Roads, homes and vehicles have been severely damaged
Cape Verde has declared a state of emergency on the islands of São Vicente and Santo Antão, after deadly floods which killed at least nine people and forced 1,500 from their homes.
The state of emergency activates crisis funds and urgent infrastructure repairs in the Atlantic Ocean islands off the west coast of Africa.
Monday's flash floods were triggered by Tropical Storm Erin, leading to 193mm (7.6in) of rain in just five hours, far above São Vicente's annual average.
Deputy Prime Minister Olavo Correia told the BBC the floods were "catastrophic".
Rescue teams are desperately searching for missing people, while roads, homes and vehicles have been severely damaged.
Commenting on the heavy rains, Ester Brito from the country's meteorology institute told Reuters news agency that the weather conditions were uncommon.
"It is a rare situation because what was recorded is above our 30-year climatologist average."
Speaking to local media outlet Expresso das Ilhas, Ms Brito added that the country did not have the radar equipment required to forecast the extent of the rains.
Describing the moment the floods hit, Interior Minister Paulo Rocha said the night was "marked by panic and despair", Reuters reports.
Alveno Yali, a community organiser in São Vicente, the worst affected Island, described the situation as "an incredible moment of heavy rains, strong winds, and flash floods, resulting in significant material losses".
The Cape Verdean diaspora especially in France, Luxembourg, Portugal, and the US have launched urgent crowdfunding campaigns.
Tens of thousands of euros have already been raised to buy food, water, hygiene products, and emergency supplies.
Andreia Levy, president of Hello Cabo Verde in France, told the BBC that the entire diaspora was mobilised and they planned to deliver aid directly.
The US and Russia have agreed to hold a meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin on Friday 15 August, to discuss how to end the war in Ukraine.
Trump announced the meeting a week beforehand - the same day as his deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or face more US sanctions.
Three rounds of talks between Russia and Ukraine held at Trump's behest this summer have yet to bring the two sides any closer to peace.
Here is what we know about the meeting between the two leaders, taking place in Alaska - which was once Russian territory - in Anchorage.
Why are they meeting in Alaska?
The US purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867, lending a historical resonance to the meeting. It became a US state in 1959.
Russian presidential assistant Yuri Ushakov pointed out that the two countries are neighbours, with only the Bering Strait separating them.
"It seems quite logical for our delegation simply to fly over the Bering Strait and for such an important and anticipated summit of the leaders of the two countries to be held in Alaska," Ushakov said.
The last time Alaska took centre-stage in an American diplomatic event was in March 2021, when Joe Biden's newly minted diplomatic and national security team met their Chinese counterparts in Anchorage.
The sit-down turned acrimonious, with the Chinese accusing the Americans of "condescension and hypocrisy".
Where in Alaska will Trump and Putin meet?
The meeting will be in Anchorage, the White House confirmed on Tuesday.
When announcing the bilateral, Trump said the location would be "a very popular one for a number of reasons", without disclosing it would be in the state's largest city.
The pair will be hosted at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, the largest military installation in Alaska. The 64,000 acre base is a key US site for Arctic military readiness.
Why are Putin and Trump meeting?
Trump has been pushing hard - without much success - to end the war in Ukraine.
As a presidential candidate, he pledged that he could end the war within 24 hours of taking office. He has also repeatedly argued that the war "never would have happened" if he had been president at the time of Russia's invasion in 2022.
Frustrations grew and Trump set an 8 August deadline for Putin to agree to an immediate ceasefire or face more severe US sanctions.
As the deadline hit, Trump instead announced he and Putin would meet in person on 15 August.
The meeting comes after US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff held "highly productive" talks with Putin in Moscow on Wednesday, according to Trump.
Ahead of the meeting, the White House sought to play down speculation that the bilateral could yield a ceasefire.
"This is a listening exercise for the president," said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. She added that Trump may travel to Russia following the Alaska trip.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump said he viewed the summit as a "feel-out meeting" aimed at urging Putin to end the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is not expected to attend. Trump said on Monday: "I would say he could go, but he's been to a lot of meetings."
Trump did, however, say that Zelensky would be the first person he would call afterwards.
A White House official later said that Trump and Zelensky would meet virtually on Wednesday, ahead of the US president's summit with Putin. The Zelensky meeting will be joined by several European leaders.
Putin had requested that Zelensky be excluded, although the White House has previously said that Trump was willing to hold a trilateral in which all three leaders were present.
Zelensky has said any agreements without input from Ukraine would amount to "dead decisions".
What do both sides hope to get out of it?
While both Russia and Ukraine have long said that they want the war to end, both countries want things that the other harshly opposes.
Trump said on Monday he was "going to try to get some of that [Russian-occupied] territory back for Ukraine". But he also warned that there might have to be "some swapping, changes in land".
Ukraine, however, has been adamant that it will not accept Russian control of regions that Moscow has seized, including Crimea.
Zelensky pushed back this week against any idea of "swapping" territories.
"We will not reward Russia for what it has perpetrated," the Ukrainian president said.
Watch: 'We're going to change the battle lines' Trump on the war in Ukraine
Meanwhile, Putin has not budged from his territorial demands, Ukraine's neutrality and the future size of its army.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in part, over Putin's belief the Western defensive alliance, Nato, was using the neighbouring country to gain a foothold to bring its troops closer to Russia's borders.
The Trump administration has been attempting to sway European leaders on a ceasefire deal that would hand over swathes of Ukrainian territory to Russia, the BBC's US partner CBS News has reported.
The agreement would allow Russia to keep control of the Crimean peninsula, and take the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, which is made up of Donetsk and Luhansk, according to sources familiar with the talks.
Russia illegally occupied Crimea in 2014 and its forces control the majority of the Donbas region.
Under the deal, Russia would have to give up the Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, where it currently has some military control.
Speaking to Fox News, US Vice-President JD Vance said any future deal was "not going to make anybody super happy".
"You've got to make peace here… you can't finger point," he said.
"The way to peace is to have a decisive leader to sit down and force people to come together."
Officials have released images showing the glacial lake outburst causing flooding worries
Some Alaskans are evacuating their homes as meltwater escapes a basin dammed by the Mendenhall Glacier - raising fears of record-breaking flooding in the US state's capital city.
The National Weather Service (NWS) office in Juneau has issued a flood warning as glacial outburst water flows into Mendenhall River, putting homes in the area at risk.
For days, local officials have warned residents they may be forced to evacuate. On Tuesday, they confirmed water had begun escaping the ice dam and flooding was expected in the coming days.
The glacier, a popular tourist attraction, is 12 miles (19km) from Juneau.
Water levels reached 9.85ft (3m) on Tuesday, below major flooding levels which begin at 14ft, the NWS said. But by Wednesday morning they were above 16ft, which is considered a crest.
"This will be a new record, based on all of the information that we have," Nicole Ferrin, a weather service meteorologist, said at a press conference on Tuesday.
The Juneau city website explains that glacial lake outbursts happen when a lake of melting snow and ice and rain drains rapidly. It compares the process to pulling out a plug from a full bathtub. When meltwaters reach a certain level, they can overtop a glacier that previously held them back.
Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy issued a state disaster declaration on Sunday because of the "imminent threat of catastrophic flooding from a glacier lake outburst flood (GLOF)" in the Juneau area.
Flooding has been an annual concern in the area since 2011, as homes have been damaged and swept away by deluges. Last year, hundreds of residences were damaged.
The natural dams of ice and rock that hold the lakes in place can fail suddenly and unpredictably, triggering floods.
Researchers expect climate change to increase the number of these outburst floods in future, although past trends – and the causes of individual floods – are complicated.
The army paid tribute to the three men killed in the latest drone attack
Three soldiers have been killed in a drone attack in south-west Colombia, which authorities have blamed on a dissident rebel group.
The devices dropped explosives on members of Colombia's navy and army, who were manning a checkpoint on the Naya River.
Four other members of the security forces were injured in the attack.
Drone attacks have become increasingly common in recent years in Colombia: in 2024, 115 such attacks were recorded in the country, most of them carried out by illegal armed groups.
In January, the government said it was putting a plan into place to prevent such attacks by beefing up its anti-drone technology, in order to better detect and "neutralise" drones.
The latest deadly attack happened near Buenaventura, a city on the Pacific coast which is a hotbed for drug trafficking.
Army officials gave the names of the three victims as Wilmar Rivas, Andrés Estrada and Dario Estrada.
Off-shoots of the Farc rebel group, which refused to sign a peace deal negotiated by the guerrilla group's leaders in 2016, have a strong presence in the area.
The rivers in the region are often used to transport cocaine - the main source of income for illegal armed groups - and weapons.
Military officials said one of the groups under the command of a man known as Iván Mordisco was behind Tuesday's drone attack.
Mordisco walked out of peace talks with the government in April 2024, and the dissident rebel factions he leads engage in criminal activities such as the extortion of farmers and landowners, illegal mining and cocaine trafficking.
Putin and Kim spoke on Tuesday, with the Russian leader praising Pyongyang's military support for his country's war against Ukraine.
This week, Russia has been making fresh military advances in Ukraine, leading to a sudden thrust near the eastern town of Dobropillia and advancing 10km (six miles) in a short period of time.
Kim and Putin "reaffirmed their commitment to the further development of friendship relations, good-neighbourliness and cooperation," the Kremlin said in a statement.
Putin gave the North Korean leader an update on the Alaska summit's preparation, sharing with him "information in the context of the upcoming talks with US President Donald Trump," the Kremlin said.
The official North Korean statement did not mention this.
Repeating his earlier statement, Putin "praised the assistance provided by [North Korea's] support during the liberation of the territory of the Kursk region", according to his office.
The Ukrainian army briefly invaded Russia's Kursk region last year in an unexpected offensive that showed Western allies its capability to fight back against Russia, which currently occupies about 20% of Ukraine's territories.
'Like slaves': North Koreans sent to work in Russia
Putin and Kim spoke just days before the Russian leader is expected to travel to Alaska to meet Trump, his first face-to-face meeting with a US president since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The war, while causing Russia near-complete economic and diplomatic isolation from the West, has seen unprecedented collaboration between Moscow and Pyongyang. At least 10,000 North Korean soldiers have been sent to fight side by side with their Russian counterparts, according to Ukraine and South Korea.
