Suddenly the British right feels a political chill. It’s getting cold in Andy Burnham’s shadow | Rafael Behr

The Tories and Reform had it easy when Keir Starmer was self-destructing – but a new PM with ideas exposes how vacant the opposition has become

Andy Burnham’s recollections of Britain in the 1970s must be pretty hazy. He was nine when the decade ended. Kemi Badenoch, born in 1980, can remember nothing. Lacking first-hand experience, the Conservative leader evokes the turmoil of a bygone era with cautionary zeal borrowed from an older generation. In a speech last week, she accused the new prime minister of pining for “endless strikes, rubbish not being collected, bodies not being buried, inflation at 25% and a chancellor going cap-in-hand to the IMF”.

This is more incantation than argument, a ritual fondling of beads on the Tory rosary. It is a symptom of a leader under stress, affirming her faith in Our Lady Margaret Thatcher and warding off socialist devils. Burnham has done nothing to support the claim that his government is a 70s tribute act, unless you count the appointment of a man named Healey as chancellor and the imposition of price controls on buses.

Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnist

Cherry sundaes and banana splits: Helen Graves’ recipes for barbecued fruit

These new spins on nostalgic desserts will elevate your summer barbecues, while their prep-ahead nature will keep the day stress free

When it comes to barbecued desserts, a few squares of chocolate melted inside a banana will no longer cut it. Get ahead with some easy-to-prep elements, then add a final flourish of smoke-licked fruit to bring new energy to classic desserts, such as banana splits and layered fruit sundaes. They need not be complex, and will interest your guests far more than the same old stale ideas. I’ve had some fun with these nostalgic favourites, and hope you will, too.

Country diary: In poet John Clare’s garden, I contemplate my ancestor who lived here too | Nic Wilson

Helpston, Cambridgeshire: I picture Henry as a young lad, hiding in flowerbeds, chasing butterflies, learning to love nature

If there’s one thing better than a gatekeeper butterfly, it’s wild marjoram playing host to a flurry of gatekeepers. Almost impossible to count for all the rising, fluttering and resettling, their warm orange and brown wings with white double-dots in a black eye-spot are only a wing-flick away from mottled invisibility: now you see me, now you don’t.

I’m their lone admirer, sat on a mossy stone in the garden at John Clare cottage, but I don’t feel alone. Honeysuckle has me in a heady hug, undulating fronds of hart’s-tongue fern wave from beneath a rock, the whiteness of a teneral damselfly in the grass intrigues and delights me. I know this garden has a long history of providing companionship, not least to the poet after whom the cottage is named, who knew “the woodbine at the garden gate” as “affection’s friend” and asked of the butterfly: “Wouldst thou in my garden come, / To join the bee’s delightful hum”.

SK Hynix shares tank as exponential earnings growth fails to satisfy AI-charged expectations

SK Hynix shares fell as exponential profit and revenue growth failed to meet analysts' lofty expectations for a darling of the artificial intelligence sector.

Germany's leaders say the Berlin Pride attack targeted 'all of us'. What utter hypocrisy | Fatma Aydemir

The queer community has lost resources and protection due to decisions made by the people now mouthing solidarity in public

It feels like a well-rehearsed script. First come the flowers, then the pious statements. One after another, mainstream German politicians have lined up to claim that the attack on Berlin Pride last weekend was an attack on “all of us”, “our values” and “our society”.

Except it was not. This atrocity in which a van was rammed into the crowd was, first and foremost, an attack on queer people. A vulnerable community that has been fighting for its rights for many decades; that, in recent years and all over the world, has increasingly been targeted by conservative forces.

‘The heat took him from me’: India’s death toll rises amid escalating heat crisis

As extreme heat claims the lives of workers in India’s poorest areas, many fear the true mortality rate is being dangerously undercounted

The morning air was already hot and cloying when Palli Mahalaxmi rose at about 5am. It was May, and in the summer heatwave that had engulfed this corner of southern India, even night-time did not give the villagers respite.

A single ceiling fan hung above Mahalaxmi, her husband and her son as they slept in a small windowless room made of thick concrete. Mahalaxmi set about preparing breakfast, and the family ate together from steel plates, just as they did every morning. Sweat dripped from their foreheads as the sun rose higher.

AI tool will lead to more child refugees being treated as adults, charity warns

‘Racist bias’ overestimating ages in Home Office’s facial-recognition software will lead to solo children being housed with adults, says Human Rights Network

Flawed and racialised models that underpin the AI-powered age-detection systems to be introduced by the British government will endanger children, rights groups and children’s charities have warned.

Urging ministers to reverse plans to introduce facial age-estimation technology to screen migrants, critics have warned that black children arriving from conflict zones are at risk of being of thrust into the adult system.

‘Farage’s got to come clean or clear off’: what voters on Clacton beach think about their MP – and the country

Nigel Farage’s constituency takes in genteel resorts and one of England’s poorest villages. With a snap byelection approaching, what do the residents want from the Reform UK leader – or the bin who’s challenging him?

‘If it’s the Tin Man, then I suppose I’ll vote for Nigel,” says a Clacton resident, a retiree on a slow stroll towards the seafront, when I ask whom she will vote for in the forthcoming byelection. “I would sooner have Farage than the Tin Man!” As political slogans go, it is as good as any.

The sun is beating down, but the sky is hazy, which accurately describes the mood of this constituency since the Reform UK leader quit as MP for Clacton on 7 July, forcing a byelection that sent shock waves through Westminster and confusion through Clacton. I am spending a couple of days here with the photographer Andy Hall, traversing the coast between Jaywick to the west and Walton-on-the-Naze to the east. An incessant wind is blowing from the North Sea, sending waves crashing on to Clacton beach. Nicky Friday, who at 11am is already handing out 99s from her aptly named kiosk, Seabreeze, isn’t exactly exercised by the Reform UK leader’s latest gambit. “This is going to sound terrible, but I’m so busy running this business and working here,” she says. “I don’t really do politics.”

