Commonwealth Games 2026: day one updates – live

• All the action as the games get under way

• 10 things to look out for at Glasgow 2026 | Mail Taha

Swimming: Goggles on – they’ve entered the pool. First up is the women’s 400m freestyle heats. Ariarne Titmus – the Australian great who retired last year – claimed gold four years ago in the final.

3x3 basketball: It’s an Australian show at the moment. They’re dominant against Kenya in the women’s event, winning 21-5. Australia claimed bronze back in 2022.

France evacuates Cap Ferret peninsula and Spain’s Sanchez warns of ‘dramatic situation’ as wildfires spread – Europe live

Evacuees have been told to leave using hundreds of mobilised boats or the only road linking the area with the mainland

Over in France, it’s not just the south-west that gets affected, but the country’s south-east regions are also being hard hit, AFP noted.

Dozens of fires flared up and are being fanned by the mistral wind around the historic village of Cotignac – officials saying around 25 houses had been destroyed since Tuesday.

‘Two holes and I’m there for the Claret Jug’: DeChambeau says two-shot penalty cost him Open

• Golfer punished for flattening grass around shot

• American threatened to pull out of tournament

Bryson DeChambeau believes he would have been “right there for the Claret Jug” if he had not received a two-shot penalty in the Open Championship last week at Royal Birkdale.

DeChambeau made a positive start to last week’s tournament after opening with a 67 and then a 66 on Friday, but his second-round score was later adjusted to 68 after he was handed a retrospective two-stroke penalty at the 5th hole after a video review. The 32-year-old was punished after match officials ruled he had improved the area of his backswing by standing on and flattening some long grass.

Four Palestinians and one Israeli killed in West Bank shooting

Palestinian health ministry says four family members killed by Israeli forces in area’s deadliest incident this year

Four Palestinians and one Israeli have been killed in a shooting in the northern West Bank, health officials said on Friday. Several more people were seriously wounded.

The serious incident in the Palestinian village of Tell, near Nablus, is the deadliest attack in the West Bank this year and has the potential to lead to a series of reprisals between Israeli-backed settlers and local Palestinian communities.

Trump gifts Saudi Arabia a nuclear win | Politics Weekly America

Donald Trump has announced a landmark nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia while pressing ahead with efforts to stop Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon. What’s driving Trump’s new agreement with Riyadh? And how is it likely to be received at home and across the Gulf?

Jonathan Freedland speaks to Robert Jimison, who covers Congress for the New York Times with a focus on defence and foreign policy, about what the agreement contains, why it matters and the political challenges it could face

Jürgen Klopp confirmed as Germany head coach for Euro 2028 and 2030 World Cup

• Former Liverpool coach replaces Julian Nagelsmann

• Germany suffered exit to Paraguay at World Cup

Jürgen Klopp is to return to the dugout after being appointed head coach of the Germany men’s national side until 2030. The 59-year-old takes over from Julian Nagelsmann in the job after Germany’s humbling last-32 defeat by Paraguay at the World Cup.

Klopp has been away from frontline management since leaving Liverpool at the end of the 2023-24 season, when he cited fatigue as his principal reason for stepping away after a hugely successful nine-season spell in which he win the Premier League and Champions League, among other trophies. He won two Bundesliga titles in charge of Borussia Dortmund in the early 2010s.

More details to follow

The Strokes: Reality Awaits review – a perfect marriage of mayhem and melody on their best album in years

(RCA/Cult)
Allying the crackpot strangeness of Julian Casablancas’ side projects with his band’s gift for pop minimalism, the New Yorkers are on playful, joyous form

Here’s a sentence no old-head Strokes fan wants to hear: to understand Reality Awaits, the stalwart NYC group’s seventh album and first in six years, you first have to understand the Voidz. Julian Casablancas’s other band has been taking up more and more of his time in recent years, much to the chagrin of fans who may have dipped into the group’s painfully, awkwardly proggy 2014 debut Tyranny and decided to just let the old legend have his fun (away from their own speakers, of course). Anyone who decided to listen further will have found that the Voidz have turned into a great, crowd-pleasing, safely experimental zone for Casablancas to pull out some of the most energised, goofy work of his career. If you’re thinking I come to this guy for cool, not goof, I don’t know what to tell you: this is a man who spends interviews discussing his theories about ancient Sumerian culture.

The 2018 Voidz record Virtue is a high point of Casablancas’s entire catalogue: a gentle stylistic mixed bag that covers winsome pop-rock, yacht rock, bedroom pop and much more. That album seemed to clear the decks for the Strokes’ last record, 2020’s The New Abnormal, on which they sounded the most like their 2001 selves since Is This It. That album is now the definitive Strokes album for gen Z – go to any Strokes show and watch the younger contingent light up during The Adults Are Talking – but it didn’t presage a long-term back-to-basics route for Casablancas and co. On Reality Awaits, by sheer force of will, he fuses the crackpot strangeness and, ahem, fondness for AutoTune of the Voidz with the Strokes’ minimalism and pop melodicism.

