The US plans to impose a 25% tax on products entering the country from South Korea and Japan on 1 August, President Donald Trump has said.
He announced the tariffs in a post on social media, sharing letters he said had been sent to leaders of the two countries.
The White House has said it expects to send similar messages to many countries in the coming days as the 90-day pause it placed on some of its most aggressive tariffs is set to expire.
The first two letters suggest that Trump remains committed to his initial push for tariffs, with little change from the rates announced in April.
At that time, he said he was looking to hit goods from Japan with duties of 24% and charge a 25% on products made in South Korea.
Those tariffs were included in a bigger "Liberation Day" announcement, which imposed tariffs on goods from countries around the world.
After outcry and turmoil on financial markets following the initial tariffs announcement, Trump suspended some of the import taxes to allow for talks. That deadline is set to expire on 9 July.
On Monday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he expected "a busy couple of days".
"We've had a lot of people change their tune in terms of negotiations. So my mailbox was full last night with a lot of new offers, a lot of new proposals," he told US business broadcaster CNBC.
Russia's Investigative Committee says former Russian transport minister Roman Starovoit has been found dead, apparently with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
He was dismissed earlier on Monday by President Vladimir Putin.
No reason for Starovoit's dismissal was given and deputy transport minister Andrei Nikitin was announced as his replacement shortly after.
The Investigative Committee said it was working to establish the circumstances of the incident.
Starovoit was appointed minister of transport in May 2024.
Before becoming transport minister Starovoit had served as governor of the Kursk region for almost nine years, until May 2024.
The region was partly seized by Ukrainian troops in August 2024 in a surprise offensive. Moscow only managed to drive out the Ukrainian forces, although in late June Kyiv said it was still holding a small area of territory inside Russia.
Starovoit's successor, Aleksey Smirnov, was only in post for a short while. He was arrested in April and was later accused of embezzling funds that had been allocated for the building of fortifications on the border with Ukraine.
According to Russian outlet Kommersant, Starovoit was about to be brought in as a defendant in the same case.
It is unclear when, exactly, Starovoit died.
The head of the State Duma Defense Committee, Andrei Kartapolov, told Russian outlet RTVI that his death occurred "quite a while ago".
Earlier on Monday, before Starovoit's death was announced, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was pressed by reporters on whether the dismissal meant Putin had lost trust in Starovoit over the events in Kursk.
"A loss of trust is mentioned if there is a loss of trust. Such wording was not used [in the Kremlin decree]," Peskov replied.
Keith Siegel urged the US president to pressure both Israel and Hamas to agree a deal
An American Israeli man who was held captive by Hamas has told the BBC that US President Donald Trump has the power to secure the release of the remaining hostages and end the war in Gaza.
Keith Siegel, 66, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023. He was released this February after 484 days in captivity under a ceasefire deal that Trump helped broker just before he took office.
He was taken along with his wife, Aviva, who was held for 51 days before being freed during an earlier ceasefire.
Mr Siegel was speaking ahead of a meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Trump at the White House on Monday evening.
In an interview in Tel Aviv, he thanked Trump for securing his own release and said the president could now do the same for the remaining 50 hostages, up to 20 of whom are believed to still be alive.
"I believe he has a lot of strength, power and ability to put pressure on those that need to be pressured, on both sides in order to get the agreement, get the deal signed, and get all of hostages back and bring it into the war," he said.
Trump has said he hopes a new ceasefire and hostage release deal will be agreed this week, but it appears there are still significant gaps between Israel and Hamas.
The two sides resumed indirect talks in Qatar on Sunday evening but they ended after three hours without a breakthrough, according to a Palestinian official.
Before he flew to Washington DC, Netanyahu said he believed his meeting with Trump could "definitely help advance that result we are all hoping for".
It is believed the plan includes the staggered release of 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 dead hostages in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
Hamas said on Friday that it had delivered a "positive response". But a Palestinian official said it had requested several changes, including a US guarantee that hostilities would not resume if negotiations on an end to the war failed - an idea Netanyahu has previously rejected.
Reuters
Keith Siegel and his wife Aviva met Donald Trump in Washington earlier this year
Mr Siegel described in vivid detail how Hamas members beat and taunted him, and said he was still haunted by the torture of a female captive he witnessed.
He said Hamas operatives had moved him through the streets of Gaza, sometimes in daylight, to 33 different locations during the course of his captivity.
When asked whether he would support a deal which released the hostages but saw Hamas remain in power in Gaza, he replied: "It's of the highest priority and urgency to get all of the 50 hostages back as soon as possible."
But he continued: "We cannot let Hamas continue to threaten people and to kill and murder people, and I think Hamas is responsible for death on both sides."
Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry says more than 57,000 people have been killed there since Israel launched military operations in response to the 7 October attacks, during which about 1,200 people were killed in Israel and 251 others taken hostage.
I asked Mr Siegel, as he continues to campaign for the release of the remaining hostages, whether his thoughts also focus on the suffering of the Gazan population.
"I believe that peace and security for all people and freedom... are basic human rights that every person deserves," he said.
"I think it's the responsibility of all leadership to ensure that that happens. Any innocent person that is hurt or killed or murdered is something that I hope or I dream will not happen."
The former Brazilian president visited Washington during Trump's first term in 2019
US President Donald Trump has urged Brazilian authorities to end their prosecution of the country's former President Jair Bolsonaro, accusing them of carrying out a "WITCH HUNT".
Bolsonaro, who governed Brazil between 2019 and 2022, is standing trial for allegedly attempting a coup against current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The former leader has denied involvement in any alleged plot.
In a social media post, Trump said Bolsonaro was "not guilty of anything, except having fought for THE PEOPLE" and told prosecutors to "LEAVE BOLSONARO ALONE!"
President Lula said Brazil is a sovereign country that "won't accept interference or instruction from anyone."
"No one is above the law. Especially those that threaten freedom and the rule of law," he wrote in a post on X.
In his earlier post on Truth Social, Trump praised Bolsonaro as a "strong leader" who "truly loved his country".
The US president compared Bolsonaro's prosecution to the legal cases he himself faced between his two presidential terms.
"This is nothing more, or less, than an attack on a Political Opponent - Something I know much about! It happened to me, times 10," Trump said.
Bolsonaro thanked Trump for his comments, describing the case against him as "clear political persecution" in a social media post.
Responding to Trump's remarks, Minister of Institutional Affairs Gleisi Hoffmann said: "The time when Brazil was subservient to the US was the time of Bolsonaro."
"The US president should take care of his own problems, which are not few, and respect the sovereignty of Brazil and our judiciary," she added.
The back and fourth comes as Lula hosted representatives from China, Russia and other nations at a Brics summit in Rio de Janeiro.
Bolsonaro was in the United States at the time and has always denied any links to the rioters.
He has been barred from running for public office until 2030 for falsely claiming Brazil's voting system was vulnerable to fraud, but he has said he intends to fight that ban and run for a second term in 2026.
Speaking in court for the first time last month, Bolsonaro said a coup was an "abominable thing". The 70-year-old could face decades in prison if convicted.
The US is set to take the Syrian Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) off its list of foreign terrorist organisations on Tuesday, according to a state department memo.
The group led a rebel offensive in December that toppled the Assad regime, which had ruled Syria for 54 years. Its leader Ahmed al-Sharaa is now the country's interim president.
HTS, also known as al-Nusra Front, was previously al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria until al-Sharaa severed ties in 2016.
In recent months, Western countries have sought to reset relations with Syria - which has faced heavy sanctions aimed at the old regime.
In late June, Trump signed an executive order to formally end US sanctions against the country, with the White House saying the move was intended to support its "path to stability and peace".
It added it would monitor the new Syrian government's actions including "taking concrete steps toward normalising ties with Israel" as well as "addressing foreign terrorists" and "banning Palestinian terrorist groups".
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani said the move would "lift the obstacle" to economic recovery and open the country to the international community.
On Friday, Syria said it was willing to cooperate with the US to reimplement a 1974 disengagement agreement with Israel.
Over the weekend, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy visited Syria - the first government minister to do so in 14 years.
He met with al-Sharaa and announced an additional £94.5m support package - aimed at supporting longer-term recovery and countries helping Syrian refugees.
The UK earlier lifted sanctions on Syria's defence and interior ministries.
Ninety percent of Syria's population were left under the poverty line when the Assad regime was ousted after 13 years of devastating civil war.
Al-Sharaa has promised a new Syria, but there are concerns within the country about how the new government is operating - with some suspicious of his radical past.
Only one female government minister has been appointed to date - and al-Sharaa has made almost every other appointment directly.
There have also been multiple violent attacks against minority groups in recent months.
In March, hundreds of civilians from the minority Alawite sect were killed during clashes between the new security forces and Assad-loyalists. In April there were deadly clashes between Islamist armed factions, security forces and fighters from the Druze religious minority. And in June at least 25 people were killed in a suicide attack on a church in Damascus.
An Italian sniffer dog was killed after eating sausages filled with nails that were thrown into his kennel, his trainer has said.
Bruno, a seven-year-old bloodhound, had been hailed as a hero for finding nine missing people during his career, and was once honoured by Italy's prime minister.
Giorgia Meloni condemned the "vile, cowardly, unacceptable" killing in a post on X. "Thank you for all you have done, Bruno," she said.
The dog's trainer, Arcangelo Caressa, said he knew who was responsible and vowed to make them pay for their actions.
It has been suggested the killing was carried out as revenge for Bruno's role is dismantling dog fighting rings.
"Today I died with you," Mr Caressa said in a Facebook post announcing Bruno's death.
He said he found the dog - who, he says, he saw as a "brother" - on Friday morning in his kennel at the Endas search and rescue training centre in Taranto, Puglia.
"You fought your whole life to save humans and now it was a human who did this to you," he added. "You were, you are and you will continue to be my hero."
The trainer said Italy's police and prosecutor's office had launched a joint investigation into the killing.
