Huw Edwards criticised for entering Welsh poetry competition

• Air strikes, shelling, and shooting continued in Gaza over the weekend, resulting in dozens of casualties, including civilians, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. • Gaza’s Ministry of Health reported over 150 fatalities during July, marking the highest monthly death toll recorded so far this year.

• Ukraine has appointed Umerov to lead a combined portfolio overseeing foreign intelligence, peace negotiations, and defense-technology priorities. • His key responsibilities include managing critical military initiatives, specifically drone procurement deals and the Freyja anti-ballistic program.

Lib Dems and many Labour MPs join farmers, landowners and firefighters in urging temporary prohibitionFarmers and landowners are calling for a temporary ban on disposable barbecues in England and Wales, as they warn of the risk of igniting wildfires.The call, which has also been made by firefighters and is backed by the Liberal Democrats and many Labour MPs, comes as much of England faces further hot dry weather, despite rain in some areas. Continue reading...

Partner of woman killed by dangerous driver among those who say they are devastated at killers leaving jail earlyWhen Calvin Buckley, whose pregnant partner was killed by a dangerous driver in 2023, secured a tougher sentence for the man who took her life, he felt some justice had been served. Now, under plans to release prisoners early to ease overcrowding, Adil Iqbal, who filmed himself speeding at 123mph before he crashed into 38-year-old Frankie Jules-Hough, may serve less time in prison than he would have under his original sentence.“He could actually serve less time than he originally was going to before we appealed,” Buckley said. “We’ve fought for a tougher sentence. What is the point of having an actual sentence if the government can just reduce that?” Continue reading...

Eruption of the Fuego volcano sends lava and ash nearly four miles into the sky as country declares alert warningHundreds of people living on the slopes of Guatemala’s Fuego volcano have evacuated their homes after a huge eruption spewed lava and plumes of ash.Central America’s most active volcano erupted on Monday morning, with conditions intensifying by nightfall and prompting authorities to issue the country’s second-most severe alert warning. Continue reading...

Survey finds party members see health, the economy, cost of living and climate crisis among biggest challengesAndy Burnham has inherited a Labour membership that is sceptical about increased welfare spending, supportive of higher defence spending, and ranks the climate crisis as one of the country’s biggest challenges, according to new polling.The survey of 788 members between the end of June and the end of July shows them ranking health (43%), the economy (42%), cost of living (39%) and climate change (29%) as Britain’s most important issues, ahead of welfare benefits (7%) and immigration (6%). Continue reading...

Luciana Berger says Joshua Bonehill-Paine should have no role in public life because of ‘his racism and his view of women’A former MP has urged the Tory leader to drop an election candidate who was previously jailed for a campaign of antisemitic abuse against her.Kemi Badenoch on Tuesday defended the Conservative party’s selection of Joshua Bonehill-Paine, a former neo-Nazi, insisting she believes in “second chances”. Continue reading...

Trump’s FCC is developing a measure to bar US imports of new models of Chinese datacenter devices, sources sayThe Trump administration is reportedly drafting a ban on US imports of new models of Chinese datacenter components, in the latest sign US authorities are scrambling to respond to the rapid development of AI technology in China.Four people familiar with the matter told Reuters that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which oversees the US ⁠telecommunications industry, is developing a measure to bar imports of new ​Chinese optical transceivers, which allow data to travel over fiber-optic cables at the speed of light within datacenters. Officials hope to publish the measure this year, according to Reuters. Continue reading...

Remains of 112 victims, including 40 children, recovered from rubble more than two years after residential block was destroyedMourners gathered in central Gaza on Tuesday for a mass funeral for 112 people, including 40 children, who were killed in 2023 in one of the deadliest Israeli strikes of the Gaza war.Their bodies could not be recovered until now because of Israel’s continuing strikes, which have slowed, though not halted, since the ceasefire in October. Continue reading...

Migration commissioner says scheme regularising undocumented people ‘not a good signal’ for EuropeExplainer: Why is Ceuta a migration flashpoint?The EU’s top official on migration has criticised Spain’s plan to regularise undocumented migrants as “not a good signal” for Europe, after an emergency meeting intended to draw a line under divisions on the Ceuta crisis.Magnus Brunner, the European commissioner for migration, said that while the EU could not currently see a direct link between events in Ceuta and Spain’s regularisation plan, the policy was “definitely not a good signal for the rest of Europe”. Continue reading...

Optimism echoes Trump’s claims on Monday that deal is close as mediators say they are exchanging proposals Middle East crisis live – latest updatesUS and Qatari officials have said progress is being made in restoring a ceasefire in the US-Iran war and reopening the strait of Hormuz.The optimistic speculation on Tuesday brought oil prices down 2%, but the strait remained closed to shipping and a cargo vessel was reportedly struck by an unidentified projectile off Oman’s coast close to the strait. Continue reading...