Iran strikes tankers under US escort in Hormuz strait as Trump gathers cabinet to discuss war

• The United Nations has formally launched the global selection process to find a successor for the outgoing Secretary-General, António Guterres. • The search occurs against a backdrop of escalating geopolitical flashpoints and compounding global crises that are currently straining multilateral diplomacy.

• Iran utilized a three-day lull in bombings and Omani mediation as a tactical respite to replenish missile launchers and prepare a surprise attack. • The situation escalated rapidly within the last 24 hours, resulting in the largest wave of U.S. strikes against the Revolutionary Guard since the conflict began.

• The provided text argues that peace diplomacy should not be measured by quantitative metrics or traditional weighing systems. • The core objective of these diplomatic efforts is to prevent the onset of conflicts and wars, reduce escalation during active hostilities, and facilitate post-war rebuilding.

• Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility on Thursday for an attack on a US military base located in Kuwait as part of "Operation Nasr-2." • In a retaliatory move, US air strikes targeting Iran's Zanjan province resulted in the deaths of at least three IRGC members.

The handcrafted leather boots are a century-old tradition – but with money tight, the cost of up to $800 is harder to justifyFor 18 years, one of the most important relationships in Luke Mayfield’s life was with his boots. As a hotshot – one of the US’s elite firefighting crews sent deep, on foot, into wildfires – Mayfield hiked a thousand miles a fire season in his boots, stood in them 16 hours a day and slept near them on assignments that lasted weeks in terrain no truck could reach.Like every wildland firefighter, he learned the rituals of their upkeep: how to grease them, how to lace them, how soon before the season to break in a new pair so the blisters came during training instead of on duty. Continue reading...

Ombudsman finds Homes NSW acted unreasonably and recommended additional payment for distress and sufferingGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAn elderly public housing tenant whose home was damaged by sewage overflows will be fully compensated by the New South Wales government after it disposed of her personal belongings without her consent and failed to properly support her insurance claim.The NSW Ombudsman on Friday published its report after an investigation in which it found Homes NSW acted unreasonably in how it handled the tenant’s contaminated belongings and “failed to provide full and accurate information to the insurer”. Continue reading...

President calls for former personal defense lawyer to be ‘immediately approved’ as attorney generalDonald Trump has defended controversial plans for a $1.8bn slush fund even as they threaten to derail the nomination of his former personal lawyer Todd Blanche for US attorney general.Blanche “should be immediately approved” by the US Senate, the president declared in a post on his Truth Social platform on Friday morning, defending the payout scheme proposed by his officials in the Department of Justice as it holds up Blanche’s confirmation. Continue reading...

Kaohly Her is accused of inappropriate conduct and creating a ‘sexualized work environment’ by senior officialsUS politics live – latest updatesA second senior police official in St Paul has alleged sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct by the Minnesota city’s Democratic mayor, Kaohly Her, following confirmation that an inquiry into her behavior was launched earlier this year.The new claims were reported on Thursday by the Minnesota Star Tribune, which said it obtained further details of the mayor’s alleged actions that gave rise to the original complaint by Axel Henry, the police chief of St Paul. Continue reading...

Celebrities including Charli xcx and Gabbriette and avant-garde brands honour tradition while also rejecting itIf a wedding day brings to mind a bride dressed in a big white dress, the styles coming down the aisle in the near future may strike you as a little different. Whether it is through celebrity references, or new brands, wedding gowns are entering a more experimental era.For Charli xcx’s marriage to the 1975 drummer George Daniel last year, the bride wore a minidress and sunglasses. Continue reading...

Move seeking $3.25m in damages six months after mother of Today show host Savannah Guthrie was last seen safeTwo men questioned early in the search for NBC’s Today Show host Savannah Guthrie’s missing mother said they will file a $3.25m wrongful arrest lawsuit against the sheriff who detained them, as the investigation passes the six-month mark this weekend.Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen safe while at her Tucson, Arizona, home on 1 February. Authorities, including the FBI, believe she was kidnapped. But despite a number of leads and blood spatters at the house, no further trace of her has been found, and no suspects have emerged. Continue reading...

Scientists and sky gazers will watch intently as rocket’s upper stage slams into lunar surface on WednesdayA drifting SpaceX rocket is on a collision course with the moon after launching a pair of lunar landers more than a year ago.The rocket’s upper stage will unintentionally slam into the moon on Wednesday, carving out a crater and sending up a plume of dust and rubble that scientists – and sky gazers – are eager to observe. Continue reading...