Addressing the culprits, Mr Caressa said: "I know who you are, and you will pay for it."
He told local media had received death threats in the weeks leading up to Bruno's death.
"It wasn't a random gesture. They want me to step aside. But I will never give in. This is a vile attack, done for money and revenge," he told the Corriere della Sera newspaper.
Italian MP and animal rights activist Michela Vittoria Brambilla has urged the police to bring those responsible to justice.
She suggested Bruno had been targeted by criminals because of his role in seizing dogs used in fighting.
A newly strengthened law, spearheaded by Brambilla, can punish anyone who kills an animal using torture by up to four years in prison and a €60,000 (£51,000) fine.
Brambilla has called for this law to be applied due to Bruno's "long and painful death" from internal bleeding, brought on by the nail-filled sausages.
"We owe it to this noble animal," she said in a statement.
Watch: Australia’s mushroom murder case... in under two minutes
For two years, the mystery of exactly what happened at Erin Patterson's dining table has gripped the world.
Five people sat down to eat lunch at her home in rural Australia on 29 July 2023. Within a week, three would be dead, a fourth would be fighting for his life, and the fifth would be under investigation for intentionally poisoning her guests with wild mushrooms.
After a much-watched trial in the tiny town of Morwell, Erin has now been found guilty of murdering three relatives and attempting to kill another.
Her eyes on the jury throughout, she remained silent and composed as they delivered verdicts which could see her spend the rest of her life in prison.
The self-described mushroom lover and amateur forager had told the court it was all a tragic accident.
But over nine weeks, the jury heard evidence suggesting she had hunted down death cap mushrooms sighted in nearby towns and lured her victims to the fatal meal under the false pretence that she had cancer - before trying to conceal her crimes by lying to police and disposing of evidence.
The orange plate
Gail and Don Patterson had turned up on Erin's doorstep just after midday on that fateful Saturday, an orange cake in hand. With them were the Wilkinsons: Heather, Gail's sister, and her husband Ian, who weeks after the meal would emerge from a coma to find he was the only guest to have survived.
Noticeably absent was Erin's estranged husband Simon Patterson. He'd pulled out the day before, saying he felt "uncomfortable" attending amid tension between the former couple.
EPA
Erin Patterson's house in Leongatha became a crime scene in July 2023
Erin had spent the morning slaving over a recipe from one of the nation's favourite cooks, tweaking it to make individual serves of beef Wellington: expensive cuts of steak slathered with a mushroom paste, then encased in pastry.
For the jury, Ian recounted watching the parcels go onto four grey plates – and an orange one for Erin – with mashed potatoes, green beans and gravy heaped on the side.
A sixth serve, allegedly prepared for Simon in case he changed his mind and came over, went into the fridge. Erin was originally accused of attempting to murder him too – on several occasions – but those charges were dropped on the eve of the trial and the allegations were not put to the jury.
The group said grace and then dug in, exchanging "banter" about how much they were eating.
"There was talk about husbands helping their wives out," Ian said.
Stuffed, they nibbled on dessert before Erin stunned her guests with a declaration that she had cancer, the trial heard.
Even the defence concedes that was not true. But on that day, the two elderly couples gave Erin advice on how to tell her kids, before ending the meal the way it had begun – with a prayer.
Ian told the court he didn't know the host well, but "things were friendly".
"She just seemed like a normal person to me," he said.
By that night, all of the guests were very ill, and the next day the four went to hospital with severe symptoms. Donald - who had eaten his portion of lunch and about half his wife's - told a doctor he had vomited 30 times in the space of a few hours.
Erin Patterson separated from her husband Simon in 2015
Suspicion soon began to trickle in.
The trial heard several of those asked to the lunch had been surprised by the invitation. Simon said it was rare for his estranged wife to host such an event, and Ian said he and his late wife had never even been to Erin's house before.
In hindsight, one of the guests apparently wondered aloud why Erin had served herself on a different type of plate to the rest of the family.
"I've puzzled about it since lunch," Heather said, according to a witness. "Is Erin short of crockery?"
Later, at hospital in Leongatha, Erin's ailing guests asked if their host was sick too. They'd all eaten the same meal, hadn't they?
Detectives would pose similar questions days later, in a police station interview room with Erin.
"We're trying to understand what has made them so ill," the detectives were heard saying, in a tape played to the court. "Conversely, we're trying to understand why you're not that ill."
An orange cake
Detailing the lunch publicly for the first time, from the witness stand, Erin Patterson offered an explanation.
She told the court that after waving off her relatives she had cleaned up the kitchen, before rewarding herself with a slice of the orange cake Gail had brought.
"[I ate] another piece of cake, and then another piece," she said. Before she knew it, the rest of the cake was gone and she felt overfull.
"So I went to the toilet and brought it back up again," Erin told the trial. "After I'd done that, I felt better."
She outlined for the jury a secret struggle with bulimia, saying she had been regularly binge-eating and purging since her teens - something her defence team suggested accounted for her lack of symptoms.
Paul Tyquin
Erin Patterson told the court she loved her in-laws and never meant to hurt her relatives
Erin had taken herself to hospital two days after the lunch, reporting feeling ill. But she initially rebuffed the urgent pleas of staff who wanted her and her children – who she claimed had eaten leftovers – to be immediately admitted for treatment.
One "surprised" doctor, who had seen the other sick lunch guests, was so concerned for their welfare that he called police to ask for help.
But when medics finally got Erin in for checks, neither she nor her children demonstrated similar symptoms to the others who'd eaten at the house, and tests showed no traces of death cap mushroom poisoning.
After a precautionary 24 hours, Erin was sent on her way.
Red flags
Her victims, though, continued to suffer in hospital. And as their relentless diarrhoea and vomiting was escalating to organ failure, Erin was covering her tracks, prosecutors alleged.
The day after she was discharged from hospital, CCTV captured Erin travelling to a local dump and disposing of a food dehydrator later found to contain traces of poisonous mushrooms.
She was also using three phones around the time of the lunch, two of which disappeared shortly afterwards. The one she did hand over to police had been repeatedly wiped – including while detectives were searching her house.
For investigators, the red flags began mounting quickly.
Questions about the source of the mushrooms elicited odd answers. Patterson claimed some of them had been bought dried from an Asian grocery in Melbourne, but she couldn't remember which suburb. When asked about the brand, or for transaction records, she said they were in plain packaging and she must've paid cash.
The fatal lunch was hosted at Erin Patterson's home in Leongatha in July 2023
Meanwhile detectives found out death cap mushrooms had been spotted in two nearby towns in the weeks before the meal, with concerned locals posting pictures and locations to online plant database iNaturalist. Erin's internet history showed she'd used the website to view death cap mushroom sightings at least once before. Her mobile phone location data appeared to show her travelling to both areas – and purchasing the infamous food dehydrator on her way home from one of those trips.
But Erin told police she'd never owned such an appliance, despite an instruction manual in her kitchen drawer and posts in a true crime Facebook group where she boasted about using it.
"I've been hiding powdered mushrooms in everything. Mixed into chocolate brownies yesterday, the kids had no idea," she wrote in one.
When digital forensics experts managed to recover some of the material on her devices, they found photos showing what looked like death cap mushrooms being weighed on a set of kitchen scales.
During the trial, Erin said she realised in the days after the lunch that the beef Wellington may have accidentally included dried mushrooms that she had foraged and mistakenly put in a container with store-bought ones. But she was too "scared" to tell a soul.
"It was this stupid knee-jerk reaction to dig deeper and keep lying," Erin told the court.
No clear motive
What baffled police, though, was the question of motive.
Simon told the trial he and Erin had initially remained chatty and amicable after their split in 2015. That changed in 2022, he said, when the couple started having disagreements over finances, child support, schools and properties.
He said there was no inkling of ill will towards his family, though.
EPA
Simon Patterson gave several days of evidence in court
"She especially got on with dad. They shared a love of knowledge and learning."
With his voice faltering, Simon added: "I think she loved his gentle nature."
But Erin herself told the court she was feeling increasingly isolated from the Patterson family – and there was evidence presented which indicated she had grown frustrated with them.
"You had two faces," the prosecutor Nanette Rogers said, after making Erin read aloud expletive-laden Facebook messages in which she had called Simon a "deadbeat" and his parents "a lost cause".
The prosecution opted not to present a specific motive, however, saying the jury may still be wondering what drove Erin to kill long after the trial wrapped.
EPA
Prosecutor Nanette Rogers and defence counsel Colin Mandy are two of the state's top barristers
The lack of a clear motive was key to Erin's defence: why would she want to kill her family, people she said she loved like her own parents?
"My parents are both gone. My grandparents are all gone. They're the only family that I've got… I love them a lot," she told police in her interrogation.
Everything else could be explained away, Erin's barrister argued.
The messages critical of her in-laws were just harmless venting, they said; the cancer claim a cover for weight-loss surgery she was planning to have but was too embarrassed to disclose.
Cell phone tracking data isn't very precise, so there's no real evidence she actually visited the towns where death cap mushrooms were sighted, they argued.
They also suggested that Erin was sick after the meal, just not as sick as the others because she'd thrown it all up. She strongly disliked hospitals, which was why she had discharged herself against medical advice.
And her lies and attempts to dispose of evidence were the actions of a woman worried she'd be blamed for the accidental deaths of her guests.
"She's not on trial for lying," Colin Mandy said. "This is not a court of moral judgment."
He accused the prosecution of trying to force a jigsaw puzzle of evidence together, "stretching interpretations, ignoring alternative explanations because they don't align perfectly with the narrative".
But the prosecution argued Erin had told so many lies it was hard to keep track of them.
"Perhaps the starkest," Dr Rogers said, were her attempts to explain the cancer fib. To prove that she actually had plans to undergo gastric-band surgery, Erin claimed to have booked an appointment at a Melbourne clinic – one that did not offer the treatment.
"She has told lies upon lies because she knew the truth would implicate her," Dr Rogers said. "When she knew her lies had been uncovered, she came up with a carefully constructed narrative to fit with the evidence – almost."
