The Guardian

Weather tracker: Why Europe’s wildfires are proving so fierce and difficult to stop

Wind and record-breaking heat are fuelling the continent’s explosive fire season, with Spain and France among worst hitExplainer: what is a ‘fire cloud’, and how have they worsened wildfires in Europe?A combination of an unusually wet winter, very low rainfall since spring and repeated record-breaking summer heatwaves is likely to explain why wildfires have ignited, spread and resisted control so readily across France and Spain in recent days.About 90% of wildfires are started by human activity,

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Uganda begins emergency food handouts after 19 die from hunger

Government move follows months of drought and crop failures in Karamoja, with 1.5m people facing malnutritionUganda has launched emergency food relief distribution after at least 19 deaths from hunger were reported in an area of prolonged drought in the east of the country.A crisis has been building in the Karamoja region of Uganda as crops have failed without the season’s expected rains, leaving the region’s 1.5 million people facing acute food shortages and rising malnutrition. Continue readin

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

‘They’re anxious about everything’: life for young people seeking work in Dudley and Lewisham

Challenges vary from poor transport links to high numbers of people flocking to the area looking for workWhen 19-year-old Dejanae set her online job search criteria for the local area, she was shocked at how few options came back. She studied animal science in college but is struggling to find work in the West Midlands.“It’s hard. You put Dudley, but it’s mainly jobs outside Dudley that come up because there just isn’t much here,” she said. “Even jobs in Birmingham (10 miles away) are difficult

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Protesters launch high court challenge to Queensland ban on ‘from the river to the sea’

Exclusive: Lawsuit filed on behalf of seven protesters alleges ban amounts to ‘a direct, content-based restriction’ on speech, effectively targeting pro-Palestine movementFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA group of pro-Palestine protesters have launched a high court challenge to a Queensland law banning the slogan “from the river to the sea”, arguing that it amounts to a discriminatory and unconstitutional infringeme

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Oil price slides as US and Iran pause fire; cancer treatments help AstraZeneca beat profit forecasts – business live

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsYet another company has been picked off London’s stock exchange this morning: DCC Energy has agreed to a £5.75bn takeover by private equity investors KKR and Energy Capital Partners.Shareholders in the FTSE 100 energy distributor will receive £65.25 per share ‌in cash, a proposed ‌final dividend of 147.22p per share, and a potential payment of up ‌to £1.25 per share if DCC can sell its technology unit for at least $800 million.Whilst the

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

For a few seconds, AusAlert blared around parks, libraries and cinemas – but some didn’t get the alert at all

Federal government touts emergency warning alert test as a success and says no approach works 100% of the timeA blaring emergency warning alert Australians had been warned about was anti-climactic for some – and totally missed by others.Almost every phone in the country, alongside some smartwatches and tablets, was supposed to let off a loud noise at about 2pm AEST and receive a pop-up notification with the text “TEST MESSAGE” and “NO ACTION IS REQUIRED”. Continue reading...

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Paddleboarder who rescued woman from Coogee shark attack wins world title in record time

Charlie Verco, who rescued Leah Stewart in June, is ‘stoked’ to claim his fourth championship in HawaiiThe Australian paddleboarder Charlie Verco has claimed his fourth world championship in Hawaii in record time – weeks after he rescued a Sydney woman who was attacked by a great white shark.The 25-year-old crossed the line in the gruelling 52km Molokai to Oahu Paddleboard race in 4 hours, 18 minutes and 3 seconds on Sunday, eclipsing the previous mark set by fellow Australian Matt Bevilacqua in

general  Jul 27, 2026

BBC World

Australian court upholds racial discrimination ruling against Pauline Hanson

One Nation leader loses bid to overturn ruling that she racially discriminated against Senator Mehreen Faruqi.

general  Jul 27, 2026

BBC World

Three dead and several injured in shooting at food festival near Seattle's Space Needle

Several others, including a two-year-old boy, were also injured. Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson says a suspect is in custody.

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Senior politicians supported young NSW Liberal power brokers trying to shift party to right, corruption watchdog hears

So-called ‘Reformers’ hosted recruitment functions with speakers including Tony Abbott and Alan JonesFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSenior politicians in the New South Wales Liberal party supported the work of a group of young conservative power brokers who sought to take control of the party and move it towards the right, the corruption watchdog has heard.The Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac) began

general  Jul 27, 2026

BBC World

'This is just the start': India's Gen Z protesters force out a minister, but what next?

