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The GuardianWellnessUSA
Details scarce as Mitch McConnell ‘continues recovery’ in hospital

Details scarce as Mitch McConnell ‘continues recovery’ in hospital

Staff decline to give updates on senator’s health and whether he will be at Capitol when Senate returnsStaff for Mitch McConnell said last week that the Kentucky senator was “continuing his recovery” in a hospital while the Senate is out of session. But his office has released no details about the former Republican leader’s condition during his weeks-long hospitalization or whether he will be at the Capitol when the Senate returns next week.McConnell was admitted to the hospital on 14 June, according to a statement from his office that only said he was “receiving excellent care”. A statement a week later said that he would not be voting that week. And on Thursday, a new statement said that he “continues to improve” and ”appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital”.

16h ago
HaaretzHumanityIslamic World
Erased Israeli Settlers' Brutal War on Palestinian Communities in the West Bank

Erased Israeli Settlers' Brutal War on Palestinian Communities in the West Bank

Erased Israeli Settlers' Brutal War on Palestinian Communities in the West BankScroll downCredit: Avishay Mohar, B'TselemHagar ShezafShare on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on WhatsAppThese images appear again and again – from the ground, from the air, and on maps: dozens of Palestinian communities wiped off the landscape, while illegal Israeli settler outposts continue to spread across the West Bank.Since October 7, 2023, this phenomenon has intensified significantly. Unlike the war in Gaza, there is no discussion in Israel about ending this parallel campaign of dispossession.

35m ago
The GuardianDiplomacy
Qatar says Iran fully responsible after tankers struck in strait of Hormuz

Qatar says Iran fully responsible after tankers struck in strait of Hormuz

Three vessels, including a Qatari LNG carrier, struck within hours close to OmanQatar has warned Iran it will bear full legal responsibility after three tankers, including a Qatari LNG vessel, were struck within hours in the strait of Hormuz.All three vessels were struck close to Oman which had suggested a new shipping corridor close to its coastline – a proposal opposed by Iran, which wants to charge ships using the waterway.

43m ago
The GuardianHumanityIsrael & Palestine
Detained Gaza doctor almost unrecognisable after injuries in Israeli jail, lawyer says

Detained Gaza doctor almost unrecognisable after injuries in Israeli jail, lawyer says

Hussam Abu Safiya faces ‘tangible danger to his life’ following 18 months in prison without charge or trialOne of Gaza’s most prominent doctors is almost unrecognisable because of severe injuries inflicted in Israeli detention, his lawyer has said, and faces “tangible danger to his life” after being held for 18 months without charge or trial.Hussam Abu Safiya met his lawyer on 2 July, after a transfer to Israel’s notorious Rakefet prison in late June. He had difficulty breathing and speaking continuously, was so weak he struggled to sit upright, and repeatedly seemed on the verge of losing consciousness, said his lawyer, Nasser Odeh.

1d ago
The IndependentImmigrationUSA
Why does Folarin Balogun play for USA in the World Cup? Striker explains his decision

Why does Folarin Balogun play for USA in the World Cup? Striker explains his decision

Download our app Folarin Balogun, a US soccer player, was initially banned from the US’ World Cup game against Belgium after receiving a red card in a previous match, but FIFA unexpectedly suspended the ban, allowing him to play. The situation drew significant attention due to the involvement of President Donald Trump, who publicly urged FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review Balogun's case, despite the president's known stance against birthright citizenship.

20h ago
The GuardianWar & ConflictEurope
Woman suspected of Monaco bombing found shot dead near Kyiv

Woman suspected of Monaco bombing found shot dead near Kyiv

Anastasiia Berezovska was being sought by police over attack that seriously injured a Ukraine-born businessmanA woman suspected of carrying out last week’s has been found shot dead near Kyiv, in the latest twist in a case that has shaken the wealthy Mediterranean principality.Ukrainian prosecutors said on Tuesday the woman had been found with a gunshot wound to the head and that two men had been arrested in connection with the case, including an officer with Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) and a former law enforcement officer.

6h ago
The GuardianDiplomacySyria
Bombs explode near Damascus hotel housing Macron on Syria visit

Bombs explode near Damascus hotel housing Macron on Syria visit

Blasts did not interrupt French president’s visit but are setback for Syrian leaders’ attempt to project stabilityExplosions rocked Damascus near the hotel where French president, Emmanuel Macron, was staying on Tuesday, wounding at least 18 people, Syrian authorities said.Macron was in the presidential palace for a meeting with the Syrian president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, when two improvised explosive devices detonated near the Four Seasons hotel where Macron was reported to be staying.