Dr Rogers said the jury should have "no difficulty" in rejecting the argument "this was all a horrible foraging accident".
Ultimately, after a week of deliberations, the jury did just that.
She will return to court for a sentencing hearing at a later date.
Police Minister Senzo Mchunu has dismissed the "wild allegations"
Police Minister Senzo Mchunu has been accused of having ties tocriminal gangs and of meddling in police investigations into politically motivated murders.
These explosive allegations were made by KwaZulu-Natal police boss Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi at a press briefing on Sunday.
He said Mr Mchunu was receiving financial support from an allegedly corrupt businessman to fund his "political endeavours".
Mr Mchunu has since denied what he says are "wild allegations" while President Cyril Ramaphosa said they were of "grave national security concern" and "receiving the highest priority attention".
Gen Mkhwanazi detailed a sequence of events he claims led to the "orchestrated" disbandment of a task force set up in 2018 to investigate the killing of politicians, mainly in KwaZulu-Natal.
Gen Mkhwanazi said the team's investigations had uncovered links to high-profile individuals — including politicians, police officials, and businesspeople tied to a drug cartel syndicate - and this is why the team was disbanded.
When he dissolved the unit earlier this year, Mchunu said it was not adding value in the province, despite many cases remaining unsolved.
According to Gen Mkhwanazi, a total of 121 case files were allegedly removed from the unit on the minister's instruction and without the authorisation of his boss, the national police commissioner General Fannie Masemola.
"These case dockets have, since March, been sitting at the head office ever since without any investigation work done on them. Five of these dockets already had instructions to [effect] arrests."
The provincial police chief also alleged Mr Mchunu had ties to a controversial businessman who was "financially supporting" the minister's political career.
Vusimuzi Matlala had a lucrative contract with the police before it was abruptly cancelled when he was arrested for attempted murder in May. Gen Mkhwanazi shared copies of text messages and a payment allegedly made by Mr Matlala to prove this.
Gen Masemola, on his part, said he would address these allegations later in the week when he announces the appointment of the temporary crime intelligence boss.
Criminal intelligence chief Lt-Gen Dumisani Khumalo was arrested over fraud and corruption allegations last month.
Gen Khumalo and the other six had been linked to an ongoing investigation into alleged abuse of intelligence funds and potentially unlawful appointments within the South African Police Service (SAPS).
US President Donald Trump welcomes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House in April
After 21 months of war, there are growing hopes of a new Gaza ceasefire announcement as Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets US President Donald Trump in Washington.
Trump previously told reporters he had been "very firm" with Netanyahu about ending the conflict and that he thought "we'll have a deal" this week.
"We are working to achieve the deal that has been discussed, under the conditions we have agreed," the veteran Israeli PM said before boarding his plane. "I believe that the conversation with President Trump can definitely help advance this outcome, which we all hope for."
Indirect talks between Israel and Hamas on a US-sponsored proposal for a 60-day ceasefire and hostage release deal resumed in Qatar on Sunday evening.
However, it is unclear whether key differences that have consistently held up an agreement can be overcome.
Reuters
Dozens of Palestinians in Gaza are being reported killed in Israeli strikes every day
Only cautious optimism is being expressed by weary Palestinians living in dire conditions amid continuing daily Israeli bombardment, and the distressed families of Israeli hostages still held by Hamas.
"I don't wish for a truce but a complete stop to all war. Frankly, I'm afraid that after 60 days the war would restart again," says Nabil Abu Dayah, who fled from Beit Lahia in northern Gaza to Gaza City with his children and grandchildren.
"We got so tired of displacement, we got tired of thirst and hunger, from living in tents. When it comes to life's necessities, we have zero."
On Saturday evening, large rallies took place urging Israel's government to seal a deal to return some 50 hostages from Gaza, up to 20 of whom are believed to be alive.
Some relatives questioned why the framework deal would not free all captives immediately.
"How does one survive under such conditions? I'm waiting for Evyatar to return and tell me himself," said Ilay David, whose younger brother, a musician, was filmed by Hamas in torment as he watched fellow hostages being released earlier this year during the last, two-month-long ceasefire.
"This is the time to save lives. This is the time to rescue the bodies from the threat of disappearance," Ilay told a crowd in Jerusalem.
"In the rapidly changing reality of the Middle East, this is the moment to sign a comprehensive agreement that will lead to the release of all the hostages, every single one, without exception."
AFP
The Israeli hostages' families are urging the US president to broker a deal that secures the release of all of those held in Gaza
Netanyahu is visiting the White House for the third time since Trump returned to power nearly six months ago.
But the leaders will be meeting for the first time since the US joined Israeli attacks on Iranian nuclear sites and then brokered a ceasefire between Israel and Iran.
There is a strong sense that the recent 12-day war has created more favourable circumstances to end the Gaza war.
After months of low popularity ratings, the Israeli PM has been bolstered by broad public support for the Iran offensive and analysts suggest he now has more leverage to agree to a peace deal over the strong objections of his far-right coalition partners, who want Israel to remain in control of Gaza.
Hamas is seen to have been further weakened by the strikes on Iran - a key regional patron - meaning it could also be more amenable to making concessions needed to reach an agreement.
Meanwhile, Trump is keen to move on to other priorities in the Middle East.
These include brokering border talks between Israel and Syria, returning to efforts to normalise relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, and completing unfinished business with Iran, involving possible negotiations on a new nuclear deal.
For months, ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have been deadlocked over one fundamental difference.
Israel has been ready to commit to a temporary truce to return hostages but not an end to the war. Hamas has demanded a permanent cessation of hostilities in Gaza and a full pullout of Israeli troops.
The latest proposal put to Hamas is said to include guarantees of Washington's commitment to the deal and to continued talks to reach a lasting ceasefire and the release of all the hostages.
Nothing has been officially announced, but according to media reports the framework would see Hamas hand over 28 hostages - 10 alive and 18 dead - in five stages over 60 days without the troubling handover ceremonies it staged in the last ceasefire.
There would be a large surge in humanitarian aid entering Gaza.
After the return of the first eight living hostages on the first day of the agreement, Israeli forces would withdraw from parts of the north. After one week, the army would leave parts of the south.
On Day 10, Hamas would outline which hostages remain alive and their condition, while Israel would give details about more than 2,000 Gazans arrested during the war who remain in "administrative detention" - a practice which allows the Israeli authorities to hold them without charge or trial.
As seen before, large numbers of Palestinians would be released from Israeli jails in exchange for hostages.
Reuters
The Israeli military's chief of staff said last week that it was nearing the completion of its war goals
President Trump has described this as the "final" truce proposal and said last week that Israel had accepted "the necessary conditions" to finalise it.
On Friday, Hamas said it had responded in a "positive spirit" but expressed some reservations.
A Palestinian official said sticking points remained over humanitarian aid - with Hamas demanding an immediate end to operations by the controversial Israeli and American-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) and a return to the UN and its partners overseeing all relief efforts.
Hamas is also said to be questioning the timetable for Israeli troop withdrawals and operations of the Rafah crossing between southern Gaza and Egypt.
Netanyahu's office stated on Saturday that the changes wanted by Hamas were "not acceptable" to Israel.
The prime minister has repeatedly said that Hamas must be disarmed, a demand the Islamist group has so far refused to discuss.
EPA
The humanitarian situation in Gaza is continuing to deteriorate
In Israel, there is growing opposition to the war in Gaza, with more than 20 soldiers killed in the past month, according to the military.
The Israeli military's chief of staff, Lt Gen Eyal Zamir, said last week that it was nearing the completion of its war goals and signalled that the government must decide whether to move ahead with a deal to bring home hostages or prepare for Israeli forces to re-establish military rule in Gaza.
Polls indicate that two-thirds of Israelis support a ceasefire deal to bring home the hostages.
In Gaza, some residents express fears that the current wave of positivity is being manufactured to ease tensions during Netanyahu's US trip - rationalising that this happened in May as Trump prepared to visit Arab Gulf states.
The coming days will be critical politically and in humanitarian terms.
The situation in Gaza has continued to deteriorate, with medical staff reporting acute malnutrition among children.
The UN says that with no fuel having entered in over four months, stockpiles are now virtually gone, threatening vital medical care, water supplies and telecommunications.
Israel launched its war in Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas-led attacks on 7 October 2023, which killed about 1,200 people and led to 251 others being taken hostage.
Israeli attacks have since killed more than 57,000 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. The ministry's figures are quoted by the UN and others as the most reliable source of statistics available on casualties.
Twelve Turkish soldiers have died after being exposed to methane gas while searching a cave in Iraq, the Turkish Ministry of National Defence said.
At least 19 personnel were exposed to the gas during the search and clear operation on Sunday, and immediately taken to hospital.
By Monday 12 soldiers had died, the ministry said.
The troops were searching for the body of a soldier who was killed in gunfire in May 2022. The ministry said despite efforts the remains have still not been recovered.
Israel says it has launched strikes on Houthi targets in three Yemeni ports, including the western port of Hodeidah, Ras Isa and Saif.
The attacks come shortly after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for civilians in the areas, warning of imminent air strikes.
Israeli defence minister Israel Katz confirmed on social media the strikes on the Houthi-controlled sites including a power station and ship that was hijacked by the group two years ago.
Houthi-run media in Yemen said the strikes hit the port of Hodeidah, but no further details were provided on damage or casualties.
Katz said the strikes were part of "Operation Black Flag" and warned that the Houthis "will continue to pay a heavy price for their actions".
"The fate of Yemen is the same as the fate of Tehran. Anyone who tries to harm Israel will be harmed, and anyone who raises a hand against Israel will have their hand cut off," he said in a post on X.
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"I am saddened to watch Elon Musk go completely 'off the rails,' essentially becoming a train wreck over the past five weeks," Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Sunday.
After teasing the idea for weeks, Musk posted on X over the weekend that he had set up the America Party to compete against the Republican and Democratic parties.
