Venezuela earthquakes aftershock hits near capital city as ‘miracle’ rescues reported – latest updates
The Reuters news agency is reporting that an explosion at a rig operated by state-run oil company PDVSA in Venezuela’s Apure state left at least eight workers injured yesterday evening. They were transported to Colombia for medical assistance, according to the sources, who spoke under the condition of anonymity.
Pakistani airstrikes kill dozens in eastern Afghanistan
Pakistani airstrikes in three eastern provinces of Afghanistan killed 36 civilians and wounded 163 others, Afghan officials have said, as attacks between the two countries showed no sign of abating. Pakistan’s information minister, Attaullah Tarar, said the operations on Sunday night were aimed at a terrorist group his country blamed for a deadly militant attack in Karachi that killed three security personnel over the weekend. Tarar said Pakistani security forces had carried out an “intelligence-based ground operation” followed by airstrikes along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border targeting terrorist hideouts over the border. Afghan authorities have repeatedly denied that their territory harbours militants. Hamdullah Fitrat, a spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Taliban government, said Pakistani forces targeted a home in the Chamkani district of Paktia province, killing an older man and a child and wounding other family members. When residents gathered to rescue people, the area was struck again, killing 28 villagers and wounding 158, he said. Six people, mostly women and children, were killed when a home was struck in a village in Giyan district, Paktika province, Fitrat said. A civilian home in Kunar province was also hit, causing no casualties but killing 30 livestock. Another Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, condemned the military action as a “cowardly act of aggression”. The strikes are the latest flare-up of violence between the two countries, whose relationship has been fraught since the Taliban government took power in 2021, and follow a weeks-long war that erupted in February. On Saturday, militants armed with guns and explosives targeted the regional headquarters of the paramilitary Pakistan Rangers in Karachi, killing three soldiers. Security forces killed three attackers and arrested a wounded assailant, whom the military identified as an Afghan national. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a breakaway faction of the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility for the Karachi attack in a statement on Saturday night. Tarar said Pakistan’s latest operation along the Afghan border targeted the hideouts and safe havens of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar and Fitna al-Khawarij, a term Pakistan uses for the Pakistani Taliban. “Pakistan has always strived for maintaining peace and stability in the region, but at the same time shall not compromise on the safety and security of our citizens, which remains our top priority,” Tarar said. Pakistan has seen a surge in militant attacks targeting police and security forces in recent years. Authorities have blamed the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, and allied militant groups for most of the violence. The TTP is a separate militant group from the Afghan Taliban, although the two are allies. The countries agreed to a ceasefire in March but there have been sporadic attacks since, with Pakistani strikes in June killing 13 people, according to Afghan officials. As Islamabad mediates between the US and Iran to end their war in the Middle East, Pakistan says its battle against militancy at home requires its strikes on Afghanistan. Afghan authorities say Pakistani operations have caused a heavy civilian death toll, including a strike at a drug treatment centre in March that the UN said killed hundreds. The conflict has included fierce fighting along the frontier and unprecedented Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan cities including the capital, Kabul, and Kandahar, where the Taliban supreme leader is based. Mediation from several countries including China and Saudi Arabia has failed to produce a lasting resolution and the frontier has been largely closed since cross-border violence in October. In early March, Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, said peace between Pakistan and Afghanistan could prevail only if the Taliban regime “renounced their support for terrorism and terrorist organisations”. With Agence France-Presse and the Associated Press
Escalating US-Iran strikes threaten interim peace agreement
A new round of escalating strikes between Iran and the US has continued, further undermining the fragile interim peace agreement between the two countries, and prompting Donald Trump to threaten violence that would ensure Iran “will no longer exist”. On Sunday, Tehran launched drone and missile attacks against Bahrain and Kuwait after new US strikes on sites in southern Iran, and threatened a “complete halt” to negotiations to end the war. Trump said that a moment might come soon when he abandoned talks and the US would “militarily finish the job”. The US president posted on social media: “If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!” Earlier on Sunday, Kuwait, which hosts a major US army base, said it had intercepted two ballistic missiles and that there were no reports of injuries or damage, while Bahrain’s interior ministry said the Iranian strikes had damaged a residential building near the international airport and that no one had been killed. Qatar’s interior ministry said one Qatari national had been killed and second person injured by shrapnel from “military operations in the area”. The two were on a boat that went missing on Saturday and was located early on Sunday. The ministry did not give the location of the incident