North Korea also provided Russia with missiles, artillery shells and labourers.
With many of Russia's men either killed or tied up fighting - or having fled the country - South Korean intelligence officials have told the BBC that Moscow is increasingly relying on North Korean workers.
Netanyahu has dismissed international criticism of his plans to expand the war
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has indicated that Gaza ceasefire efforts are now focused on a comprehensive deal to release all the remaining hostages at once.
The plan previously being pushed was for an initial 60-day truce and partial release of living hostages.
Hamas says a delegation of its leaders is in Cairo for "preliminary talks" with Egyptian officials.
Reports say that mediators see a window of opportunity in the coming weeks to try to push a deal through.
After indirect talks between Israel and Hamas broke down last month, Israel announced a controversial plan to widen its military offensive and conquer all the Gaza Strip - including the areas where most of its two million Palestinian residents have sought refuge.
However, Israeli media do not expect the new operation to begin until October - allowing time for military preparations, including a mass call-up of reservists.
Early on Wednesday, al-Shifa Hospital said seven members of one family, five of them children, were killed when tents were targeted in Tel al-Hawa. Al-Ahli Hospital said 10 people were killed in a strike on a house in the Zaytoun area.
The Israeli military chief Lt Gen Eyal Zamir also "approved the main framework for the IDF's operational plan in the Gaza Strip", a statement released by the army said.
In an interview with the i24 Israeli TV Channel shown on Tuesday, Netanyahu was asked if a partial ceasefire was still possible.
"I think it's behind us," he replied. "We tried, we made all kinds of attempts, we went through a lot, but it turned out that they were just misleading us."
"I want all of them," he said of the hostages. "The release of all the hostages, both alive and dead - that's the stage we're at."
Palestinian armed groups still hold 50 hostages taken in the Hamas-led attack on 7 October 2023 that triggered the war. Israel believes that around 20 of them are still alive.
Last week, unnamed Arab officials were quoted as saying that regional mediators, Egypt and Qatar, were preparing a new framework for a deal that would involve releasing all remaining hostages at the same time in return for an end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli troops.
However, this will be difficult to do in a short time frame as Israel is demanding that Hamas give up control of Gaza as well as its weapons.
This is likely to be why, at a news conference on Tuesday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty told journalists that Cairo was still "making great efforts" with Qatar and the US - the other mediators - to revive the earlier phased plan.
"The main goal is to return to the original proposal - a 60-day ceasefire - along with the release of some hostages and some Palestinian prisoners, and the flow of humanitarian and medical aid into Gaza without obstacles or conditions," Abdelatty said.
The Israeli prime minister says Israel's goals have not changed. He says that the war will end only when all hostages are returned and Hamas surrenders.
Netanyahu has said that, ultimately, Israel must keep open-ended security control over Gaza.
Hamas has long called for a comprehensive deal to exchange the hostages it is holding for Palestinian prisoners in Israel jails. It also wants a full pull-out of Israeli forces and an end to the war.
It refuses to disarm unless an independent Palestinian state is created.
Speaking to i24, Netanyahu also reiterated an idea that Palestinians should simply leave the territory through "voluntary" emigration, saying: "They're not being pushed out, they'll be allowed to exit."
He went on: "All those who are concerned for the Palestinians and say they want to help the Palestinians should open their gates and stop lecturing us."
Palestinians, human rights groups and many in the international community have warned that any forced displacement of people from Gaza violates international law.
Many Palestinians fear a repeat of what they call the "Nakba" (Catastrophe) when hundreds of thousands fled or were forced from their homes in the fighting that came before and after the state of Israel was created in 1948.
Most Gazans are descendants of those original refugees and themselves hold official refugee status.
UN-backed experts have warned of widespread famine unfolding in Gaza, where Israel has greatly limited the amount of humanitarian aid it allows in.
The UN's World Food Programme has warned that starvation and malnutrition are at the highest levels in Gaza since the conflict began.
Hamas's 2023 attack killed about 1,200 people in Israel, with 251 taken into Gaza as hostages.
Israel's offensive has since killed at least 61,722 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. It says that 235 people including 106 children have also died due to starvation and malnutrition.
The foreign ministers of Germany, France and the UK have offered an extension for negotiations with Iran until the end of August
The UK, France and Germany have told the UN they are ready to reimpose sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme if it fails to resume talksby the end of August.
The three countries, known as the E3, said they were prepared to trigger a "snapback" mechanism - meaning previous sanctions would be reinstated - unless Iran resumes negotiations.
The E3 said they had offered to extend a deadline for negotiations to the end of August, which Iran has not replied to.
Last month, Iran said it was prepared for further talks but only once sanctions already in place were lifted and its right to a civilian nuclear programme was agreed.
It comes after initial talks between E3 and Iranian diplomats took place in Istanbul, Turkey last month.
In a letter to the UN and its chief António Guterres, three foreign ministers - Jean-Noël Barrot from France, David Lammy from the UK and Johann Wadephul from Germany - said they would enforce severe sanctions on Iran unless it agrees to limit its nuclear programme.
On Tuesday, the E3 said their offer of an extension to the negotiations "remained unanswered by Iran".
"We have made it clear that if Iran is not willing to reach a diplomatic solution before the end of August 2025, or does not seize the opportunity of an extension, the E3 are prepared to trigger the snapback mechanism," the letter said.
They added they were committed to using "all diplomatic tools" to ensure Iran does not develop a nuclear weapon - something Iran has denied intending to do.
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said in July that triggering sanctions would be "completely illegal".
Sanctions on Iran's nuclear programme were previously lifted in 2015 after Iran signed a nuclear deal with the E3, the US, Russia and China, agreeing limits on its nuclear operations and to allow international inspectors entry to its nuclear sites. The deal is due to expire in October.
The US withdrew from the deal in 2018 during President Donald Trump's first term, with the leader saying it did too little to stop Iran from creating a pathway to a nuclear bomb.
With its withdrawal, all US sanctions were re-imposed on Iran.
Iran retaliated by increasingly breaching the restrictions. In May, the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said it had more than 400kg of uranium enriched to 60% purity - well above the level used for civilian purposes and close to weapons grade.
In June Iran's parliament suspended cooperation with the IAEA after tensions with Israel and the US came to a head.
Israel launched attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities the same month, triggering a 12-day war.
The US bombed a number of Iran's nuclear sites, bringing US-Iran talks to an abrupt end.
Following the strikes, the E3 countries stepped up warnings to Iran about its suspension of cooperation with the IAEA.
The BBC has contacted the UK Foreign Office for comment.
The Iranian mission to the UN did not immediately respond to the BBC's request for comment.
A major blaze in Turkey forced hundreds from their homes
A scorching heatwave is fuelling dozens of wildfires across parts of southern Europe, forcing thousands of people from their homes and pushing temperatures above 40C (104F).
Red heat alerts have been issued in parts of Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and the Balkans, warning of significant risks to health.
Spain's weather service Aemet said temperatures could reach 44C (111.2F) in Seville and Cordoba, while authorities in southern Portugal also warned of possible 44C highs.
In Italy, a child died of heatstroke on Monday, and in Tres Cantos, north of Spain's capital Madrid, a man who suffered serious burns died in hospital, officials said.
Reuters
Wildfires in Albania forced people to evacuate their homes on Monday
Hundreds of Tres Cantos residents were forced to leave their homes amid Spain's wildfires and the regional environment minister described the fire as having "explosive characteristics because of a dry storm that has brought winds of more than 70km/h (43.5mph)".
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez posted on X on Tuesday and said that rescue services "are working tirelessly to extinguish the fires". "We are at extreme risk of forest fires. Please be very cautious," he added.
In Spain's north-western region of Castile and Leon, almost 4,000 people were evacuated and more than 30 blazes were reported - with one threatening Las Medulas, a Unesco World Heritage site renowned for its ancient gold mines.
Another 2,000 people were evacuated from hotels and homes near the tourist hotspot of Tarifa in the southern region of Andalusia.
Almost 1,000 soldiers were deployed to battle wildfires around the country, Spain's national military emergency unit said on Tuesday morning.
In neighbouring Portugal, firefighters battled three large wildfires, with the most serious near Trancoso contained in the centre of the country on Tuesday.
Getty
Firefighting efforts continue in Canakkale, Turkey, where a large blaze spread
More than 1,300 firefighters and 14 aircraft were deployed, with Morocco sending two planes after Portuguese water bombers broke down, Reuters reported. Authorities warned southern regions could hit 44C, with the temperature not expected to dip below 25C.
One child died of heatstroke in Italy on Monday, where temperatures of 40C are expected to hit later this week and red heat alerts were in place for 16 cities including Rome, Milan and Florence.
The four-year-old Romanian boy, who was found unconscious in a car in Sardinia was airlifted to a hospital in Rome but died due to irreversible brain damage, reportedly caused by heatstroke, medical authorities told AFP.
Almost three-quarters of France was placed under heat alerts on Tuesday, with temperatures forecast to top 36C in the Paris region and 40C in the Rhône Valley.
French Health Minister Catherine Vautrin said hospitals were braced for fallout from the country's second heatwave in just a few weeks. On Monday, 80 weather stations broke August records, 58 reaching all-time highs.
Reuters
Wildfires in Montenegro destroy property near the capital Podgorica
In Greece, gale-force winds fanned fires on tourist islands Zakynthos and Cephalonia, prompting village and hotel evacuations. Another blaze near the western Greek town Vonitsa threatened homes, while four areas of the mainland also faced evacuations.
Turkey's northwestern Canakkale province saw a major fire force hundreds from their homes. Canakkale Governor Omer Toraman said in a post on X that seven planes and six helicopters were tackling the blaze on Tuesday.
He added the Dardanelles Strait, a waterway linking the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara, was closed to allow water-dropping planes and helicopters to operate safely.
Wildfires in Albania forced people to evacuate their homes on Monday, while in Croatia a large fire raged in Split and was contained on Tuesday. A major wildfire swept through Piperi village near Montenegro's capital Podgorica, devastating houses in the area.
Parts of the UK are sweltering in its fourth heatwave of the year, with amber and yellow heat health alerts in place for all of England and potential highs of 34C forecast.