The Tesla boss's announcement comes weeks after a dramatic falling out with Trump, who appointed Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which is tasked with identifying areas to cut federal spending.
Trump said third political parties "have never succeeded in the United States" as the system was "seems not designed for them".
"The one thing Third Parties are good for is the creation of complete and total disruption and chaos."
Trump also took aim at Musk's push for an "Electric Vehicle (EV) Mandate", saying it would have "forced everyone to buy an electric car in a short period of time."
The president's tax and spending plan, which he signed into law on 4 July, ended tax breaks for electric vehicles.
He added that he had opposed Musk's proposal for an EV mandate from the beginning, explaining the reasons for omitting such vehicles in the legislation.
"People are now allowed to buy whatever they want - Gasoline Powered, Hybrids (which are doing very well), or New Technologies as they come about - No more EV Mandate."
The legislation includes increased spending for border security, defence and energy production, offset by controversial cuts to healthcare and food-support programmes.
Musk floated the idea of a new political party online during his public spat with Trump as he repeatedly criticised his spending plans.
Indigenous people are disproportionately represented in custody deaths in Australia - a trend that fuels frequent protests
The police officer who killed Indigenous teenager Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 was "racist" and had an "attraction" to adrenaline-style policing, a coroner's inquest has found.
Walker, 19, died shortly after he was shot three times at close range by Constable Zachary Rolfe during a home arrest in Yuendumu, a remote Indigenous community in the Northern Territory (NT).
Rolfe - no longer a policeman - was charged with Walker's murder and acquitted in 2022, sparking protests about Indigenous deaths in custody.
In delivering her findings, Judge Elisabeth Armitage said Walker's death was "avoidable" and there was "clear evidence of entrenched, systemic and structural racism" within NT's police force.
Judge Armitage handed down a summary of her findings - more than 600 pages - at an open-air presentation in Yuendumu, about 300km (190 miles) north-west of Alice Springs on Monday.
She found that "Rolfe was racist and that he worked in and was the beneficiary of an organisation with hallmarks of institutional racism".
Rolfe was "not a case of one bad apple", she said, finding that racist language and behaviour was "normalised within the Alice Springs police station".
While she could not "say with certainty that Mr Rolfe's racist attitudes" contributed to Walker's death, "I cannot exclude that possibility", she told those gathered at the presentation, which included members of Walker's family.
In addition, Rolfe's "derisive attitudes" toward female colleagues and some superiors, as well as his "contempt for bush cops", may have influenced his actions the day he shot Walker, Judge Armitage found.
On 9 November 2019, Rolfe and another officer arrived at Walker's home in Yuendumu to arrest him for breaching a court order.
Three days earlier, police had tried to arrest Walker and he had threatened them with an axe.
Walker was a "vulnerable teenager" who had a history of trauma and "poor impulse control", Judge Armitage found, noting that police should have been "on notice" to avoid another confrontation.
During Rolfe's Supreme Court trial in 2022, the court heard the officers became involved in a scuffle with Walker about one minute after arriving at his home.
Walker stabbed Rolfe's shoulder with a pair of scissors, prompting Rolfe to shoot him without warning - a move that Rolfe's lawyers said was in self-defence. Prosecutors agreed.
Seconds later, Rolfe fired two more shots at Walker. Prosecutors argued these were not necessary, while the defence said they were because Rolfe feared for his colleague's safety.
In her findings, Judge Armitage found that Rolfe made a "series of flawed decisions" that led to "officer-induced jeopardy" - a situation where police "needlessly put themselves in danger... creating a situation that justifies the use of deadly force".
She also said Rolfe - a former soldier - found combat situations "exhilarating" and had an "attraction to adrenalin policing". He had also ignored an arrest plan for Walker created by a female officer because he "thought he knew better", Judge Armitage said.
After Walker was shot, officers dragged him out of the house before taking him to the police station, where he was given first aid. He later died.
"Dragging is a disrespectful act and it should not have happened," Judge Armitage said.
She made 32 recommendations, including developing "mutual respect agreements" to limit when police carry guns in the Yuendumu community, and for police's anti-racism strategy to be strengthened, targeted and made public, and for compliance with its measures be publicly reported.
As she finished her one-hour speech, Judge Armitage thanked those who took part in the inquest and to Walker's family.
"I am sorry for your profound loss," she said.
Walker's cousin Samara Fernandez-Brown said the report was "overwhelming" and the family would assess the recommendations, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
In a statement, NT Police said the inquest had been a "long and painful journey for all involved".
"This has been a hard road, and we are determined to ensure that what has been learned is not lost," said acting commissioner Martin Dole.
A coroner's inquest into Walker's death was launched in 2022. Under NT law, all deaths in custody must be investigated. The findings are not legally binding.
There has been a wave of anti-government protests over the past year
Kenya's security forces have blocked all major roads leading into central Nairobi, ahead of planned nationwide protests.
Much of the city centre is deserted, with businesses shut and a heavy security presence on the streets. Some schools have advised students to stay at home.
Hundreds of early-morning commuters and overnight travellers were stranded at checkpoints, some located more than 10km (six miles) from the city centre, with only a few vehicles allowed through.
Within the city, roads leading to key government sites - including the president's official residence, State House, and the Kenyan parliament - are barricaded with razor wire.
In a statement issued on Sunday evening, the police said it was their constitutional duty to protect lives and property while maintaining public order.
Monday's protests, dubbed Saba Saba (Swahili for 7 July), commemorate the 1990s struggle for multiparty democracy in Kenya.
These demonstrations have been organised primarily by young people, demanding good governance, greater accountability, and justice for victims of police brutality. They are the latest in a wave of anti-government protests that began last year.
On 25 June, at least 19 people were killed and thousands of businesses looted and destroyed in a day of nationwide protests that were being held in honour of those killed in last year's anti-tax protests.
Recent demonstrations have turned violent, with reports of infiltration by "goons", who are accused of looting and attacking protesters. Civil society groups allege collusion between these groups and the police - accusations the police have strongly denied.
On Sunday, an armed gang attacked the headquarters of a human rights NGO in Nairobi. The Kenya Human Rights Commission had been hosting a press conference organised by women calling for an end to state violence ahead of Monday's protests.
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the original Saba Saba protests - a key moment that helped usher in multiparty democracy in Kenya after years of one-party rule.
The response by the then government under President Daniel arap Moi was brutal. Many protesters - including veteran politician Raila Odinga, who is now working with the government, were arrested and tortured, while at least 20 people were reportedly killed.
Since then, Saba Saba has come to symbolise civic resistance and the fight for democratic freedom in Kenya.
The US is set to take the Syrian Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) off its list of foreign terrorist organisations on Tuesday, according to a state department memo.
The group led a rebel offensive in December that toppled the Assad regime, which had ruled Syria for 54 years. Its leader Ahmed al-Sharaa is now the country's interim president.
HTS, also known as al-Nusra Front, was previously al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria until al-Sharaa severed ties in 2016.
In recent months, Western countries have sought to reset relations with Syria - which has faced heavy sanctions aimed at the old regime.
In late June, Trump signed an executive order to formally end US sanctions against the country, with the White House saying the move was intended to support its "path to stability and peace".
It added it would monitor the new Syrian government's actions including "taking concrete steps toward normalising ties with Israel" as well as "addressing foreign terrorists" and "banning Palestinian terrorist groups".
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani said the move would "lift the obstacle" to economic recovery and open the country to the international community.
On Friday, Syria said it was willing to cooperate with the US to reimplement a 1974 disengagement agreement with Israel.
Over the weekend, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy visited Syria - the first government minister to do so in 14 years.
He met with al-Sharaa and announced an additional £94.5m support package - aimed at supporting longer-term recovery and countries helping Syrian refugees.
The UK earlier lifted sanctions on Syria's defence and interior ministries.
Ninety percent of Syria's population were left under the poverty line when the Assad regime was ousted after 13 years of devastating civil war.
Al-Sharaa has promised a new Syria, but there are concerns within the country about how the new government is operating - with some suspicious of his radical past.
Only one female government minister has been appointed to date - and al-Sharaa has made almost every other appointment directly.
There have also been multiple violent attacks against minority groups in recent months.
In March, hundreds of civilians from the minority Alawite sect were killed during clashes between the new security forces and Assad-loyalists. In April there were deadly clashes between Islamist armed factions, security forces and fighters from the Druze religious minority. And in June at least 25 people were killed in a suicide attack on a church in Damascus.
The former Brazilian president visited Washington during Trump's first term in 2019
US President Donald Trump has urged Brazilian authorities to end their prosecution of the country's former President Jair Bolsonaro, accusing them of carrying out a "WITCH HUNT".
Bolsonaro, who governed Brazil between 2019 and 2022, is standing trial for allegedly attempting a coup against current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The former leader has denied involvement in any alleged plot.
In a social media post, Trump said Bolsonaro was "not guilty of anything, except having fought for THE PEOPLE" and told prosecutors to "LEAVE BOLSONARO ALONE!"
President Lula said Brazil is a sovereign country that "won't accept interference or instruction from anyone."
"No one is above the law. Especially those that threaten freedom and the rule of law," he wrote in a post on X.
In his earlier post on Truth Social, Trump praised Bolsonaro as a "strong leader" who "truly loved his country".
The US president compared Bolsonaro's prosecution to the legal cases he himself faced between his two presidential terms.
"This is nothing more, or less, than an attack on a Political Opponent - Something I know much about! It happened to me, times 10," Trump said.
Bolsonaro thanked Trump for his comments, describing the case against him as "clear political persecution" in a social media post.
Responding to Trump's remarks, Minister of Institutional Affairs Gleisi Hoffmann said: "The time when Brazil was subservient to the US was the time of Bolsonaro."
"The US president should take care of his own problems, which are not few, and respect the sovereignty of Brazil and our judiciary," she added.
The back and fourth comes as Lula hosted representatives from China, Russia and other nations at a Brics summit in Rio de Janeiro.