and did not say whether the shrapnel was linked to the Iranian drone attacks. But late on Sunday a US official said both sides had agreed to halt recent hostilities and renew talks on the strait of Hormuz. “Technical talks are slated to continue on all areas of the MOU. Both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely,” the official said, referring to the 14-point memorandum of understanding that was agreed earlier this month and under which the strait would be re-opened for traffic. The latest violence has been triggered by efforts to reopen the strait of Hormuz to all shipping without Iran’s direct oversight. The strategically critical waterway, which carried a fifth of the world’s oil and liquid gas supplies before the war, has long been considered an international passageway. US Central Command said in a statement that its strikes were “in direct response to continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping” and had targeted Iranian military surveillance, communications, air defence, drone storage and mine-laying facilities. Washington has been promoting a southern lane along the coast of Oman, while Tehran, which ultimately aims to charge fees for use of the strait, wants ships to use a northern route through its waters and under its control. Hundreds of vessels, including tankers laden with oil, have been blockaded inside the Gulf by the closure of the strait since war broke out. Some have chanced the passage through the past two weeks, leading oil prices to drop to close to prewar levels and bringing relief to economies around the world. The US military accused Iran of violating the ceasefire on Saturday by attacking the Panama-flagged tanker Kiku, which carried crude oil for the state-run energy company of Qatar. According to ship-tracking websites, the Kiku appeared to be attempting to use the southern corridor near the coast of Oman. A Singapore-flagged container ship was struck by an Iranian drone while transiting the same route last week. Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, restated Tehran’s claim to sole control of the waterway during a state visit to Iraq on Sunday. He said in Baghdad: “Any interference in this matter, any attempt to establish new or separate arrangements from those currently being carried out by the Islamic Republic of Iran, will only lead to further complications, delay the reopening of the strait of Hormuz, and increase the level of tension.” Observers say Iran is using its ability to threaten shipping in the strait not just as leverage in negotiations with the US, but to intimidate neighbouring countries and establish a more dominant role in the region. Aragchi also called for the establishment of a security framework with Gulf countries that would exclude the US. He said: “We should reach a new framework that includes all countries in the region and without the presence or interference of any country from outside the region.” Mediators from Qatar and Pakistan successfully brought representatives of Washington and Tehran together in Switzerland earlier this month but have been unable to bridge wide gaps on contentious issues such as the future of the strait of Hormuz, sanctions relief for Tehran, and the future of Iran’s nuclear programme. Under the memorandum of understanding signed earlier this month, the two countries have 60 days to work out the details before signing a final agreement. Leaders in Tehran and Washington face domestic political pressures to avoid a return to conflict and appear committed to a ceasefire for now, despite frequent bellicose rhetoric. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed responsibility for both new attacks on Sunday. It said: “Let the enemy know that violating the ceasefire … will lead to a complete halt of ongoing processes.” The IRGC, which controls Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal, has gained influence in Iran in recent months. Its navy command said American bases in the region would “experience hell in the coming days”. Bahrain’s foreign ministry denounced the attacks, which it called “a dangerous escalation that reveals that what Tehran is doing is not a passing act, nor an isolated incident, but rather a deliberate approach and a systematic pattern of repeated aggression against the sovereignty of the kingdom, and the security of its citizens and residents”. Bahrain is home to the US navy’s 5th Fleet, whose base there came under repeated attack during the war. Violence has also continued in Lebanon, further threatening the agreement between Iran and the US to end their own conflict. Israeli military officials said a soldier had been killed on Sunday when soldiers encountered a “Hezbollah terrorist after entering a suspicious structure in the area of Deir Seryan in southern Lebanon”. The Lebanese state news agency reported a new Israeli attack targeting the outskirts of the towns of Deir Seryan and Taybeh in southern Lebanon. The fresh clashes in Lebanon come two days after Israel and Lebanon signed an agreement aimed at ending hostilities. The deal calls for Israeli forces to begin an initial withdrawal from the south of the country and their replacement by the Lebanese armed forces who will assume responsibility for local security and dismantling the military infrastructure of Hezbollah. They will also further undermine prospects for any durable peace agreement between Iran and the US, which Tehran has insisted is dependent on a ceasefire in Lebanon. Israel, which is not a party to the US deal with Iran, invaded southern Lebanon in March in a new offensive against Hezbollah, which is supported by Iran. Israel and Lebanon have repeatedly agreed to US-brokered ceasefires, the latest on Friday, but these have had only limited effect, with Israel insisting it will not withdraw from Lebanese territory it has seized, and Hezbollah repeatedly rejecting calls to give up its arms as long as Israeli troops remain in place. With reporting by Reuters and Associated Press