Scientists warn global warming is making Mediterranean summers hotter and drier, fuelling longer and more intense fire seasons.
Crime in DC: What do the figures say and how safe do people feel?
US National Guard troops have begun appearing on the streets of Washington DC, a day after President Donald Trump deployed the troops to the city and took control of its police force as he argued violent crime was out of control.
Armoured vehicles were spotted at urban centres and tourist sites around the US capital on Tuesday evening.
Officials have said that 800 National Guard troops are expected to be deployed, as well as 500 federal law enforcement agents.
Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, who has denied crime is out of control in her city, described the troop deployment as an "authoritarian push".
Watch: National Guard arrives in Washington DC
Trump, a Republican, has also threatened similar deployments against New York and Chicago, two other Democratic-controlled cities.
The camouflaged troops have been trickling into the US capital since Trump's announcement on Monday.
They have been seen erecting barricades outside several government buildings, and taking photos with tourists.
Twenty-three people were arrested by federal agents on Monday night, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. The agents are aiding local law enforcement.
She said the arrests were for homicide, gun offences, drug dealing, lewd acts, stalking, reckless driving, and other crimes.
"This is only the beginning," said Leavitt.
"Over the course of the next month, the Trump administration will relentlessly pursue and arrest every violent criminal in the District who breaks the law, undermines public safety, and endangers law-abiding Americans."
Getty Images
FBI Director Kash Patel later said FBI agents were involved in around half of those arrests.
Both the mayor of Washington and the city's police chief said earlier in the day they shared the same goal as the federal agents.
"What I'm focused on is the federal surge and how to make the most of the federal officers that we have," Bowser said after a meeting on Tuesday with US Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith said: "We know that we have to get illegal guns off of our streets, and if we have this influx of enhanced presence, we know that it's going to make our city even better."
But at a town hall on Tuesday night, the mayor sharpened her criticism of Trump.
Bowser called on community members to "protect our city, to protect our autonomy, to protect our home rule and get to the other side of this guy and make sure we elect a Democratic House so that we have a backstop to this authoritarian push", according to the New York Times.
Getty Images
It comes as a manhunt was launched for an armed assailant who killed a man on Monday night in Logan Circle, one of Washington DC's trendiest neighbourhoods, just a mile from the White House.
It was the 100th homicide recorded in Washington DC this year, according to local media.
Police say the suspect was last seen wearing a black shirt and carrying a rifle.
The shooting prompted US Secret Service to bolster security outside the president's home as a precaution.
According to crime figures published by Washington DC's Metropolitan Police, violent offences peaked in 2023 and fell 35% last year to their lowest level in three decades.
But DC Police Union chairman Gregg Pemberton has disputed those figures, previously accusing the city police department of "deliberately falsifying crime data, creating a false narrative of reduced crime while communities suffer".
FBI data has also indicated a drop in crime in Washington DC last year - a more modest decrease of 9%.
Studies suggest the capital's homicide rate is higher than average compared with other major US cities.
Getty Images
Troops were seen posing with tourists on the National Mall near the Washington Monument
The foreign ministers of Germany, France and the UK have offered an extension for negotiations with Iran until the end of August
The UK, France and Germany have told the UN they are ready to reimpose sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme if it fails to resume talksby the end of August.
The three countries, known as the E3, said they were prepared to trigger a "snapback" mechanism - meaning previous sanctions would be reinstated - unless Iran resumes negotiations.
The E3 said they had offered to extend a deadline for negotiations to the end of August, which Iran has not replied to.
Last month, Iran said it was prepared for further talks but only once sanctions already in place were lifted and its right to a civilian nuclear programme was agreed.
It comes after initial talks between E3 and Iranian diplomats took place in Istanbul, Turkey last month.
In a letter to the UN and its chief António Guterres, three foreign ministers - Jean-Noël Barrot from France, David Lammy from the UK and Johann Wadephul from Germany - said they would enforce severe sanctions on Iran unless it agrees to limit its nuclear programme.
On Tuesday, the E3 said their offer of an extension to the negotiations "remained unanswered by Iran".
"We have made it clear that if Iran is not willing to reach a diplomatic solution before the end of August 2025, or does not seize the opportunity of an extension, the E3 are prepared to trigger the snapback mechanism," the letter said.
They added they were committed to using "all diplomatic tools" to ensure Iran does not develop a nuclear weapon - something Iran has denied intending to do.
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said in July that triggering sanctions would be "completely illegal".
Sanctions on Iran's nuclear programme were previously lifted in 2015 after Iran signed a nuclear deal with the E3, the US, Russia and China, agreeing limits on its nuclear operations and to allow international inspectors entry to its nuclear sites. The deal is due to expire in October.
The US withdrew from the deal in 2018 during President Donald Trump's first term, with the leader saying it did too little to stop Iran from creating a pathway to a nuclear bomb.
With its withdrawal, all US sanctions were re-imposed on Iran.
Iran retaliated by increasingly breaching the restrictions. In May, the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said it had more than 400kg of uranium enriched to 60% purity - well above the level used for civilian purposes and close to weapons grade.
In June Iran's parliament suspended cooperation with the IAEA after tensions with Israel and the US came to a head.
Israel launched attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities the same month, triggering a 12-day war.
The US bombed a number of Iran's nuclear sites, bringing US-Iran talks to an abrupt end.
Following the strikes, the E3 countries stepped up warnings to Iran about its suspension of cooperation with the IAEA.
The BBC has contacted the UK Foreign Office for comment.
The Iranian mission to the UN did not immediately respond to the BBC's request for comment.
Investigation into atrocities committed by France in Cameroon followed pressure from within the Central African country
French President Emmanuel Macron has acknowledged the violence committed by his country's forces in Cameroon during and after the Central African nation's struggle for independence.
It followed a joint report by Cameroonian and French historians examining France's suppression of independence movements from 1945 to 1971.
In a letter to Cameroon's President Paul Biya made public on Tuesday, Macron said the report made clear "a war had taken place in Cameroon, during which the colonial authorities and the French army exercised repressive violence of several kinds in certain regions of the country".
"It is up to me today to assume the role and responsibility of France in these events," he said.
However, Macron fell short of offering a clear apology for the atrocities committed by French troops in its former colony, which gained independence in 1960.
The French leader cited four independence icons who were killed during military operations led by French forces, including Ruben Um Nyobe, the firebrand leader of the anti-colonialist UPC party.
France pushed hundreds of thousands of Cameroonians into internment camps and supported brutal militias to quash the independence struggle, the AFP news agency quotes the report as saying.
Tens of thousands of people were killed between 1956 and 1961, the historians' report said.
The decision to investigate and publish the findings on France's role in Cameroon's independence struggle was made in 2022, during Macron's visit to Yaoundé.
It followed pressure from within the country for France to acknowledge its atrocities in its former colony and pay reparations.
Macron also expressed willingness to work with Cameroon to promote further research on the matter, while highlighting the need for both countries to make the findings available to universities and scientific bodies.
The BBC has reached out to Cameroon's government for comment on the French president's admission.
While Macron did not address calls for reparations, it is likely to be a key talking-point in Cameroon going forward.
Under Macron, France has attempted to confront its brutal colonial past.
Last year, it acknowledged for the first time that its soldiers had carried out a "massacre" in Senegal in which West African troops were killed in 1944.
Macron has previously acknowledged France's role in the Rwandan genocide, in which about 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus died, and sought forgiveness.
In 2021, he said France had not heeded warnings of impending carnage and had for too long "valued silence over examination of the truth".
The US and Russia have agreed to hold a meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin on Friday 15 August, to discuss how to end the war in Ukraine.
Trump announced the meeting a week beforehand - the same day as his deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or face more US sanctions.
Three rounds of talks between Russia and Ukraine held at Trump's behest this summer have yet to bring the two sides any closer to peace.
Here is what we know about the meeting between the two leaders, taking place in Alaska - which was once Russian territory - in Anchorage.
Why are they meeting in Alaska?
The US purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867, lending a historical resonance to the meeting. It became a US state in 1959.
Russian presidential assistant Yuri Ushakov pointed out that the two countries are neighbours, with only the Bering Strait separating them.
"It seems quite logical for our delegation simply to fly over the Bering Strait and for such an important and anticipated summit of the leaders of the two countries to be held in Alaska," Ushakov said.
The last time Alaska took centre-stage in an American diplomatic event was in March 2021, when Joe Biden's newly minted diplomatic and national security team met their Chinese counterparts in Anchorage.
The sit-down turned acrimonious, with the Chinese accusing the Americans of "condescension and hypocrisy".
Where in Alaska will Trump and Putin meet?
The meeting will be in Anchorage, the White House confirmed on Tuesday.
When announcing the bilateral, Trump said the location would be "a very popular one for a number of reasons", without disclosing it would be in the state's largest city.
The pair will be hosted at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, the largest military installation in Alaska. The 64,000 acre base is a key US site for Arctic military readiness.
Why are Putin and Trump meeting?
Trump has been pushing hard - without much success - to end the war in Ukraine.
As a presidential candidate, he pledged that he could end the war within 24 hours of taking office. He has also repeatedly argued that the war "never would have happened" if he had been president at the time of Russia's invasion in 2022.
Frustrations grew and Trump set an 8 August deadline for Putin to agree to an immediate ceasefire or face more severe US sanctions.
As the deadline hit, Trump instead announced he and Putin would meet in person on 15 August.
The meeting comes after US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff held "highly productive" talks with Putin in Moscow on Wednesday, according to Trump.
Ahead of the meeting, the White House sought to play down speculation that the bilateral could yield a ceasefire.
"This is a listening exercise for the president," said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. She added that Trump may travel to Russia following the Alaska trip.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump said he viewed the summit as a "feel-out meeting" aimed at urging Putin to end the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is not expected to attend. Trump said on Monday: "I would say he could go, but he's been to a lot of meetings."
Trump did, however, say that Zelensky would be the first person he would call afterwards.
A White House official later said that Trump and Zelensky would meet virtually on Wednesday, ahead of the US president's summit with Putin. The Zelensky meeting will be joined by several European leaders.