Nicky Friday, who owns and runs the Seabreeze kiosk in Clacton

US thwarts ‘surprise’ Iran missile attack, and joins forces with Saudis to hit targets in Iraq

Oil price spikes after flare-up of fighting and claimed Iranian attacks on three tankers in strait of Hormuz

The US military said it knocked down an Iranian missile barrage and worked with Saudi Arabia forces to strike sites in Iraq that Tehran-backed militias have used to launch attacks in recent days.

In what Washington cast ⁠as “an attempted surprise ⁠attack” by Tehran, Iran had launched multiple ballistic missiles at US forces in the Middle East, shattering a brief pause in fighting. Iran’s target was a US base in Jordan, Axios cited a US official as saying.

American Airlines nationwide ground stop lifted after IT outage disrupts flights

According to the Air Traffic Control System Command Center, all airports and facilities were being impacted by the IT outage.

Fauci diaries, released by Sen. Paul, touch on COVID origins, Trump

Republican Sen. Rand Paul released more than a thousand pages of journal entries from Dr. Anthony Fauci, teeing up what is likely to be a contentious hearing on Wednesday.

‘Race against time’: Japan earthquake death toll rises as rescue teams search for missing

Military mobilises thousands of personnel after quake on southern Kyushu island that registered a maximum 7 on the Japanese shindo intensity scale

• Earthquake rocks southern Japanese island of Kyushu – in pictures

At least 13 people were killed when a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck southern Japan on Tuesday, injuring hundreds and knocking out power and water to tens of thousands.

“There are people who are still waiting to be rescued, and it’s a race against time,” the prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, said on Wednesday. “We will go all out to find and rescue as many people as we can.”

‘Thought it was a plane on fire’: large meteor sightings stir delight in New Zealand

Footage shows North Island skies lighting up followed by a ‘huge boom’ days after a separate fireball in South Island

Two large suspected meteors have flashed and boomed across New Zealand’s skies in recent days, delighting those who glimpsed the celestial events and sending some animals into a frenzy.

A fireball was seen over parts of the North Island just after 10.20pm on Tuesday night, after a separate one streaked across South Island’s skies on Sunday evening.

Elon Musk's xAI sues Minnesota over law to ban 'nudify' apps

Elon Musk's xAI, now owned by SpaceX, is challenging a law that would ban so-called nudify apps in Minnesota

Iran launches surprise ballistic missile attack on U.S. forces in the Middle East

Centcom in a post on X said that the attack originated from Iran, but all missiles were intercepted.

Ukraine war briefing: Wildberries attacks shake Russian economy and banking

Kremlin and state bank VTB may be forced to prop up online retailer amid crippling Ukrainian attacks; Kyiv prosecutors may target Lukashenko. What we know on day 1,617

Trump meets with Zelenskyy and Netanyahu amid wars in Iran, Ukraine

President Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Tuesday.

Former Cowboys star Tony Romo arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in Wisconsin, sheriff says

Romo has a court date scheduled for Sept. 21 at 8:30 a.m.

Trump, DOJ ask Supreme Court to toss $83.3M defamation award to E. Jean Carroll

The Supreme Court recently rejected President Donald Trump's bid to hear his appeal of another $5 million verdict in favor of Carroll.

Swaths of damage as tornado tears through Wisconsin

Trees and power lines collapsed around cars as a tornado with winds of 140 miles per hour tore through central Wisconsin on Monday. The National Weather Service found a 12-mile-long swath of damage. Jason Allen reports.

Kenya investigating unexpected deaths of 15 elephants in national park

Potential toxic substance detected in several of 15 elephants found dead in Kenya’s Amboseli national park

Officials are investigating the deaths of 15 elephants over the past month in Kenya’s Amboseli national park.

The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said 10 of the elephants showed signs of partial paralysis before dying within two days.

Senate confirms Jay Clayton as Trump's director of national intelligence, replacing Pulte

Bill Pulte had been serving for months as DNI after Tulsi Gabbard resigned the post.

Senate sets up votes to sanction Russia for Ukraine war

The sanctions target Russian officials, oligarchs, their family members, foreign persons, Russian banks and financial institutions and the Russian shadow fleet.

Trump calls Graham "beloved friend" and "American original" in eulogy

President Trump delivered the eulogy for friend and ally Sen. Lindsey Graham, who died unexpectedly just a short time after visiting Ukraine earlier this month.

Trump, Lindsey Graham's adversary-turned friend, eulogizes him at funeral

Friends, family and politicians remembered Sen. Lindsey Graham at his funeral in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. Graham spent over 30 years on Capitol Hill, and President Trump eulogized him at the service. Nikole Killion reports.

SpaceX, Blue Origin could get quicker launch approval under FAA move to waive environmental rules

"America won the first Space Race, and we can do it again — but only if we get government red tape out of the way," Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.

Senate confirms Trump ally Jay Clayton as director of national intelligence

At confirmation hearing, Clayton sidestepped questions about 2020 election and declined to say Trump lost

• Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email

The US Senate voted to confirm Jay Clayton as the director of national intelligence on Tuesday, giving Trump another key ally directing the nation’s intelligence apparatus.

The tally, 51-47, fell along party lines, with all Republicans supporting his nomination and all Democrats opposing it.

FCC bans humanoid robots from China, citing ‘unacceptable risks’

Move comes as the Trump administration has increasingly sought to keep Chinese technology out of the US

The Federal Communications Commission announced a ban on humanoid robots from China on Tuesday, saying that the technology poses “unacceptable risks” to the country’s national security. The move comes as the Trump administration has increasingly sought to keep Chinese technology out of the US.

The FCC defines the banned robots as “advanced robotic devices”, which include humanoids and animal-like quadrupeds.