I spent years trying to get smaller. Until I decided to get bigger

‘Bulking’, or gaining weight on purpose to get stronger, challenged everything I was once taught to do with my body

I had been casually lifting weights for a few years when several things changed in quick succession.

First, my boyfriend proposed.

Lucy Caldwell: ‘Even your text messages fizz after reading James Joyce’

The author on the power of folktales, being inspired by Ulysses – and the book that every woman should read

My earliest reading memory
The summer my middle sister was born, my mum and I would walk to the shops at Cherryvalley, in east Belfast, to do her messages, and she’d buy me the latest issue of Storyteller, illustrated tales from around the world. It came with a cassette tape of actors reading the stories, a ding to tell you when to turn the page. My favourite was a Japanese folktale called The Goblin Rat. I was only just two, but I listened to it, entranced and terrified, until I could recite it by heart.

My favourite book growing up
Susan Cooper’s The Dark Is Rising series. I first read them aged 10 – I’ve read the title book every midwinter since, and read them last year with my own then-10-year-old son. They tell a haunting story of the age-old battle between the forces of dark and light, weaving in Arthurian legend, shot through with an adult melancholy that makes them as compelling now as then.

Morning news brief

U.S.-Iran strikes escalate, affecting global energy markets, Trump imposes double-digit tariffs on dozens of countries, Vigil held in Madison, Wisconsin, for man killed by police.

All 11 on seaplane that crashed, caught fire north of Seattle survive

A seaplane with 11 people on board crashed and caught fire a short time later in the Puget Sound area north of Seattle. All 11 survived, authorities said.

Weather tracker: More than 900 wildfires rage across Canada

Fires remain out of control in Northwest Territories and Ontario, while Argentina endures record night-time heat

Recent hot, dry weather in Canada has triggered hundreds of wildfires across the country. As of Wednesday, more than 900 were burning, scorching about 3m hectares of land. While fires have broken out in several provinces, the greatest concern is in the Northwest Territories and Ontario, where several remain out of control.

Poor air quality has been reported across affected regions, with wildfire smoke carried by winds into the US and even across the Atlantic to northern Europe. The risk of further blazes remains high as North America enters the peak of fire season.

‘It’s become a nepo baby sport’: how secondhand fashion got so expensive

Thanks to gen Z resellers and platforms like Depop, thrifting has lost its subcultural roots - and ballooned into a $350bn business

Vintage boutique owner Janelle Best has been rummaging in thrift shop bins since the 90s. When she started, she says, there was a stigma about it. “It was either you were a freak, or you were poor – and I was a freak.”

At first, she did it to source stage outfits while playing in psych-rock bands. Then, in 2005, she started “casually reselling” on eBay. Ten years later she was trading as Desert Stars Vintage at street markets, and by 2023 she had opened a showroom specializing in upmarket silk dresses in her Williamsburg apartment. Even just a few years ago, she says, she still put in the hours at places like Goodwill. The bins, she says, “were a field day. There were so many fucking bangers.” And then, thrifting became a social media craze, she says, “and the hell gates of high school students flooded in. Twelve people to each bin. Everyone fighting. Suddenly everyone’s a reseller, and instead of these kids intuitively knowing what’s good, they’re on their phones trying to figure out if it’s valuable.”

Mangrove photography awards 2026 – in pictures

A selection of the winners, runners-up and highly commended photos from the Mangrove photography awards, run by the Mangrove Action Project, which received 5,258 entries from 87 countries. In its 12th year, the awards continue to offer a window into landscapes viewers may otherwise never encounter

Volkswagen CFO addresses plant closures, job losses as profits sink

German auto giant Volkswagen on Friday reported weaker-than-expected second-quarter profit and revised down its sales forecast for 2026.

Tyla: A*Pop review – old-school pop superstar transports us back to more carefree times

(Fax/Epic)
The South African singer reflects on love’s highs and lows on her second album, nimbly flipping between moods but with her voice always holding attention

From her penchant for paparazzi-baiting stunts – arriving at a recent London listening party in Y2K cosplay with this second album’s title temporarily tattooed across her lower back – to her music’s outsized mix of sun, sex and sultriness, 24-year-old South African Tyla seems keen to transport us back to more carefree times. On the head-knocking, Christina Milian-esque Mr Nonchalant, for example, she references her belly ring and tells a man she likes his eyes “cuz they match the thong”.

However, as with Rihanna, her constant point of comparison since emerging in 2024 with transatlantic smash Water, Tyla is able to nimbly traverse genres and reference points thanks to a characterful voice that suits every mood. On frustrated opener Is It Love she gives it the full-belt treatment, while on Chanel – an intoxicating fusion of R&B, amapiano and pop – she sits back, riding Nigerian-British producer P2J’s beats as if on a lilo with a cocktail in hand. Even when the rug is pulled out from under her on the shape-shifting banger Kiss, which careens between lithe Afrobeats shuffle and full-on dance-pop breakdown, Tyla manages to pull focus back to her at its centre.

