Sales of fans, ice cubes and sunscreen surge during May UK heatwave

• Diplomacy between Tehran and Washington has accelerated after weeks of escalation, with regional mediators helping drive a new round of Iran-U.S. talks. • The reporting says the confrontation follows more than six weeks of disruption tied to Iran’s pressure on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and a U.S.-enforced naval blockade.

US health secretary gets nip from one of two serpents he grabbed at home of fellow Trump official Dr OzHealth secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr on Tuesday added to his lengthening catalog of bizarre wild animal encounters by posting to social media a video of himself in Florida wrestling with two snakes.Kennedy, who has previously admitted dumping the carcass of a bear cub in New York’s Central Park, and is also alleged to have cut the penis of a road-kill raccoon, is seen grabbing the pair of serpents with his bare hands. Continue reading...

Russell Group university promises students, from chemical engineering to classics, ‘meaningful real-world experience’A leading UK university is promising work placements to all undergraduates regardless of their degree, to better equip them for the challenges of the job market.In what appears to be a first for a large Russell Group institution, the University of Manchester is planning to offer “meaningful real-world experience” to all students, in subjects from classics to chemical engineering. Continue reading...

Water cannon also used at rally addressed by Özgür Özel who has been dismissed from office despite being electedRiot police in Turkey have fired teargas and water cannon to break up a rally called by ousted opposition leader Özgür Özel, days after a court dismissed him from office.The protest in Izmir on Tuesday came two days after riot police battered their way into the main opposition CHP’s headquarters in the capital, Ankara, firing teargas and beating party members before throwing them out, Özel told AFP on Sunday. Continue reading...

Tehran condemns ‘definitive violation’ but announces no specific reprisals as negotiations near decisive stageMiddle East crisis – live updatesA proposed peace agreement between Iran and the US seemed to still be in prospect on Tuesday despite US bombings of Iranian targets – the first military action by Washington since the 8 April ceasefire.The Iranian foreign ministry denounced the US attack – aimed at missile launchers and efforts to lay fresh mines in the strait of Hormuz – as “an act of bad faith” and “a definitive violation of the ceasefire”, adding that it would not leave aggression unanswered. But it conspicuously did not pull out of the talks that were continuing under the joint mediation of Pakistan and Qatar. Continue reading...

Dana Weinger was dining outside Driftwood Grill in Summerton, South Carolina, when she was hitSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailA woman in South Carolina died in a freak accident after she was struck in the neck by a restaurant table umbrella that had been picked up by a strong gust of wind.Local NBC TV news station WYFF4 reported that the incident happened at the Driftwood Grill in Summerton when the woman was dining outside on the restaurant patio with her husband on Saturday night. Continue reading...

Age limits and changes to allegedly addictive design features could be in place by the end of the yearLabour is expected to announce a social media crackdown within weeks as the prime minister, Keir Starmer, on Tuesday said he would act “very, very quickly” despite splits between campaigners and child safety experts on what the new rules should be.New limits on social media access for children could be presented before the Makerfield byelection next month after an avalanche of responses to a public consultation have been analysed with the help of an AI system called Consult and an expert panel led by an eminent paediatrician. The consultation closes on Tuesday. Continue reading...

South East Water says demand has jumped owing to extreme heat but stops short of compulsory measuresSouth East Water has asked members of the public to use water only for essential purposes after demand surged on Monday to 100m litres more than average.After water outages for hundreds of homes across Kent and Sussex over the last three days during record temperatures, the company has asked customers to use water only for drinking, washing and cooking. Continue reading...

Anthony Odiong accused of sexually abusing three female congregants in Waco faces a maximum of life imprisonmentThe criminal trial of a Roman Catholic priest who ministered in Texas and south-east Louisiana and was charged with illicitly abusing his status as a clergyman to pursue sex with spiritually vulnerable female congregants began on Tuesday with jury selection.Anthony Odiong, 57, faces five counts of sexual assault in the first degree and two such counts in the second-degree in a state courthouse in Waco, Texas, involving three women whom he met while working there. Continue reading...

Scottish National party’s attempt to focus on call for independence referendum overshadowed by embezzlement scandalThe Scottish National party was accused of “embezzling” voters after opposition leaders highlighted the crisis over Peter Murrell’s misuse of £400,000 from party funds.The scandal over Murrell’s guilty plea on Monday to embezzling £400,310.65 while he was the SNP’s chief executive overshadowed a Holyrood motion tabled by John Swinney to call for a second independence referendum. Continue reading...

Woman argued water was a ‘universal human right’ but court ruled no law obliged hoteliers to serve it from tapsA tourist’s simple request for a glass of tap water at a hotel restaurant in the Italian Dolomites has culminated in Italy’s top court ruling that being served water from the tap is not a consumer right, after a lengthy and costly legal saga.The case dates back to 2019 when the woman spent a week at the five-star hotel in the ski resort of Corvara, in Badia, over Christmas and new year. She was on a half-board deal with the evening meal included, except for drinks. Continue reading...