Storms batter Northeast, triggering travel delays

More than 50 million people are at risk of flash flooding as storms batter the Northeast. The storms unleashed a nightmare chain reaction of airport backlogs at the peak of the summer travel season. Lilia Luciano reports and Rob Marciano has the forecast.

How to keep your Claude chats and Google files private

Some ‘private’ chats and docs are showing up on search engines. Here’s how to protect yours

Users of Anthropic’s Claude chatbot were surprised over the weekend to learn that some of their conversations may be discoverable on search engines like Google and Bing. The revelation is raising questions about how much control people actually have over what they share online.

Anthropic allows Claude users to create public links to their chat threads, which gives anyone with the link the ability to view their conversations – similar to sharing options on apps like Google Docs. But what users may not have realized was that means their Claude conversations, however sensitive or personal, could show up in public search results.

FIFA has a new plan to raise billions of dollars: Selling stakes in the World Cup

FIFA has a complex plan to sell chunks of its commercial rights to the World Cup to minority investors, including a firm run by Joshua Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner.

Adolescence or The Traitors? Netflix neck-and-neck with BBC as British viewers’ go-to

Amid slowing streaming market, Netflix still produces hits that help make it default service for quarter of Britons

Netflix is neck-and-neck with the BBC as the default service Britons turn to when they switch on their TV, according to research.

The home of Adolescence and KPop Demon Hunters is now the first port of call for 26% of viewers, Ofcom found. The national broadcaster is narrowly behind, as the go-to for 25% of audiences..

UK faces ‘very difficult trade-offs’ in budget because of Iran war, say analysts

Leading thinktank says higher oil prices and inflation will give Andy Burnham a ‘challenging inheritance’

Andy Burnham has been warned by a leading thinktank of “very difficult trade-offs in the next autumn budget” if the Iran war keeps oil prices and inflation high.

The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said the new prime minister faced a “challenging inheritance” and his plans to revamp public services would meet severe pressure from persistently higher prices.

Trump pausing Iran attacks shows US military power is not enough on its own

Tehran has not been bombed into submission, leaving America unable to enforce its demands without a ground war that it does not want

Has Iran won a war it didn’t start against the United States? It is not a victory in any conventional military sense: about 3,500 Iranians have been reported killed and the US-led bombing has caused anywhere between $150bn and $270bn of damage.

Yet Donald Trump’s decision to pause, rather than intensify, the 13-night summer bombing campaign in effect represents a degree of recognition that the US cannot achieve its stated goals by military power alone.

Florida executes 2 men in one day, including ex-cop who killed girl

Florida on Tuesday became the first state in nearly a decade to carry out two executions in a single day,​ putting to death an 80-year-old man who was the second-oldest inmate known to receive a lethal injection in modern U.S. history.

Ford raises guidance after Q2 earnings beat, says F-Series recovery is on track

Ford cited operational improvements, resilient vehicle pricing and a high sales mix of profitable products for its performance and the improved guidance. 

How Trump drafted renovation plans for Dulles, a "terrible airport"

President Trump asked for 3D models of the renovation proposals as he personally tweaked ideas to overhaul Dulles International Airport that are scheduled to be unveiled on Wednesday.

7/28: CBS Evening News

Storms batter the Northeast, triggering travel delays; deadly earthquake devastates southern Japan.

Canadian tourism slumped in the U.S. last year amid heightened tensions

Millions of Canadians shunned travel to the U.S. in 2025, opting to vacation at home or travel to other countries.

US diplomats stage UN walkout after France criticizes human rights record under Trump

France had also intervened after Trump administration had opposed the reappointment of UN human rights chief

US diplomats walked out of a United Nations meeting after France criticized the country’s human rights record under Donald Trump.

The staged walkout, which occurred on Monday during a UN security council meeting on the Ukraine-Russia war, came days after the Trump administration cited “forced labor” allegations as it imposed sweeping tariffs on dozens of countries.

Abusive chanting against immigrants in English football on rise, new data reveals

• Reported incidents of all discrimination reach new high

• Reports of abuse in grassroots football rose for fifth year

Abusive chanting against immigrants has become a feature of football matches in England, according to new data from Kick It Out.

Last season 39 reports of anti-immigrant chanting were made to the anti-discrimination charity, more than the previous two seasons combined. Phrases such as “stop the boats” and “send them back” were reported as being heard “at all levels of the game”, as part of a growing trend of discriminatory “mass chanting” at matches, Kick It Out said.

‘My fingers were underwater’: Amy Hunt settles for 100m silver in torrid conditions

• New Zealand’s Zoe Hobbs wins with 10.93sec

• Emmanuel Eseme surges to men’s 100m victory

On a filthy summer’s night in Glasgow, Amy Hunt defied almost everything the elements dared to throw at her. The track was so wet that her fingernails were submerged underwater as she lined up. Her start was so horrendous it could have carried an X-certificate. And she spent most of the women’s 100m final sloshing through puddles. It was nearly enough.

But while she hit top speed late in the race, it was too late to catch the New Zealander Zoe Hobbs, who ran the race of her life to take Commonwealth Games gold in a personal best of 10.93sec.

Former Gavin Newsom aide shares fresh details of affair

Ruby Rippey writes in Vanity Fair of relationship with then San Francisco mayor and appears to contradict his account

A former aide to Gavin Newsom has publicly shared for the first time her full account of their affair, which took place more than two decades ago when Newsom was mayor of San Francisco.

In a new essay published in Vanity Fair on Tuesday, Ruby Rippey writes about her struggles with alcoholism, substance abuse and her relationship with Newsom while she worked as his appointments secretary and was married to his deputy chief of staff and later the manager of the mayor’s re-election campaign.

