World leaders congratulate Andy Burnham as he becomes Britain’s PM

• Tensions between the USA and Iran have escalated, sparking renewed fears of a broader regional conflict across West Asia. • The escalation occurs within a region already destabilized by multiple ongoing security crises and geopolitical volatility.

• Recent attacks in Ukraine over the weekend resulted in at least 12 civilian deaths and numerous injuries across the country. • Infrastructure damage was reported at World Food Programme (WFP) warehouses in Dnipro and World Health Organization (WHO) facilities near Kyiv.

• In an article published July 20, 2026, author Ellen Brown explores the "AI Abundance Paradigm" and the societal shift occurring as machines replace human labor. • The piece examines how the transition from a scarcity-based economy to one of abundance alters human behavior, moving away from competition and fear of loss.

• Governments are increasingly utilizing social media influencers as unofficial ambassadors to shape global public opinion and project soft power. • States provide these creators with privileged access, official tours, and interviews with senior officials to cover geopolitical conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, and Iran, as well as China's global ambitions.

• The US Central Command conducted airstrikes for the ninth consecutive night, targeting Iranian missile sites, air defense systems, and military command centers. • Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei dismissed the interim ceasefire deal signed by Donald Trump as "worthless and invalid," while Iranian negotiators announced the suspension of their commitments.

Film star promotes Christopher Nolan film epic wearing gold artefacts dating back almost 3,000 yearsThe Odyssey is a story about a Greek king’s long journey home. But a pair of earrings worn on the new film adaptation’s press tour – and their long separation from their homeland – is sparking controversy.At a photocall in London, Zendaya, who plays the goddess Athena in the Christopher Nolan film, wore a pair of earrings fashioned from Iranian artefacts dating back to 700BC. Continue reading...

Sgt Michael Emmanuel Swinton died during a controlled detonation at Erbil airbase as US-Iran war toll reaches 17The US military has identified an army soldier killed recently during a “controlled detonation” of a downed Iranian drone in Iraq as Sgt Michael Emmanuel Swinton, of Fayetteville, North Carolina.According to a press release from the US defense department on Tuesday morning, the 30-year-old Swinton was supporting overseas contingency operations in Iraq – and he was “killed in action during a controlled detonation of a downed One-Way Unmanned Aerial System” on Saturday at Erbil airbase in northern Iraq. Continue reading...

The President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief has saved 26m lives globally, but slashing of funds and dismantling of USAID have forced clinics to shut in dozens of countriesNo part of the United States’ anti-HIV programme has escaped unscathed from Donald Trump’s funding cuts, despite pledges from the administration to protect care that saved lives around the world, a new report has found.Funding cuts to the President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar) have caused “severe and devastating” disruption globally, with thousands of staff laid off and many clinics closed, according to research being presented next week at the 26th International Aids Conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It warns that changes in US policy risk reversing progress in the fight against HIV/Aids. Continue reading...

Barnaby Joyce had been defending One Nation leader Pauline Hanson’s ‘working holiday’ on ABC current affairs showThe Australian politician Pauline Hanson – a populist, hard-right figure in the Nigel Farage mould – probably expected her European tour to generate headlines.But the One Nation party leader, who is riding high in the polls, could not have anticipated that coverage would become dominated by one of her MPs yelling at his dog on national television. Continue reading...

Office of Prime Minister and Cabinet, led by Louise Haigh, will oversee both No 10 in London and northern equivalent• Andy Burnham’s first Labour cabinet: who’s in and who’s out?Andy Burnham has created a powerful new department taking in parts of the Cabinet Office, Treasury and housing ministry to become the “dominant driver of the UK’s economy”.In one of his first acts, Burnham has created the Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, to be headed up by his ally and enforcer Louise Haigh, which will oversee the No 10 operation in London, the forthcoming No 10 North in Manchester and parts of the Cabinet Office. Continue reading...

About 23 million people across country affected by water-saving measures with ‘prolonged dry weather’ in eight areasHow can I water my garden in a hosepipe ban and will there be drought this summer?Thames Water investors offer ‘golden share’ in bid to head off nationalisationTwenty three million people will be banned from using hosepipes by this weekend, as England and Wales moves closer to drought status.On Tuesday Thames Water became the latest water company to announce a hosepipe ban, covering the more than 10 million customers it supplies water to across London and the Thames valley. Continue reading...

As the Latino population of North Carolina booms, opportunities abound – and Donal Gooch is capitalizing on changing nature of his home regionDonal Gooch is not pleased about the trash on his arena floor.“Shit, it’s pitiful,” he says. Continue reading...