AOC vows to block future US military aid to Israel, its Iron Dome and defense

Poll finds consensus on what makes people proud to be British but deep divisions on issues such as immigrationYou may think it’s a commitment to buying a round, the ability to chat at length about the weather, or making a proper cup of tea. But when it comes down to what makes people proud to be British, there is a consensus across all ages, demographics and political groups – and tea, pints and the weather don’t get a look-in.Hard work, fair play and community are the values that voters – no matter which political party, age group, social class or region they come from – instinctively believe capture what it means to be British, according to a large-scale study of British values by Public First. Continue reading...

Baltimore officer Dequwan Houchins, 30, indicted for allegedly making false traffic stop reports for monthsA Baltimore, Maryland, police officer avoided service calls by claiming he was on traffic stops when he was in fact “sitting idle in his car”, according to an indictment filed by city prosecutors.Dequwan Houchins, 30, is accused of four counts of false entry in a public record and five counts of misconduct in office and could face 12 years in jail and a $4,000 fine for each of the false entry charges, if convicted. Continue reading...

Buildings collapse and more than 470 people hurt in 7.4-magnitude quake. Plus, in such a vast universe why is there no sign of aliens?Good morning. More than 130 people died after a powerful earthquake struck western Colombia, collapsing and severely damaging scores of buildings in main cities, including Cali and Pereira.The US and Colombian geological surveys reported that a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck at 7.34am local time on Monday, with its epicentre in the western department of Chocó. It was felt in neighbouring Venezuela, still reeling from a deadly double earthquake on 24 June. The quake killed at least 132 people and more than 570 were injured as of Monday afternoon, according to the Colombian Association of Capital Cities, which coordinates cities across the country.How has the government responded? In a national address, Colombia’s president, Abelardo de la Espriella, said: “The ⁠national government has all of its capabilities deployed to protect lives, assist affected communities and deliver aid wherever it is ​needed. The first priority is rescuing the people trapped under the rubble. Colombia has a president whose heart aches for his people and who will do everything in his power to help them in the most difficult moments.” Continue reading...

British driver Andy Green will try to beat his own record, set 20 years ago, with a hydrogen-powered carThe first – and only – person to break the sound barrier in a car hits the track in Utah this week with new wheels and his eye on another record.Twenty years ago, British driver Andy Green set the land speed record for a diesel-powered car, reaching 350.092 mph (563.4 km/h) at Utah’s famous Bonneville Salt Flats. Green will return to the lunarlike landscape Tuesday and try to beat that mark, this time with a hydrogen-powered car. Continue reading...

Staff at North Devon district hospital given training in difficult births in case mothers-to-be cannot get to ExeterDoctors at one of England’s remotest hospitals have been given a “crash course” in birth emergencies after its maternity unit was shut and as fears grow that the safety of women and babies may be put at risk.From Tuesday, the maternity service at North Devon district hospital (NDDH) in Barnstaple has been suspended indefinitely owing to staff shortages, leaving many pregnant women facing a journey of at least an hour and a half when they go into labour. Continue reading...

Rooms in Icelandic capital Reykjavík cost double usual rate and Spain also enjoying strong bookingsEurope’s total solar eclipse: the best place to see itHotel prices have surged in key European cities as hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to see the first total eclipse visible from the continent this century.Iceland’s capital, Reykjavík, has seen one of the biggest jumps in hotel room prices, being one of the few accessible locations to see the full eclipse before evening on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Largest for-profit hospital system and operator in the US reported $6.8bn in profits, while employees find it difficult to make ends meetUnion workers with HCA Healthcare, the largest for-profit hospital system and operator in the US, are holding picket protests across the country as they push for pay and staffing increases in a new contract.The hospital system has over 300,000 employees in the US and the UK, with 22,000 US workers represented by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) who are in contract negotiations with HCA. Workers are asking for a pathway to a $25 an hour minimum wage, improved wage scales and raises that match the increased cost of living, along with benefits including paid vacation, sick time and bolstered work protections. Continue reading...