Gomorrah: The Origins review – a mob prequel so stylish you’ll look for Al Pacino

There’s a cheekiness, freshness and tenderness to this show that sets it apart from standard crime dramas. It’s so wonderfully rich that the Godfather cast wouldn’t be out of place

It’s worth it just for the leather. The prequel to formidable Neapolitan mobster saga Gomorrah hurls us into the filthy bustle of Secondigliano, a broken quarter of northern Naples which, in 1977, has been abandoned by God and government, leaving organised crime as the only alternative to destitution. But even in this purgatory, the style of the city and the late 70s abides: the young men of Secondigliano might not be able to escape their fate, but they’ll look fantastic trying.

Sashaying forcefully through the throng is Angelo (Francesco Pellegrino), with his messianic collar-length curls, eyes that seem to mascara themselves and an array of spectacular leather jackets. Kids gather to gawp when his car skids to a dusty halt and Angelo, chest hair and medallion nestling in the open collar of a patterned silk shirt in two exquisite shades of brown, emerges and strides to his next appointment. Angelo is in his early 20s and is the hippest gangster in his neighbourhood, but he bears the pained intensity of the thwarted: on a citywide level he has no sway, and he’s worked out that the cut of the action the big bosses give him is a paltry percentage of the overall pie. His crew, sporting their own leather outerwear in boxy mustard or calf-length burgundy, are happy enough, but Angelo wants more.

7/28: The Takeout with Major Garrett

The funeral for Sen. Lindsey Graham is held in Washington, D.C.; Trump meets with Zelenskyy and Netanyahu.

Apple becomes second $5tn company as investors flee AI stocks

Share price rally driven by strong product demand as well as decision to sit out AI spending race, amid wider tech sell-off

Apple has become only the second company to pass the $5tn valuation mark, as it benefited from investors fleeing AI and semiconductor stocks amid a wider tech sell-off.

The iPhone maker’s shares hit a session high ⁠of $342.89 on Tuesday, giving it a market ⁠capitalisation of $5.04tn (£3.78tn), then eased back down to $340.08 – around the $5tn mark.

As Spain battles wildfires, its politicians battle over climate change's role

Crews are still battling wildfires that broke out last week and have burned nearly 200,000 acres across Spain. The country is bracing for another round of extreme heat, with temperatures expected to top 100 degrees Fahrenheit starting Wednesday.

Artist Betye Saar, who used repurposed objects to reclaim identity, has died at 99

Saar told NPR in 2006, "I'm the kind of person who recycles materials, but I also recycle emotions and feelings." She died days away from her 100th birthday.

Keiko Fujimori is inaugurated as Peru's president following a narrow election victory

The 51-year-old daughter of the late former President Alberto Fujimori, Peru's new conservative leader has pledged to fight crime with an "iron fist."

As many are priced out of buying, the renter-owner wealth gap is wider than ever

Record high housing costs have pushed the wealth gap between renters and owners wider than ever. It's been a boon for owners even as many others are priced out.

Ukraine negotiator: 'We have the upper hand'

In an interview with NPR, one of Ukraine's top negotiators Sergiy Kyslytsya explains why Kyiv believes it now has the leverage to force Russia into serious negotiations.

DOJ tests limits of never-before-used court to deport suspected terrorist

The Alien Terrorist Removal Court was created by Congress in 1996 and signed into law by President Bill Clinton. Before now, it had never been used.

Apple touches $5 trillion market cap for first time

The jockeying between Apple and Nvidia reflects a debate about the future of AI that has preoccupied investors this summer.

Director Mike Leigh likely to retire after his next film due to illness

Film-maker’s drama Tender Loving Care ‘likely’ his final one as he manages myositis, a disease affecting immune system

Film-maker Mike Leigh has said his next film is likely to be his last.

According to Indiewire, the Oscar-nominated writer-director was speaking at a recent Golden Globes-hosted roundtable in London about his next film Tender Loving Care, a drama set to premiere during this fall festival season.

Amazon, Meta and Microsoft face skeptical investors this week after Google report sparked sell-off

Alphabet's free cash flow has turned negative, and the company lifted its capital spending forecast. Slower-growing cloud rivals report this week.

Trump backs 'fantastic' Warsh while calling for lower rates and citing 'bad intentions' of other Fed officials

President Trump Monday voiced support for Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh while insisting that the U.S. should have the lowest interest rates in the world.

Analysis: Kevin Warsh has three reasons to hold off on a Fed rate hike this week

At the Fed’s July meeting, the new chairman will reveal how he weighs energy shocks, AI-driven price pressure, the task forces and pressure from Trump.

Kentucky Gov. Beshear calls on Mitch McConnell to prove he can serve or resign

McConnell’s prolonged absence could complicate the GOP’s narrow Senate majority and trigger an untested Kentucky vacancy process.

Retaining Rodri is key to Manchester City success under Enzo Maresca

New manager’s No 1 priority must be to persuade World Cup-winning captain to stay as Real Madrid circle

“Welcome home,” was Khaldoon al-Mubarak’s warm greeting to Enzo Maresca on his appointment last month as Manchester City manager. Now, after two previous spells at the club, the Italian’s task is to keep the chair content, and ensure a three-year contract does not end early. To achieve that, Maresca’s tenure must continue Pep Guardiola’s glittering legacy of 20 trophies across a decade of excellence.

The key to the 46-year-old, who was Guardiola’s assistant during the 2022-23 treble season and City’s elite development squad leader two years before that, being successful can be summed up in two words: “Keep Rodri”. Yet with Real Madrid almost certain to launch a bid for the peerless No 6, and him seemingly wanting to play for the Spanish giants, a move away from City may become inevitable.

Zelenskyy and Netanyahu brave the whims of Trump’s darkly confounding White House

Ukrainian and Israeli leaders converge on Washington with criss-crossing fortunes, but knowing they can count on little from US counterpart

The converging visits of Benjamin Netanyahu and Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Washington offer an unusually eloquent snapshot of a world in turmoil, unmoored from decades-old certainties.

Some things remain the same. The US is still an almighty military and economic power and for both foreign visitors, a White House encounter with Donald Trump is critical to their governments and the wars they are fighting.

