Brethren church denies paying far-right activists to stage election stunts targeting Albanese and others

• JD Vance stated that the U.S. is entering a "new phase" of economic pressure against Iran, while Iran dismissed Donald Trump's threat of an "economic D-Day" as a repetition of failed policies. • In a separate diplomatic development, Canada and six European nations condemned a contentious Israeli settlement project located near Jerusalem.

• India and Bangladesh are facing a critical diplomatic test regarding the management of the Teesta River and the strategic "Chicken's Neck" corridor. • The situation is being exacerbated by climate change, which has increased hydrological uncertainty, alongside rising agricultural demands and intensifying strategic competition.

• Experts interviewed by Vedomosti on August 20th report that Europe's economic gap with the United States is widening due to lower labor productivity and structural challenges. • The decline is attributed to a combination of demographic issues, exchange-rate effects, and a heavy dependence on foreign trade.

Report says West Bank violence moving from Israeli-controlled areas to those under direct Palestinian ruleViolent Israeli settler attacks in the two areas of the occupied West Bank under direct Palestinian rule have almost doubled since 2025, as settlers pursue a self-proclaimed “great settlement revolution” in the very heart of the territory earmarked for a Palestinian state.According to a report by the Israeli human rights organisation Yesh Din, shared with the Guardian, data shows that almost two-thirds of incidents of settler violence so far in 2026 have taken place in the so-called Areas A and B – placed under Palestinian Authority governance in the 1995 Oslo accords. Continue reading...

National Trust’s Holnicote estate says restored wetlands and rivers offer proof of resilience to drought, wildfires and floodingAerial footage of an estate in Somerset has revealed the benefits of rewilding land in the face of extreme weather brought about by the climate crisis.The area of the National Trust’s Holnicote estate where rivers have been returned to their natural courses and wetlands have been restored have remained green and lush during the five heatwaves across the summer. In contrast, the surrounding countryside has become parched and brown. Continue reading...

Decade-long study finds stark gender difference in outcomes of people with heart diseaseMillions of men with heart disease have a higher risk of developing and dying from cancer, according to a decades-long study.The biggest drivers behind male cases were smoking, obesity and drinking too much alcohol, researchers said, with the link most pronounced in lung and oesophageal cancers. Continue reading...

Russian fleet launched missile drill near what Moscow calls the Kuril Islands but Japan regards as its Northern TerritoriesJapan has criticised missile tests carried out by Russia’s navy around the disputed islands visited by Vladimir Putin last week amid continuing tensions between the two countries.Russia’s Pacific fleet said on Thursday that it had fired Bastion surface-to-ship missiles from Etorofu, the largest island in the disputed archipelago, simulating an attack on enemy vessels, hitting all of its targets approximately 300km away. Continue reading...

Jenny Ware, member of inquiry that recommended wagering advertising ban, says ‘public health crisis’ demands stronger response from major partiesFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe former Liberal MP Jenny Ware has condemned her one-time Coalition colleagues for backing Labor’s gambling legislation, claiming “vulnerable Australians have been let down”, as the parliament failed to back a full ban on wagering ads.Ware, a member of the Peta Murphy-led inquiry in 2023 that recommended entirely ending wagering advertising and inducements, called gambling a public health crisis that demanded a much stronger response from both sides of politics. Continue reading...

Value of banknotes in circulation rises from €1bn in 2016 to €1.6bn in 2026 as people advised to keep stash of cashThe number of banknotes in circulation in the EU is increasing despite widespread smartphone payments, new data shows, with wildfires ripping through parts of Europe fuelling demand for an emergency stash of cash.While cash plays second fiddle to contactless payments in many cities across Europe, the amount in circulation is actually going up, Philip Lane, the chief economist of the European Central Bank (ECB), said at the MacGill summer school conference in Ireland. Continue reading...

Chester zoo resident, 23, ‘back to her usual feisty self’ after electrochemotherapy for tumour in her jawA 15ft (4.5-metre) python is believed to be the first snake in the world to be given a pioneering, life-saving cancer treatment normally used on humans.The 50kg reticulated python, named Jodie Foster after the Hollywood star, has just turned 23 and lives at Chester zoo. Keepers first became concerned that she may be unwell when she began eating less and spending more time inactive in her habitat. Continue reading...

Man, 32, charged with six counts of rape, stalking and assault after woman was allegedly attacked in BrookfieldFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastQueensland police say a man accused of raping and assaulting a young woman, who was taking a morning bushwalk, has been arrested after he returned to the crime scene in his vehicle later that evening.A woman, aged in her 20s, was walking in the semi-rural Brisbane suburb of Brookfield about 6.30am on Thursday when she was allegedly stopped by the man and sexually assaulted. She told police her attacker fled on foot. Continue reading...