Democrats allege Trump administration stalled US-Canada bridge opening as a favor to billionaire donor

• The United States launched a series of rare daytime air strikes against Iran as part of an ongoing cycle of tit-for-tat military escalations. • In response, Iranian leadership accused Washington of attempting to overthrow the Islamic Republic, asserting that while Tehran does not seek war, it must remain prepared to fight.

Sixth day of fighting threatens to turn into all-out war and casts serious doubt on peace deal struck last month• Chaos and confusion bring US no closer to resolution on strait of HormuzMiddle East crisis live – latest updatesThe US has intensified its attacks on Iran, hitting targets near Tehran and striking a ship it accused of trying to break its blockade, while Iran retaliated by firing missiles and drones at US allies in the regionThe back-and-forth attacks, which have reached their sixth consecutive day, threaten to pull the region back into a total war and cast serious doubt about an interim deal reached last month meant to achieve a permanent peace. Continue reading...

Country begins 42-day countdown to outbreak being declared officially over, as numbers continue to rise in neighbouring Democratic Republic of the CongoUganda has started lobbying countries to lift Ebola-related travel restrictions after discharging its last confirmed Ebola patient from hospital.The discharge of a Congolese national from the Mulago national referral hospital’s isolation centre in Kampala on Thursday triggered the start of a 42-day countdown required by the World Health Organization before Uganda can officially be declared Ebola-free, provided no new infections are detected. Continue reading...

Replacement of panels with version that’s sympathetic to enslavers comes amid effort by Trump to dismantle diversity initiativesCritics say the Trump administration acted under the “cover of darkness” to replace an exhibit exploring the lives of nine enslaved people who lived at George Washington’s ​Philadelphia home with a version that is overly sympathetic to enslavers and that whitewashes the country’s origins.The installation of new information panels followed a six-month fight between the city of Philadelphia and the Trump administration over an enslavement memorial at the former home of Washington and John Adams. Continue reading...

Thalha Jubair, 20, and Owen Flowers, 19, sentenced to five and a half years each for cyber-attack that cost Transport for London £39mThe teenage hackers had London’s transport network at their mercy. Thalha Jubair and Owen Flowers had burrowed into the heart of Transport for London’s IT systems and held the “keys to the kingdom”.TfL said the attack, which occurred between 31 August and 3 September 2024, could have caused “catastrophic damage” to its technology systems and could have led to “significant and extended transport service degradation and disruption”. Continue reading...

US renews blockade of Iranian ports, while Iran attacks sites in Bahrain and Kuwait. Plus, legendary director John Waters on 60 years of screen carnageGood morning. The US has fired on an oil tanker attempting to reach Kharg Island in the strait of Hormuz as part of its blockade on Iranian ports, as Tehran came under attack for the first time in the latest round of strikes.The US targeted coastal defences and missile sites, as well as targets farther north, with state media reporting strikes on the country’s capital, Tehran. The US also said it had disabled the unladen oil tanker, firing Hellfire missiles into the ship’s smokestack after it ignored multiple warnings.What other development have happened in the region? Donald Trump said Iran has released a US citizen detained since 2024, identified as Dena Karari, a dual US-Iranian citizen. Meanwhile, the Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, told US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, that Israel was determined to keep its forces in “security zones” in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza.What did the man’s family say? Arenas-Silva’s sister and immigrants’ rights groups in Georgia said in a press statement that ICE did not provide him with necessary medications during his time in detention for an unnamed condition he was dealing with, despite his family’s pleas that he take the medications during his arrest last week.How is the crisis becoming more international? Mexico has formally requested that US state attorneys general criminally investigate cases of immigrants who have died in ICE custody or during raids, the Mexican government has said. Since the beginning of Donald Trump’s second term, 17 Mexican immigrants have died during immigration enforcement, 14 in ICE custody and three in agency operations. Continue reading...

President will meet new Republican senator who has taken over the seat following the death of her brother Lindsey GrahamSign up for the Breaking News US emailHello and welcome to the US politics live blog.Donald Trump is due to meet Darline Graham - the sister of the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham, was sworn in to temporarily fill his Senate seat – later today.103 House Democrats voted to cut military aid to Israel as accusations that Israel’s government carried out a genocide in Gaza are gaining more traction in the party.Two of Donald Trump’s nominees for powerful positions, Todd Blanche and Jay Clayton, buckled under pressure during their confirmations hearings. Blanche, the acting attorney general, described himself as Trump’s lawyer, before correcting himself. Clayton, the would-be national intelligence director, refused to say who won the 2020 election when asked by senator Jon Ossoff.Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna, who wrote the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the law requiring the release of investigative files on the late child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, introduced a sequel that would allow state officials, victims and members of Congress to sue the attorney general over withheld records.In an interview with the podcaster Joe Rogan, US vice-president JD Vance discounted the conspiracy theory that Trump’s long association with Epstein had been used by Israel to blackmail the president into attacking Iran.The treasury department announced Wednesday that the US Mint has started producing a new commemorative $1 coin featuring Donald Trump as part of the nation’s 250th anniversary celebration. Continue reading...

Agreement combines Uber Eats with food delivery brands in 99 countries and expands taxi service reachBusiness live – latest updatesUber has reached an agreement to take over the German takeaway company Delivery Hero in a $14.8bn (£11bn, or €12.9bn) deal that would create a global food delivery giant.The US tech firm said it had offered to pay €41.50 a share to Delivery Hero’s shareholders, valuing the business at $14.8bn. Uber will pay $13.7bn after accounting for its previous purchases of a quarter of Delivery Hero’s shares, most recently in May. Continue reading...

Timmy: Hope Dies Last elevates stranded humpback into Jesus-like figure, igniting hope and grief When people in Germany organised a daring rescue mission for a humpback whale stranded on the Baltic coast in April, it briefly looked like a country stricken with political division and economic anxiety was rallying around a common cause.A new satirical play inspired by the episode, however, suggests the spectators, social-media influencers, politicians and millionaires who flocked to the seaside in support never just wanted to rescue the cetacean that came to be nicknamed Timmy, but for Timmy to rescue them. Continue reading...

Many hoarders are scared to seek help but one UK housing association is taking a more empathetic approachAt one end of the table sits Tony*, who showers at his local leisure centre in Birkenhead every day. His landlord won’t fix his bathroom because of his hoarding. Then there’s Sarah*, who ended up homeless with her three teenagers after their landlord evicted them because of hoarding. In her new home the problem has started again, but she says she’s petrified to ask for help in case she loses her property.Sian Cowley, 35, who has struggled with hoarding for decades, says: “I’ve lived without central heating for two years. A lot of us live without the basics like hot water, heating and cooking because we are too scared to get people in to do repairs because of the threat of eviction.” Continue reading...

Tim Steiner speaks as shares in the online grocer slide nearly 15% on plunge in pre-tax profits to £17mBusiness live – latest updatesThe co-founder and boss of Ocado has insisted he has “no intention of being a puppet master” exerting control over its staff amid an apparent boardroom row over succession at the grocery technology company.Tim Steiner, who is to stand down as chief executive in 2028, suggested that any successor would be happy to work with him. Continue reading...