U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve faces stress as emergency releases strain old infrastructure

The reserve has an authorized storage capacity of 714 million barrels, according to the Department of Energy.

Ella Baron on Andy Burnham’s plans for youth employment – cartoon

Continue reading...

The Guardian view on India’s gen Z revolt: the cockroaches are coming together | Editorial

A youth movement born from exam leaks and online mockery has pierced Narendra Modi’s aura of invincibility and may yet reshape Indian politics

“What if all cockroaches come together?” was the question that humbled India’s strongman prime minister, Narendra Modi. It was posted on X by Abhijeet Dipke, an Indian student in the US with a master’s in public relations. Enraged that India’s top judge likened unemployed youths to insects and “parasites”, and that millions saw medical exams compromised by leaks, Mr Dipke lit a fuse. For India’s nearly 400 million gen Z, public exams are often the only ladder to a secure future. When papers leak or tests are cancelled, that ladder is kicked away. By June, young people were protesting peacefully in Delhi as the Cockroach Janta party (CJP), a parody of Mr Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party (BJP). They demanded the resignation of the education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan.

This weekend, Mr Pradhan became the first senior minister in Mr Modi’s 12 years in power to be forced from office by a mass-protest movement. It came after credible reports suggested police officers attacked protesters marching to parliament. Security sources say it was they who were attacked. This may be just the beginning. The concession has taught the Cockroach movement’s leadership that pressure works. They could have declared victory and gone home. Instead they have accused the government of breaching the terms of the settlement offered by Mr Modi’s government. The CJP claims at least 100 people have been arrested, many on non-bailable charges. Its leaders are now demanding the release of detainees and threatening to remobilise nationally.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.

The Guardian view on noise pollution: keep it down | Editorial

New research linking the issue to Parkinson’s disease adds to the evidence of serious health repercussions from traffic volume and other sources

The roar of late-night traffic is not just annoying for those trying to sleep. It can also have profound effects on their health. A pioneering new study, published this month, has found a clear link between road noise and Parkinson’s disease. The research, which followed more than 3 million Danish participants, found a modest but consistent effect: for every 11.5dB rise in noise level, the risk of the degenerative disorder rose by 3% over the 18-year study.

The study adds to the growing body of evidence that auditory nuisance is associated with serious physical consequences. The European Environment Agency reported last year that more than 110 million people across the continent suffer high levels of health-damaging noise pollution, with physiological stress and sleep disturbance leading to 66,000 early deaths annually as well as heart disease, diabetes and depression. It found that the harm caused was greater than from secondhand tobacco smoke exposure.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.

‘They’re part of folklore’: storks return to Derbyshire after 600-year absence

Conservationists are thrilled at the arrival of three juvenile birds at Willington Wetlands, hoping more will follow

A long orange beak poked curiously out from its wooden crate, followed by a sleek head and slender body. Then the first white stork of the morning flapped its wings and took to the air. Moments later a second emerged tentatively to stalk through the long grass, followed closely by a final sibling who stretched its wings and explored the length of the enclosure.

The trio of juvenile white storks have just arrived at their new home in Willington Wetlands in Derbyshire and conservationists are hopeful that their presence will kickstart the return of the birds to the Midlands after an absence of more than 600 years.

In a day of tributes, Lindsey Graham is remembered as a tireless Washington mainstay

Lawmakers, foreign leaders and President Trump gathered Tuesday for the first of two days of funeral services for the late South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Trump: New tariffs 'doing the same thing' as the ones struck down by Supreme Court

President Trump dismissed fears his tariffs could hurt the economy — especially as affordability concerns have become a key issue of the 2026 midterm elections.

Canadians spent $3.3bn less on travel to US in 2025 after Trump’s return to office

Data shows Canadians have replaced US vacations with other international trips in apparent rebuke to Trump

Canadians spent $3.3bn less on travel to the US in 2025 than in the previous year, as Donald Trump’s hostile policies towards his northern neighbour continue to incur an economic cost, new government data shows.

The research also indicates that Canadians are not bucking travel overall and instead have replaced US vacations with other international destinations, in a rebuke to Trump’s tariff regime and the president’s continued musings on annexing Canada.

EBay, former execs to pay $56 million in blogger harassment and stalking case

Ina and David Steiner run a popular ecommerce blog that had angered eBay executives due to its critical coverage.

Almost 4,000 people evacuated from tourist sites near Bordeaux as wildfires rage in France and Spain

Return of winds and extreme heat threaten firefighters’ attempts to bring blazes under control

Nearly 4,000 people have been evacuated from tourist sites on France’s Atlantic coast as the return of winds and extreme heat jeopardises firefighters’ battles to contain wildfires raging in France and Spain.

The precautionary evacuation order in France, which covers campsites, holiday villages and other tourist accommodation around the resort of Lacanau to the west of Bordeaux, exacerbated a wildfire emergency described by the French president, Emmanuel Macron, as the “toughest” situation the country had dealt with since the second world war.

Microsoft touts cost-saving AI model for cybersecurity

Microsoft says that when integrated with OpenAI's GPT-5.4, its new cybersecurity model can beat Anthropic's new Mythos 5.

Ian McDonald obituary

Trinidad-born author and poet whose novel The Humming-Bird Tree is a classic of Caribbean literature

Ian McDonald, who has died aged 93, wrote only one novel, but it is considered a classic of Caribbean literature. The Humming-Bird Tree (1969), set in Trinidad in the late 1940s, tells the story of Alan, a young white boy, as he falls into friendship with his family’s yard-boy, Kaiser, who is of Indian extraction, and in love with Kaiser’s younger sister, Jaillin, who is also employed by Alan’s wealthy parents.

While Alan and Jaillin skirt around each other, trying to come to terms with the confusing feelings of their mutual attraction and the disapproval of Alan’s mother and father, wider emotional turmoil is at play in Trinidad, where the masses are beginning to throw off the yoke of British rule.