Putin had requested that Zelensky be excluded, although the White House has previously said that Trump was willing to hold a trilateral in which all three leaders were present.
Zelensky has said any agreements without input from Ukraine would amount to "dead decisions".
What do both sides hope to get out of it?
While both Russia and Ukraine have long said that they want the war to end, both countries want things that the other harshly opposes.
Trump said on Monday he was "going to try to get some of that [Russian-occupied] territory back for Ukraine". But he also warned that there might have to be "some swapping, changes in land".
Ukraine, however, has been adamant that it will not accept Russian control of regions that Moscow has seized, including Crimea.
Zelensky pushed back this week against any idea of "swapping" territories.
"We will not reward Russia for what it has perpetrated," the Ukrainian president said.
Watch: 'We're going to change the battle lines' Trump on the war in Ukraine
Meanwhile, Putin has not budged from his territorial demands, Ukraine's neutrality and the future size of its army.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in part, over Putin's belief the Western defensive alliance, Nato, was using the neighbouring country to gain a foothold to bring its troops closer to Russia's borders.
The Trump administration has been attempting to sway European leaders on a ceasefire deal that would hand over swathes of Ukrainian territory to Russia, the BBC's US partner CBS News has reported.
The agreement would allow Russia to keep control of the Crimean peninsula, and take the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, which is made up of Donetsk and Luhansk, according to sources familiar with the talks.
Russia illegally occupied Crimea in 2014 and its forces control the majority of the Donbas region.
Under the deal, Russia would have to give up the Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, where it currently has some military control.
Speaking to Fox News, US Vice-President JD Vance said any future deal was "not going to make anybody super happy".
"You've got to make peace here… you can't finger point," he said.
"The way to peace is to have a decisive leader to sit down and force people to come together."
Rare earths are essential in the production of alloys for magnets
Drive three hours north of Perth, and you'll arrive in Eneabba.
This is Western Australia mining territory - the landscape is barren and desolate, just the odd hill in the distance.
Buried in this vast terrain is a massive pit, full of what looks like mounds of worthless dirt.
But appearances can be deceiving: in fact, this pit is home to a million tonne stockpile containing critical minerals, and Australia's bet on the future.
Earlier this year, carmakers and other manufacturers around the world rushed to their war rooms, alarmed that China's tight export controls on rare earth magnets – crucial for makingelectric vehicles, wind turbines and defence equipment – could cripple production.
Ford was forced to halt production of its popular Explorer SUV for a week at one of its Chicago plants - a bold move for a major automaker already grappling with pressure from Trump's tariffs.
A month later, CEO Jim Farley revealed the pause was triggered by a shortage of rare earths, admitting the company was still struggling to secure reliable supply of the critical minerals.
"It's day to day," Mr Farley told Bloomberg TV.
Beijing has since agreed to let rare earths minerals and magnets flow to the United States, which eased the disruption.
But without a trade deal between the US and China, the fear is that the rare earths bottleneck could return, creating a massive supply chain shock.
It's triggered a realisation amongst policymakers and manufacturers everywhere: Beijing's control of rare earths has the world in a chokehold.
"The West dropped the ball – that's the reality. And China was in for the long run – it saw the benefit and was willing to invest in it," says Jacques Eksteen, chair for extractive metallurgy at Curtin University.
Why rare earths matter
The phrase "rare earths" - referring to 17 elements on the periodic table which are lightweight, super strong and resistant to heat, making them useful in small electric motors - is something of a misnomer.
"Rare earths are not rare or scarce. Gold is scarce, but it's not a critical material," Professor Eksteen explains.
Rare earths are critical, however. Take the average electric vehicle – there might be rare earths-based motors in dozens of components from side mirrors and speakers to windshield wipers and breaking sensors.
The problem is therefore not amount, but the fact "somewhere in the supply chain you've got one or maybe a few countries controlling that bottleneck", Professor Eksteen adds.
In the 90s, Europe and France in particular had a prominent rare earths industry. Today, almost all these minerals come from China, which has spent decades mining and refining at scale.
China now accounts for more than half of global rare earth mining, and almost 90% of processing.
The US sources 80% of its rare earth imports from China, while the European Union relies on China for about 98% of its supply.
"China has since very deliberately and overtly sought to control the market for the purposes of supporting their downstream manufacturing and defence industries," says Dan McGrath, head of rare earths for Iluka Resources, in between driving us around the company's vast Eneabba site.
But Mr McGrath, and Iluka, are hoping to make a dent in that control - even if it wasn't necessarily in the company's original plan.
Iluka's 1mn tonne stockpile is worth more than $650m
For decades, Iluka has been mining zircon in Australia - a key ingredient in ceramics, and titanium dioxide used in the pigmentation of paint, plastics and paper.
It just so happens the byproducts of these mineral sands include dysprosium and terbium - some of the most sought-after rare earths.
Over the years, Iluka has built up the stockpile, and is now worth more than $650m (£440m).
This was the easy part, however. The processing or refining is another matter altogether.
"They're chemically very similar so to try and separate them requires a huge number of stages," Professor Eksteen explained.
"Also, you've got residues and wastes that you have to deal with out of this industry, and that's problematic. They often produce radioactive materials. It comes at a cost."
And that is one of the reasons why the Australian government is loaning Iluka A$1.65bn ($1bn; £798m) to build a refinery to meet demand for rare earths which Iluka sees growing by 50-170% by the end of the decade.
"We expect to be able to supply a significant proportion of Western demand for rare earths by 2030. Our customers recognise that having an independent, secure and sustainable supply chain outside of China is fundamental for the continuity of their business," says Mr McGrath.
"This refinery and Iluka's commitment to the rare earth business is an alternative to China."
The Australian government see investment in rare earths as a strategic decision
But the refinery will take another two years to build and come online.
"Without the strategic partnership we have with the Australian government, a rare earths project would not be economically viable," Mr McGrath says.
A strategic necessity
China's recent willingness to turn supply of rare earths on and off has spurred trading partners to diversify their suppliers.
Iluka says because automakers for example plan their production years in advance, it is already fielding requests for when its refinery does come online.
Rare earths are critical to the green transition, electric vehicles, and defence technologies – making their control a pressing national priority.
"The open international market in critical minerals and rare earths is a mirage. It doesn't exist. And the reason it doesn't exist is because there is one supplier of these materials and they have the wherewithal to change where the market goes, whether that be in pricing or supply," Australia's resources minister Madeleine King says.
Canberra sees government intervention as necessary to provide an alternative supply, and help the world rely less on China.
"We can either sit back and do nothing about that... or we can step up to take on the responsibility to develop a rare earths industry here that competes with that market," Ms King adds.
But there is something that Australia will have to contend with as it invests and works to expand a rare earths industry – pollution.
Getty Images
Critics say China's environmental protections and regulations are weak
In China, environmental damage from years of processing rare earths has led to chemicals and radioactive waste seeping into waterways - cities and people bearing the scars of decades of poor regulation.
With rare earths, it's not so much about the mining footprint, rather the processing that is a dirty business – because it involves extraction, leaching, thermal cracking and refining which produce radioactive components.
"I think there is no metal industry that is completely clean... unfortunately, it's a matter of picking your poison sometimes," Professor Eksteen says.
"In Australia, we've got mechanisms to handle that. We've got a legal environment and a framework to work with that to at least deal with it responsibly."
The EU has in the past accused China of using a "quasi monopoly" on rare earths as a bargaining chip, weaponising it to undermine competitors in key industries.
The bloc - which is home to hundreds of auto manufacturers that so desperately need rare earths - said even if China has loosened restrictions on supplies, the threat of supply chain shocks remains.
Even if building a brand new industry will take time, Australia seems to have a lot going for it in the rare earths race, as it tries to be a more reliable and cleaner source.
And one that - crucially - is independent of China.
Russia has kept attacking Ukrainian cities and making slow progress on the ground in eastern Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is joining European leaders in talks aimed at increasing pressure on US President Donald Trump to side with Ukraine during Friday's summit with his Russian counterpart in Alaska.
In an online call with Trump, the leaders are expected to reiterate that no decisions should be taken without Ukraine, including changing its borders by force.
Trump has said any peace deal would involve "some swapping of territories" and it is believed one of Russian President Vladimir Putin's demands is that Kyiv surrenders the parts of the Donbas it still controls.
On Tuesday, Zelensky said such a concession could be used as a springboard for future attacks by Russia, which has been making gains recently.
Watch: Trump-Putin meeting is a 'listening exercise', says press WH secretary
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A Russian summer offensive has been progressing with troops making a sudden thrust near the eastern town of Dobropillia and advancing 10km (six miles) in a short period of time.
While downplaying Russia's advance, Zelensky said it was "clear to us" that Moscow's objective was to create a "certain information space" before Putin meets Trump that "Russia is moving forward, advancing, while Ukraine is losing".
No official details have emerged on what demands Putin could make when he meets Trump in Anchorage on Friday.
The Donbas - made up of the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk - has been partly occupied by Russia since 2014.
Moscow now holds almost all of Luhansk and about 70% of Donetsk but speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Zelensky reaffirmed that Ukraine would reject any proposal to leave the Donbas.
Zelensky has previously insisted that Ukrainians would not "gift their land to the occupier", and pointed to the country's constitution, which requires a referendum before a change in its territory.
Last week, Trump said there would be "some swapping of territories to the betterment of both" Russia and Ukraine - sparking concern in Kyiv and across Europe that Moscow could be allowed to redraw Ukraine's borders by force.
Russia currently controls just under 20% of Ukrainian territory.
The White House on Tuesday said the Alaska talks would be a "listening exercise" for Trump and added having him and Putin sit down in the same room would give the US president "the best indication on how to end this war".
It follows Trump describing the summit as a "feel-out meeting" on Monday, seeming to tone down expectations that Friday's meeting could bring Ukraine and Russia closer to peace.
When he announced the summit last week, Trump sounded positive that the meeting could result in concrete steps towards peace.
"I think my gut instinct really tells me that we have a shot at it," he said.
The Ukrainian leader has previously said any agreements without Kyiv's involvement would amount to "dead decisions".
There were nearly a billion registered voters in the 2024 elections
A political row has erupted in India over allegations of "vote theft", with opposition parties accusing the country's election body of irregularities, which they say favoured the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2024 general elections.