How children in West Bank are being killed by Israel ‘without accountability’
On the day he died, Mohammad al-Halaq had been jubilant about a new school bag he had been given in class, printed with the logo of the UN child protection and advocacy agency, Unicef. “He was extremely happy. It was something out of the ordinary for him to be given a bag,” recalled his mother, Aliyah. “He came knocking on the door to tell me had this new bag to put pencils and pens in.” The nine-year-old ran home then raced back to school to ask, unsuccessfully, if he could get another bag for his brother. After lunch, he went outdoors to try to catch birds in a net he had rigged up. He caught one and showed it off to his friends. Full of energy, he then wanted to go to his grandparents’ house nearby. The al-Halaq family live in ar-Rihiya, in the hills south of Hebron, which have become notorious for Israeli settler violence abetted by an increasingly politicised army. So Aliyah was nervous about Mohammad going anywhere out of her sight, but she had to go to the shops and her son was determined, waving goodbye to her as he sprinted away. It was the last time she saw him alive. Mohammad was shot in the pelvis by an Israeli soldier at about 4pm that day, 16 October last year. He had been playing football with other boys in a school playground when two army Jeeps drove up. The boys scattered in all directions. By one account, a couple of the older teens threw stones towards the Jeeps, while others shouted at the soldiers once they had reached what they thought was a safe distance. A video shows a soldier get out of the Jeep and aim his rifle towards the hilltop where some of the boys were watching. Shots were fired and Mohammad took a couple of steps before collapsing. Others tried to reach the bleeding boy but were held back by more shots and teargas fired by the soldiers below. Aliyah was at the shops when the call came. It was her uncle calling her father, but she had an instinct and grabbed her father’s mobile. “I asked him directly: ‘Is it my son Mohammad? Please tell me the truth. Is it my son?’ And he hung up when he realised it was me,” Aliyah said. Mohammad died in hospital, one of 235 Palestinian children and teenagers killed by Israeli forces on the West Bank – plus another five killed by settlers themselves – since 7 October 2023. That date marked the start of the Gaza war, triggered by a Hamas attack on southern Israel which killed about 1,200 Israelis (of which about 800 were civilians and 38 were children). The reprisals were not just against Gaza, where more than 72,000 Palestinians have been killed (21,000 of them children), but also in the West Bank, where military rules of engagements have been loosened and impunity is the norm. “The widespread and unprecedented killing of Palestinian children and teenagers in the West Bank is the result of Israel’s broader policy that allows the killing of Palestinians without accountability,” said Yuli Novak, the executive director of the human rights group B’Tselem, which published a report on Monday titled Unshielded Childhood. It focuses on 54 Palestinian children and teenagers killed by Israeli forces in 2025 alone. “The system does not merely back the shooters – it effectively gives them a licence to kill,” Novak said, pointing to recent remarks by Maj Gen Avi Bluth, the head of the army’s central command, deployed in the West Bank, claiming “we are killing like we haven’t killed since 1967”. Bluth also claimed that “96% of those killed were involved in terrorism”, but B’Tselem called that a “blatant lie”. Its analysis of the minors killed in 2025 found no evidence that any of them posed any threat, or were members of any militant group. A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that the army did not “intentionally target uninvolved civilians”. “Every allegation of harm to uninvolved individuals is examined and investigated,” the spokesperson said. “The IDF and Israel’s security forces will continue to operate to thwart terrorism and protect the citizens of Israel, while remaining committed to Israeli and international law and taking measures to mitigate harm to civilians whenever possible.” According to data from another human rights organisation, Yesh Din, no Israeli has been indicted for the killing of a Palestinian since October 2023. In a separate report last week, a UN independent international commission of inquiry found that: “Israeli authorities and security forces have deliberately targeted Palestinian children resulting in genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in the Gaza Strip and war crimes in the West Bank.” “The evidence shows that Palestinian children have been deliberately targeted and killed by the Israeli security forces,” said Srinivasan Muralidhar, chair of the commission. Even after the partly observed Gaza ceasefire last October, Muralidhar said, “children continue to be killed and seriously injured, with continued disregard by Israel for the ceasefire and for the protection owed to Palestinian children under international law”. Rimas Amuri was 13 when she was shot just outside her family home in the Jenin refugee camp in February last year. It was a Friday and she was playing with cousins outside. There was no sign of any security alert, and traffic was passing normally. Her father, Omar, said the family live close to a military checkpoint in an area which is normally considered secure. “We were just living our life normally. If I had known that something was wrong, I would never give my daughter permission to go to play outside.” The IDF told Haaretz after the shooting that its soldiers “identified a suspicious figure moving near forces operating in the area. The troops initiated a suspect-arrest procedure, which included