Tory MP accuses French navy of firing ‘warning’ shots near him in Channel

Chris Philp says shots were ‘deliberate intimidation’ while he filmed interview on small boats crisis but France says it was training exercise

When Chris Philp heard a volley of shots on the high seas and spun round to see a French gunship, he believed he was the victim of naval aggression – and updated his social media feed accordingly.

The reality appears to be more mundane: it was, the French authorities said, a routine Channel training exercise by officers who had no idea that the shadow home affairs spokesperson was present, or who he was in the first place.

Fifa accused of ‘selling the soul of football’ over $20bn World Cup commercial rights sale plan

• World governing body set to raise millions from venture

• Uefa hits out at proposal and could take legal action

• Explainer: what Fifa’s plans mean and what happens next

Fifa has announced plans to sell the commercial rights to its tournaments, including the World Cup, to private investors in a controversial move that triggered an immediate backlash from Uefa, leading European clubs and politicians.

Uefa released a strongly worded statement accusing Fifa of “attempting to sell the soul of football” and is believed to be considering its legal position, while sources at numerous elite clubs were highly critical of the proposal in private. Andy Burnham, the UK’s new prime minister, condemned the move.

How to get a good night’s sleep in hot weather – and why it’s so hard

Avoid espresso martinis and wear the right pyjamas: experts give tips on how to sleep when it’s hot outside

• Tell us: what impact have GLP-1s had on your relationships?

Getting a good night’s sleep when it’s hot out can feel impossible. Unfortunately, worrying about not being well-rested doesn’t help.

Experts say worrying about sleep in warm weather will inevitably make you feel worse. “When people cannot sleep because they are too hot, it often becomes both a physical and a mental challenge,” says Dr Shelby Harris, founder and director of NY Sleep and Psychology, and author of The Women’s Guide to Overcoming Insomnia. “They may start watching the clock, worrying about how tired they will be the next day, or trying harder to force themselves to fall asleep.

Blurred front lines: Trump meets Zelenskyy as Ukraine, Iran wars collide

Trump and Zelenskyy meet as the U.S war against Iran and Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine have threatened to overlap in recent days.

‘We’ve always been wary of working together’: Val McDermid and Jo Sharp on writing a novel as a couple

The bestselling crime writer and Scotland’s first female Geographer Royal had long kept their work separate, until a chance discovery about a doomed 17th-century expedition forced them to collaborate

The airy, modern house on the outskirts of Edinburgh shared by Val McDermid and Jo Sharp is surrounded by greenery and feels as though it was designed to provide enough space for two minds to think.

Both women are high achievers in their fields, a Scottish power couple made up of the Queen of Crime and the Scottish Geographer Royal. Happily for them, there is normally no overlap in their work.

Jon Stewart on Trump’s comedy routine: ‘Normally I’d say don’t quit your day job but in this case …’

Late-night hosts raked over the president’s much-ridiculed performance at the White House correspondents’ dinner

Late-night hosts ridiculed Donald Trump’s disastrous attempt at a comedy routine at the weekend’s White House correspondents’ dinner.

Photos: Spain and France battle record wildfires

Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes as powerful wildfires sweep across Spain and France, revealing the growing scale of a climate crisis already reshaping the continent.

'Ricochet' explores how the right to bear arms expands -- while gun laws contract

The New York Times reporter Mike McIntire says gun companies and the NRA are broadening the scope of the Second Amendment, socializing kids to appreciate guns and marketing a new brand of masculinity.

‘He liked to get people’s blood boiling’: metal masters Mastodon on the loss of bandmate Brent Hinds – and his shocking words before his death

The Grammy-winning band had an acrimonious rift with Hinds – then he died in a motorbike crash. They explain how they’re paying tribute on their new album, and why their love for each other never ended

Mastodon are near the end of a tour where they’re playing 22 shows in 14 different European countries during a record-breaking heatwave, when they video-call me outside a Bordeaux venue. Bassist and co-lead singer Troy Sanders says the experience has been “31 days of musical bliss”. He’s not being sarcastic, either.

“Things are super energetic, even at day 31,” he insists. “We’re contemplating even staying in Europe for a few days when this tour is over, because we’re enjoying ourselves so much.” It’s pleasantly surprising to see Sanders and drummer/co-vocalist Brann Dailor, sat to his left, in such high spirits, given the anguish and unrest they’ve endured over the last 18 months.

Hosta hideout and a queen bee – readers’ best photographs

Click here to submit a picture for publication in these online galleries and/or on the Guardian letters page

New Republican ads slam Democrats opposed to Trump's tariffs

As the 2026 midterm elections approach, the National Republican Congressional Committee is knocking Democrats who have opposed President Donald Trump's tariffs.

Coca-Cola hikes full-year forecast. CEO tells CNBC the World Cup boosted its brands

Coca-Cola said demand for its drinks rose in every market in the second quarter, helped in part by the World Cup.

Black motorcycle clubs come alive in the summer: ‘The best way to build community is on two wheels’

Building on decades-long traditions, Black bikers host rides, picnics and other gatherings nearly every summer weekend to celebrate community and freedom

The trip was only supposed to be a Memorial Day weekend girls’ getaway to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, for Patrice “Foxy” Johnson. But once Johnson and her crew arrived, they inadvertently found themselves in the middle of an annual bike week where several thousand riders had convened. Johnson watched the “backpacks”, or the women who rode on the backs of male motorcyclists’ bikes, and realized she too wanted to be part of the community. She didn’t want to accompany the male riders, though. She wanted to ride herself.

In that moment about 30 years ago, Johnson decided that next time she would be attending bike week and coming with her own set of wheels. Once she returned to her home town of Raleigh, North Carolina, she enrolled in a foundational bike riding class at Johnston community college to learn more about motorcycles. Since then, she’s become such a staple in the Black motorcycle community nationwide that she holds multiple leadership positions across organizations.