6h ago
The GuardianHumanityUnited Kingdom
Freed Rochdale grooming gang leader was judged ‘high risk’ to children in 2023

Freed Rochdale grooming gang leader was judged ‘high risk’ to children in 2023

Exclusive: Shabir Ahmed, jailed in 2012 for rape, abuse and trafficking of girls, was deemed three years ago to present ‘high risk of sexual offending’The leader of the Rochdale grooming gang was deemed to pose a “very high risk of serious harm” towards children just three years ago, the Guardian can reveal.Shabir Ahmed, 73, was despite three failed attempts to secure parole, the most recent of which was in October 2024. One document, relating to a previous review in 2023, shows Ahmed was seen to present a “high risk of sexual offending”.

4d ago
The GuardianHealth AlertsUnited Kingdom
Rapid endometriosis tests to be made available on NHS in England and Wales

Rapid endometriosis tests to be made available on NHS in England and Wales

Saliva and gut sensor-based tests hailed as ‘gamechanger’ for millions of women who can wait years for diagnosisTwo tests that can dramatically speed up diagnosis of are to be made available on the NHS in England and Wales, in a move hailed as a “gamechanger” for millions of women.One in 10 women of reproductive age are affected by the condition, where tissue similar to that found in the womb lining grows elsewhere, such as the ovaries and fallopian tubes. Symptoms include painful periods, painful bowel movements, pain when urinating and pain during or after sex.

13h ago
The GuardianScandalAustralia
Indecent proposal: why social media’s rebrand of surveillance tech normalises harassment and non-consensual filming | Maggie Zhou

Indecent proposal: why social media’s rebrand of surveillance tech normalises harassment and non-consensual filming | Maggie Zhou

By selling AI glasses as aspirational, cool and fashion-forward, tech elites are trying to pacify their entry into the mainstream worldWe have a habit of dismissing social media trends as inane and vapid while ignoring the disturbing undercurrent. A few weeks ago I was reminded of that when I saw an Instagram carousel by British fashion personality Alexa Chung. Shared with her 6 million followers, she showed different outfits through screenshots of herself entering and leaving her home on her security camera. Rita Ora commented, “Good angle keep this series going”. Security system company Ring commented, “Fit checks on Ring cam? Next level.”The post caught my eye among the feed of curated noise, a counterculture take on the traditional iPhone outfit photo. Its presumed effortlessness felt intimate and off the cuff. Social media loves that sort of thing.

13h ago
The GuardianDiplomacyRussia
IOC lifts suspension and paves way for Russia to compete at LA 2028 Olympics

IOC lifts suspension and paves way for Russia to compete at LA 2028 Olympics

Suspension had been imposed after invasion of UkraineDecision on Russian anthem and flag still unclearThe International Olympic Committee has lifted the suspension on Russia that was imposed after the invasion of Ukraine, paving the way for the Russian team to compete at the Los Angeles Olympics.Only a handful of Russians were able to compete at the Paris Summer Olympics and the Milan Cortina Winter Games in 2026 as authorised neutral athletes, after an IOC vetting panel checked whether they had offered any public support for the war in Ukraine.

2h ago
The GuardianHumanityUSA
The US supreme court’s ruling on trans people in sports is an assault on bodily autonomy | Judith Levine

The US supreme court’s ruling on trans people in sports is an assault on bodily autonomy | Judith Levine

Laws banning trans athletes claim to defend science, fairness, and women’s safety. They do the oppositeLast week, the US supreme court ruled that states may restrict participation in girls’ and women’s sports to “biological females” and exclude transgender athletes from competing. In the past six years, have enacted such bans; before the court were challenges to West Virginia’s and Idaho’s .The , penned by justice Brett Kavanaugh, upholds the laws’ legality under Title IX, the federal statute that guarantees women’s equal participation in college sports, and their constitutionality under the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. It also vindicates Donald Trump’s February 2025 executive order “”. That directive withdraws funding from “educational programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities, which results in the endangerment, humiliation, and silencing of women and girls and deprives them of privacy”. US policy, the order continues, will “oppose male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth”.