calling out to the figure. When she failed to respond, they fired at her lower body.” B’Tselem’s investigation found that at 40 metres’ range, the soldiers should have been able to see Rimas was a young girl. None of the witnesses heard any warning calls, and according to the medical report, “Rimas was shot in the back, suggesting she may not have been aware of the soldiers’ presence at all”. Military police questioned witnesses but the family have heard nothing of any inquiry. “If such a thing has happened with an Israeli girl, what would the reaction be?” Omar Amuri asked. “We are against the killing of anyone. We are the same like every other person.” The majority of the children killed in the West Bank were playing outside when they lost their lives. But two-year-old Layla al-Khatib was inside her family home sitting in her mother’s lap when an Israeli soldier shot her in the head in January last year. The 25-year-old mother, Taymaa, is still too traumatised to speak. Her father, Bassam, Layla’s grandfather, said the family was sitting down to a Saturday evening meal in the second-floor flat in Muthallath a-Shuhada, near Jenin, when they heard a commotion in the nearby streets. Israeli soldiers had arrived in the neighbourhood in three civilian vehicles with Palestinian licence plates, and commandeered a building near the al-Khatib flat. Such incursions are commonplace and the family carried on eating until suddenly the gunfire was frighteningly close. “My wife and I threw ourselves to the floor, and then I heard our daughters screaming and they kept shouting Layla’s name,” Bassam recalled. He went into the bedroom where his daughters had sought refuge and took Layla in his hands carrying her out on the street where he found the house surrounded by soldiers. “I asked the officer there: ‘Why did you fire on us? Why did you kill my granddaughter? ‘The officer called one of the soldiers to give her first aid. The soldier said: ‘I can’t help her,’ so the officer said they would call an ambulance. That took about 15 minutes.” Layla was pronounced dead at the hospital. “This is a small example of what is happening to our people,” Bassam said. “What is the aim of this? Is it an aim of the Israeli government to kill our children? Please let Layla’s story mark an end to the killing of more children and killing humanity.” An IDF spokesperson said the al-Halaq, Amuri and al-Khatib cases were “currently under investigation by the Military Police Criminal Investigation Division”. “Upon completion of the investigations, the findings will be submitted to the military advocate general’s corps for review,” the spokesperson said, adding that “vast majority of Palestinians killed by IDF troops were involved in terrorist activity”. A military spokesperson added: “In recent years, armed terrorist cells have developed in Palestinian cities and camps, carrying out and facilitating numerous attacks against Israeli civilians. Since 2023, and even more intensively following 7 October, the IDF has been operating extensively to dismantle these terror cells through targeted counter-terrorism operations, and the elimination of armed and wanted terrorists.”
‘She never says goodbye when she leaves’: the Romanian families separated by migration
Maria’s day runs differently to those of most 11-year-olds. By the time other children in her home town of Târgoviște are still waking up, she’s making sure her grandmother takes her morning pills. After school, before she starts homework, she helps with cooking and cleaning, and gives her grandmother her treatment again. When her grandmother needs to see a doctor – sometimes across town, sometimes a two-hour bus ride to Bucharest – Maria* is the one who takes her. During the visits, she sits across from the doctor and listens carefully. Maria keeps note of the medication names, the dosages, the frequency, what each test is looking for and what the results mean. Sometimes it means she misses school but she doesn’t complain. “I don’t mind taking care of my grandma,” said Maria with adult-like composure. “It’s an activity like any other. I’m used to it.” Maria has been living with her grandparents since she was three months old. Her parents left Romania for work, first in Spain, then in Germany. Her parents split and her mother moved to London to work as a cleaner while her father remained in Târgoviște, although he is largely absent from her life. Maria is one of more than 53,000 Romanian children with at least one parent working abroad, according to the latest figures by Romanian social services. Of those, more than 10,000 have both parents or the sole breadwinner working abroad. The true scale, however, is difficult to gauge. Many parents, afraid that declaring their absence might trigger state intervention, leave without registering a legal guardian – an omission that means children can face barriers enrolling in school and accessing medical care without a legal guardian. A 2022 study estimates the real number to be more than 530,000, while 184,000 have both parents away. The Romanian authorities put the number for the same period at 76,000. Anca Stamin, programme manager at Save the Children, said that in addition to the figures collected quarterly by the social services system, schools also collect data, and these figures are two to three times higher. “There has been a wave of disinformation in disadvantaged communities that the state will take their children away,” said Stamin. “Combined with low trust in authorities and little guidance from the state, it pushes many parents not to formally transfer parental rights to the grandparents or relatives raising their children.” The exodus of parents began when Romania joined the European Union in 2007 and it now has the biggest diaspora in the EU, with more than 3 million people officially living in the bloc – although real numbers are likely to be higher – according to EU statistics. Romania remains one of the poorest countries in the EU. Despite years of economic growth, wages remain among the lowest in the bloc. Even after a decade of the fastest minimum wage growth in the EU, the minimum wage lags far behind western Europe. For many families in cities such as Târgoviște, the arithmetic is simple and brutal: a parent working as a cleaner or labourer in London or Frankfurt can earn in a week what they might take a month to earn at home. The parents who go rarely describe it as a choice but rather as the only way to give their children a better life. “If I could find a job in Romania that paid enough to live without fear of tomorrow, I would come back tomorrow,” said Diana Sabu, whose eight-year-old son, Edi, is being looked after by his grandmother while his mother works as a cleaner in France. Many of those children, like Maria, have quietly absorbed responsibilities that weren’t theirs to carry – caring for elderly relatives, managing households and steadying younger siblings. Research shows the emotional impact on children can be severe, with feelings of guilt, withdrawal, anxiety, or aggression being commonplace, while access to psychological support for these children remains scarce. At Christmas, Maria’s mother came home for a month and a half. When it was time to leave, she told Maria she would wake her to say goodbye. But when she finally opened her eyes in the morning, her mother was already gone. “She never says goodbye when she leaves,” said Maria. A recent survey found that more than three-quarters of parents abroad say their greatest struggle is maintaining an emotional bond with the children they left. Nearly half of parents working abroad did not return home for Easter this year, according to the same study, most citing costs as the reason. Children also grow up with feelings of guilt because parents often tell them it’s for their good that they have to leave for work. “Parents make various promises they don’t keep, and if they fail to do so, the emotional burden falls heavily on the child’s shoulders,” said Stamin. “Against this backdrop of emotional instability, they are more prone to behavioural problems and at risk of dropping out of school.” Save the Children runs after-school programmes in 50 Romanian schools, including two in Târgoviște, for children with parents working abroad. The programme offers activities, trips, homework support, and a warm meal, a partial substitute for what is missing at home. “These children mature so quickly,” said Dana Zoe, the Târgoviște programme manager. “But they’re also more sensitive than others. It’s a trauma and you can see it manifest.” Eight-year-old Edi is part of the programme. His mother, Sabu, left for Corsica in April because there was no work for her in Târgoviște. He now lives with his grandmother, Roxana, who does everything she can to care for him. His father has been working in Denmark for five years and visits every few months. “It’s clear he misses her a lot,” said Roxana. “They left to give the children a better future, but it’s different from how I grew up, with my parents next to me.” She pauses. “I don’t see her coming back for good any more.” Sabu works as a cleaner in a campsite with just one day off a week. She earns about €1,600 a month, with accommodation and meals covered, a much better deal than she could find anywhere near Târgoviște. The decision to leave came suddenly, after months of commuting to a job in a nearby town about an hour’s drive from Târgoviște, waking up at three in the morning and arriving back at six in the evening. It wasn’t sustainable, so she left. “The longing is what hurts most,” she said. “But I’m at peace knowing he’ll have what he needs. We’re learning to manage the distance.” But when the children are asked directly what they prefer, the answer is consistent, they say. “They say they’d rather be poor and have their parents here,” Zoe explained. Despite that, Edi’s mother keeps in touch with him daily. Every evening, she falls asleep on a video call. It is, she said, the only moment in the day that makes sense. She plans to return in October, and beyond that, to save enough to buy a home for them. Darius Gavriș is 17 now and he speaks of his childhood with a perspective that only distance and time can give. His parents left for Spain when he was three months old, then moved to Italy, where they have been living for eight years. He grew up in Târgoviște with his grandparents, surrounded by nine cousins in the same situation: all of their parents, his aunts and uncles, had also left. Until he was five he didn’t see much of his parents. Then, until the age of 11, he saw his parents every two years. During the Covid pandemic, four years went by without seeing them at all. He remembers watching other children at school being dropped off and collected by their parents. “I wanted that too,” he said. But he’s made his peace with his childhood. “It made me stronger, in a way, more ambitious, because I wanted to make my parents proud,” said Darius. He speaks carefully, without self-pity, but there is one memory he cannot quite neutralise. The first time his mother came home to visit he didn’t know who she was. He turned to his grandmother and asked: “Who is this lady?” Maria has never had that problem. Her grandmother is the most constant presence in her life and sees her as her mother. She doesn’t want to go to London and leave her behind, even though her brother moved there with their mother a few months ago. She wants to stay to take care of her grandmother’s wellbeing. Some nights, if her grandmother is unwell, Maria stays awake beside her. “I always fall asleep after my grandma, I need to make sure she’s OK and then I can sleep,” said Maria. * Some names have been changed
Monday briefing: Will the heatwave spark action, or further inflame the culture wars?
