Heatwave and online shopping drive up retail sales in Great Britain

• German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt announced on July 23, 2026, that Germany will suspend automatic temporary protection for Ukrainian citizens fleeing military conscription. • The policy shift specifies that evading enlistment in the Ukrainian military will no longer be considered valid grounds for receiving humanitarian asylum.

• UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addressed a UN Security Council debate on Thursday, July 24, emphasizing the critical role of diplomacy in resolving global crises. • Guterres acknowledged that while diplomatic efforts may have failed to prevent current military confrontations and border tensions, they remain the most effective tool for ending them.

• Israeli Minister Israel Katz (Sa’ar) attributed a recent antisemitic stabbing in New York City to "incitement" by politician Zohran Mamdani. • The IDF reported that settlers raided a Palestinian-abandoned home following repeated harassment, though no arrests have been made.

• The UN has warned that escalating Middle East tensions are threatening vital regional trade routes, specifically the Strait of Hormuz. • The situation is exacerbated by ongoing American airstrikes on Iran and a diplomatic stalemate regarding the closure of the crucial energy waterway.

Measures effectively replace blanket 10% tariffs Trump imposed in February that were struck down by US supreme courtDonald Trump has once again inspired anger and confusion in US allies and trading partners as he imposed a wave of tariffs on more than 80 countries, replacing an expiring global duty introduced earlier this year.The new measures effectively replace blanket 10% tariffs that Trump imposed in February. The US supreme court ruled many of those were illegal. The new levies come in at between 10% and 12.5% on countries including the UK, Mexico, Canada, Australia, India, China and the 27 countries that make up the EU. Continue reading...

‘Intense and highly unpredictable’ blaze forces more than 40,000 people to flee popular holiday spotEurope live – latest updatesAuthorities in south-western France have ordered the total evacuation of the Cap Ferret peninsula on the Atlantic coast by land and sea as an “intense and highly unpredictable” wildfire advances on one of the country’s best-known holiday spots.The fire had burned more than 10,000 hectares (24,700 acres) by Friday morning, the French interior minister, Laurent Nuñez, said, with 40,000 people already or about to be evacuated, including thousands of tourists from campsites and rental homes. Continue reading...

Inquiry’s focus is this week on security for the Jewish community, with the MP telling the commissioner his son is afraid to attend synagogues and eventsThe shadow education minister, Julian Leeser, has called for universities to undertake an audit of any classes that teach about the Jewish community, Israel or Palestine.Appearing before the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion on Friday, Leeser said he had been “very concerned” about antisemitism on university campuses and was not satisfied with how vice-chancellors had addressed the issue after the 7 October 2023 Hamas terrorist attack. Continue reading...

PM will chair the inaugural meeting of the national economic council that will aim to shift economic decision-making away ‌from LondonOn Monday, while the cameras were fixed on that famous black door in Downing Street, something important was happening 165 miles away. A small team of officials and advisers were walking into an office building in Manchester to set about the remaking of the British state.This was the beginning of No 10 North: the first major act of this government and what I hope will be seen as its most defining.No 10 North will be responsible for accelerating devolution. It will drive reindustrialisation and growth across every postcode of the UK. It will remove barriers to regeneration, from council housebuilding to public transport infrastructure. Crucially, No 10 North will bring the whole of Whitehall together behind places rather than standing in their way. Our long-term ambition is clear: to achieve equivalent living standards across all the regions and nations of the UK.” Continue reading...

Fires remain out of control in Northwest Territories and Ontario, while Argentina endures record night-time heatRecent hot, dry weather in Canada has triggered hundreds of wildfires across the country. As of Wednesday, more than 900 were burning, scorching about 3m hectares of land. While fires have broken out in several provinces, the greatest concern is in the Northwest Territories and Ontario, where several remain out of control.Poor air quality has been reported across affected regions, with wildfire smoke carried by winds into the US and even across the Atlantic to northern Europe. The risk of further blazes remains high as North America enters the peak of fire season. Continue reading...

Evacuees have been told to leave the area before 10am, using hundreds of mobilised boats or the only road linking the area with the mainlandThousands of people have been forced to flee parts of south-west France amid worsening wildfires that prompted the authorities to order people to evacuate from the Cap Ferret peninsula along the Atlantic coast.Evacuees have been told to leave the area before 10am, using hundreds of mobilised boats or the only road linking the area with the mainland. Continue reading...

TGA says product information for some diabetes and weight loss drugs updated with warning of NAION disorderFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralia’s medicines regulator has issued warnings for several type 2 diabetes and obesity-related treatments – including Ozempic and Mounjaro – over the potential to cause a “rare but severe” eye disorder that could lead to blindness.The Therapeutic Goods Administration’s (TGA) warning came after several GLP-1 RA medicines, marketed in Australia as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro among other products, have been linked to 36 cases of the condition. Continue reading...