Two advisers have links to a venture fund co-investing in US defense companies that benefit from federal spendingPete Hegseth’s appointments to a key Pentagon advisory body include two men with ties to the venture capital fund where Donald Trump Jr is a partner, which has lucrative investments in military and space technology.Defense Policy Board appointee Marc Andreessen’s firm, Andreessen Horowitz, one of Silicon Valley’s largest venture capital firms and known by the name “a16z”, co-invests alongside the Trump partnership 1789 Capital in three defense contractors. Fellow DPB appointee Blake Masters also sits on the boards of three ventures tied to 1789 Capital. Continue reading...

Tuesday’s competitions in Wisconsin and Minnesota follow similar battles for the direction of the party, including last week in Michigan where progressive Abdul El-Sayed triumphedSign up to the US Breaking News emailHello and welcome to the US politics live blog.Democratic primaries for governor in Wisconsin and US senator in Minnesota will once again see left-wing candidates face off against more traditional ones.President Donald Trump departed on a secret military flight from Turkey last month when the White House said he was flying aboard ⁠Air Force One, an extraordinary move prompted by an Iranian assassination threat, the Washington Post reported on Monday.Trump signed an executive order that will involve splitting up the highly effective measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine into three single shots. The president also announced an overhaul to the childhood immunization schedule, scrapping recommendations for the hepatitis b, Covid-19 and influenza vaccines. He also suggested that the number of inoculations is linked to the rate of autism in the US, despite no proven link between the two. Medical experts have blasted the changes, calling it “problematic and deeply concerning.”Todd Blanche has been sworn as US attorney general, cementing Trump’s installation of his former personal attorney in charge of the Department of Justice. Blanche, who has been serving as acting attorney general since April, was confirmed in his new position during a ceremony at the White House on Monday.Trump has named White House staff secretary Will Scharf to become White ​House counsel and assistant to the president, replacing David Warrington, who is taking a job in the private sector. In taking up that role, Scharf will become the White House’s top lawyer after overseeing the administrative work of the Oval Office in his current position.Lawyers for David Hearn, the Olympian who was arrested for alleged property destruction of the reflecting pool before his charges were dropped, said that the Trump administration is “continuing to attack an innocent man”. Continue reading...

Verdict relates to atrocities committed during the country’s 14-year civil war in which about 500,000 people diedA Syrian court has sentenced the country’s former president Bashar al-Assad and his brother Maher to death in absentia for crimes against humanity and war crimes during the 14-year civil war, in which about half a million people died.The two men fled to Moscow after being ousted by a lightning rebel offensive in December 2024 which toppled the dictatorial regime in just 11 days. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Court service says anyone trying to enter buildings with glasses will have them confiscated and returned when they leaveCourts in England and Wales have joined a number of restaurants, theatres and pubs in banning Meta glasses, amid a mounting backlash against what has been described as “spyware”.Last month courts in New York announced a ban on the controversial glasses, which can record video footage while being worn. Continue reading...

The wild capture and release of a female big cat into a nature reserve is the first step towards reintroducing a population that hasn’t been seen for 70 yearsOn 31 July, “Umit” – which means hope in Kazakh – was released into a nature reserve on the edge of Lake Balkhash after more than a decade of careful planning to return the caspian tiger to the region. With this release, Kazakhstan became the first country to restore its tiger range after they had been thought extinct, with the last reliable sighting in the country recorded more than 70 years ago.Umit – a wild-caught female tiger transported from the Russian far east – will be joined by more big cats in the coming years, with plans to establish a self-sustaining population of about 50. A wild-caught male flown from Russia is still being monitored by authorities and will be released when he is judged fit to survive alone. Two wild tiger cubs are also being reared on the reserve in special enclosures, with as little human contact as possible, and are likely to be released into the marshlands next year, to feast on boar, deer and kulans, a type of wild donkey. Continue reading...