First Thing: Second day of US strikes on Iran as Trump says Tehran ‘behaving very badly’

• External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres to discuss critical global conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan, and West Asia. • During the meeting, India officially launched its campaign to secure a seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the 2028-29 term.

• External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday to discuss global hotspots and pressing international crises. • During the meeting, Jaishankar emphasized India's commitment to dialogue and diplomacy to bridge differences and mitigate the impact of global conflicts on the Global South.

• Ukraine is shifting its strategic focus toward psychological operations to undermine Russian domestic support for the ongoing war. • Maria Berlinska, founder of the nonprofit Victory Drones and a key figure in Ukraine's drone innovation, is leading efforts in Kyiv to organize these operations.

• External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York on July 14 to discuss critical global instabilities. • The high-level talks focused on ongoing conflicts in West Asia, Ukraine, and Sudan, highlighting the need for international stability.

• External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres in New York to discuss critical geopolitical developments and the existing framework of India-UN cooperation. • During the visit, India officially launched its campaign to be elected as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the 2028-29 term.

• The Horn of Africa has emerged as a critical geopolitical intersection where African, Middle Eastern, and global interests converge. • Key drivers of this strategic competition include maritime security, international trade, energy infrastructure, and food security.

• The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is urging for increased humanitarian access to Gaza, warning that aid deliveries are being severely restricted. • These challenges are compounded by ongoing violence, critical funding shortages, and rising costs for fuel, fertilizer, and food.

Threat of social unrest rises as public indignation at lack of disaster aid comes on top of fallout from US military intervention• A revolution in ruins: fury amid the rubble of a housing project in quake-hit VenezuelaPublic anger at what many perceive as the Venezuelan government’s botched response to twin earthquakes that killed nearly 4,500 people is growing, with one grieving mother caught on camera berating the son of former president Nicolás Maduro.Maduro’s politician son received a hostile reception while visiting a semi-destroyed social housing project named after his father’s late mentor Hugo Chávez. Continue reading...

Reform’s Treasury spokesperson said talks over party leader’s protection only happening ‘as a result’ of Ann Widdecombe’s deathUK politics live – latest updatesRobert Jenrick has criticised the government for not offering Nigel Farage a security meeting earlier, saying it has only happened “as a result” of the death of Ann Widdecombe.The Reform UK Treasury spokesperson claimed ministers had chosen not to give Farage the security “that he needed”, and had only agreed to arrange a meeting with the chair of the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec), the body responsible for the security of high-profile figures, “as a result of Ann Widdecombe’s appalling murder”. Continue reading...

The head of Reform UK refused the security, which was a similar level to that received by the leader of the opposition, because he considered it inadequate Continue reading...

Kyiv’s decision to honour second world war fighters who killed about 100,000 Poles has revived simmering tensionsIn the aftermath of Russia’s attack on Ukraine in February 2022, Polish-Ukrainian solidarity emerged as one of the most heartwarming subplots of the Kremlin’s brutal war. Millions of Poles, remembering their country’s own tragic history with Russia, mobilised to help Ukrainian refugees with food, shelter and support as they crossed the border in huge numbers to flee the conflict.Four years later, that outpouring of generosity and solidarity is a distant memory, as the two countries find themselves locked in a bitter dispute over history that has led to angry rhetoric, mutual mud-slinging and a threat from Poland to block Ukraine’s EU accession until it gets its historical house in order. Continue reading...

Many leaders from the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ stayed overnight in Paris to attend the parade, which will be Emmanuel Macron’s last as presidentYou can watch our live stream of the Bastille Day parade in Paris here, with final preparations now under way before the event starts soon.Most leaders are already in their premium seats, including French PM Sébastien Lecornu, with France’s Emmanuel Macron expected shortly before the start at 10am (9am UK). Continue reading...