 32.4% over four years, an outcome partly shaped by a rank-and-file rebellion within the Australian Education Union

In today's newsletter: The Spanish prime minister has remade himself as Europe's leading leftwing standard-bearer. Could his success offer the UK's PM a route forward?Good morning. To international onlookers, Pedro Sanchez appears to have achieved the impossible. Where other European leftist and left-ish premiers have flopped and flailed, the Spanish PM has endured.Since June 2018, Sanchez has ruled from Madrid, implementing a raft of progressive policies. More recently, he has emerged as a leading, and often lone, left-wing European voice on the global stage, striking a defiant tone on everything from the Trump administration's war in Iran (the smokescreen of war to hide their failure") to Israel's actions in Gaza (exterminating a defenceless people"). The fact that the international press has nicknamed him El Guapo (the handsome one) can't hurt.UK economy | The UK should expect to see a new cost of living crisis, with official figures released this week by the ONS expected to show how soaring energy bills drove up inflation close to 3% in July.Ceuta | Moroccan police arrested 111 people this weekend, who were trying to enter Spain's north African territory of Ceuta, amid tightened security on both sides after social media posts called for another mass crossing.Jason Arday | The University of Cambridge has defended its mental health support for the academic Jason Arday.UK politics | Andy Burnham is being urged to protect 4 million gig economy workers, who thinktanks warn miss out on key statutory rights including: parental leave, redundancy pay and protection against unfair dismissal.Indonesia | Rescue crews dug through collapsed buildings and landslide debris in eastern Indonesia on Sunday, searching for bodies after a powerful earthquake killed at least 51 people, and injured more than 100.Sanchez understands that anchoring his party to the left ... is where he can govern.Monday | Nominations close for candidates seeking to replace Anas Sarwar as Scottish Labour leader.Tuesday | Opening arguments expected to begin in a lawsuit brought by multiple US states against Meta about social media addiction.Thursday | Students in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland will receive their GCSE results. Continue reading...

Parents of Michaela Hall, whose partner killed her after he left prison in 2021, say Probation Service cannot cope with mass releaseMore women will die if ministers include domestic abusers in the early prison release scheme, the parents of a woman murdered by her partner shortly after he was freed have warned.Michaela Hall, a 49-year-old charity worker, was killed in her home in Cornwall, by Lee Kendall in 2021 two weeks after he was released from prison, where he had been serving a sentence for assaulting her. Continue reading...

Research from King's College London finds that Reform voters' perceptions were furthest from the truthThe public overestimate how many minority ethnic people are killers, as well as how many foreign national offenders there are, a new study has found.The research from King's College London tested knowledge and perceptions of crime at a time when radical right parties are trying to link offending to ethnicity and nationality to gain votes. Continue reading...

Panettiere's death was announced by her father, who called her an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy'Hayden Panettiere, the actor known for her roles in television shows such as Heroes and Nashville, has died at the age of 36.Panettiere's death was confirmed in a statement from her representative to the Guardian on Sunday night, after it was first reported on US network ABC News. No cause of death was given. Continue reading...

President says move is based on very good relationship with Kim Jong-un' but US military officials have said Ukraine war is boosting regime's combat capabilitiesDonald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un's regime was learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war.The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two major annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. Continue reading...

Fierce competition in some areas of London means landlord purchasers are making successful lowball offersThe average price of a home coming up for sale in Britain's richest borough has dropped by almost 100,000 in a month as fierce competition among sellers in many areas prompts some to slash their price expectations, data shows.The property website Rightmove said that for Britain as a whole, average newly listed asking prices for homes had fallen by 2% over the past month, the largest August price drop in eight years. Continue reading...

Angela Rayner to launch guidance for default yes' on developments near transport hubs, including on green belt sitesThousands more homes could be built within 10 minutes of transport hubs, including on green belt sites, under a loosening of planning policy announced by Angela Rayner on Monday.The housing secretary will set out changes to national planning guidance for England that will include an order for councils to have a default yes" approach to housing developments that are within a reasonable walking distance of well-connected train and tram stations.Stronger support in principle for development, meaning a more explicit presumption in favour of building in sustainable locations.Pubs will get protection from being turned into housing or offices with developers having to prove there is no reasonable prospect of keeping a pub as a going concern, including evidence that it was marketed for sale for at least a year.A requirement for at least 40% of homes to be accessible on bigger developments and stronger protections for community facilities.Stronger support for growth and infrastructure including support for AI growth zones and datacentres. Continue reading...