The Zarabanda Variations review – free jazz project is a thrillingly original dive into colonial history

(Carrier)
US composer Keir GoGwilt’s collaborative album uses poetry and atonal music to trace the roots of Spain’s sarabande dance: a fascinating listen, though not easy

Classical music aficionados will be familiar with the stately form of the sarabande – a Spanish dance adopted into a languorous and tender musical style favoured by baroque composers such as Bach and Handel. For American composer Keir GoGwilt, however, the sarabande contains something far more radical. On his collaborative project The Zarabanda Variations, he enlists a 10-piece ensemble that combines free jazz with baroque strings and spoken-word poetry to delve into the colonial Latin American roots of the dance before it was popularised in 17th and 18th-century Spain.

On first listen, it’s hard to hear how this music could relate to the classical sarabande at all. Scrapes of atonal strings, clattering percussion, guttural vocalisations and sharp whistles create a cacophony of tension throughout, as if mirroring the passionate, whirling energy supposedly contained in the original forms of the dance. In fact, rather than creating a baroque sarabande fusion, GoGwilt’s compositions embrace its lesser-known historical references to produce something entirely new.

Fury and Joshua shadow-box their way towards overdue $100m showdown

British heavyweights return to the ring this weekend and face low-risk opponents in run-up to long-trailed bout

Tyson Fury has won one fight in the past two years and nine months. Anthony Joshua, meanwhile, has enjoyed a solitary victory over the past two years and four months. Fury outpointed Arslanbek Makhmudov, the lumbering Russian heavyweight, in April while Joshua laboured through five torpid rounds before he finally cut loose and broke the jaw of Jake Paul, the former YouTuber, in December.

Their three defeats during this period are more vivid in the memory. Fury lost twice to Oleksandr Usyk – in May and December 2024 – while Joshua was knocked down four times and then stopped by Daniel Dubois inside five humiliating rounds in September that year. Despite the ravages of age, framed by yet another retirement for Fury and a traumatic period of inactivity for Joshua, they remain on course to fight each other in a showdown that will generate much more than $100m in November.

Chess: Bodhana Sivanandan, 11, breaks world age record from 38 years ago

Harrow schoolgirl eclipses legend Judit Polgar’s mark as youngest girl ever to defeat a grandmaster rated above 2600, then draws with a former 2700

England’s 11-year-old talent Bodhana Sivanandan scored her best individual result last Saturday, when the Harrow schoolgirl defeated France’s 2628-rated grandmaster Marc’Andria Maurizzi, 19, in the opening round of the Dole Trophy in Aix-en-Provence. Maurizzi was world under-20 junior champion in 2023 and is the current French champion.

Sivanandan had beaten two GMs previously, but neither was as eminent as Maurizzi, and her result is a new world age record for a girl to defeat a grandmaster rated over 2600. The Frenchman held the advantage for the first 27 moves but then blundered into a tactic which won his queen for inadequate compensation.

Week in wildlife: a thirsty baby hedgehog, a rare puffling and a jumping spider

This week’s best wildlife photographs from around the world

Pentagon lowers official Iran war death toll, omitting four killed this month

The Pentagon lowered its official Iran war death toll to 14 from 18, removing four service members killed this month.

What can the Galápagos Islands’ animals teach us about the threats of El Niño?

In this week’s newsletter: the archipelago at the centre of the extreme weather phenomenon could help scientists predict how other marine ecosystems will adapt to our warming climate

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The ocean waters around the Galápagos Islands are hot. Very hot. Observed for centuries in the Pacific by fishers, the El Niño weather phenomenon begins when the prevailing trade winds slow, allowing warm water to spread east along the coast of South America. Right now, the pattern is in full flow and will build from this year into next, likely bringing record temperatures to an already overheating world.

If 2026 is not the hottest year on record, 2027 surely will be – and the Galápagos archipelago is in the centre of this climate crisis.

‘It’s only going to get worse’: wildfires forcing firefighters to make impossible choices

Millions face long-term coastal flooding risk in UK without climate action, scientists warn

Slowdown in Arctic ice melt ends after largest winter decline on record

‘Full of zesty colour and flavour’: readers’ favourite food festivals in Europe

From the Tiramisù World Cup in Italy to street food ‘battles’ in Newcastle, your culinary highlights range from the sublime to the delicious
• Tell us about a book that inspired you to travel – the best tip wins £200 towards a Coolstays break

The town of Menton on the French Riviera is beautiful at any time of the year but becomes even more of a treat during the annual Lemon festival (Fête du Citron, 10-28 February 2027). Its microclimate, courtesy of the Alps to the north blocking colder winds, gives Menton lemons a distinct fragrance, flavour and quality that set them apart. For me, the event transformed a damp cold UK winter into a fortnight of colour, taste and light. There were food tastings, salads made with lemons, tarts, cakes and pies all full of zesty colour and flavour at stalls and markets in the town. There are sculptures made from citrus fruit, parades and exhibitions in the Golden Garden of Light (Jardins Biovès). More than a food festival, it’s a celebration of what nature can give to the world.
April

Indian activist Wangchuk ends 26-day hunger strike as 'Cockroach' protesters vow to press on

Indian activist Sonam Wangchuk ended a 26-day hunger strike on Friday that helped galvanize a youth movement that's become one of India's largest protests in recent years, but demonstrators vowed to continue until the education minister resigns.