On Tuesday, parliament was adjourned after opposition MPs demanded a debate on the integrity of India's electoral process.
A day earlier, dozens of opposition leaders, including Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi, were briefly detained by the police in the capital Delhi, as they tried to march to the Election Commission of India's (ECI) headquarters.
Gandhi first raised the issue at a 7 August press conference in Delhi, and has since managed to galvanise strong support from hundreds of opposition lawmakers.
The Election Commission and the BJP have aggressively rejected the allegations.
What are Rahul Gandhi's allegations against the Election Commission?
Gandhi has alleged widespread voter manipulation during the 2024 parliamentary elections, citing granular data obtained from the electoral body itself - though the ECI and the ruling party dispute his interpretation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi secured a historic third term in the elections, but his BJP-led alliance fell short of the sweeping majority predicted. Voter turnout averaged 66% in the world's largest election, with nearly a billion registered voters - one in eight people on Earth.
Gandhi cited electoral data for Mahadevapura, a part of the Bangalore Central parliamentary constituency, and claimed that the voter list had more than 100,000 manipulated entries, including duplicate voters, invalid addresses, and bulk registrations of votes at single locations.
He presented examples of voters like Shakun Rani, who he claimed cast her ballots twice - a claim disputed by the election body.
Gandhi also alleged CCTV footage from polling booths was deleted and pointed out an instance of 80 people registered in a single address in Mahadevapura.
The Congress leader says his party lost at least 48 seats in the elections due to such irregularities and has accused India's election body of failing to enforce the "one man, one vote" principle. The Congress won 99 of the 543 seats in the elections, behind BJP's 240.
Gandhi has demanded that the ECI release digital voter rolls, so that they can be audited by his party and the public.
The BBC hasn't independently verified Gandhi's claims.
Getty Images
Gandhi cited constituency data to allege large-scale poll manipulation
What have the ECI and BJP said?
Soon after Gandhi's press conference, ECI responded on social media platform X, calling his allegations "absurd" and denying many of his claims.
The polling body has demanded that he either submit a signed declaration under oath or apologise to the nation.
ECI's Karnataka state unit further said that the Congress didn't file formal objections when the electoral roll was being revised ahead of the 2024 parliamentary elections.
The poll body earlier said it keeps CCTV footage only for 45 days after results - the window for filing election disputes.
BJP leaders have also strongly rebutted the allegations.
"This anarchy is extremely worrying and dangerous for democracy," BJP leader and federal education minister Dharmendra Pradhan said.
Federal agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said Gandhi and the opposition alliance were "defaming democracy, tearing it to shreds, and tampering with the dignity of constitutional institutions".
Getty Images
The new draft rolls for Bihar have 72.4 million names - 6.5 million fewer than before
What has been the political fallout?
Gandhi's allegations have led to an uproar as they come in the backdrop of a controversy over a month-long revision of electoral rolls in Bihar state, where key elections are scheduled for November.
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR), held between June and July, saw officials visit all 78.9 million voters in the state for verification - the first update since 2003.
The ECI says the drive targets duplicate and deceased voters, but critics say its haste has disenfranchised many, especially migrants and minorities.
Many voters in Bihar have told the BBC that the draft rolls have wrong photos and include dead people.
India's Supreme Court is currently hearing a batch of petitions challenging the SIR, with petitioners demanding publication of the deleted names - about 6.5 million - with reasons for their removal.
The election body says deletions include 2.2 million dead, 700,000 enrolled more than once and 3.6 million who have migrated from the state.
Corrections are open until 1 September, with over 165,000 applications received. A similar review will be conducted nationwide to verify nearly a billion voters.
The court has said that the allegations of disenfranchisement "largely appears to be a case of trust deficit, nothing else" and that it would "step in immediately" if mass exclusion of voters is proven.
On 12 August, Gandhi escalated his claims of vote theft, saying such manipulation was happening "at a national level and systematically".
Highlighting the case of a 124-year-old voter's name found in the draft electoral list of Bihar he said: "There are unlimited cases like that. 'Abhi picture baki hai' [the story is not over yet]."
Four teenagers have been arrested over a burglary that left actor Brad Pitt's home ransacked, police said.
The suspects are allegedly behind a number of "celebrity burglaries" that targeted the houses of actors and professional athletes, Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said.
He said the male suspects, two 18-year-olds, a 17-year-old and a 16-year-old, are street gang members, and property stolen in the burglaries was found when police searched their homes.
Police did not name those whose properties were targeted, but celebrities including Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban, LA Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto and ex-LA Football Club striker Olivier Giroud have reported break-ins this year.
The investigation started in late June after Pitt's home was raided by a trio of masked thieves.
McDonnell said the group hopped a perimeter fence surrounding the Los Feliz home and shattered a window, hopping inside and taking items before fleeing.
Police did not confirm the home belonged to the Oscar-winning actor, but the address matched that of a property Pitt bought in 2023.
The large three-bedroom house sits just outside Griffith Park, where the famous Hollywood Sign sits. It is surrounded by a fence and greenery that shields the property from public view.
Pitt was not home at the time of the burglary and was promoting his new film, F1. The BBC has contacted representatives for the actor.
McDonnell said investigators found the suspects were part of a crew that "were burglarizing various high-profile residents throughout the city", which he said included homes of "actors and professional athletes".
Last week, authorities followed the four suspects and were able to arrest them on burglary charges, he added.
Police did not elaborate on what items were recovered after police searched their homes.
McDonnell said burglars like this group had become increasingly smart in their crimes - planting surveillance cameras in nearby flowerbeds or across the street from homes they target to monitor a victim's routine.
He said thieves had also been using wi-fi jammers to knock out home surveillance systems and cameras that could alert homeowners or police of a break-in.
He noted that celebrities and athletes can be easier targets since their appearances and games are publicised online.
He noted, though, that anyone posting on social media about their travels can unknowingly be alerting a potential thief to their location.
"We don't really give enough thought to... [while] we want our friends to know where we are and what we're doing, you're telling everybody else then who may be looking to exploit your situation," McDonnell said.
Crime in DC: What do the figures say and how safe do people feel?
US National Guard troops have begun appearing on the streets of Washington DC, a day after President Donald Trump deployed the troops to the city and took control of its police force as he argued violent crime was out of control.
Armoured vehicles were spotted at urban centres and tourist sites around the US capital on Tuesday evening.
Officials have said that 800 National Guard troops are expected to be deployed, as well as 500 federal law enforcement agents.
Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, who has denied crime is out of control in her city, described the troop deployment as an "authoritarian push".
Watch: National Guard arrives in Washington DC
Trump, a Republican, has also threatened similar deployments against New York and Chicago, two other Democratic-controlled cities.
The camouflaged troops have been trickling into the US capital since Trump's announcement on Monday.
They have been seen erecting barricades outside several government buildings, and taking photos with tourists.
Twenty-three people were arrested by federal agents on Monday night, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. The agents are aiding local law enforcement.
She said the arrests were for homicide, gun offences, drug dealing, lewd acts, stalking, reckless driving, and other crimes.
"This is only the beginning," said Leavitt.
"Over the course of the next month, the Trump administration will relentlessly pursue and arrest every violent criminal in the District who breaks the law, undermines public safety, and endangers law-abiding Americans."
Getty Images
FBI Director Kash Patel later said FBI agents were involved in around half of those arrests.
Both the mayor of Washington and the city's police chief said earlier in the day they shared the same goal as the federal agents.
"What I'm focused on is the federal surge and how to make the most of the federal officers that we have," Bowser said after a meeting on Tuesday with US Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith said: "We know that we have to get illegal guns off of our streets, and if we have this influx of enhanced presence, we know that it's going to make our city even better."
But at a town hall on Tuesday night, the mayor sharpened her criticism of Trump.
Bowser called on community members to "protect our city, to protect our autonomy, to protect our home rule and get to the other side of this guy and make sure we elect a Democratic House so that we have a backstop to this authoritarian push", according to the New York Times.
Getty Images
It comes as a manhunt was launched for an armed assailant who killed a man on Monday night in Logan Circle, one of Washington DC's trendiest neighbourhoods, just a mile from the White House.
It was the 100th homicide recorded in Washington DC this year, according to local media.
Police say the suspect was last seen wearing a black shirt and carrying a rifle.
The shooting prompted US Secret Service to bolster security outside the president's home as a precaution.
According to crime figures published by Washington DC's Metropolitan Police, violent offences peaked in 2023 and fell 35% last year to their lowest level in three decades.
But DC Police Union chairman Gregg Pemberton has disputed those figures, previously accusing the city police department of "deliberately falsifying crime data, creating a false narrative of reduced crime while communities suffer".
FBI data has also indicated a drop in crime in Washington DC last year - a more modest decrease of 9%.
Studies suggest the capital's homicide rate is higher than average compared with other major US cities.
Getty Images
Troops were seen posing with tourists on the National Mall near the Washington Monument
"I sincerely apologise for causing trouble despite being a person of no importance," Kim told reporters.
The wife of South Korea's jailed former president, Yoon Suk Yeol, has been arrested over a raft of charges, including stock manipulation and bribery.
Former first lady Kim Keon Hee denied all charges during a four-hour court hearing in Seoul on Tuesday. But the court issued a detention warrant, citing the risk that she may destroy evidence.
South Korea has a history of former presidents being indicted and imprisoned. However, this is the first time both the former president and former first lady have been jailed.
Yoon was detained in January to face trial over a failed martial law bid last year that plunged the country into chaos and eventually led to his ouster.
Prosecutors say Kim, 52, made over 800 million won ($577,940; £428,000) by participating in a price-rigging scheme involving the stocks of Deutsch Motors, a BMW dealer in South Korea.
While this allegedly happened before her husband was elected the country's leader, it continued to cast a shadow throughout his presidency.
"I sincerely apologise for causing trouble despite being a person of no importance," Kim told reporters.
She allegedly also accepted two Chanel bags and a diamond necklace as bribes from the controversial Unification Church in exchange for business favours.
Among other charges, Kim is also accused of meddling in candidate nominations during the parliamentary by-elections in 2022 and the general elections last year.