‘Topless modelling never aligned with me’: inside Everyone’s Seen My Tits, the play by a former page 3 model

As she brings her memoir to the Edinburgh festival, Keeley Hazell talks about trauma, exploitation, the hollowness of the high life – and her new career as a writer on Ted Lasso

There was a time in the mid-2000s when it felt as though “everyone” had seen her topless, says Keeley Hazell. Page 3 was a staple of the tabloid press, lads’ mags were booming and she was one of the country’s most recognisable glamour models. “There was excitement, but also a lot of shame and embarrassment,” the softly spoken Hazell reflects. “Topless modelling never really aligned with me as a person.”

Hazell, who was born in Lewisham, London, left modelling in her early 20s and moved to LA to become an actor. But the emotional impact of her time in the industry has stayed with her, partly inspiring her 2025 book Everyone’s Seen My Tits: Stories and Reflections from an Unlikely Feminist. She describes the writing process as a “release” when we meet in London, where she has been preparing for an Edinburgh fringe theatre/comedy show based on the book. “I was able to give myself a voice,” she says, for “a period where I felt voiceless”.

Qantas plane flies for more than 24 hours in record-breaking flight

The A350 landed in Toulouse 24 hours and 24 minutes after leaving Melbourne as airline plans direct London service

• Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates

• Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

Qantas completed what is believed to be the longest-ever commercial flight when its Airbus jet landed in Toulouse on Tuesday after a flight from Melbourne lasting 24 hours and 24 minutes.

The flight, which triggered a surge in online tracking, is part of the airline’s Project Sunrise in which it plans to use a new A350 jet to fly nonstop from Australia to London.

It’s time to prosecute climate crimes – with laws that already exist | Aaron Regunberg

Some have called for Nuremberg-style trials against big oil. But there are laws already on the books to describe companies’ conduct

The sky outside is hazy orange, and my five-year-old son is screaming bloody murder. “Sorry, buddy, we have to stay inside,” I say. “It’s not safe to breathe out there.” I had told him we’d be going to the beach today. Something inside me tears a little as I wonder how many promises he’ll see similarly broken in the coming years.

Far too many parents were forced to have some version of this conversation with their children this month, as smoke from record-breaking wildfires poured across the midwest and north-east. Some of them already had to tell their kids that their Fourth of July festivities were canceled because of the lethal heatwave that caused numerous mass casualty events earlier this month.

How close is the Trump administration to the toxic Tate brothers? Let’s ask the president’s son Barron … | Arwa Mahdawi

The 20-year-old crypto bro likes to keep a low profile. He could still be forced to testify before the House oversight committee

Unlike his garrulous father, Barron Trump seems to be a man of few words. The president’s youngest son has been busy flogging energy drinks and making millions from cryptocurrency schemes, but he’s not big on public speaking. Indeed, the best-known clip of him talking is probably from when he was four years old and said “I like my suitcase” in a Slovenian accent.

Still, while 20-year-old Barron Trump might prefer to stay behind the scenes, he may find himself hauled in front of Congress and forced to answer some difficult questions. Last week, Yassamin Ansari, a Democratic congresswoman and a member of the House oversight committee, called for Barron to testify about his alleged connections to the toxic influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate. The Tate brothers, who have become household names by monetising misogyny, were recently arrested in Miami, just before Andrew was due to co-host a bare-knuckle boxing event. They’re now fighting extradition to the UK, and face allegations of rape, assault, trafficking and offences relating to “indecent images of a child and extreme pornography”. They deny these charges.

Geraint Thomas and rebranded Ineos face hard truths after Tour de France misery | Jeremy Whittle

Oscar Onley’s pre-race injury presaged three bleak weeks and new director of racing knows he has his work cut out

Crashes, punctures and injuries ensured that the 2026 Tour de France campaign was one of the worst for the beleaguered Netcompany Ineos team. From the first stage, when Dave Brailsford’s team came close to winning the team time trial in Montjuic, the 2026 Tour was, in the words of their director of racing, Geraint Thomas, “tough going”.

Thomas, who has taken Brailsford’s place as the team’s frontman, said: “I’m happy to not be racing any more, because I suffered way too much. But it’s good to still be involved in the nitty‑gritty of it.”

Boeing posts wider loss than expected as Air Force One costs weigh on results

Boeing took a $280 million charge on its long-delayed Air Force One program.

Roberto Mancini returns as Italy head coach with Claudio Ranieri named technical director

• Mancini replaces Gattuso for second spell in charge

• Ranieri takes over from Paolo Maldini in overseeing role

Roberto Mancini has agreed to be Italy head coach for a second time, the president of the Italian Football ​Federation (FIGC), Giovanni Malagò, said on Tuesday, also confirming Claudio Ranieri would take over as technical director.

Mancini replaces Gennaro Gattuso, who ⁠left the post in April after Italy failed to qualify for a third World Cup in succession, and returns to a job he held between 2018 and 2023. He led the national team to European Championship glory in 2021 with a penalty shootout victory over England at Wembley but then failed to reach the 2022 World Cup and a slow start to Euro 2024 qualifying. In total, Mancini managed Italy for 58 matches during his first spell and at club level has managed Inter, Fiorentina and Manchester City, where he spent three years and guided them to their first Premier League title in 2011-12.

The great PlayStation blackout – will kids actually have to leave their bedrooms this summer?

Gamers are angry that Sony will be deleting TV shows and films from their libraries as well as getting rid of physical games. Will a boycott make a difference?

Name: PlayStation blackout.