Rubio says U.S. is ready to help end war in Ukraine but no quick deal ahead

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, said that President Trump was committed to the work "if conditions and factors have changed to make that possible."

Urgent need for more security after physical attacks and abuse, say MPs’ staff

Exclusive: Westminster survey finds one in two staffers experiencing clinical levels of psychological distress

Staff employed by MPs are calling for urgently tightened security after reports of some being physically attacked and hundreds receiving threatening calls and messages.

A survey of more than 500 MPs’ staff members found that 78% had received threatening communication and nearly one in three fear for their own safety or that of colleagues.

Replacing gas stove can help asthmatics as much as some drugs, US experts find

Team in Ohio finds swapping to electric has ‘very large’ impact, despite study being scaled back by Trump cuts

A US study has found a 70% drop in hospital admissions and days off from work or school when people with poorly controlled asthma had their gas stove and hob replaced with electric.

Ohio’s publicly owned MetroHealth began the study in December 2024 but funding was terminated early by the incoming Trump administration. It had been designed to investigate if replacing gas cooking improved asthma for 1,200 people living near Cleveland, Ohio.

Helen Goh’s recipe for pineapple and mango paletas | The sweet spot

These bright, sharp Mexican iced treats are the perfect summer cooler – with a spiky kick

The first time I encountered paletas in Mexico, they felt strangely familiar. They reminded me of the iced treats of my Malaysian childhood: fruit-driven, brightly coloured and made less to indulge than to relieve the heat. What struck me most was the flavour logic shared by both countries, where sweetness is often enlivened with salt, chilli, tamarind or citrus, each sharpening the fruit in its own way and making it seem brighter, cooler and somehow more vivid. Paletas are rarely perfectly smooth; little pieces of fruit suspended in the ice give them texture and interest. These two paletas take different paths from the same base: pineapple – sharp, clean and bright with lime and ginger – and mango – sweeter, rounder and more indulgent, which I’ve spiked with chilli, lime and salt.

India ‘cockroach’ activist Sonam Wangchuk ends hunger strike as protests spread

Sonam Wangchuk halted strike amid concerns about ‘possible violence’ in India as protest movement urges demonstrations across country on Friday over police brutality

The Indian “cockroach” activist Sonam Wangchuk has ended a 26-day hunger strike over an exam paper scandal that has spiralled into a wide ranging, youth-led wave of demonstrations against Narendra Modi’s government.

Supporters meanwhile have called a nationwide day of protest on Friday.

Trump imposes fresh tariffs on UK, EU and dozens of other trading partners

New tariffs will replace 10% global duty and come after US supreme court declared many of the earlier levies illegal

Donald Trump has imposed a fresh round of tariffs on more than 80 countries to replace a 10% global duty that was due to expire, provoking a wave of criticism and protests from US allies and major trading partners.

In the latest attempt to instate aggressive trade policies despite challenges from the US supreme court, the president has imposed tariffs of between 10% or 12.5% on dozens of countries, including the UK, Mexico, Canada, Australia, India, China and the 27 countries that make up the European Union. It in effect replaces the blanket 10% tariff that Trump imposed in February, right after the supreme court declared many of his earlier tariffs were illegal.

Racy short story by Alan Turing offers glimpse of ‘playful, funny, cheeky’ side

Writing from year after gross indecency arrest challenges ‘isolated mathematician’ image, says Cambridge academic

When people think of Alan Turing, they might imagine he was arrogant, isolated, humourless, tortured. A better way of remembering the father of modern computing would be, an academic argues, as “playful, funny, cheeky, literary, and someone who really liked sex”.

The Cambridge University English literature professor Sarah Dillon has transcribed and studied a little-known short story that Turing wrote in the year after his arrest in Manchester for gross indecency.

Rare heron seen at Somerset estate where river has been allowed to run free

Black-crowned night heron one of many species thriving at Holnicote Estate where river ‘reset’ has transformed area into lush oasis

A rare black-crowned night heron has been spotted on an estate in the south-west of England where an innovative river “reset” is transforming the area into an oasis for birdlife.

The heron was caught on camera in a jungly corner of the Holnicote Estate, where conservation experts have been restoring the landscape by allowing a river to return to its natural course.

Ireland urged to put pressure on Germany over pro-Palestinian activist’s trial

Irish politicians concerned about Daniel Tatlow-Devally’s treatment in jail want Micheál Martin to send observers to Ulm 5 trial

A cross-party delegation of Irish politicians has urged Dublin to send observers to a high-security trial of pro-Palestinian activists in Germany and to raise concerns about the Irish defendant’s detention when the German chancellor visits next week.

Mairéad Farrell of Sinn Féin, a member of the seven-member delegation, said she and her colleagues had attended the hearing in Stuttgart on Wednesday of the so-called Ulm 5 activists, who are facing charges over an attack on an Israeli arms company.

