AstraZeneca holds talks with Bristol Myers Squibb on $400bn merger

• India's Permanent Representative P Harish urged the UN Security Council (UNSC) to take immediate action to mitigate the humanitarian fallout of global conflicts. • Speaking during a Tuesday open debate titled "Food Under Fire," Harish highlighted how modern conflicts create ripple effects that extend far beyond the immediate zones of hostility.

• UN Secretary-General informed the Security Council that 2025 recorded the highest number of armed conflicts since the Second World War. • The report highlighted record-breaking levels of acute hunger globally, marking a critical humanitarian crisis.

• A left-wing NGO reported that "Jewish terrorists" attacked its activists in the West Bank on August 25, while a Palestinian woman was reportedly detained after reporting settler violence at her home. • In a separate diplomatic clash, Sa'ar booted Dutch representatives from a US-backed Gaza coordination center, citing the implementation of "anti-Israel measures."

• UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Monday that the global food supply has become "collateral damage" due to ongoing geopolitical conflicts. • He highlighted that disruptions to maritime traffic in the Black Sea, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Bab al-Mandab Strait have severely worsened hunger crises.

• UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called on the Security Council to break the "vicious cycle" between armed conflict and global food insecurity. • Guterres emphasized the need for practical arrangements to facilitate humanitarian operations and ensure the safety of aid workers delivering lifesaving supplies.

• UN Under-Secretary-General Tom Fletcher briefed the Security Council, warning that Sudan is suffering from a critical "lack of action" regarding its humanitarian crisis. • The relief effort is currently supported by ten major donors, with the United States providing nearly half of the total funding.

• UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an immediate end to attacks on commercial shipping and civilian infrastructure to protect global trade arteries. • Guterres urged all parties to strictly adhere to international law and restore navigational freedoms amidst escalating regional conflicts.

Reproductive Freedom for All – one of the country’s oldest pro-choice groups – backs Jackson in his fight against Republican Susan CollinsOne of the oldest abortion rights groups in the US is endorsing Troy Jackson, the Democratic nominee in Maine’s critical US Senate race, according to details first shared with the Guardian.Reproductive Freedom for All is supporting Jackson, the former state senate president, in challenging Susan Collins – the five‑term Republican incumbent who has been dogged on the campaign trail for her role in overturning abortion access in the US. Continue reading...

ONS figures show rising toll of extreme weather, with officials warning this summer on track to set further recordsOver 40,000 more people died on the hottest days in England between 1988 and 2025 than would be expected, according to data published by the Office for National Statistics on Wednesday.The figures do not include this summer, when England has sweltered under a succession of heatwaves and is on track to record its highest ever number of heat-related deaths. The UK Health Security Agency announced on 30 July that an estimated 2,877 people had died in the May and June heatwaves alone. The total is almost double the figure for the whole summer in 2025. Continue reading...

In Ghana, a grassroots movement is championing nutritious, homegrown, climate-resilient produce, rather than western importsAfter three years at catering school, Abiro Wisdom was certain of one thing – he did not want to go into catering. At least not the route that he might be expected to take. His course at Accra Technical University had prepared students for working in international hotels, focusing on French, Italian and Mexican cuisine. The nutritious, homegrown food that Wisdom had eaten while growing up in Bolgatanga, northern Ghana, did not feature at all.“I didn’t see myself there,” he says of the big chain hotels. “I felt I wouldn’t be myself working there – I wouldn’t be able to talk about the food from where I come from.” Continue reading...

Uber and Wayve had said they would start trips ‘later this summer’ but launch now looks unlikely this yearThe rollout of robotaxis on the streets of London is unlikely to happen this year, as regulatory and technical hurdles push back the ambitious schedule set out by the UK government.Only weeks ago Uber and London-based Wayve were granted the first minicab licences in the capital to allow them to offer self-driving taxi rides to paying customers – but with a human safety driver in place, for now – and said they would start trips “later this summer” before a full public launch. Continue reading...

About 400,000 juvenile Sydney rock oysters were taken from an oyster farm on state’s mid-north coast earlier this year, police sayGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPolice are on the hunt for a seafood swindler after 400,000 oysters were allegedly stolen from a farm at a river on the New South Wales mid-north coast.About 320 bags of juvenile oysters, worth an estimated $350,000, were taken from an oyster farm in Scotts Creek, Oxley Island, earlier this year, according to NSW police. Continue reading...