Age: Forthcoming.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day review – Zendaya saves Tom Holland’s semi-Cronenberg-style superhero

Now 30, Holland is back as the vexed webslinger in a sometimes shocking, occasionally sluggish new instalment opposite his Odyssey castmate

Just a few weeks ago, Tom Holland was telling us that his role as Telemachus in Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey was his “last chance to play a boy”. Well, Holland is back as the supposedly scrappy, gawky, arachnid young superhero Spider-Man. Not Spider-Boy admittedly, and these days Holland is actually a chunkier and more stacked Spidey than previously, flexing some pretty serious biceps. He is maturing in the role. But is the role maturing with him?

The point is that this film is a reset. At the end of the last movie Spider-Man: No Way Home, courtesy of Dr Strange’s colossal psychic powers – which might have come in handy in this episode incidentally, part of the narrative-universe inconsistency that you just have to overlook – Peter Parker was able to erase everyone’s knowledge that he is, in fact, Spider-Man, and that includes his goofy best friend Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon) and more to the point, the love of his life MJ (Zendaya).

Here are the 13 books that made the Booker Prize longlist

The 2026 list includes new works from household names Douglas Stuart, Marlon James and Elizabeth Strout as well as a few debut authors.

This Booker longlist may have two previous winners, but it’s keen to experiment

Marlon James, Douglas Stuart and Elizabeth Strout are names we know, but there’s a welcome element of surprise elsewhere

• Previous winners Douglas Stuart and Marlon James lead Booker prize longlist

This year’s Booker longlist is led by two previous winners. Twelve years on from A Brief History of Seven Killings, Marlon James returns to Jamaica in The Disappearers, out in September: a polyphonic epic of a murderous mob attack on a gay theatre group in 1988 Kingston, and the two-decade aftermath of trauma and revenge that follows. A brutal expose of Jamaica’s homophobia, it’s also an energetic portrait of queer culture and the Caribbean diaspora. Douglas Stuart, whose debut Shuggie Bain won in 2020, is included for John of John, in which a young gay man returns to his childhood home on the Hebridean island of Harris, where his devout father is also hiding his sexuality. Both novels open up territory not often trod in literature, with Stuart illuminating faith, repression and the fading traditions of the Scottish Hebrides.

It’s no surprise either to see a third nomination for Elizabeth Strout. The Things We Never Say introduces new characters to her fictional universe, in the story of a fiftysomething teacher with a secret in his marriage and a sadness in his heart. Strout has always been interested in class and deprivation in American society; the spectre of Trump brings a growing darkness, but as ever her spiky warmth and wisdom carry the reader through. The other big-name American author on the list is Emma Cline; Switzy, out in September, takes us inside the mind of a high flyer whose grip on the world is failing as dementia encroaches. David is taking his last journey, to a euthanasia clinic in Zurich, and on the way will hopefully make his final reckonings with friends and family while he can still recognise them. It’s a technical tour de force of the unreliable narrator, and a hugely moving account of life’s meaning as everything is stripped away.

Previous winners Douglas Stuart and Marlon James lead Booker prize longlist

Chair of judges Mary Beard said each of the 13 books in contention for the £50,000 award ‘takes the reader to new places’

• Comment: This Booker longlist may have two previous winners, but it’s keen to experiment

Douglas Stuart and Marlon James, two previous winners of the Booker, have been named on this year’s longlist, alongside three-time nominee Elizabeth Strout, in a collection that “rewards risk”.

The 13 novels selected for the 2026 prize, announced on Tuesday, feature authors of seven nationalities across three continents, with almost half from the UK. Ten of the writers are appearing on a Booker longlist for the first time, including three debut novelists: Kenan Orhan, Rebecca Perry and Djamel White.

Giving birth in the shadow of Haiti’s gang violence – photo essay

As fighting intensifies in Port-au-Prince, only a fraction of its maternity services remain, and they are under constant threat

Eight months pregnant, Françoise, 45, arrives early in the morning at a deserted school in Bel Air. The hillside neighbourhood in Port-au-Prince has been controlled by gangs since a violent takeover in 2019. Schools have closed, electricity has been cut off and food is scarce. Gunfights can erupt at any time.

Françoise having a Doppler ultrasound in a clinic set up for a few hours inside a deserted school in Bel Air

Apple plans to lease iPhones for $17.99 a month through partnership with Klarna

Apple is announcing an iPhone lease option weeks after raising iPad and Mac prices due to the global memory shortage.

There’s a science to rolling out fresh pasta | Kitchen aide

Tearing is a common problem with pasta dough say our experts. Culprits include the wrong type of flour, cold dough – or it could even boil down to the size of your egg

When making fresh pasta, why does the dough sometimes tear when rolling, and other times not?
Thomas, by email
“I’m sorry to hear your pasta is rippy,” sympathises Jacob Kenedy, chef-patron of Bocca di Lupo in London, who is teaming up with fellow chef Merlin Labron-Johnson to celebrate the Italian midsummer holiday ferragosto with two feasts in Somerset next month. Assuming Thomas is rolling an egg pasta dough in a pasta machine, there are a number of possible explanations. First, Kenedy says, he might be using the wrong type of flour (“use 00 flour”), the dough might be too cold (“use it at room temperature”) or too dry (“it should be supple, like Play-Doh”). Naz Hassan, head chef of Ornella and Lupa, both in London, adds that the latter might be down to the size of the egg(s) Thomas is using: “One egg to 100g of 00 flour is the basic pasta dough recipe, but that will vary depending on the size of your egg,” he says. Of course, some people prefer to use just the yolk, and if that applies to Thomas, Hassan suggests thinking about maybe adding the egg white, too: “It has the structure that allows pasta to have the stretchiness it deserves.”

But, in true Goldilocks style, a dough that is too wet might also spell trouble, Kenedy says: “I like my pasta dough wet enough to roll by hand – it gives a more elastic mouthfeel – which means, if I roll it in a machine, it sticks slightly to the roller and may rip.” The fix? Laminate the dough thoroughly and perhaps use “the finest dusting” of flour until the dough passes smoothly through the pasta machine. “Then make sure to roll that flour in, so the outside of the pasta isn’t dusty,” Kenedy adds.