Experience: I hunt for missing hikers in remote mountains

Since I started doing search and rescue five years ago, I have found seven survivors. Sadly, the number I find dead is higher

In 2012, I was a student and had arrived in Taiwan from the Czech Republic. I soon discovered something that interested me far more than my studies: the mountains of Taiwan. I would leave the campus to explore untouched trails near Taipei. I was obsessed with old maps, often looking for routes that had vanished from modern ones, and hiking paths that no one had taken for decades.

I stayed in Taiwan because of my love for the mountains – there are more than 250 peaks that exceed 3,000 metres. Among the local hiking community, I became known for my speed and knowledge of remote regions.

Justice Dept. drops 'New York Times' subpoenas under pressure from judge

The Justice Department is dropping the subpoenas it filed demanding grand jury testimony and phone records from New York Times journalists after sharp questioning Thursday from a federal judge.

U.S., other nations back open-source AI with 'strong security' at China summit

The APEC statement is the first to include open-source cooperation at a minister level, said Li Lecheng, China's industry and information technology minister.

‘We feel like we are failing’: Myanmar doctor speaks out as health system teeters on ‘brink of collapse’

Elle’s story is one of personal sacrifice, deciding to help people despite the risk of attack by the military. Her story reflects that of a healthcare system in peril

When Myanmar’s junta seized power in a 2021 coup, Elle* and a fellow doctor fled to the jungle to provide aid to the resistance movement, one of 45,000 healthcare workers to lend their support.

Elle does not regret her decision, she supports the pro-democracy movement and later married the doctor with whom she escaped, but years of sacrifice have taken a toll. She treats patients from refugee camps at a clinic but does not earn enough to send money back to support her parents in their old age, which is her greatest wish.

Man shot and killed by police in Madison, Wisconsin, sparking protests

Madison's chief of police says an officer in Wisconsin's capital city shot and killed a man who had injured him with a knife while resisting arrest.

Ukraine war briefing: EU sanctions oust Russian president of world chess

EU unveils largest package in four years of measures against Russian individuals and interests; Laura Loomer shows up in Kyiv. What we know on day 1,612

72 Hours review – Kevin Hart drags down Netflix midlife crisis comedy

The overexposed actor falls flat in another disappointing vehicle that fails to make the most of its neat bachelor-party-with-a-twist concept

72 Hours is Kevin Hart’s midlife crisis comedy. He stars as Joe, a 40-year-old New York marketing executive whose once-reliable Midas touch has worn off. He’s no longer the office’s go-to translator of youth culture, yet he remains on the verge of a promotion – the final hurdle standing between him and happily-ever-after with his longtime girlfriend (Teyana Taylor), a doctor weighing an opportunity that could pull her away from the life they’ve built together in the city.

All the while, crude texts and memes flood his phone from a random group chat populated by a pack of twentysomething guys planning a bachelor party in Miami – an annoyance that quickly becomes his ticket back to relevance. Joe not only drops everything to join these perfect strangers for the weekend; he upgrades the whole affair, picks up the tab and supplies the booze in hopes of harvesting content for his struggling campaign. It would be a fine set-up if it weren’t such an obvious metaphor for Hart’s own showbiz career.

Member of Vance's Secret Service detail under investigation for leaking

The Secret Service said a member of Vice President JD Vance's detail is under investigation for "compromising operational and information security."

Rapid pace of interceptor and precision-guided weapons use worries Trump admin.

The U.S. defense industrial base isn't equipped to produce missiles rapidly enough to replenish munitions used in the war with Iran, or transferred for use to Central Command.

Qantas tests new ultra long-range Airbus in 17,000km direct flight from France to Melbourne

Airbus A350–1000ULR becomes most watched plane on flight tracking websites as Qantas tests new aircraft for its Project Sunrise

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Qantas’s new ultra long-distance aircraft has landed on Australian soil for the first time on Friday after a 19-hour test flight from France.

The Airbus A350-1000ULR, designed for Qantas to complete some of the longest commercial flights in the world, set off on a nonstop journey from Airbus’ manufacturing facility Toulouse, France on Thursday, destined for Melbourne.

Amazon cracks down on use of AI images by sellers after New York law

A recently enacted New York law mandates that companies disclose when an ad includes a "synthetic performer" in place of a human actor.

Trump fires U.S. attorney in Washington on heels of court appointment

Judges on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington had appointed Roger Rogoff as U.S. attorney in Seattle. But he was fired shortly after.

Bertha weakens to tropical depression after dumping rain along Gulf Coast

Tropical Storm Bertha is the second named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season.

1.6 million eggs are recalled over potential salmonella contamination

The recall affects white-shell and cage-free eggs sold under multiple grocery brands in six states. No illnesses have been reported.

Vance Boelter gets 2 life terms and more in Minnesota lawmaker shootings

Vance Boelter, the man who admitted in court to shooting two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses, was sentenced to two life terms in prison followed by 40 years Thursday morning.

Dad, son on mission to play catch every single day for a year

A father-son duo in Idaho is on a mission to play catch every single day for a year, no matter the weather, and they're nearing the finish line. Tony Dokoupil reports.