Bolsonaro was in the United States at the time and has always denied any links to the rioters.
He has been barred from running for public office until 2030 for falsely claiming Brazil's voting system was vulnerable to fraud, but he has said he intends to fight that ban and run for a second term in 2026.
Speaking in court for the first time last month, Bolsonaro said a coup was an "abominable thing". The 70-year-old could face decades in prison if convicted.
This picture of Renee Smajstrla was clicked at Camp Mystic on Thursday, her uncle wrote on Facebook
An eight-year-old girl and the director of an all-girls' summer camp are among the victims of flash floods in Texas that have claimed at least 43 lives, including 15 children.
Officials say most of the victims have been identified, though the identities of six adults and a child remain unknown. Authorities have not yet released any names publicly.
Here's what we know so far about the victims.
Renee Smajstrla
Eight-year-old Renee Smajstrla was at Camp Mystic when flooding swept through the summer camp for girls, her uncle said in a Facebook post.
"Renee has been found and while not the outcome we prayed for, the social media outreach likely assisted the first responders in helping to identify her so quickly," wrote Shawn Salta, of Maryland.
"We are thankful she was with her friends and having the time of her life, as evidenced by this picture from yesterday," he wrote. "She will forever be living her best life at Camp Mystic."
Camp Mystic, where 27 children are missing, is a nearly century-old Christian summer camp for girls on the banks of the Guadalupe River near Hunt, Texas.
Operated by generations of the same family since the 1930s, the camp's website bills itself as a place for girls to grow "spiritually" in a "wholesome" Christian atmosphere "to develop outstanding personal qualities and self-esteem".
Jane Ragsdale
Heart O' the Hills
Jane Ragsdale was described as the "heart and soul" of Heart O' the Hills camp
Heart O' the Hills is another all-girls' camp that sits along the Guadalupe River, and it was right in the path of Friday's flood.
Jane Ragsdale, described as the "heart and soul" of Heart O'Hills, "did not make it", a post shared on the camp's official website said on Saturday.
Ragsdale, who started off as a camper then a counsellor, became the director and co-owner of the camp in 1976.
"We are mourning the loss of a woman who influenced countless lives and was the definition of strong and powerful," the camp website post said.
Heart O' the Hills wasn't in session and "most of those who were on camp at the time have been accounted for and are on high ground", the statement said.
"Access to the site is difficult, and authorities are primarily focused on locating the missing and preventing further loss of life and property".
Sarah Marsh
Camp Mystic
Sarah Marsh, a student at Cherokee Bend Elementary School in Texas, would have entered third grade in August.
She, too, was attending Camp Mystic when the floods struck, and reported as missing along with about two dozen other campers.
Her grandmother, Debbie Ford Marsh, took to Facebook on Friday asking for prayers. Just hours later she shared online that her granddaughter was among the girls killed.
"We will always feel blessed to have had this beautiful spunky ray of light in our lives. She will live on in our hearts forever!" Ms Ford Marsh wrote on Facebook.
In a post on Facebook, Alabama Senator Katie Britt said she's "heartbroken over the loss of Sarah Marsh, and we are keeping her family in our thoughts and prayers during this unimaginable time".
Lila Bonner
Nine-year-old Lila Bonner, a Dallas native was found dead after flooding near Camp Mystic, according to NBC News.
"In the midst of our unimaginable grief, we ask for privacy and are unable to confirm any details at this time," her family said in a statement to the news outlet.
"We ache with all who loved her and are praying endlessly."
Russia's Investigative Committee says former Russian transport minister Roman Starovoit has been found dead, apparently with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
He was dismissed earlier on Monday by President Vladimir Putin.
No reason for Starovoit's dismissal was given and deputy transport minister Andrei Nikitin was announced as his replacement shortly after.
The Investigative Committee said it was working to establish the circumstances of the incident.
Starovoit was appointed minister of transport in May 2024.
Before becoming transport minister Starovoit had served as governor of the Kursk region for almost nine years, until May 2024.
The region was partly seized by Ukrainian troops in August 2024 in a surprise offensive. Moscow only managed to drive out the Ukrainian forces, although in late June Kyiv said it was still holding a small area of territory inside Russia.
Starovoit's successor, Aleksey Smirnov, was only in post for a short while. He was arrested in April and was later accused of embezzling funds that had been allocated for the building of fortifications on the border with Ukraine.
According to Russian outlet Kommersant, Starovoit was about to be brought in as a defendant in the same case.
It is unclear when, exactly, Starovoit died.
The head of the State Duma Defense Committee, Andrei Kartapolov, told Russian outlet RTVI that his death occurred "quite a while ago".
Earlier on Monday, before Starovoit's death was announced, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was pressed by reporters on whether the dismissal meant Putin had lost trust in Starovoit over the events in Kursk.
"A loss of trust is mentioned if there is a loss of trust. Such wording was not used [in the Kremlin decree]," Peskov replied.
An Italian sniffer dog was killed after eating sausages filled with nails that were thrown into his kennel, his trainer has said.
Bruno, a seven-year-old bloodhound, had been hailed as a hero for finding nine missing people during his career, and was once honoured by Italy's prime minister.
Giorgia Meloni condemned the "vile, cowardly, unacceptable" killing in a post on X. "Thank you for all you have done, Bruno," she said.
The dog's trainer, Arcangelo Caressa, said he knew who was responsible and vowed to make them pay for their actions.
It has been suggested the killing was carried out as revenge for Bruno's role is dismantling dog fighting rings.
"Today I died with you," Mr Caressa said in a Facebook post announcing Bruno's death.
He said he found the dog - who, he says, he saw as a "brother" - on Friday morning in his kennel at the Endas search and rescue training centre in Taranto, Puglia.
"You fought your whole life to save humans and now it was a human who did this to you," he added. "You were, you are and you will continue to be my hero."
The trainer said Italy's police and prosecutor's office had launched a joint investigation into the killing.
Addressing the culprits, Mr Caressa said: "I know who you are, and you will pay for it."
He told local media had received death threats in the weeks leading up to Bruno's death.
"It wasn't a random gesture. They want me to step aside. But I will never give in. This is a vile attack, done for money and revenge," he told the Corriere della Sera newspaper.
Italian MP and animal rights activist Michela Vittoria Brambilla has urged the police to bring those responsible to justice.
She suggested Bruno had been targeted by criminals because of his role in seizing dogs used in fighting.
A newly strengthened law, spearheaded by Brambilla, can punish anyone who kills an animal using torture by up to four years in prison and a €60,000 (£51,000) fine.
Brambilla has called for this law to be applied due to Bruno's "long and painful death" from internal bleeding, brought on by the nail-filled sausages.
"We owe it to this noble animal," she said in a statement.
There has been a wave of anti-government protests over the past year
Kenya's security forces have blocked all major roads leading into central Nairobi, ahead of planned nationwide protests.
Much of the city centre is deserted, with businesses shut and a heavy security presence on the streets. Some schools have advised students to stay at home.
Hundreds of early-morning commuters and overnight travellers were stranded at checkpoints, some located more than 10km (six miles) from the city centre, with only a few vehicles allowed through.
Within the city, roads leading to key government sites - including the president's official residence, State House, and the Kenyan parliament - are barricaded with razor wire.
In a statement issued on Sunday evening, the police said it was their constitutional duty to protect lives and property while maintaining public order.
Monday's protests, dubbed Saba Saba (Swahili for 7 July), commemorate the 1990s struggle for multiparty democracy in Kenya.
These demonstrations have been organised primarily by young people, demanding good governance, greater accountability, and justice for victims of police brutality. They are the latest in a wave of anti-government protests that began last year.
On 25 June, at least 19 people were killed and thousands of businesses looted and destroyed in a day of nationwide protests that were being held in honour of those killed in last year's anti-tax protests.
Recent demonstrations have turned violent, with reports of infiltration by "goons", who are accused of looting and attacking protesters. Civil society groups allege collusion between these groups and the police - accusations the police have strongly denied.
On Sunday, an armed gang attacked the headquarters of a human rights NGO in Nairobi. The Kenya Human Rights Commission had been hosting a press conference organised by women calling for an end to state violence ahead of Monday's protests.
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the original Saba Saba protests - a key moment that helped usher in multiparty democracy in Kenya after years of one-party rule.
The response by the then government under President Daniel arap Moi was brutal. Many protesters - including veteran politician Raila Odinga, who is now working with the government, were arrested and tortured, while at least 20 people were reportedly killed.
Since then, Saba Saba has come to symbolise civic resistance and the fight for democratic freedom in Kenya.
Watch: CCTV and audio shown to court in mushroom trial
Australian woman Erin Patterson has been found guilty by a jury of murdering three relatives with a beef Wellington meal that had toxic mushrooms in it.
The 50-year-old from the small Victorian town of Morwell has also been found guilty of the attempted murder of a fourth person - the sole survivor of that fatal meal on 29 July 2023.
The mushroom trial that gripped the country, and much of the world, heard evidence suggesting Patterson hunted down death cap mushrooms from nearby towns, before attempting to conceal her crimes by disposing of evidence and lying to authorities.
Three people died in hospital in the days after the meal: Patterson's former in-laws, Don Patterson, 70, and Gail Patterson, 70, as well as Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66.
Local pastor Ian Wilkinson – Heather's husband – recovered after weeks of treatment in hospital.
Her estranged husband Simon Patterson was also invited but cancelled the day before, saying he felt "uncomfortable" attending amid tension between the former couple.
Following the guilty verdict, the Supreme Court of Victoria has released some 100 images shown to the jury as evidence during the trial.
Beef Wellington
Supreme Court of Victoria
Photos showing leftovers from the beef Wellington meal were released by the Supreme Court of Victoria after the verdict
Some of the released photos are of the beef Wellington leftovers, which were collected from Patterson's home.
The leftovers were collected in specimen bags to prevent contamination, before being taken for examination.