Good morning. You could be forgiven for thinking that last week’s heatwave in Europe would be a galvanising moment for action on the climate crisis. At one point, more than 150 million Europeans sweltered in temperatures above 35C (95F) – with several parts of the continent soaring past 40C. A heatwave of this magnitude has never been recorded this early in the year. When scientists finish their calculations, the death toll will probably number in the thousands. Spain, one of the few countries that produces real-time statistics on excess deaths linked to heat, has recorded more than 100 per day since Wednesday. French authorities said that at least 1,000 additional deaths had been recorded between 24 and 27 June, a figure that is likely to rise. They include four toddlers who died in incidents linked to the heat. A three-year-old boy in a Paris suburb was found dead last week after climbing into a car and becoming trapped. There is a miserable inevitability surrounding these events: scientists have long warned they were coming. Yet countries have not done enough to cut the emissions from fossil fuels that are causing the extreme weather – or adapt to the realities of managing the toll on their transport and healthcare systems. For today’s First Edition, I spoke with Ajit Niranjan, the Guardian’s Europe environment correspondent, about whether this week’s heatwave in Europe could prompt a fresh drive for action on global heating or whether it may, counterintuitively, boost support for political parties that are sceptical about the climate crisis. But first, the headlines. Weekend roundup Iran | The sudden eruption of fresh hostilities in the Gulf – just 10 days after Iran and the US signed a memorandum of understanding to end the conflict – threatens to put the two countries back on the path to war. Europe heatwave | Germany, Czechia, Poland and Hungary reached record temperatures of more than 40C on Sunday as a heatwave linked to hundreds of deaths in western Europe spread east. UK politics | Andy Burnham is the most popular man at Westminster right now, and Labour MPs, the unions, Whitehall civil servants, political advisers and thinktanks are all battling for the ear of the next prime minister. UK news | One pound in every £11 of UK government spending on contractors went to private equity-controlled companies last year, research shows, including key services such as transport, waste management and healthcare. Royal family | The Duke of Sussex fears his children will not meet King Charles in the coming days after their UK visit was “pulled out from under their feet at the 11th hour”. In depth: We are unprepared for the strain these weather conditions put on our services Growing up in England, 25C always felt like the threshold for a hot summer day. Sun cream and a good hat were vital, as were ice-cream and a blanket for reading in the shade away from the heat. But today, in the wake of a heatwave that pushed the UK’s record June temperature to 37.3C, normal has shifted dramatically: yesterday 25C felt cool, a welcome relief from the recent furnace. The arrival of extreme weather in Europe has been quick. It is the world’s fastest-warming continent, heating up at twice the rate of the rest of the planet. In the 1950s, 60s and 80s, there was not a single “tropical night” recorded at the London Heathrow weather station – defined as when the night-time temperature does not fall below 20C. Now, they are common: four in a row were recorded last week, according to the popular weather blogger London & Southeast. The UK and other European countries are unprepared for these conditions and the immense strain they put on health and travel networks. In the UK, hundreds of schools closed early, workplaces overheated, and train operators asked people not to travel. On Wednesday, the London ambulance service recorded its busiest ever day for the most serious category of callouts, with 642 responses to reports of cardiac arrests, patients who have stopped breathing and life-threatening injuries. Just two days later, the record was broken again, with more 999 calls made than ever before, more even than during the Covid-19 pandemic. By yesterday, the heatwave had moved east. Poland, Czechia and Slovakia were all expecting record temperatures of more than 40C. Bautzen in in eastern Saxony broke the German record for the highest overnight minimum temperature of 29.4C. For many years, climate scientists assumed that extreme weather events in richer countries would have a galvanising impact for investment in renewable energy, support for green political parties and phasing out of fossil fuels. But that logic has not played out in reality. The climate is now at the frontier of the culture wars, shaped by arguments about air conditioning or phone-ins about whether people are being “wimps” for complaining about the high temperatures. *** A boost for the far right Sometimes, climate-driven weather events can temporarily cut through, says Ajit, pointing to the 2021 floods in the Ahr valley in Germany, which killed 188 people and washed away entire villages. But increasingly, the opposite happens. “One trend that’s possibly the most counterintuitive about these kinds of moments is that far-right parties who are denying the science of climate change can get a bit of a boost from extreme weather events,” says Ajit. “They spin the extreme weather as a failure of government policy, arguing that focusing on climate change was part of the initial problem, and it is more about mismanagement.” In many cases, such as the 2024 floods in Valencia, when more than 230 people were killed after a year’s worth of rain fell in eight hours to parts of eastern Spain, both things are true: the climate drove the extreme weather, but poor governance contributed to the deadly outcome. This is likely to become an increasingly common dynamic as extreme weather events grow in frequency. “Both sides of this issue need to be addressed,” says Ajit. “There is this weird tendency where political parties completely deny one of the causes by either focusing just on climate or just on adaptation, without having a good plan for the other. This is certainly a part of the strategy used by far-right parties to bash climate policy,.” *** The great air-con debate Social media played a major role in shaping perceptions of last week’s heatwave – and driving divisions about what should be done to protect people from future extreme weather events. Some of the reaction has been lighthearted. In Paris, balconies and rooftops became so hot that people were frying eggs and steak in the sun. One man went viral for making a heatwave crepe. But much of the online debate centred on whether Europe needed a larger rollout of air conditioning to protect its population from the heat. In a post seen by nearly 20 million people, Patrick Collison, CEO of US tech firm Stripe, asked the AI model Claude to settle the air-con debate for Europeans. It concluded that the continent needed to throw its weight behind air conditioning and move past “the psychological discomfort” of “admitting that the American approach to summer was correct all along”. But many places still have some reservations about embracing air-con. In France, the centre of last weeks’ heatwave, many green progressives