The education minister's resignation, a rare setback for the Modi government, brings hope to many young protesters that their voices will be heard.

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Monday briefing: ​How the Cockroach ​protests ​have expose​d the ​cracks in ​India’s government

In today’s newsletter: Across ​the country, a ​younger generation is turning private disillusionment into public defiance​ against a government that once felt untouchableGood morning. As flames engulfed parts of France and Spain this weekend, in India, the prime minister, Narendra Modi, was trying to put out a very different kind of fire. Thousands of people arrived in Delhi on Saturday to demand the resignation of his education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan. When he stepped down in the early aft

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Who is Ben Carroll, the man who wants to be Victoria’s next premier?

Carroll, who has confirmed he will make a leadership challenge, was elected to parliament in 2012 and says he has always been ambitiousIn 2023, when then-public transport minister Ben Carroll failed in his surprising bid to secure the leadership of the Victorian Labor party, he told a press conference: “I was always very keen to rise.”The premier Daniel Andrews had resigned believing he had locked in his succession plan: his loyal deputy Jacinta Allan as premier, and treasurer Tim Pallas as depu

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Seven suspected new bird flu cases are ‘evidence of spread’ into Australian wildlife, experts warn

BirdLife Australia says discoveries of sick and dead local seabirds in South Australia show outbreak is ‘taking hold’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSouth Australia has reported seven new suspected cases of deadly H5 bird flu, with experts warning it could be a sign the disease has begun spreading through local bird populations.All seven birds are greater crested terns – a common local seabird – and were found on th

general  Jul 27, 2026

BBC World

The woman promoting the UK Potteries region in Japan

Yuri Kawakami-Shotton is praised for her Spode Museum tours, in bringing in Japanese visitors.

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Family of Indigenous man who died in custody launch legal action over decision not to charge police

Kumanjayi White died after being restrained by plain-clothes police in the lolly aisle of an Alice Springs supermarket•Warning: This article contains references to Indigenous Australians who have diedFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe family of a young Aboriginal man who died after being restrained by police in an Alice Springs supermarket has launched legal action after the officers involved were not prosecuted.Ku

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Palestine Action activists face being sentenced as terrorists over bank damage

Exclusive: Judge intends to consider ‘terrorist connection’ after convicting five for damage to Barclays in BurnleyFive Palestine Action activists face being sentenced as terrorists for breaking windows and throwing red paint at a branch of Barclays Bank in Lancashire.Brendon O’Hagan, 28; Amanda Kelly, 31; Humeera Atiqnisar, 31; Mohammed Malik, 28; and Alma Yaniv, 70, were found guilty of causing £212,000 of damage during a direct action protest in Burnley in August 2024. They targeted the bank

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Girlguiding redesigns uniforms to put focus on ‘self-expression and confidence’

Relaxed rules mean members only have to wear a top to meetings and activities after extensive feedbackGirlguiding has fully redesigned its uniform across all groups for the first time in more than 30 years, with a focus on “self-expression, belonging and confidence”.The new range, launched on Monday, has relaxed previous rules: Guides, Rainbows, Brownies and Rangers now only have to wear a top to meetings and activities to be considered “in uniform” after feedback from thousands of girls who sai

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Reform UK levy on employing overseas staff ‘would harm NHS and social care’

Exclusive: Experts say policy could also cause shortages of school teachers and drive some universities to bankruptcyReform UK’s plan to make employers pay an annual levy for overseas staff would harm the NHS and social care, cause a shortage of schoolteachers, and could push some universities into bankruptcy, experts have warned.Nigel Farage’s party has pledged a “migrant worker surcharge”, which would involve a higher rate of employer national insurance as well as a separate annual charge. It

general  Jul 27, 2026

The Guardian

Andy Burnham vows to use his ‘political capital’ to fix social care system

PM says that without rapid action the NHS could effectively collapse, in first full interview since entering No 10Andy Burnham has pledged to use “whatever political capital I have” to finally fix the crumbling social care system in England, saying that without rapid action the NHS could effectively collapse.In his first full interview since becoming prime minister last week, Burnham said he could not put a timetable on the arrival of a new system for social care but that its creation would take

general  Jul 27, 2026