Kim appeared solemn as she attended Tuesday's hearing wearing a black suit and a black skirt.
"I sincerely apologise for causing trouble despite being a person of no importance," she told reporters.
While he was president, Yoon vetoed three opposition-led bills that sought a special counsel investigation into allegations against Kim.
He issued the last veto in November, a week before he declared martial law.
A special counsel was set up in June this year after Yoon's rival Lee Jae Myung became president.
UK firms bidding for Indian government contracts in specified areas will be treated on par with Indian suppliers
A standout feature of the India-UK free trade agreement signed last month was the Narendra Modi government's decision to open India's vast government procurement market to UK suppliers.
This typically includes a range of things the government buys - from goods and services to contracts for public works such as roads.
Some 40,000 high-value tenders worth £38bn from federal ministries will now be open to bidding for UK businesses in strategic sectors like transport, green energy and infrastructure - areas which have thus far been heavily protected from foreign competition.
The access is unprecedented, trade experts say.
It is "far greater" than what India had offered in its earlier agreement with the United Arab Emirates and "sets a new benchmark", Ajay Srivastava of the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), a Delhi-based think-tank, told the BBC.
Under the agreement, UK firms bidding for Indian government contracts in specified areas will be treated almost on par with Indian suppliers and also have real-time access to information on forthcoming public tenders and procurement opportunities.
Also, goods from the UK made with just 20% domestic input can now be supplied to the Indian government, allowing UK companies the flexibility to source up to 80% of the parts or raw material from other countries and still qualify for procurement preference in India.
The minimum contract value at which these firms can bid for government projects has also been sharply reduced as a result of which "UK companies can now bid on a wide range of lower-value projects - such as rural roads, solar equipment for schools, or IT systems for government offices - that were previously out of reach", said Mr Srivastava.
Getty Images
UK companies can now bid on a wide range of lower-value projects such as rural roads
But for British companies, realising this opportunity on the ground will be easier said than done, several experts told the BBC.
While UK suppliers are eligible to participate as Class-II local suppliers, Indian companies will continue to get preferential treatment as Class-I suppliers, says Dr Arpita Mukherjee, a trade expert with the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations.
Moreover, pricing plays a key role in winning contracts, and "UK companies tend to have higher prices" compared with Indian companies, which will be a major challenge for them, she adds.
A more significant deterrent will be delayed payments and difficult contract enforcement, which are "major legacy issues when it comes to public procurement in India", says Srijan Shukla of the Observer Research Foundation think-tank.
He says a study on procurement by India's central public sector enterprises from 2017 to 2020 found that pending payments to suppliers were often more than the total average procurement in a year.
"This will impact UK players trying to enter India's public procurement markets, especially when it comes to public contracts that have long-time horizons and are subject to regulatory and political uncertainties," Mr Shukla told the BBC.
Pending dues have been a major irritant for India's small businesses too, leading to short-term liquidity issues that often "force them out of these procurement markets and reallocate that business to the big players", according to Mr Shukla.
Much of this is reflected in India's poor ranking - 163 out of 190 - on contract enforcement in the World Bank's Doing Business report, the latest round of which was in 2020.
While things have improved since these rankings were published - with one-stop-shop portals like Government e-Marketplace, the Central Public Procurement Portal or the recently launched online dispute resolution portal bringing more transparency to the public tendering process - payment discipline by government entities continues to remain a challenge, says Mr Shukla.
According to Ms Mukherjee, the India-UK trade agreement emphasises transparency in procurement but omits issues like pending dues, contract enforcement and penalties.
She adds the deal excludes the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement's dispute settlement provisions for four years after the CETA takes effect - these provisions usually define how disputes are resolved.
"Doing business in India is an acquired skill. Over time, companies from the UK will have to learn the way to work around complexities regarding the art of winning public tenders and navigating though complex regulations," Mr Shukla says.
Getty Images
India's public procurement market has long been reserved for local small and medium enterprises
Despite the niggling issues, allowing foreign players entry into India's government procurement market marks a far-reaching policy shift.
It shows the Indian government's intentions to open up a space that has long been reserved for local small and medium enterprises, and could be reflective of the concessions Delhi is willing to give foreign players in future trade agreements like the one being negotiated with the US, according to GTRI.
India is late to including deep government procurement clauses in trade deals, making its current efforts a catch-up game, says Mr Shukla.
It is also a sign, he says, of the Indian government's "confidence that its own firms can compete with global firms both externally and at home".
The hope is that more foreign players will force more accountability from the Indian government and "help standardise" its tendering and public procurement process - marked by payment delays and poor contract enforcement - to global standards.
Putin and Kim spoke on Tuesday, with the Russian leader praising Pyongyang's military support for his country's war against Ukraine.
This week, Russia has been making fresh military advances in Ukraine, leading to a sudden thrust near the eastern town of Dobropillia and advancing 10km (six miles) in a short period of time.
Kim and Putin "reaffirmed their commitment to the further development of friendship relations, good-neighbourliness and cooperation," the Kremlin said in a statement.
Putin gave the North Korean leader an update on the Alaska summit's preparation, sharing with him "information in the context of the upcoming talks with US President Donald Trump," the Kremlin said.
The official North Korean statement did not mention this.
Repeating his earlier statement, Putin "praised the assistance provided by [North Korea's] support during the liberation of the territory of the Kursk region", according to his office.
The Ukrainian army briefly invaded Russia's Kursk region last year in an unexpected offensive that showed Western allies its capability to fight back against Russia, which currently occupies about 20% of Ukraine's territories.
'Like slaves': North Koreans sent to work in Russia
Putin and Kim spoke just days before the Russian leader is expected to travel to Alaska to meet Trump, his first face-to-face meeting with a US president since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The war, while causing Russia near-complete economic and diplomatic isolation from the West, has seen unprecedented collaboration between Moscow and Pyongyang. At least 10,000 North Korean soldiers have been sent to fight side by side with their Russian counterparts, according to Ukraine and South Korea.
North Korea also provided Russia with missiles, artillery shells and labourers.
With many of Russia's men either killed or tied up fighting - or having fled the country - South Korean intelligence officials have told the BBC that Moscow is increasingly relying on North Korean workers.
Do Kwon appeared in New York court wearing a yellow prison jumpsuit on Tuesday
A South Korean former tech executive accused of a helping to spark a cryptocurrency crisis that cost investors more than $40bn (£31.8bn) has pleaded guilty to two criminal counts of fraud.
Do Kwon was the boss of Singapore-based Terraform Labs, which operated two cryptocurrencies - TerraUSD and Luna - both of which collapsed in 2022, triggering a wider sell-off in the crypto market.
The US says he was responsible for the failure of the two digital currencies, accusing him of "orchestrating a multi-billion dollar crypto asset securities fraud".
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors have agreed to refrain from seeking a sentence longer than 12 years. Kwon is due to be sentenced on 11 December.
Kwon's guilty plea in a New York court comes after a lengthy legal battle.
US prosecutors said Kwon misrepresented features that were supposed to keep the so-called stablecoin at $1 without outside intervention.
They alleged that in 2021, Kwon arranged for a trading firm to surreptitiously purchase millions of dollars worth of the token to restore TerraUSD's value, even as he told investors that a computer algorithm called Terra Protocol was responsible.
Prosecutors say the alleged misrepresentation prompted a wide array of investors to buy Terraform's offerings, which helped prop up the value of the company's Luna token, which was closely linked to TerraUSD.
The following year, Kwon's TerraUSD and the Luna cryptocurrency crashed.
"In 2021, I made false and misleading statements about why [TerraUSD] regained its peg," he said in court on Tuesday.
"What I did was wrong and I want to apologise for my conduct," he added.
Kwon had originally pleaded not guilty to nine counts stemming from the crash, including securities and wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy.
He had faced up to 135 years in prison if convicted of the charges in the original indictment.
As part of his plea deal, Kwon agreed to refrain from challenging the allegations in the indictment.
He must also forfeit up to $19.3m plus interest and several properties and pay restitution.
While prosecutors have agreed to limit their requested sentence to 12 years, Judge Paul Engelmayer maintained that he was entitled to prescribe a longer sentence.
That sentence could be up to 25 years in prison.
He still faces charges in South Korea, according to his attorney.
US federal prosecutors have announced criminal charges against Jimmy Cherizier, the Haitian gang leader known as "Barbecue" who leads an alliance of gangs that control much of the capitol of Port-au-Prince.
The indictment alleges that Mr Cherizier, as well as US citizen Bazile Richardson, 48, solicited funds from Haitian diaspora community in the US to help pay gang members and buy firearms in violation of US sanctions.
Mr Cherizier, a former police officer who is at large in Haiti, leads the group Viv Ansanm (Live Together). The US is offering $5m (£3.7m) for information leading to his arrest.
The group has been accused of multiple murders, kidnappings and attacks on infrastructure.
"There's a good reason that there's a $5m reward for information leading to Cherizier's arrest," US Attorney Jeanine Pirro said at a news conference on Tuesday.
"He's a gang leader responsible for heinous human rights abuses, including violence against American citizens in Haiti."
Prosecutors say he is suspected of playing a key role in the 2018 La Saline massacre, in which 71 people were killed, more than 400 houses were destroyed, and at least seven women raped.
Mr Richardson, who was arrested in Texas last month, is a naturalised US citizen who grew up in Haiti, prosecutors say. He was residing in North Carolina before he was taken into custody.
Also known as Fredo, Fred Lion, Leo Danger, and Lepe Blode, he helped raise funds that were then used to pay gang leaders and purchase weapons, according to officials.
Both men helped "bankroll Cherizier's violent criminal enterprise, which is driving a security crisis in Haiti", said Assistant US Attorney General John Eisenberg.
He added that the US "will continue to pursue those who enable Haiti's violence and instability".
In May, US officials designated Viv Ansanm, which has controlled the capital since around 2020, as a foreign terrorist organisation. Earlier this year, the group announced that it was declaring itself a political party.
In addition to the US, Mr Cherizier is also under sanctions from the United Nations, Canada and Britain, which accuse him of fueling violence in Haiti.
If arrested, he could be extradited to the US. However, he remains in a position of significant power on the streets and is protected by his group's members.