Texas appeals court reverses injunction that closed midwife's clinics

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton accused Maria Rojas of performing illegal abortions and practicing medicine without a license last year.

25 states sue FEMA and DHS, accuse Trump admin. of withholding funding

The lawsuit claims the Trump administration is withholding hundreds of millions of dollars in disaster-preparedness and homeland security grants to pressure states to change policies on elections and immigration.

Remembering cameraman Derek Williams, "the mate you would want in any war zone"

Derek Williams died Wednesday, according to his family. He had been living with Parkinson's disease and was recently diagnosed with cancer.

FDA says new cyclospora outbreak linked to unspecified product

Federal health officials said they've identified a new outbreak of the cyclospora parasite, but the source hasn't been specified.

Wisconsin governor calls for accountability as protests over fatal police shooting continue

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers is calling for accountability over the deadly police shooting of a man in Madison. Protests have erupted in the wake of the incident. CBS News' Jonah Kaplan has more.

Taylor Farms reportedly shut down Mexican processing facility linked to cyclospora outbreak

U.S. health officials said they are investigating an additional outbreak of cyclospora, but do not know its source. Plus, Taylor Farms has reportedly shut down the plant where lettuce is suspected to have started the initial outbreak that has sickened thousands in at least 41 states. Carter Evans reports.

2 men stabbed in New York City, police investigating possible hate crime

Two men were stabbed on Thursday near Central Park in New York City, just blocks apart. The victims are Asian and Jewish, and the attacks are being investigated as a possible hate crime. Tom Hanson reports.

Protesters take the mic at Wisconsin police shooting press conference

A day after an officer shot and killed a man in Madison, Wisconsin, police say the man had fled from officers, then pulled a fixed-blade knife, injuring one officer, who tried a taser before firing three shots. Protests developed almost immediately, and on Thursday, demonstrators took the microphone in a police press conference. Jonah Kaplan reports.

Charli xcx: Music, Fashion, Film review – slippery search into selfhood that hits just as hard as Brat

(Atlantic)
How do you follow up the album that made you a star – and a caricature? In classic Charli style: with a pivot to guitar and a meta masterpiece about the instability of identity

After a decade spent trailblazing a unique kind of pop freedom from the genre’s fringes, A-list success seemed like the thing that might finally trap Charli xcx. Her 2024 club-rat opus Brat spawned memes, embarrassing political bandwagoning, Collins’ word of the year and possibly terminal damage to the bra industry. Its ludicrous cultural impact looked set to pickle her as a caricature of a Parliament-toting bad girl; the question of whether “Brat summer” could last – whether Charli could sustain the interest – was so rife she turned it into a mockumentary, The Moment. It made success look miserable: your creation turned cringe by execs wanting to milk their prize cow dry of every last acid-green drop.

Even for a pop star renowned for reinvention, it put a higher price on her next move. Pivot and risk losing new fans and looking wilfully contrarian. When Charli released the sub-two-minute single Rock Music, many heard it as a middle finger. “I think the dancefloor is dead,” she drawls over guitars that buzzed like speakers weathering interference from a Nokia 5110, “so now we’re making rock music.” There were boring thinkpieces about the dancefloor being very much alive, actually (as if Charli had ever ridden culture for clout then binned it off), and about whether she was trying to eject fair-weather new fans. But the key to this cheeky song is surprisingly earnest: “Jump off the stage / I hope they catch you today / But if they don’t it’s OK,” she sings naively, an affirmation to take creative leaps, and to come with Charli – or not, as you like – as she takes this one.

Trump hosts champion Dodgers at White House as some players stay away

• Betts and Hernández opt against joining team for event

• Back-to-back World Series winners gift ring to Trump

• Many loyal fans had conflicted feelings over visit

Donald Trump hosted the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers at the White House on Thursday for the team’s second trip to the White House in two years.

The team gave the president a custom jersey and a World Series championship ring during a ceremony at the Rose Garden. Four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani, star first baseman Freddie Freeman, World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto and manager Dave Roberts were among those in attendance, while several players – most notably star shortstop Mookie Betts and utility man Kike Hernández – opted not to attend.

IBM's Krishna tries to reassure investors that AI won't disrupt company's software unit

IBM's CEO highlighted growing mainframe hardware capacity, and said software should "catch back up" within a year.

Judge temporarily halts Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger

The ruling comes after a coalition of 12 states sued to block the deal, arguing it would harm consumers and the entertainment industry.

7/23: CBS Evening News

Outrage over a deadly police shooting in Wisconsin; two people were stabbed near New York's Central Park.

This week on "Sunday Morning" (July 26)

A look at the features for this week's broadcast of the Emmy-winning program, hosted by Jane Pauley.

The king emerges from Tardis as Commonwealth Games face battle for time and space

The troubled Games looked doomed until Glasgow stepped in but this opening ceremony had plenty of feelgood factor

The Commonwealth Games in Glasgow opened on Thursday evening to the surreal sight of King Charles and Queen Camilla stepping out of a Tardis – and a mechanical Loch Ness monster roaring the first few bars of Flower of Scotland.