continue to argue against its use for ideological reasons, despite the extreme heat. The far-right National Rally in France has been quick to capitalise on this, announcing a “major” plan for AC. Ajit says that, as is often the case, there is a significant gap between the online discourse and reality when it comes to air conditioning. “Within Europe, air conditioning is nowhere near as big of a fight as some of the international press have made it out to be,” he says. “There are very few actual restrictions on putting in air conditioning units in your home. This meme in the US that we hate air-con and refuse to have it is not really true. It is less common than in rich parts of Asia and North America but, until recently, people did not need it.” *** Caring for those most at risk Even if there was a major success in cutting fossil fuel emissions, extreme weather events of increasing severity are guaranteed in coming years. While much of the world’s trajectory on global heating will be shaped by government policy in China, the US and India, Ajit underscores that mitigating the impact of extreme heat is something that we can all get involved in. “For people who have this feeling of futility about climate change, there is still a lot we can do,” he says. “There are obvious things like drinking water, wearing loose-fitting clothing, staying in the shade and avoiding the hotter parts of the day. But we also need to look out for vulnerable people. Older people especially cannot regulate their body temperature as well.” Many of the excess deaths happen among elderly and vulnerable people, and among those who were not necessarily close to death. Earlier this month, the World Health Organization said that nearly 200,000 people had died in Europe due to heat in the past four years, and the majority of those deaths would have been preventable if obvious adaptation measures had been taken. “The advice that a lot of charities have given is to check on your elderly neighbours, particularly those who live alone,” says Ajit. “The small things really matter. Pop over with a glass of icy water or an ice-cream. None of this will make a difference to the big picture on the climate crisis, but it is ridiculously hot, and people are dying without many of us realising.” We want to hear from you Later this week, Libby will be speaking to Andy Beckett, columnist and author of The Searchers, about why Britain goes through prime ministers quicker than Taylor Swift goes through eras and what it means for democracy. If you’ve got a question for him hit reply or email first.edition@theguardian.com The week to come Today | Andy Burnham will give his first major speech since winning the Makerfield byelection and becoming Labour leader in waiting, setting out his economic vision and plans for radical devolution. Tomorrow | The Amos review into NHS maternity services will be published. Wednesday | The review into the sentences in the Fordingbridge rape case, which shocked the country and prompted a debate about leniency towards young offenders, will be heard in the court of appeal. What else we’ve been reading Zoe Williams has spoken to the one and only Erin Brockovich about her latest environmental battle against AI datacentres – and how she plans to take the campaign global. Patrick After Zohran Mamdani-backed candidates were victorious in Democrat primaries, David Smith asks whether the US could be set for a truly leftwing president in 2028. Toby Moses, head of newsletters Mike Bell was diagnosed with Parkinson’s at the age of 53 – but eight years later, he learned the diagnosis was wrong. He has written about the experience for the Guardian’s A new start after 60 series. Patrick World Cup 2026 On the pitch Last 32 | Canada became the first team to reach the last 16 of the World Cup with a late 1-0 victory against South Africa. They will face the winner of Netherland and Morocco in Houston on Saturday. Off the pitch England | Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham’s goals saw off Panama, but Thomas Tuchel has problems at right-back and on flanks for last-32 tie against the DRC. World Cup power rankings | After the conclusion of the group stages, the Guardian’s football writers have revisited their pre-tournament power rankings. One country has climbed 26 places – although France are still top dogs. Penalties | The knockout stages are here – along with the spectre of the dreaded penalty shootout. Agony and ecstasy are guaranteed. Nick Evershed has been looking into the stats on the best way to take them. Fans | Do not miss this beautiful photo essay of fans from all 48 countries at the World Cup during the group stages. DR Congo fan Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, also known as Lumumba Vea, deserves his spot in the main image. Icon. Today’s Fixtures Brazil v Japan, 6pm on ITV Germany v Paraguay, 9.30pm on BBC The front pages “Alarm raised over growing role of private equity firms”, is the Guardian’s front page today. The Times has “Burnham: I want mayors to help cut benefits bill”, the FT says “Burnham sets out ‘10-year mission’ to raise living standards nationwide” and the i Paper goes with “Burnham vows to ‘lift Britain back up’ with biggest ever power transfer”. The Telegraph splashes “Burnham: Give me 10 years to fix Britain”, and the Mail writes “Tax raids on middle classes in Burnham’s 10-year plan”. The Express leads on “‘Maddening’ £1.25 million waste of taxpayers’ money”, The Mirror, on a charity walk by the Princess of Wales, has “My chance to give something back”, and Metro, writing about plans to revamp the Royal Navy, says “All hands off deck!”. Today in Focus Life on the porch of an empty mansion In the heart of Knightsbridge, London, 2-8A Rutland Gate, which sold for £210m in 2020, sits empty. But Anders Fernstedt has been sleeping rough on the porch for three years, surrounded by his collection of plant pots and flowers in vases. With many people desperate for housing, what do abandoned luxury properties like this one tell us about the UK? Sam Wollaston tells Lucy Hough about the Guardian’s Abandoned Britain series and how Anders found himself living outside the mansion. Cartoon of the day | Ella Baron The Upside A bit of good news to remind you that the world’s not all bad “We used to talk this way in the old days. And I like speaking now. I enjoy the songs we sing, the Cornish books we read, all the words.” Those are the words of seven-year-old Ablie, one of 200 children who attended the Go Cornish Celebration in Truro, a joyous event showcasing youngsters’ explorations of the Celtic language. Children in Cornwall are embracing Kernewek in what the council is calling a “remarkable resurgence” of the language, amid its 10-year council to boost its everyday use. Goals include making sure every child in Cornwall leaves primary school with a basic understanding of Cornish, and making sure Cornish is routinely seen and heard in civic spaces. Kernewek is undoubtedly having a cultural moment – after all, as Albie says: “It’s fun.” Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday Bored at work? And finally, the Guardian’s puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword Wordiply
A deadly strain of bird flu has landed on Australian shores. Does it pose a risk to pets?