Supreme Court of Victoria
The leftovers, which police found in her bin, were tested for traces of death cap mushrooms.
Death cap mushrooms
Death cap mushrooms are considered to perhaps be the deadliest of all mushrooms to humans, according to Britannica. The fungus is responsible for most cases of mushroom poisoning worldwide, of which some are fatal, the encyclopaedia has said.
The cap ranges in colour from greenish yellow to brown, tan, or rarely white, and measures about 4-16cm (about 1.5-6in) in diameter.
Patterson claimed she purchased some of the mushrooms dried from an Asian grocery in Melbourne, but couldn't remember which suburb. When she was questioned about the brand, and asked for transaction records, she said the mushrooms were in plain packaging and added that she must have paid in cash.
However, detectives had discovered death cap mushrooms had been seen in two towns close to Morwell, where Patterson lived, before the meal. Concerned locals had been posting images and locations of the mushrooms on the online plant database iNaturalist.
Supreme Court of Victoria
Erin Patterson's search history showed that she had used the iNaturalist website to view death cap mushroom sightings at least once before.
Her mobile phone location data appeared to show her travelling to both places and buying a food dehydrator on the way home.
Forensic experts were also able to recover images on her mobile showing what looked like death cap mushrooms on weighing scales.
Supreme Court of Victoria
Even a small piece of a death cap mushroom can be deadly and its toxins cannot be destroyed by cooking, freezing, or drying.
Supreme Court of Victoria
The dehydrator
Traces of poisonous mushrooms were found in a food dehydrator that Erin Patterson disposed of in a local dump the day after she was discharged from hospital.
Patterson told police she'd never owned such an appliance, despite an instruction manual being found in her kitchen drawer and posts in a true crime Facebook group where she boasted about using it.
Supreme Court of Victoria
At the top of the pile on the top-left of this drawer is what appears to be the dehydrator manual
Among the exhibits released by the judge, are stills of Patterson dumping a food dehydrator at her local tip days after the beef Wellington lunch.
As a reminder, she took herself to the hospital two days after the lunch, saying she felt ill. She initially refused pleas from staff for her and her children, who she claimed had eaten the leftovers, to be admitted for treatment. None of their tests showed traces of death cap mushroom poisoning.
Supreme Court of Victoria
CCTV shows Patterson holding the dehydrator as she walks to a local dump
Patterson took the dehydrator to an E-waste site.
Supreme Court of Victoria
The dehydrator was recovered by the police and forensic examination of the appliance found her fingertips and traces of the death cap mushrooms.
Keith Siegel urged the US president to pressure both Israel and Hamas to agree a deal
An American Israeli man who was held captive by Hamas has told the BBC that US President Donald Trump has the power to secure the release of the remaining hostages and end the war in Gaza.
Keith Siegel, 66, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023. He was released this February after 484 days in captivity under a ceasefire deal that Trump helped broker just before he took office.
He was taken along with his wife, Aviva, who was held for 51 days before being freed during an earlier ceasefire.
Mr Siegel was speaking ahead of a meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Trump at the White House on Monday evening.
In an interview in Tel Aviv, he thanked Trump for securing his own release and said the president could now do the same for the remaining 50 hostages, up to 20 of whom are believed to still be alive.
"I believe he has a lot of strength, power and ability to put pressure on those that need to be pressured, on both sides in order to get the agreement, get the deal signed, and get all of hostages back and bring it into the war," he said.
Trump has said he hopes a new ceasefire and hostage release deal will be agreed this week, but it appears there are still significant gaps between Israel and Hamas.
The two sides resumed indirect talks in Qatar on Sunday evening but they ended after three hours without a breakthrough, according to a Palestinian official.
Before he flew to Washington DC, Netanyahu said he believed his meeting with Trump could "definitely help advance that result we are all hoping for".
It is believed the plan includes the staggered release of 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 dead hostages in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
Hamas said on Friday that it had delivered a "positive response". But a Palestinian official said it had requested several changes, including a US guarantee that hostilities would not resume if negotiations on an end to the war failed - an idea Netanyahu has previously rejected.
Reuters
Keith Siegel and his wife Aviva met Donald Trump in Washington earlier this year
Mr Siegel described in vivid detail how Hamas members beat and taunted him, and said he was still haunted by the torture of a female captive he witnessed.
He said Hamas operatives had moved him through the streets of Gaza, sometimes in daylight, to 33 different locations during the course of his captivity.
When asked whether he would support a deal which released the hostages but saw Hamas remain in power in Gaza, he replied: "It's of the highest priority and urgency to get all of the 50 hostages back as soon as possible."
But he continued: "We cannot let Hamas continue to threaten people and to kill and murder people, and I think Hamas is responsible for death on both sides."
Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry says more than 57,000 people have been killed there since Israel launched military operations in response to the 7 October attacks, during which about 1,200 people were killed in Israel and 251 others taken hostage.
I asked Mr Siegel, as he continues to campaign for the release of the remaining hostages, whether his thoughts also focus on the suffering of the Gazan population.
"I believe that peace and security for all people and freedom... are basic human rights that every person deserves," he said.
"I think it's the responsibility of all leadership to ensure that that happens. Any innocent person that is hurt or killed or murdered is something that I hope or I dream will not happen."
Police Minister Senzo Mchunu has dismissed the "wild allegations"
Police Minister Senzo Mchunu has been accused of having ties tocriminal gangs and of meddling in police investigations into politically motivated murders.
These explosive allegations were made by KwaZulu-Natal police boss Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi at a press briefing on Sunday.
He said Mr Mchunu was receiving financial support from an allegedly corrupt businessman to fund his "political endeavours".
Mr Mchunu has since denied what he says are "wild allegations" while President Cyril Ramaphosa said they were of "grave national security concern" and "receiving the highest priority attention".
Gen Mkhwanazi detailed a sequence of events he claims led to the "orchestrated" disbandment of a task force set up in 2018 to investigate the killing of politicians, mainly in KwaZulu-Natal.
Gen Mkhwanazi said the team's investigations had uncovered links to high-profile individuals — including politicians, police officials, and businesspeople tied to a drug cartel syndicate - and this is why the team was disbanded.
When he dissolved the unit earlier this year, Mchunu said it was not adding value in the province, despite many cases remaining unsolved.
According to Gen Mkhwanazi, a total of 121 case files were allegedly removed from the unit on the minister's instruction and without the authorisation of his boss, the national police commissioner General Fannie Masemola.
"These case dockets have, since March, been sitting at the head office ever since without any investigation work done on them. Five of these dockets already had instructions to [effect] arrests."
The provincial police chief also alleged Mr Mchunu had ties to a controversial businessman who was "financially supporting" the minister's political career.
Vusimuzi Matlala had a lucrative contract with the police before it was abruptly cancelled when he was arrested for attempted murder in May. Gen Mkhwanazi shared copies of text messages and a payment allegedly made by Mr Matlala to prove this.
Gen Masemola, on his part, said he would address these allegations later in the week when he announces the appointment of the temporary crime intelligence boss.
Criminal intelligence chief Lt-Gen Dumisani Khumalo was arrested over fraud and corruption allegations last month.
Gen Khumalo and the other six had been linked to an ongoing investigation into alleged abuse of intelligence funds and potentially unlawful appointments within the South African Police Service (SAPS).
Indigenous people are disproportionately represented in custody deaths in Australia - a trend that fuels frequent protests
The police officer who killed Indigenous teenager Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 was "racist" and had an "attraction" to adrenaline-style policing, a coroner's inquest has found.
Walker, 19, died shortly after he was shot three times at close range by Constable Zachary Rolfe during a home arrest in Yuendumu, a remote Indigenous community in the Northern Territory (NT).
Rolfe - no longer a policeman - was charged with Walker's murder and acquitted in 2022, sparking protests about Indigenous deaths in custody.
In delivering her findings, Judge Elisabeth Armitage said Walker's death was "avoidable" and there was "clear evidence of entrenched, systemic and structural racism" within NT's police force.
Judge Armitage handed down a summary of her findings - more than 600 pages - at an open-air presentation in Yuendumu, about 300km (190 miles) north-west of Alice Springs on Monday.
She found that "Rolfe was racist and that he worked in and was the beneficiary of an organisation with hallmarks of institutional racism".
Rolfe was "not a case of one bad apple", she said, finding that racist language and behaviour was "normalised within the Alice Springs police station".
While she could not "say with certainty that Mr Rolfe's racist attitudes" contributed to Walker's death, "I cannot exclude that possibility", she told those gathered at the presentation, which included members of Walker's family.
In addition, Rolfe's "derisive attitudes" toward female colleagues and some superiors, as well as his "contempt for bush cops", may have influenced his actions the day he shot Walker, Judge Armitage found.
On 9 November 2019, Rolfe and another officer arrived at Walker's home in Yuendumu to arrest him for breaching a court order.
Three days earlier, police had tried to arrest Walker and he had threatened them with an axe.
Walker was a "vulnerable teenager" who had a history of trauma and "poor impulse control", Judge Armitage found, noting that police should have been "on notice" to avoid another confrontation.
During Rolfe's Supreme Court trial in 2022, the court heard the officers became involved in a scuffle with Walker about one minute after arriving at his home.
Walker stabbed Rolfe's shoulder with a pair of scissors, prompting Rolfe to shoot him without warning - a move that Rolfe's lawyers said was in self-defence. Prosecutors agreed.
Seconds later, Rolfe fired two more shots at Walker. Prosecutors argued these were not necessary, while the defence said they were because Rolfe feared for his colleague's safety.
In her findings, Judge Armitage found that Rolfe made a "series of flawed decisions" that led to "officer-induced jeopardy" - a situation where police "needlessly put themselves in danger... creating a situation that justifies the use of deadly force".
She also said Rolfe - a former soldier - found combat situations "exhilarating" and had an "attraction to adrenalin policing". He had also ignored an arrest plan for Walker created by a female officer because he "thought he knew better", Judge Armitage said.