The Tardis was a nod to the fact that police boxes were designed by the Scottish architect Gilbert MacKenzie Trench. But the Doctor Who reference proved to be doubly apt given the Games faced being exterminated until Glasgow stepped in after Victoria pulled out due to financial pressures.

Intel's stock jumps as chipmaker rides AI boom to fastest revenue growth in almost 15 years

Intel rallied after the company reported blowout earnings and guidance.

Trump to impose double-digit tariffs on dozens of countries

The United States will slap taxes of 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 countries accounting for 99% of U.S. imports, charging that they have inadequately enforced bans on goods produced by forced labor.

DOJ to withdraw subpoenas for New York Times reporters over Air Force One story

The Justice Department withdrew its subpoenas for New York Times reporters during a court heraing Thursday, after a judge grilled government lawyers for making "errors."

Oracle signs 10-year software contract with Pentagon worth up to $7 billion

Oracle will supply on-premises software to the U.S. Department of Defense.

2 killed in flash floods that inundated West Virginia

Torrential rains in West Virginia have caused flash flooding that inundated homes and businesses this week.

Trump to slap 'sweeping' new tariffs on 60 trade partners as global duties expire

The Trump administration has ramped its tariff actions back up since the president's trade agenda suffered major legal setbacks earlier this year.

Salman Rushdie testifies at terrorism trial of man convicted of stabbing him

Author testified for second time about near-killing four years ago during event at New York amphitheater

Four years after being stabbed on an amphitheater stage, Salman Rushdie on Thursday sat across a courtroom from his convicted attacker and told jurors for a second time about the ambush that nearly killed him.

The prize-winning writer recalled feeling what he thought was a punch under his chin, then feeling blood coming from his neck.

IRS chief Frank Bisignano may have misled Congress, Democrats say

The IRS alone hemorrhaged more than 31,000 employees as of January in President Trump's government cuts, according to the agency's inspector general.

DOJ withdraws subpoenas to NY Times reporters in Trump plane probe

The subpoenas to New York Times reporters were issued by Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton, whom Trump has nominated as director of national intelligence.

Tampa, Charleston airports to join new TSA privatized security initiative

The new Gold+ initiative would allow private contractors to handle passenger screening at three airports while the TSA retains federal oversight.

7/23: The Takeout with Major Garrett

Trump tells Axios he's considering a "massive attack" on Iran; GOP House Judiciary chair issues criminal referral against Jack Smith.

Southwest Airlines put Texas jet fuel on a boat to LA for the first time amid supply worries

Southwest hired a ship this spring to send fuel from Houston to Los Angeles in case of supply shortages.

How to keep an ancient text interesting to students? Make it a summer blockbuster

English teachers are excited to have a new adaptation of Homer's The Odyssey to use to get students excited about the epic poem.

Measles outbreak "slowing," but newborn's family still can't meet her

Utah's weekly measles case count has fallen. The national tally hasn't, and a newborn who's too young to be vaccinated is caught in between.

Egyptian warrior princesses, ancient avocados, and more science news

Hannah Chin and Nate Rott of NPR's Short Wave podcast talk about the building blocks of birdsong, the evolutionary history of avocados and Egyptian warrior princesses.

Trump cuts target federal advisory boards. What does it mean for agencies like NASA?

The Trump administration has terminated or suspended more than 100 federal advisory committees. Former members say agencies like NASA now have less accountability to stakeholders and the public.

Invasive species cause more harm in the Global South

Invasive species can wreak havoc on ecosystems. A new study in Science suggests low- and middle-income countries in the Global South experience greater harms.

Cerebras stock gains on AMD partnership

Cerebras and AMD agreed to work together, pairing their technology for AI systems.

Tesla, Alphabet lose hundreds of billions in value in post-earnings stock plunge

Both Tesla and Alphabet signaled higher spending as they invest in artificial intelligence.

Trump allies are poised to weaken protections for historic sites — not just in D.C.

A council packed with Trump appointees is poised to rewrite historic preservation rules. Critics say that could help him build his D.C. arch faster — and endanger important sites across the country.

American Airlines stock tumbles 8% as fuel spike further postpones turnaround

American Airlines further cut its 2026 earnings outlook, citing higher fuel costs.

Amazon and Microsoft pivot cloud gaming strategies to target different players

Amazon is bringing Luna to the Prime Video streaming service, while Microsoft will test an ad-supported streaming of titles that people own.

Southern California suburb alarmed as ‘exceptionally rare’ cancer sickens multiple children

Residents in Ladera Ranch in Orange county voice concerns after six children diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma

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Concerns are growing in southern California over a cluster of “exceptionally rare” cancer cases that has sickened multiple children in a suburban community.

Families living in the Orange county neighborhood of Ladera Ranch, home to about 26,000 people, have reported that six children in the community were diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma, Katrina Foley, the vice-chair of the county board of supervisors, said in a statement.

Congress splits on war powers resolutions to force Trump to abandon Iran war

Trump would be nearly certain to veto any measure to curtail his ability to wage war with Iran.