The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has arrived on the Australian mainland and, while there’s no evidence yet of mass animal mortality, authorities are on high alert. The virus has killed millions of birds and thousands of marine mammals since it began spreading around the globe in 2021. The risk to humans is low – but should we be worried about our pets? How far is bird flu spreading in Australia? Australia’s fourth confirmed case of the H5 bird flu was detected in Western Australia in a giant petrel found at Quindalup on the state’s south-west coast on Saturday. Three birds in WA and one in South Australia have so far been confirmed to have had the virus. Results of a further suspected positive detection in a giant petrel on the WA south coast at Roses beach, 30km west of Esperance, were pending as of Sunday. The federal government analysed Australia’s 800 different birds and 350 mammals threatened by the disease. It assessed more than 150 native and unique bird species, and more than 10 mammal species including sea lions and fur seals, as being at “very high risk” of extinction or major decline if they caught the disease. Could bird flu spread among our pets? Along with birds and poultry, the virus can also be fatal for cats and dogs. The Australian government said in its advice that overseas infections were “infrequent” and usually resulted from “dogs or cats being exposed to sick or dead birds, other animals infected with [bird flu], consumption of raw pet food or unpasteurised (raw) milk”. Sheep, pigs, and horses were also considered low risk. On Sunday the threatened species commissioner, Dr Fiona Fraser, urged the public to avoid touching potentially sick birds in the wild and to keep pets away from wild birds. Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email “Pet cats and dogs which come into contact with sick birds could capture H5 bird flu themselves and all mammals are susceptible to H5 bird flu, so that includes our pet cats and dogs,” she said. “And it’s generally good practice to keep your pets away from wildlife anyway.” In an article for the Conversation, Prof Ricardo J Soares Magalhães, a veterinary science expert at the University of Queensland, said the risks were very real for back-yard chickens if an outbreak occurred, particularly if they were free range, and advised keeping chickens housed as much as possible. The Tasmanian government has noted in its advice that no reptiles have been reported to be affected. A general practitioner vet and senior lecturer at the University of Sydney, Dr Anne Quain, told Guardian Australia it was important to take precautions to minimise risks because H5 bird flu was “highly pathogenic” and there were no vaccines for cats or dogs. “The infection can cause respiratory or neurological signs,” she said. “There are reports of fatalities in cats and (less commonly) dogs elsewhere in the world.” What are the symptoms of bird flu in pets? The Australian government says in its advice that signs of the disease “may be subtle or mistaken for other illnesses”. They vary between species, but can include fever, lethargy, discharge from eyes or nose, difficulty breathing and neurological signs, such as tremors or seizures. The president of the Australian Veterinarian Association, Dr Diana Barker, said signs of bird flu included lethargy, swelling and fever. She advised bird owners to isolate animals suspected of having the virus and call clinics rather than bringing the bird in, to minimise the risk of spread. “Right now, the risk to common household pets in Australia is low, and there is no cause for alarm,” she said. “However the public must remain vigilant … Most cases overseas have been linked to specific exposures, most commonly cats eating infected wild birds or infected raw meat. “Dogs appear far less susceptible and typically show only mild signs.” One study, published by the American Veterinary Medical Association, found domestic cats infected with H5N1 had overall mortality rates of 50 to 70%. Should I keep my cat locked inside and my dog on a leash? Sean Dooley from BirdLife Australia advised that cats should be kept indoors in general for bird safety. Owners should keep their cats indoors in the case of an outbreak – both to curtail potential spread and protect cats from falling severely ill, he said. Dog owners should keep them on the leash at the beach, particularly along the southern coast and after heavy storms, which tended to cause more dead birds to wash up onshore. “If we do find a bird flu spread here then there is going to need to be a change in behaviour if people want to protect their pets,” he said. What else should pet owners do? Quain said the best way to prevent the infection was to “minimise or eliminate the risk of exposure to wildlife or infected animals” – making sure outdoor animal runs couldn’t be accessed by wildlife. “While we know cats are likely to be more susceptible than dogs, it would be wise to avoid allowing dogs to mix with potentially sick birds or their carcasses,” she said. “Avoid leaving pet food or water in areas where wild birds or animals can have contact with it.” Quain said in other countries, raw poultry and unpasteurised milk were sources of infection, particularly in cats. “If you have any contact with sick or dead birds yourself, even if you’ve worn gloves, shower and change clothes before contact with cats and dogs,” she said. Additional reporting by Petra Stock