After Walker was shot, officers dragged him out of the house before taking him to the police station, where he was given first aid. He later died.
"Dragging is a disrespectful act and it should not have happened," Judge Armitage said.
She made 32 recommendations, including developing "mutual respect agreements" to limit when police carry guns in the Yuendumu community, and for police's anti-racism strategy to be strengthened, targeted and made public, and for compliance with its measures be publicly reported.
As she finished her one-hour speech, Judge Armitage thanked those who took part in the inquest and to Walker's family.
"I am sorry for your profound loss," she said.
Walker's cousin Samara Fernandez-Brown said the report was "overwhelming" and the family would assess the recommendations, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
In a statement, NT Police said the inquest had been a "long and painful journey for all involved".
"This has been a hard road, and we are determined to ensure that what has been learned is not lost," said acting commissioner Martin Dole.
A coroner's inquest into Walker's death was launched in 2022. Under NT law, all deaths in custody must be investigated. The findings are not legally binding.
There has been a wave of anti-government protests over the past year
Kenya's security forces have blocked all major roads leading into central Nairobi, ahead of planned nationwide protests.
Much of the city centre is deserted, with businesses shut and a heavy security presence on the streets. Some schools have advised students to stay at home.
Hundreds of early-morning commuters and overnight travellers were stranded at checkpoints, some located more than 10km (six miles) from the city centre, with only a few vehicles allowed through.
Within the city, roads leading to key government sites - including the president's official residence, State House, and the Kenyan parliament - are barricaded with razor wire.
In a statement issued on Sunday evening, the police said it was their constitutional duty to protect lives and property while maintaining public order.
Monday's protests, dubbed Saba Saba (Swahili for 7 July), commemorate the 1990s struggle for multiparty democracy in Kenya.
These demonstrations have been organised primarily by young people, demanding good governance, greater accountability, and justice for victims of police brutality. They are the latest in a wave of anti-government protests that began last year.
On 25 June, at least 19 people were killed and thousands of businesses looted and destroyed in a day of nationwide protests that were being held in honour of those killed in last year's anti-tax protests.
Recent demonstrations have turned violent, with reports of infiltration by "goons", who are accused of looting and attacking protesters. Civil society groups allege collusion between these groups and the police - accusations the police have strongly denied.
On Sunday, an armed gang attacked the headquarters of a human rights NGO in Nairobi. The Kenya Human Rights Commission had been hosting a press conference organised by women calling for an end to state violence ahead of Monday's protests.
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the original Saba Saba protests - a key moment that helped usher in multiparty democracy in Kenya after years of one-party rule.
The response by the then government under President Daniel arap Moi was brutal. Many protesters - including veteran politician Raila Odinga, who is now working with the government, were arrested and tortured, while at least 20 people were reportedly killed.
Since then, Saba Saba has come to symbolise civic resistance and the fight for democratic freedom in Kenya.
Indigenous people are disproportionately represented in custody deaths in Australia - a trend that fuels frequent protests
The police officer who killed Indigenous teenager Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 was "racist" and had an "attraction" to adrenaline-style policing, a coroner's inquest has found.
Walker, 19, died shortly after he was shot three times at close range by Constable Zachary Rolfe during a home arrest in Yuendumu, a remote Indigenous community in the Northern Territory (NT).
Rolfe - no longer a policeman - was charged with Walker's murder and acquitted in 2022, sparking protests about Indigenous deaths in custody.
In delivering her findings, Judge Elisabeth Armitage said Walker's death was "avoidable" and there was "clear evidence of entrenched, systemic and structural racism" within NT's police force.
Judge Armitage handed down a summary of her findings - more than 600 pages - at an open-air presentation in Yuendumu, about 300km (190 miles) north-west of Alice Springs on Monday.
She found that "Rolfe was racist and that he worked in and was the beneficiary of an organisation with hallmarks of institutional racism".
Rolfe was "not a case of one bad apple", she said, finding that racist language and behaviour was "normalised within the Alice Springs police station".
While she could not "say with certainty that Mr Rolfe's racist attitudes" contributed to Walker's death, "I cannot exclude that possibility", she told those gathered at the presentation, which included members of Walker's family.
In addition, Rolfe's "derisive attitudes" toward female colleagues and some superiors, as well as his "contempt for bush cops", may have influenced his actions the day he shot Walker, Judge Armitage found.
On 9 November 2019, Rolfe and another officer arrived at Walker's home in Yuendumu to arrest him for breaching a court order.
Three days earlier, police had tried to arrest Walker and he had threatened them with an axe.
Walker was a "vulnerable teenager" who had a history of trauma and "poor impulse control", Judge Armitage found, noting that police should have been "on notice" to avoid another confrontation.
During Rolfe's Supreme Court trial in 2022, the court heard the officers became involved in a scuffle with Walker about one minute after arriving at his home.
Walker stabbed Rolfe's shoulder with a pair of scissors, prompting Rolfe to shoot him without warning - a move that Rolfe's lawyers said was in self-defence. Prosecutors agreed.
Seconds later, Rolfe fired two more shots at Walker. Prosecutors argued these were not necessary, while the defence said they were because Rolfe feared for his colleague's safety.
In her findings, Judge Armitage found that Rolfe made a "series of flawed decisions" that led to "officer-induced jeopardy" - a situation where police "needlessly put themselves in danger... creating a situation that justifies the use of deadly force".
She also said Rolfe - a former soldier - found combat situations "exhilarating" and had an "attraction to adrenalin policing". He had also ignored an arrest plan for Walker created by a female officer because he "thought he knew better", Judge Armitage said.
After Walker was shot, officers dragged him out of the house before taking him to the police station, where he was given first aid. He later died.
"Dragging is a disrespectful act and it should not have happened," Judge Armitage said.
She made 32 recommendations, including developing "mutual respect agreements" to limit when police carry guns in the Yuendumu community, and for police's anti-racism strategy to be strengthened, targeted and made public, and for compliance with its measures be publicly reported.
As she finished her one-hour speech, Judge Armitage thanked those who took part in the inquest and to Walker's family.
"I am sorry for your profound loss," she said.
Walker's cousin Samara Fernandez-Brown said the report was "overwhelming" and the family would assess the recommendations, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
In a statement, NT Police said the inquest had been a "long and painful journey for all involved".
"This has been a hard road, and we are determined to ensure that what has been learned is not lost," said acting commissioner Martin Dole.
A coroner's inquest into Walker's death was launched in 2022. Under NT law, all deaths in custody must be investigated. The findings are not legally binding.
There has been a wave of anti-government protests over the past year
Kenya's security forces have blocked all major roads leading into central Nairobi, ahead of planned nationwide protests.
Much of the city centre is deserted, with businesses shut and a heavy security presence on the streets. Some schools have advised students to stay at home.
Hundreds of early-morning commuters and overnight travellers were stranded at checkpoints, some located more than 10km (six miles) from the city centre, with only a few vehicles allowed through.
Within the city, roads leading to key government sites - including the president's official residence, State House, and the Kenyan parliament - are barricaded with razor wire.
In a statement issued on Sunday evening, the police said it was their constitutional duty to protect lives and property while maintaining public order.
Monday's protests, dubbed Saba Saba (Swahili for 7 July), commemorate the 1990s struggle for multiparty democracy in Kenya.
These demonstrations have been organised primarily by young people, demanding good governance, greater accountability, and justice for victims of police brutality. They are the latest in a wave of anti-government protests that began last year.
On 25 June, at least 19 people were killed and thousands of businesses looted and destroyed in a day of nationwide protests that were being held in honour of those killed in last year's anti-tax protests.
Recent demonstrations have turned violent, with reports of infiltration by "goons", who are accused of looting and attacking protesters. Civil society groups allege collusion between these groups and the police - accusations the police have strongly denied.
On Sunday, an armed gang attacked the headquarters of a human rights NGO in Nairobi. The Kenya Human Rights Commission had been hosting a press conference organised by women calling for an end to state violence ahead of Monday's protests.
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the original Saba Saba protests - a key moment that helped usher in multiparty democracy in Kenya after years of one-party rule.
The response by the then government under President Daniel arap Moi was brutal. Many protesters - including veteran politician Raila Odinga, who is now working with the government, were arrested and tortured, while at least 20 people were reportedly killed.
Since then, Saba Saba has come to symbolise civic resistance and the fight for democratic freedom in Kenya.
Dunham's move to London in 2021 inspired her new rom-com
Lena Dunham is almost synonymous with New York City. The US actress, writer and director rose to fame with her award-winning semi-autobiographical series Girls, which followed four 20-something women as they navigated love, life and friendship in the Big Apple.
But her latest project - a Netflix rom-com loosely based on her life over the last few years - is set on the other side of the Atlantic.
Too Much follows Jessica (Megan Stalter), who moves from New York to London after breaking up with her boyfriend, and falls in love with punk musician Felix (Will Sharpe).
Just as Dunham did when she moved to London in 2021, Jessica quickly learns the important things about the UK: everybody loves Paddington, the Jaffa Cake debate is highly contentious (it's definitely a biscuit) and a "housing estate" isn't the sprawling gardens of a lavish manor house.
Dunham tells the BBC that while Too Much has "superficial similarities" to her life and is "about 5% autobiographical", she didn't see herself ever playing the show's protagonist in the way she did in Girls.
"I didn't consider Jessica to be me - she's inspired by my life but is her own character and was written with Megan in mind," she says.
Megan Stalter says Girls "was all about sex and Too Much is about falling in love", which is a similar to how Dunham sees the show.
Netflix
Dunham says there are some autobiographical elements to Too Much
There was also another reason she chose to step away from the spotlight. While filming Girls, in her 20s, Dunham's body was heavily scrutinised and last year, she told the New Yorker she "was not up for having my body dissected again".
She explains that body shaming was part of the reason she stepped further behind the camera. "Just being perceived was overwhelming," she says.
Dunham has spent the past few years focusing on writing projects that don't centre her as an actor.