FDA panel considers loosening regulations for some peptides

The FDA panel will review seven peptides and decide if they should be added to a list of substances that can be safely produced by compounding pharmacies.

House lawmakers grill former JPMorgan executive Jes Staley over Epstein ties

House oversight Chair James Comer said Jes Staley defended Jeffrey Epstein and encouraged JPMorgan to retain him despite internal red flags.

NYPD says dozens rescued from human trafficking during World Cup

There were 89 people arrested in the New York area over the course of the World Cup, the NYPD said.

Chelsea paid Aston Villa £117m for Morgan Rogers. Is he the right fit?

The England attacker thrives when he can gallop into space but Xabi Alonso’s best team built attacks slowly

By Opta Analyst

It quickly became apparent this summer that Aston Villa would not be holding on to Morgan Rogers. Having helped the club finish fourth in the Premier League and win the Europa League, the 23-year-old was in demand.

Arsenal looked like his likeliest next destination, with the champions eager to strengthen the left side of their attack. The charm offensive came from many angles, with Martin Ødegaard, Mikel Arteta and the club’s England players trying to sell the idea to Rogers. But, with Arsenal reluctant to meet Villa’s asking price, Chelsea intervened and made Rogers the most expensive British player ever, surpassing the £116m that Manchester City paid Nottingham Forest for Elliot Anderson earlier this summer.

Fewer Americans own homes than thought, new Fed search finds

Only about 53% of Americans own homes, or about 12 percentage points lower than previous data has shown, the study found.

Lobbying firm pressed for details about payments to journalists for favourable stories

MPs and others condemn behaviour of CT Group, which offered cash for positive coverage of clients

A political lobbying firm secretly paying journalists for articles favourable to its clients is facing calls to reveal full details of the payments, after the practice was denounced as a dangerous “attack on democracy”.

MPs, senior lobbyists and transparency campaigners all condemned the behaviour of CT Group, the firm co-founded by the campaign strategist Lynton Crosby, an election guru previously hired by David Cameron and Boris Johnson.

Secret Service agent on Vance’s detail under investigation

Agent came under suspicion after allegedly providing info in MS Now report about vice-president’s helicopter trip

A Secret Service agent assigned to JD Vance’s protective detail is “the subject of an administrative investigation, and potential criminal inquiry, involving allegations of compromising operational and information security”, according to the Secret Service chief of communications.

The agent came under suspicion after allegedly providing information that appeared in an MS Now report about the vice-president’s planned Marine Corps helicopter trip with his son to a golf lesson, a source told CNN.

Russia’s Amazon-style retail giant Wildberries is now in Ukraine’s crosshairs. Here's why

Ukraine has ratcheted up its attacks on Russia's Amazon-style retail giant, Wildberries, signaling a new phase in the war.

The Guardian view on Europe’s demographic crisis: the young must not be left to deal with the consequences | Editorial

A new Brussels study highlights the pace at which EU countries are ageing. A more informed public debate is overdue

Europe is ageing at pace as birthrates fall and people live longer. A new report by the European Commission, published this month, notes that 2012 marked the first year in which fewer people were born in EU countries than people died in them. By the middle of this century, nearly one in three EU residents will be 65 or older. The numbers of those over 80 will almost triple from 6% to 15%. The old continent is getting visibly greyer.

The transition to a “longevity society”, as the report’s authors describe it, is something to be celebrated. Many people are enjoying healthier, richer lives for longer, and redefining the meaning and possibilities of old age. But the statistics and direction of travel also point to immense social challenges, with implications for the way we work, intergenerational fairness and the future funding of care. Sadly, amid fraught and at times toxic debates about immigration and the cost of welfare, Europe’s politics is struggling to meet the moment.

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Joanna Pettet obituary

Actor best known for the 1960s box-office smash Casino Royale

Joanna Pettet, who has died aged 83, was a British-born, Canadian-raised actor who found fame in the 1960s after just a handful of films, including the James Bond spoof Casino Royale.

The 1967 film drew lukewarm reviews for its parody of the “official” 007 movies and suffered from a production history that included five directors, but it became a box-office smash with expectant audiences. In it Pettet played Mata Bond, the illegitimate daughter of Mata Hari and the retired Sir James Bond (acted by David Niven, one of multiple 007s featured). She is seen performing an exotic dance in a Buddhist temple, where Niven signs her up as a spy. “Do I get an exploding briefcase and a secret transmitter?” asks Pettet, who described the role as “campy”.

As Honda CR-V leads U.S. sales, automaker teases new American-built pickup truck

The future of the Ridgeline midsize pickup truck had been in flux, and the automaker said there will be a temporary production stoppage for the truck.

Donald Trump says decision on ‘massive attack’ against Iran is close

President’s remarks follow Houthi strikes on Saudi tankers in the Red Sea and oil prices rising past $100 a barrel again

Donald Trump has said he is close to deciding whether to launch “a massive attack” against Iran, on a scale larger than strikes already witnessed during the months-long conflict with Tehran.

Speaking to the Axios news site, the US president said: “I am considering a massive attack. Bigger than ever before. I am close to making a decision. We are all set for it.”