7h ago
The GuardianWar & Conflict
What does China’s long-range missile test in the South Pacific mean for Australia? | David Vallance

What does China’s long-range missile test in the South Pacific mean for Australia? | David Vallance

The timing – on the day the Ocean of Peace Alliance treaty was signed with Fiji – reads as provocation at best, coercion at worstAt , a People’s Liberation Army Navy submarine test fired a ballistic missile into the South Pacific nuclear-free zone. This is the second time China has conducted a ballistic missile test in the Pacific in two years.Coming on the day Fiji became Australia’s fourth , after the US, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea, this test’s timing is interesting. It reads as a provocation at best, outright coercion at worst.

16h ago
The GuardianWar & Conflict
China tests long-range missile in South Pacific in move Australia condemns as ‘destabilising to region’

China tests long-range missile in South Pacific in move Australia condemns as ‘destabilising to region’

Australian government confirms it was informed by China of its intent to conduct the test on MondayChina has conducted a long-range missile test in the South Pacific, in a move the Australian government condemned as “destabilising to the region” and which was also criticised by other regional leaders.A ⁠test missile topped with ‌a ‌dummy warhead landed ‌in “designated waters” of the Pacific, China’s state news agency Xinhua ‌reported on Monday. The missile test was a “routine arrangement” of China’s annual ⁠military training, with prior notification to relevant countries, Xinhua said.

1d ago
The GuardianWar & Conflict
Europe faces up to prospect US may be unable to arm Nato allies

Europe faces up to prospect US may be unable to arm Nato allies

Wars in Iran and Ukraine have expended stockpiles of sought-after missiles, leaving gap in military resourcesThere are growing concerns in Europe that the US defence industrial base is no longer providing the weapons pledged to Nato allies with US stockpiles depleted owing to the conflicts in Ukraine and Iran, leaving allies to consider new avenues to arm and defend themselves.As , Turkey, the US plans to address European defence spending and concerns over the Trump administration’s future commitment to the military alliance.

13h ago
The GuardianScandalFrance
Marine Le Pen’s presidential bid hangs in balance as court orders electronic tag

Marine Le Pen’s presidential bid hangs in balance as court orders electronic tag

Ban on running for elected office reduced but ankle tag would make campaigning logistically difficultThe French far-right leader Marine Le Pen’s 2027 presidential bid was hanging in the balance on Tuesday as she was sentenced to wear an electronic ankle tag after being found guilty of embezzling European parliament funds.The Paris court of appeal upheld Le Pen’s ⁠conviction ⁠ but shortened her ban ⁠on running for elected office, potentially reopening a narrow path for the far-right ​leader ‌to stand ‌in the 2027 presidential race.

1h ago
The GuardianScandalFrance
What does the court ruling mean for Marine Le Pen’s presidential chances?

What does the court ruling mean for Marine Le Pen’s presidential chances?

A look at the the case, the appeal court decision, and how it could affect the race to succeed Emmanuel MacronA Paris court has delivered a ruling on Marine Le Pen’s for embezzlement of public funds that could – in principle – allow France’s far-right figurehead to run in next year’s presidential election.Here is a look at the ruling, the case that led up to it – and what the court’s decision means for the race to succeed Emmanuel Macron as French president.

2h ago
The GuardianHealthcareUnited Kingdom
Burnham urged to ditch ‘dangerous’ UK-US NHS drug deal

Burnham urged to ditch ‘dangerous’ UK-US NHS drug deal

Exclusive: health groups call on expected next PM to rip up agreement, which analysis suggests could lead to 229,000 excess deaths by 2036Andy Burnham is being urged to scrap the UK-US trade deal on medicines as health organisations and doctors’ groups warn it is dangerous and prioritises pharmaceutical company profits over the lives of NHS patients.Ministers have defended the agreement, signed last December, as a way of helping British drug exports to the US avoid tariffs and giving patients access to potentially life-extending drugs that would otherwise be denied.

3h ago
The GuardianElectionsIran
Tehran teemed with Khamenei mourners, but divisions – and demands for change – remain

Tehran teemed with Khamenei mourners, but divisions – and demands for change – remain

Many of the millions who turned out for funeral wanted to show their opposition the killing of their leader, regardless of their broader views of the regimeAs the multipurpose, multinational moved to the Jamkaran mosque in the holy city of Qom, and then to Najaf in Iraq, Iran’s leadership was weighing the mandate it had been given by the millions who have taken to the streets of Tehran over the past three days.Some hailed the moment as a referendum from the streets showing support for the clerical establishment, and called for the strategy of confrontation with the west to be intensified. Others said it was more about a wider national pride that was conditional on demands for change and an end to the war being met.

6h ago