In 2021, President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated by unidentified gunmen in Port-au-Prince.
Since then the country - the poorest in the Americas - has been wracked by economic chaos, little functioning political control and increasingly violent gang warfare.
Gang control in Port-au-Prince has led to an almost complete breakdown of law and order, the collapse of health services and emergence of a food security crisis.
In recent months, a UN backed Kenyan led security force has failed to take back control of the Haitian capital.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis in the country has sunk to new levels. UN reports estimate that 5.7 million people – more than half of Haiti's population – are facing acute food insecurity and there are over one million internally displaced people.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine would reject any Russian proposal to give up the Donbas region in exchange for a ceasefire, warning it could be used as a springboard for future attacks.
Zelensky was speaking ahead of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.
Trump has insisted any peace deal would involve "some swapping of territories" and could see Russia taking the entire eastern Donbas region and keeping Crimea.
Meanwhile Moscow's troops have continued their summer offensive, making a sudden thrust near the eastern Ukrainian town of Dobropillia and advancing 10km (six miles) in a short period of time.
Zelensky admitted the advance had taken place in "several spots" but said Kyiv would soon destroy the units involved in the attack.
No official details have emerged on what demands Vladimir Putin could make when he meets Donald Trump in Anchorage on Friday.
The Donbas - made up of the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk - has been partly occupied by Russia since 2014.
Moscow now holds almost all of Luhansk and about 70% of Donetsk but speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Zelensky reaffirmed that Ukraine would reject any proposal to leave the Donbas.
"If we withdraw from the Donbas today - our fortifications, our terrain, the heights we control - we will clearly open a bridgehead for the Russians to prepare an offensive," he said.
In his nightly address on Tuesday, Zelensky also said Moscow was preparing new offensives on three parts of the front - Zaporizhzhia, Pokrovsk and Novopavlov areas.
Last week Trump said there would be "some swapping of territories to the betterment of both" Russia and Ukraine - sparking concern in Kyiv and across Europe that Moscow could be allowed to redraw Ukraine's borders by force.
Russia currently controls just under 20% of Ukrainian territory.
The White House on Tuesday said the Alaska talks would be a "listening exercise" for Trump and added having him and Putin sit down in the same room would give the US president "the best indication on how to end this war".
It follows Trump describing the summit as a "feel-out meeting" on Monday, seeming to tone down expectations that Friday's meeting could bring Ukraine and Russia closer to peace.
When he announced the summit last week, Trump sounded positive that the meeting could result in concrete steps towards peace.
"I think my gut instinct really tells me that we have a shot at it," he said.
But Ukrainian President Zelensky once again expressed serious doubts that the talks could result in a positive outcome for Kyiv, which has been excluded from the summit. "I don't know what they will talk about without us," he said.
Zelensky has steered clear of criticising Trump but in recent days his frustration at being sidelined has become apparent, and on Tuesday he said the choice of Alaska as a location was a "personal victory" for Putin.
"He is coming out of isolation, because they are meeting with him on US territory," he said.
On Wednesday, Zelensky is due to join a virtual meeting with Donald Trump, EU leaders, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Nato chief Mark Rutte.
All sides will try to convince Trump of the need not to be swayed by Putin when the two meet at the hastily-organised summit.
A major blaze in Turkey forced hundreds from their homes
A scorching heatwave is fuelling dozens of wildfires across parts of southern Europe, forcing thousands of people from their homes and pushing temperatures above 40C (104F).
Red heat alerts have been issued in parts of Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and the Balkans, warning of significant risks to health.
Spain's weather service Aemet said temperatures could reach 44C (111.2F) in Seville and Cordoba, while authorities in southern Portugal also warned of possible 44C highs.
In Italy, a child died of heatstroke on Monday, and in Tres Cantos, north of Spain's capital Madrid, a man who suffered serious burns died in hospital, officials said.
Reuters
Wildfires in Albania forced people to evacuate their homes on Monday
Hundreds of Tres Cantos residents were forced to leave their homes amid Spain's wildfires and the regional environment minister described the fire as having "explosive characteristics because of a dry storm that has brought winds of more than 70km/h (43.5mph)".
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez posted on X on Tuesday and said that rescue services "are working tirelessly to extinguish the fires". "We are at extreme risk of forest fires. Please be very cautious," he added.
In Spain's north-western region of Castile and Leon, almost 4,000 people were evacuated and more than 30 blazes were reported - with one threatening Las Medulas, a Unesco World Heritage site renowned for its ancient gold mines.
Another 2,000 people were evacuated from hotels and homes near the tourist hotspot of Tarifa in the southern region of Andalusia.
Almost 1,000 soldiers were deployed to battle wildfires around the country, Spain's national military emergency unit said on Tuesday morning.
In neighbouring Portugal, firefighters battled three large wildfires, with the most serious near Trancoso contained in the centre of the country on Tuesday.
Getty
Firefighting efforts continue in Canakkale, Turkey, where a large blaze spread
More than 1,300 firefighters and 14 aircraft were deployed, with Morocco sending two planes after Portuguese water bombers broke down, Reuters reported. Authorities warned southern regions could hit 44C, with the temperature not expected to dip below 25C.
One child died of heatstroke in Italy on Monday, where temperatures of 40C are expected to hit later this week and red heat alerts were in place for 16 cities including Rome, Milan and Florence.
The four-year-old Romanian boy, who was found unconscious in a car in Sardinia was airlifted to a hospital in Rome but died due to irreversible brain damage, reportedly caused by heatstroke, medical authorities told AFP.
Almost three-quarters of France was placed under heat alerts on Tuesday, with temperatures forecast to top 36C in the Paris region and 40C in the Rhône Valley.
French Health Minister Catherine Vautrin said hospitals were braced for fallout from the country's second heatwave in just a few weeks. On Monday, 80 weather stations broke August records, 58 reaching all-time highs.
Reuters
Wildfires in Montenegro destroy property near the capital Podgorica
In Greece, gale-force winds fanned fires on tourist islands Zakynthos and Cephalonia, prompting village and hotel evacuations. Another blaze near the western Greek town Vonitsa threatened homes, while four areas of the mainland also faced evacuations.
Turkey's northwestern Canakkale province saw a major fire force hundreds from their homes. Canakkale Governor Omer Toraman said in a post on X that seven planes and six helicopters were tackling the blaze on Tuesday.
He added the Dardanelles Strait, a waterway linking the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara, was closed to allow water-dropping planes and helicopters to operate safely.
Wildfires in Albania forced people to evacuate their homes on Monday, while in Croatia a large fire raged in Split and was contained on Tuesday. A major wildfire swept through Piperi village near Montenegro's capital Podgorica, devastating houses in the area.
Parts of the UK are sweltering in its fourth heatwave of the year, with amber and yellow heat health alerts in place for all of England and potential highs of 34C forecast.
Scientists warn global warming is making Mediterranean summers hotter and drier, fuelling longer and more intense fire seasons.
Destruction following the Israeli attack on Zeitoun on 8 August
Gaza City has come under intense air attack, the territory's Hamas-run civil defence agency has said, as Israeli forces prepare to occupy the city.
Mahmud Bassal, a spokesman, said the residential areas of Zeitoun and Sabra had for three days been hit by bombs and drone strikes that "cause massive destruction to civilian homes", with residents unable to recover the dead and injured.
Meanwhile the UK, EU, Australia, Canada and Japan issued a statement saying "famine is unfolding in front of our eyes" and urged action to "reverse starvation".
They demanded "immediate, permanent and concrete steps" to facilitate the entry of aid to Gaza. Israel denies there is starvation in Gaza.
It has accused UN agencies of not picking up aid at the borders and delivering it.
The joint statement also demanded an end to the use of lethal force near aid distribution sites and lorry convoys, where the UN says more than 1,300 Palestinians have been killed, mostly by the Israeli military.
Separately, the World Health Organisation on Tuesday appealed to Israel to let it stock medical supplies to deal with a "catastrophic" health situation before it seizes control of Gaza City.
"We all hear about 'more humanitarian supplies are allowed in' - well it's not happening yet, or it's happening at a way too low a pace," said Rik Peeperkorn, the agency's representative in the Palestinian territories.
"We want to as quickly stock up hospitals," he added. "We currently cannot do that. We need to be able to get all essential medicines and medical supplies in."
Israel's war cabinet voted on Monday to occupy Gaza City, a move condemned at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council later that day. On Tuesday the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it was "at the beginning of a new state of combat".
The Israeli government has not provided an exact timetable on when its forces would enter the area. On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's forces had been instructed to dismantle the "two remaining Hamas strongholds" in Gaza City and a central area around al-Mawasi.
He also outlined a three-step plan to increase aid in Gaza, including designating safe corridors for aid distribution, as well as more air drops by Israeli forces and other partners.
On the ground, however, residents of Gaza City said they had come under unrelenting attack from the air. Majed al-Hosary, a resident in Zeitoun in Gaza City, told AFP that the attacks had been "extremely intense for two days".
"With every strike, the ground shakes. There are martyrs under the rubble that no one can reach because the shelling hasn't stopped," he said.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said that 100 dead had been brought to hospitals across Gaza over the past 24 hours, including 31 people who were killed at aid sites. Five more people had also died of malnutrition, it added.
Israel has faced mounting criticism over the 22-month-long war with Hamas, with UN-backed experts warning of widespread famine unfolding in the besieged territory.
On Tuesday members of an international group of former leaders known as "The Elders" for the first time called the war in Gaza an "unfolding genocide" and blamed Israel for causing famine among its population.
Following a visit to the Gaza border, Helen Clark and Mary Robinson, a former prime minister of New Zealand and a former president of Ireland, said in a joint statement: "What we saw and heard underlines our personal conviction that there is not only an unfolding, human-caused famine in Gaza. There is an unfolding genocide."
Palestinians flock to an area of western Gaza City during an aid drop.
The statement mirrors those of leading Israeli rights groups, including B'Tselem, which said it had reached an "unequivocal conclusion" that Israel was attempting to "destroy Palestinian society in the Gaza Strip".
Israel strongly rejects the accusations, saying its forces target terrorists and never civilians, and that Hamas was responsible for the suffering in Gaza.
