Rescuers pick through wreckage after ‘devastating’ Wisconsin tornado

• Iran's foreign ministry rejected claims that the U.S. can dictate the "timing of war and peace," countering assertions by Donald Trump that Tehran had requested negotiations. • The statement follows efforts by mediators to revive a collapsed interim deal and restore diplomatic relations between the two nations.

• Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif warned that Pakistan would go to war against India if its water security is threatened. • The threat is tied to the potential suspension of the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, which governs the sharing of river waters between the two nations.

• UNESCO has identified six World Heritage sites at risk due to conflict, insecurity, and environmental pressures. • The Palestinian site is under threat from the ongoing Middle East conflict, development, and plans for a national park that may divide the property.

• The Houthi threat to Saudi oil exports is worsening the energy crisis in Asia. • Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines are already reeling from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, exacerbating the issue.

• Intensified hostilities in Ukraine and surrounding areas are devastating civilians and threatening global food security, according to senior UN officials. • The conflict has led to a 20 per cent spike in wheat prices since the start of July, as well as attacks on third-party merchant vessels.

• The Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen has escalated attacks to exploit a period of vulnerability within Saudi Arabia. • The group aims to leverage this conflict to secure significant political concessions regarding the ongoing war in Yemen.

• A new war in Yemen is looming, with signs indicating a re-eruption of conflict is imminent. • Recent developments have strengthened anti-Houthi forces in the country, potentially altering the balance of power.

• Tensions exist between Armenia and Azerbaijan over a disputed border region. • A joint declaration of peace has been agreed upon, along with a request to dissolve the OSCE Minsk Group.

Leading thinktank says higher oil prices and inflation will give Andy Burnham a ‘challenging inheritance’Andy Burnham has been warned by a leading thinktank of “very difficult trade-offs in the next autumn budget” if the Iran war keeps oil prices and inflation high.The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said the new prime minister faced a “challenging inheritance” and his plans to revamp public services would meet severe pressure from persistently higher prices. Continue reading...

Tehran has not been bombed into submission, leaving America unable to enforce its demands without a ground war that it does not wantHas Iran won a war it didn’t start against the United States? It is not a victory in any conventional military sense: about 3,500 Iranians have been reported killed and the US-led bombing has caused anywhere between $150bn and $270bn of damage.Yet Donald Trump’s decision to pause, rather than intensify, the 13-night summer bombing campaign in effect represents a degree of recognition that the US cannot achieve its stated goals by military power alone. Continue reading...

France had also intervened after Trump administration had opposed the reappointment of UN human rights chiefUS diplomats walked out of a United Nations meeting after France criticized the country’s human rights record under Donald Trump.The staged walkout, which occurred on Monday during a UN security council meeting on the Ukraine-Russia war, came days after the Trump administration cited “forced labor” allegations as it imposed sweeping tariffs on dozens of countries. Continue reading...