‘Alright mate?’: Amazon pins UK hopes on AI upgrade of Alexa

• Analyst James Dorsey reported on June 12, 2026, that while negotiations between Iran and the U.S. may be possible, deep strategic disputes persist. • Regional actors, including Israel, Gulf states, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, continue to influence the conflict's trajectory based on their own priorities.

• Envoys from the UK, France, and Germany issued a joint statement following diplomatic discussions in Moscow. • The representatives formally conveyed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's request for direct negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

• Multinational banks are reassessing their cross-border strategies as geopolitical considerations increasingly influence how they organize international operations and evaluate risk. • Financial institutions are now balancing the pursuit of robust financial performance with the need to manage complex geopolitical exposure.

Possible suspect in Midland attack was in a standoff with officers on Friday afternoon, police saySign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailA shooting on Friday in Midland, Texas, has left one person dead and nine others in the hospital, according to the city’s authorities.The possible suspect was in a standoff with officers on Friday afternoon, police said. Continue reading...

Amid rhetoric, market uncertainty and tit-for-tit exchanges, the two sides are still trying to find a way out of the impasseGreat news! Donald Trump has said the US and Iran are on the verge of a peace agreement. Oil prices are down, and the stock market is up. This comes only hours after Trump warned Iran was about to be struck “VERY HARD”, a threat which had sent oil prices up and stocks down.It has been another ride on the Trump rollercoaster, keeping traders on edge, most of the world poorer, and people of the Middle East constantly whiplashing between fear and hope. But whether the ride veers up or down, the management always makes money. Continue reading...

Consumer sentiment still remains at historically low levels amid Iran war and rising inflation, new survey showsEasing gas prices are making Americans feel better about their personal finances and the economy in June, but consumer sentiment remains at historically low levels amid ongoing conflict in the Middle East, according to new survey data from the University of Michigan.The latest numbers come as SpaceX marks its historic stock market debut, which will likely make Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire. Yet many Americans still feel like they’re struggling even as the stock market reaches record-highs. Continue reading...

President is first in US history to be impeached twice, over abuse of power and inciting an insurrectionDonald Trump is pressing Congress to erase one of the darkest chapters of his political career, urging Republicans to pass a resolution that would symbolically nullify the two impeachments he suffered during his first term in office.The effort, first reported by the Wall Street Journal and confirmed by a White House official, would allow Trump to claim a symbolic victory on a key grievance from his first term. But experts say it would have little legal significance, since the constitution provides no procedure for undoing an impeachment. Continue reading...

Paris meeting draws up proposals and calls for ‘urgent diplomacy’ towards two-state solution at summit next weekPalestinian and Israeli civil society groups meeting in Paris on Friday have urged G7 leaders to act at their summit in the French spa town of Évian-les-Bains next week to save the narrowing chances of a two-state solution.The groups called for specific action on enforcing a ceasefire, disarming Hamas and starting reconstruction in Gaza, and said the various peace processes including the Board of Peace initiative should be integrated into one programme. Continue reading...

Public figures sign open letter calling for scheme to be moved from Home Office to independent bodyUK politics live – latest updatesThe prime minister and the home secretary have been urged to remove the Windrush compensation scheme from Home Office control.About 70 public figures have signed an open letter backing a call by the Windrush Justice Community Collective (WJCC) for a radical overhaul of the scheme, which was set up to compensate those, mainly Black Britons, who were wrongly classed as illegal migrants and stripped of citizenship rights over decades. Continue reading...

Trump administration created fund to resolve his lawsuit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returnsSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailA US federal judge agreed on Friday to extend a court-ordered block on the Trump administration’s creation and operation of a $1.8bn settlement fund for compensating people who claim to be victims of a weaponized government.Earlier this month, Todd Blanche, the acting US attorney general, told Congress that the government is scrapping its plans for the fund in the face of a fierce bipartisan backlash. Government attorneys have argued that lawsuits challenging the fund are now moot, but plaintiffs’ attorneys aren’t satisfied by Blanche’s assurances that the fund won’t move forward. Continue reading...

Report by Labor-led joint human rights committee says cuts to the $50bn scheme could limit support for those in needGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSweeping changes to the NDIS appear “retrogressive” and lack alignment with a landmark independent review to improve the $50bn-a-year scheme, a Labor-led committee has found.The 57-page scrutiny report from the joint human rights committee, released on Friday, examined the proposed changes under the Albanese government ahead of a separate report due next week by a Senate inquiry. The Labor-chaired committee questioned the human rights implications of winding back access for more than 200,000 participants in the coming years, which could leave many without sufficient disability support. Continue reading...

Exclusive A vast area of the Bellingshausen Sea should be covered by sea ice by now, with one expert calling the loss of ice ‘depressing’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAntarctica’s west coast is missing an area of winter sea ice the size of France, sparking concerns for threatened penguins other marine life and global sea levels.One expert said the loss of ice in the Bellingshausen Sea was “depressing” and the failure of ice to form could have intensified a heatwave over the continent’s peninsular last week that saw daytime temperatures peak at 15.4C which is more than 20C above average. Continue reading...