Former 2GB and 2UE radio broadcaster is facing 22 indecent assault and sexual touching charges. Jones, 85, has pleaded not guilty

Hurricane Lala downgraded after skirting Big Island as one person dies and more than 200,000 homes and businesses without powerHurricane Lala weakened to a tropical storm on Sunday after skirting Hawaii without making landfall, but it wasn't done punishing the Big Island with hurricane-force gusts. Total rainfall of nearly 3ft (1 meter) was expected on the higher windward slopes, turning rivers into raging torrents and threatening mudslides.The Hawaii governor, Josh Green, said at least one person died in a car accident in the South Point area of the Big Island, where more than 100 homes were destroyed. More than 200,000 homes and businesses were without power on Sunday afternoon across Hawaii's three largest islands, according to the utility tracker PowerOutage.us. At least three hospitals were operating on generator power, and 19 roofs were lost, Green said. Continue reading...

Head-on collision between two vehicles on M9 in County Kildare also injured four other people, say policeFive teenagers have died and four other people have been seriously injured in a crash involving a car driving in the wrong direction on a motorway in the Republic of Ireland, police said.Gardai confirmed the bodies of the youths, all male, had been removed from the scene of the two-vehicle collision, which happened at about 3am on Sunday on the M9 in County Kildare. Continue reading...

Couple die in Salamis, while multinational forces and local farmers tackle Belgium's biggest fire in a century near LiegeAn elderly couple died in fires on the Greek island of Salamis on Sunday and Belgium is battling its largest modern-day wildfire at an inaccessible area near Germany, in the latest wave of European wildfires.The couple died outside their home in the Peristeria beach area of Salamis, Greece's coastguard said. More than 500 people were ordered to evacuate. Continue reading...

Robert Jenrick takes aim at disabled people and foreign nationals after saying UK guilty of suicidal empathy'Reform UK has been accused of excluding the most vulnerable from society and punishing non-Britons living in the UK as it prepared to outline 50bn of cuts to benefits for disabled people and foreign nationals.Robert Jenrick, Reform's finance spokesperson, will detail the plans for 20bn of cuts to disability benefits overall, as well as another 21bn from stopping foreign nationals - including EU citizens with settled status - claiming almost any benefits, among other cuts. Continue reading...

President, 80, vows to keep far-right from power as Flavio Bolsonaro tells supporters he will fight this system'Brazil's leftwing president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has launched his campaign for a historic fourth term and vowed that as long as he lived he would not allow the shameless" right to return to power.Addressing a sea of supporters in Sao Bernardo do Campo, the industrial city where his political career began nearly half a century ago, the 80-year-old politician reminded voters of the chaos and violence that unfolded during the 2018-22 presidency of his far-right predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, whose son Flavio Bolsonaro will face Lula in October's presidential election. Continue reading...

Efforts of emergency services and military in Blaenavon appear to be working but there are fears for the futureMore than three weeks after it began burning and two days after the military deployed to the area, there is hope that the huge wildfire on the hillside above the Ebbw valley village of Blaenavon may finally be coming under control.Emergency workers and soldiers described a gruelling battle against the deep-seated peat fire that has spread over 4,000 hectares (9,800 acres), putting lives, farmland and property at risk. Continue reading...

Suppliers could factor water scarcity into charges as part of Ofwat proposal to reduce consumptionWater companies could be allowed to raise bills for customers during periods of drought under proposals being considered by the sector's regulator for England and Wales.Suppliers would be permitted to factor water scarcity" into bills as part of efforts to reduce consumption under Ofwat's plans, which are being likened to surge pricing - the practice where private hire firms raise taxi fares at times of higher demand. Continue reading...

Kyiv launches what may be its largest attack wave of war, with fire breaking out at warehouse near Russian capitalUkraine has launched one of its largest drone attacks since the start of the war, causing a fire at a distribution warehouse near Moscow and killing at least six people overnight, according to Russian authorities.The defence ministry in Moscow said it had shot down 1,478 Ukrainian drones in the past 24 hours - the highest ever total claimed - in an escalating air war in which seven Ukrainians were also killed as Russia bombed 13 locations inside the country. Continue reading...

Revelation comes after it was disclosed that Reform UK backer had paid for spying on prominent journalistThe businessman and Reform UK backer Arron Banks commissioned a private intelligence firm to dig into the Conservative party chair, in addition to having paid for an investigation into a prominent journalist.Banks, a former Reform UK candidate and leave campaign donor, appeared to confirm on Sunday that he was behind an investigation into Kevin Hollinrake. Continue reading...

One seller says second world war memorabilia containing banned Nazi symbols is legal under exemptions to the laws

Australia records 3% fall in one-year-olds fully immunised against hepatitis B as downward trend continues, expert says

After securing wage rises for low-paid workers, weathering death threats and working with three PMs - the ACTU secretary is ready for a break

University says it continued to provide support after resignation of academic, who was found dead this weekThe University of Cambridge has defended its mental health support for the academic Jason Arday.The university said it had continued to provide Arday with extensive mental health support and security measures, including installing panic alarms and screening racist emails and post, after he resigned from his post as professor of sociology of education this month. Continue reading...