Thursday briefing: How ​English football ​is ​pricing ​out ​its ​own ​supporters

• U.S. Central Command has launched strikes against Iran in response to the downing of an American military helicopter. • Iranian officials report that the strikes hit two water storage tanks in Sirik County, Hormozgan province, cutting off drinking water for local residents.

• UN partners in Gaza reported a significant decline in food aid as of May 31, with 80 kitchens delivering 678,000 meals daily, down from 1.5 million meals provided by 170 kitchens in mid-March. • UN official DiCarlo urged parties to return to diplomacy and good-faith negotiations, reiterating the Secretary-General’s demand for an immediate, full, and unconditional ceasefire.

• Portugal's Minister for Diplomacy, Mr. Rangel, announced that the agreement allowing the United States to use Lajes Air Base will be reviewed. • The review is deferred until after the current crisis in the Middle East is resolved to ensure regional stability.

• The 2026 Global Peace Index reports that global peace has reached a historic low due to a record-high number of interconnected conflicts. • This decline is attributed to the "Great Fragmentation," a geopolitical shift where traditional European powers are losing influence to rising middle powers.

• Two decades of Global Peace Index (GPI) data reveal a global trend of deteriorating peace and an increasing inventory of unresolved conflicts. • The report highlights a significant success in Ethiopia, where the November 2022 Pretoria Peace Agreement reduced annual conflict deaths in Tigray from over 100,000 to roughly 2,300 in 2023.

• Global conflicts have surged to their highest levels since World War II, according to data from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program. • Conflict-related fatalities reached a record high in 2025, with approximately 244,600 people killed.

• New Zealand has been ranked as the second-safest country in the world according to the latest Global Peace Index, which evaluates 163 independent states and territories. • This improvement in New Zealand's standing comes despite a broader global trend where world conflict has reached a historic high.

• An Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has resulted in 100 deaths out of 550 reported cases. • Ongoing regional conflict is significantly hindering medical response efforts and slowing the containment of the virus.

Thai woman is in custody in connection with investigation after man was reportedly found dead at a hotel in YangonA US diplomat has been found dead in Myanmar’s largest city, and members of the diplomatic community in Yangon say a Thai woman had been detained by police in connection with the investigation.US officials in Thailand and the US embassy in Myanmar referred questions on the case to the state department, which confirmed the “death of a US government employee” assigned to the embassy in Yangon, but gave no other details. Continue reading...

Before the conflict began, inflation was at 2.4%, but the closure of the strait of Hormuz has affected energy pricesUS inflation jumped to 4.2% in May, the third consecutive monthly increase since the start of the Iran war and a three-year high, as Americans continue to face steep oil prices.Prices have increased sharply over the past several months, rising 3.3% in March before going up to 3.8% in April. In February, before the conflict began, inflation was at 2.4%. Continue reading...

Democrats have rolled the dice in Maine as they pursue a post-Trump future. Will it work?It was over the moment he received the endorsement of Maine’s most famous resident: Stephen King, the master of horror, who announced on Tuesday that he voted for Graham Platner.More than 100,000 Democrats in Maine agreed, making Platner, a marine veteran and oyster farmer, their nominee for the US Senate against Republican incumbent Susan Collins in November. Continue reading...

US launches strikes in retaliation for downing of US army helicopter, while White House source says deal could still be closeThe future of peace talks in the Middle East have been thrown into question after Iran’s foreign ministry said it needed to “reassess” its participation, while Donald Trump said Iran would have to “pay the price” after the two countries traded fire overnight, drawing neighbouring states back into an on-and-off war that has consumed the region since late February.The US launched strikes against Iran in the early hours of Wednesday morning in retaliation for what it said was Iran’s downing of a US army helicopter near the strait of Hormuz. Iran then launched a wave of retaliatory airstrikes claiming hits on US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan. Continue reading...