On Sunday, the IDF killed five Al Jazeera journalists in a targeted attack on a media tent in Gaza City, sparking widespread international condemnation. It said it had killed well known reporter Anas al-Sharif, whom it alleged "served as the head of a terrorist cell in Hamas", and made no mention of the others.
Media freedom groups said it had provided little evidence for its claims. Al Jazeera's managing editor said Israel wanted to "silence the coverage of any channel of reporting from inside Gaza".
Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and took 251 hostage in its attack on Israel on 7 October 2023. Israel's response in Gaza has killed at least 61,599 Palestinians, according to the health ministry, whose toll the UN considers reliable.
An investigation by the British army has found that some soldiers stationed at a controversial base in Kenya continue to use sex workers despite being banned from doing so.
Soldiers at the British Army Training Unit Kenya (Batuk) used sex workers "at a low or moderate" level, a report said, adding that more work was needed to stamp out the practice.
The investigation covered a period of more than two years, examining conduct at the base dating back to July 2022.
It was commissioned in October 2025 following an investigation by British media outlet ITV into the behaviour of soldiers at Batuk, including allegations some army personnel were paying local women for sex.
The ITV documentary followed previous concerns raised about Batuk after the death in 2012 of a local woman Agnes Wanjiru, allegedly killed by a British soldier stationed at the base.
Since then a string of allegations have been made about the conduct of troops at the training site, which lies near the town of Nanyuki 200km (125 miles) north of Kenya's capital Nairobi.
UK Chief of Defence Staff Gen Sir Roly Walker said in a statement that the army was committed to stopping sexual exploitation by those in its ranks.
"The findings of the Service Inquiry I commissioned conclude that transactional sex is still happening in Kenya at a low to moderate level. It should not be happening at all," he said.
"There is absolutely no place for sexual exploitation and abuse by people in the British Army. It is at complete odds with what it means to be a British soldier. It preys on the vulnerable and benefits those who seek to profit from abuse and exploitation," he added.
The service inquiry investigation was carried out over more than two years by a panel of four people, including two serving officers, a civil servant and an independent adviser.
It investigated the behaviour of troops stationed at Batuk and assessed the army's systems to prevent breaches of its regulation JSP 769 which bans soldiers from paying for sex.
The report details 35 instances in which Batuk soldiers were suspected to have paid for sex, since guidance for soldiers on the rule was published in July 2022. During that period 7,666 British soldiers served at the base.
It notes that of those, 26 cases happened before training on the new rule was initiated for all army staff in November of that year, with nine reported cases since then. In the majority of cases, the allegation that soldiers had paid for sex was never proven.
In addition to those detailed in the report, the Foreign Office told the BBC there was a small number - less than five - cases of alleged use of sex workers currently under investigation. The alleged incidents happened after the inquiry was concluded.
The report said that despite the training given by the Army and the control measures in place, the reality was that "transactional sexual activity" by UK personnel in Kenya was still happening, and that "the level is somewhere between low and moderate".
"It is not out of control, but the best way for the Army to manage the risk is for the Army to assume it may be at the upper end of that scale between low and moderate," the report added.
The report noted efforts by the Army to stamp out the practice, including regular training and the use of "sharkwatch" patrols with a senior officer of Sargeant rank or above deployed to monitor the conduct of junior personnel when they left the base for nights out.
The army said it would implement recommendations from the report, including making it easier to dismiss soldiers found to have used sex workers and the implementation of additional training.
The report follows years of controversy about the conduct of soldiers at Batuk sparked by an investigation by the Sunday Times in 2021 which revealed the alleged involvement of a British soldier in the murder of Ms Wanjiru, a mother of one whose body was found dumped in a septic tank near a hotel where she had been seen with soldiers on the night she vanished.
Separately in Kenya, MPs have been conducting an inquiry into wider allegations of mistreatment of local people by soldiers at Batuk and have heard claims at public hearings of injuries allegedly sustained through the behaviour of British troops and of soldiers fathering children to Kenyan mothers and then abandoning them when they returned home.
In June this year a soldier stationed at the base was sent back to the UK after being accused of rape.
The Service Inquiry behind the latest report said it had spoken to many local Kenyans and found "the vast majority" of local residents were happy with the presence of the Batuk camp.
Madonna released her remix album Veronica Electronica last month
Madonna has urged Pope Leo XIV to visit Gaza and bring his "light to the children before it is too late".
The US queen of pop shared her plea on social media, saying the supreme pontiff was "the only one of us who cannot be denied entry."
Her intervention came as the UK, EU, Australia, Canada and Japan issued a statement saying "famine is unfolding in front of our eyes" and urged action to "reverse starvation".
"Most Holy Father, please go to Gaza and bring your light to the children before it's too late," Madonna posted on Instagram. "As a mother, I cannot bear to watch their suffering.
Israel denies there is starvation in Gaza.
'Please say you will go'
"The children of the world belong to everyone.
"You are the only one of us who cannot be denied entry."
The Like a Prayer singer added: "We need the humanitarian gates to be fully opened to save these innocent children."
She signed off by saying: "There is no more time. Please say you will go. Love, Madonna."
According to PA News, he said: "I appeal to the international community to observe humanitarian law and respect the obligation to protect civilians as well as the prohibition of collective punishment, the indiscriminate use of force, and the forced displacement of populations."
Reuters
Pope Leo XIV became the first US head of the Catholic Church in May
Madonna - who last month released her long-rumoured remix album Veronica Electronica - has made impassioned speeches on stage about Gaza since the war began.
This includes while performing at London's O2 in 2023, when she told fans: "It breaks my heart to see children suffering, teenagers suffering, elderly people suffering - all of it is heartbreaking, I'm sure you agree.
"But even though our hearts are broken our spirits cannot be broken."
She urged fans to bring "light and love" into the world - both individually and collectively, via words and actions - in order to "bring peace to the Middle East" and beyond.
In the caption of her latest online post, she noted how it was her son Rocco's birthday and "the best gift I can give to him as a mother - is to ask everyone to do what they can to help save the innocent children caught in the crossfire in Gaza."
The star, who also asked for donations to three different organisations, continued: "I am not pointing fingers, placing blame or taking sides.
"Everyone is suffering. Including the mothers of the hostages. I pray that they are released as well."
U2's solidarity statement
Madonna's comments come as U2 frontman Bono - along with the rest of his bandmates - also released a statement letting fans know where they stand on the matter.
While condemning the actions of both Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas, the Irish frontman offered: "Our band stands in solidarity with the people of Palestine who truly seek a path to peace and coexistence with Israel and with their rightful and legitimate demand for statehood.
"We stand in solidarity with the remaining hostages and plead that someone rational negotiate their release."
Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and took 251 hostage in its attack on Israel on 7 October 2023. Israel's response in Gaza has killed at least 61,599 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, whose toll the UN considers reliable.
Israel has faced mounting criticism over the 22-month-long war with Hamas, with UN-backed experts also warning of widespread famine unfolding in the besieged territory.
On Tuesday the health ministry said five more people had died from malnutrition, bringing the total number of such deaths to 227 including 103 children.
Last week the UN's humanitarian agency said the amount of aid entering Gaza continued to be "far below the minimum required". It said it continued to see impediments and delays as it tries to collect aid from Israeli-controlled border zones.
Israel has continued to deny there is starvation in Gaza and has accused UN agencies of not picking up aid at the borders and delivering it.
The RSF and the army have been fighting since April 2023
At least 40 people have been killed in an attack on a camp for displaced people in Sudan's western Darfur region, according to an aid group that works there.
The Abu Shouk Emergency Response Room said Monday's assault was carried out by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The resistance committee in nearby el-Fasher city, made up of local citizens and activists, also reported this.
El-Fasher, which came under intense attack as well, is the last major foothold in Darfur for the army and its allies, which have been fighting the paramilitary RSF in the two-year civil war.
Sudanese media reported that the camp was caught in the crossfire of the fighting in el-Fasher.
But the aid group inside Abu Shouk, where at least 200,000 people live, said some of those killed in the attack were shot in their homes while others were gunned down in public.
A US-based organisation that analyses satellite imagery and videos said that it identified a large grouping of 40 light vehicles in the north-west neighbourhoods of the camp, which appear to corroborate reports that the attack came from the north.
The Yale Humanitarian Research Lab added that it was investigating images and videos "allegedly showing RSF shooting at people crawling away from them and berating and using ethnic slurs".
The camp was created more than two decades ago by people from non-Arab communities - including the Fur and Zaghawa - who were fleeing attacks by the Janjaweed militia.
The RSF has its origins in this notorious militia that was accused of carrying out a genocide.
The RSF has also been widely accused of ethnic cleansing in Darfur during this war, and the US has sanctioned it with allegations of genocide.
The RSF has previously denied such charges, saying it is not part of what it calls tribal conflicts.
Zaghawa fighters have joined the army in defending el-Fasher, so it is possible that the RSF was deliberately targeting Zaghawa civilians in the camp.
The camps for displaced people near el-Fasher have frequently come under attack during the war.
Since the conflict began in April 2023, tens of thousands of people have died, 12 million have been forced from their homes and famine has been declared in parts of the country.
The Nigerian air force has killed scores of gunmen, known locally as "bandits", who were members of criminal gangs operating in Zamfara state, the military has said.
The air force said in a statement on Monday that it carried out a raid in Makakkari forest, north-west Nigeria, which was the hideout of the gunmen who were believed to be behind some high-profile kidnappings in the area.
It said it conducted the operation after surveillance detected more than 400 gang members preparing to attack a village.
Over the past two weeks, armed gangs have targeted nearby settlements, killing scores and kidnapping many more. At least 13 security personnel have also been killed.
The aerial strikes, in coordination with attacks on the ground, led to the deaths of "several notorious bandit kingpins and scores of their foot soldiers," air force spokesperson Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame said.
He added that the ground forces intercepted and killed others trying to flee the forest.
In parts of Nigeria, kidnapping for ransom has become a lucrative business for some.
The bandits, motivated by financial gain, have also increased their cooperation with jihadist groups that have been waging a 16-year armed insurgency in the north-east.
In recent years, the military has launched a number of operations against the gangs, including last month when at least 95 gang members were killed - but the violence has persisted.
Login