She believes society has made some strides towards being more body positive, but says the culture we live in is still "so deeply fatphobic, misogynistic, racist and ageist and that informs our dynamic with our body".
The 39-year-old has been vocal about challenges she's faced with her health, particularly her endometriosis, which led her to have a hysterectomy aged 31.
Asked how her relationship with her body has changed since then, she says she's developed a new love for how she looks.
"I've been able to have a relationship with my body that exists outside of the cultural pressures and I feel lucky for that."
Getty Images
Girls ran for six series between 2012 and 2017
As well as reflecting on how her self image has changed, Dunham also says she's learned a lot since her 20s.
Having been in the spotlight for more than decade, the actress has had her fair share of controversies.
In 2017, she defended Girls writer Murray Miller when he was accused of sexual assault. Dunham later apologised, saying it was "absolutely the wrong time" to share her perspective. Miller vehemently denied the claims and was not charged.
She also apologised for a "distasteful joke" she had made on a podcast saying she wished she'd experienced a termination when discussing the US abortion.
"I thought, back then, it was important to just keep going and be tough no matter what happened," she reflects.
"I was so focused on work and not letting any of the noise in but I wish I had allowed myself to take more time and space. We all have to acknowledge our own complexities and sensitivities but it's hard to wrap your head around that when you're in your 20s."
'I've felt like I'm too much'
Dunham's new 10-episode series stars Hacks actor Megan Stalter and Will Sharpe, best known for playing Ethan Spiller in The White Lotus and films such as A Real Pain.
Sharpe, 38, says he relates to the challenges his character faces, as "everyone carries baggage from their previous relationship" and feels vulnerable when they enter a new one.
Stalter relates to her character too. The 34-year-old says she often "felt like she was too much" in her 20s but with time, has come to be proud of her who she is.
Netflix
Megan Stalter and Will Sharpe say they both see similarities between themselves and their characters in Too Much
Written with Dunham's husband, musician Luis Felber, Too Much focuses on the evolution of one romantic relationship.
It's refreshing in its realness - from serious conversations between Jessica and Felix to the fact Jessica's media salary stretches to a housing estate in east London rather than a Bridget Jones-esque flat in Borough Market.
I ask Dunham if she has any dating tips for women in their 20s, given she's been through the rollercoaster of trying to find a life partner.
She says the concept of dating has changed over the years, and back in the late noughties, it was "considered a last resort or a strange thing to meet someone online".
Looking back, Dunham wishes she would have allowed herself to understand what she really wanted rather than just seeing the cultural expectations that were placed on her.
"If I was letting myself understand my own desire, my 20s would have looked really different romantically."
Watch: Australia’s mushroom murder case... in under two minutes
For two years, the mystery of exactly what happened at Erin Patterson's dining table has gripped the world.
Five people sat down to eat lunch at her home in rural Australia on 29 July 2023. Within a week, three would be dead, a fourth would be fighting for his life, and the fifth would be under investigation for intentionally poisoning her guests with wild mushrooms.
After a much-watched trial in the tiny town of Morwell, Erin has now been found guilty of murdering three relatives and attempting to kill another.
Her eyes on the jury throughout, she remained silent and composed as they delivered verdicts which could see her spend the rest of her life in prison.
The self-described mushroom lover and amateur forager had told the court it was all a tragic accident.
But over nine weeks, the jury heard evidence suggesting she had hunted down death cap mushrooms sighted in nearby towns and lured her victims to the fatal meal under the false pretence that she had cancer - before trying to conceal her crimes by lying to police and disposing of evidence.
The orange plate
Gail and Don Patterson had turned up on Erin's doorstep just after midday on that fateful Saturday, an orange cake in hand. With them were the Wilkinsons: Heather, Gail's sister, and her husband Ian, who weeks after the meal would emerge from a coma to find he was the only guest to have survived.
Noticeably absent was Erin's estranged husband Simon Patterson. He'd pulled out the day before, saying he felt "uncomfortable" attending amid tension between the former couple.
EPA
Erin Patterson's house in Leongatha became a crime scene in July 2023
Erin had spent the morning slaving over a recipe from one of the nation's favourite cooks, tweaking it to make individual serves of beef Wellington: expensive cuts of steak slathered with a mushroom paste, then encased in pastry.
For the jury, Ian recounted watching the parcels go onto four grey plates – and an orange one for Erin – with mashed potatoes, green beans and gravy heaped on the side.
A sixth serve, allegedly prepared for Simon in case he changed his mind and came over, went into the fridge. Erin was originally accused of attempting to murder him too – on several occasions – but those charges were dropped on the eve of the trial and the allegations were not put to the jury.
The group said grace and then dug in, exchanging "banter" about how much they were eating.
"There was talk about husbands helping their wives out," Ian said.
Stuffed, they nibbled on dessert before Erin stunned her guests with a declaration that she had cancer, the trial heard.
Even the defence concedes that was not true. But on that day, the two elderly couples gave Erin advice on how to tell her kids, before ending the meal the way it had begun – with a prayer.
Ian told the court he didn't know the host well, but "things were friendly".
"She just seemed like a normal person to me," he said.
By that night, all of the guests were very ill, and the next day the four went to hospital with severe symptoms. Donald - who had eaten his portion of lunch and about half his wife's - told a doctor he had vomited 30 times in the space of a few hours.
Erin Patterson separated from her husband Simon in 2015
Suspicion soon began to trickle in.
The trial heard several of those asked to the lunch had been surprised by the invitation. Simon said it was rare for his estranged wife to host such an event, and Ian said he and his late wife had never even been to Erin's house before.
In hindsight, one of the guests apparently wondered aloud why Erin had served herself on a different type of plate to the rest of the family.
"I've puzzled about it since lunch," Heather said, according to a witness. "Is Erin short of crockery?"
Later, at hospital in Leongatha, Erin's ailing guests asked if their host was sick too. They'd all eaten the same meal, hadn't they?
Detectives would pose similar questions days later, in a police station interview room with Erin.
"We're trying to understand what has made them so ill," the detectives were heard saying, in a tape played to the court. "Conversely, we're trying to understand why you're not that ill."
An orange cake
Detailing the lunch publicly for the first time, from the witness stand, Erin Patterson offered an explanation.
She told the court that after waving off her relatives she had cleaned up the kitchen, before rewarding herself with a slice of the orange cake Gail had brought.
"[I ate] another piece of cake, and then another piece," she said. Before she knew it, the rest of the cake was gone and she felt overfull.
"So I went to the toilet and brought it back up again," Erin told the trial. "After I'd done that, I felt better."
She outlined for the jury a secret struggle with bulimia, saying she had been regularly binge-eating and purging since her teens - something her defence team suggested accounted for her lack of symptoms.
Paul Tyquin
Erin Patterson told the court she loved her in-laws and never meant to hurt her relatives
Erin had taken herself to hospital two days after the lunch, reporting feeling ill. But she initially rebuffed the urgent pleas of staff who wanted her and her children – who she claimed had eaten leftovers – to be immediately admitted for treatment.
One "surprised" doctor, who had seen the other sick lunch guests, was so concerned for their welfare that he called police to ask for help.
But when medics finally got Erin in for checks, neither she nor her children demonstrated similar symptoms to the others who'd eaten at the house, and tests showed no traces of death cap mushroom poisoning.
After a precautionary 24 hours, Erin was sent on her way.
Red flags
Her victims, though, continued to suffer in hospital. And as their relentless diarrhoea and vomiting was escalating to organ failure, Erin was covering her tracks, prosecutors alleged.
The day after she was discharged from hospital, CCTV captured Erin travelling to a local dump and disposing of a food dehydrator later found to contain traces of poisonous mushrooms.
She was also using three phones around the time of the lunch, two of which disappeared shortly afterwards. The one she did hand over to police had been repeatedly wiped – including while detectives were searching her house.
For investigators, the red flags began mounting quickly.
Questions about the source of the mushrooms elicited odd answers. Patterson claimed some of them had been bought dried from an Asian grocery in Melbourne, but she couldn't remember which suburb. When asked about the brand, or for transaction records, she said they were in plain packaging and she must've paid cash.
The fatal lunch was hosted at Erin Patterson's home in Leongatha in July 2023
Meanwhile detectives found out death cap mushrooms had been spotted in two nearby towns in the weeks before the meal, with concerned locals posting pictures and locations to online plant database iNaturalist. Erin's internet history showed she'd used the website to view death cap mushroom sightings at least once before. Her mobile phone location data appeared to show her travelling to both areas – and purchasing the infamous food dehydrator on her way home from one of those trips.
But Erin told police she'd never owned such an appliance, despite an instruction manual in her kitchen drawer and posts in a true crime Facebook group where she boasted about using it.
"I've been hiding powdered mushrooms in everything. Mixed into chocolate brownies yesterday, the kids had no idea," she wrote in one.
When digital forensics experts managed to recover some of the material on her devices, they found photos showing what looked like death cap mushrooms being weighed on a set of kitchen scales.
During the trial, Erin said she realised in the days after the lunch that the beef Wellington may have accidentally included dried mushrooms that she had foraged and mistakenly put in a container with store-bought ones. But she was too "scared" to tell a soul.
"It was this stupid knee-jerk reaction to dig deeper and keep lying," Erin told the court.
No clear motive
What baffled police, though, was the question of motive.
Simon told the trial he and Erin had initially remained chatty and amicable after their split in 2015. That changed in 2022, he said, when the couple started having disagreements over finances, child support, schools and properties.
He said there was no inkling of ill will towards his family, though.
EPA
Simon Patterson gave several days of evidence in court
"She especially got on with dad. They shared a love of knowledge and learning."
With his voice faltering, Simon added: "I think she loved his gentle nature."
But Erin herself told the court she was feeling increasingly isolated from the Patterson family – and there was evidence presented which indicated she had grown frustrated with them.
"You had two faces," the prosecutor Nanette Rogers said, after making Erin read aloud expletive-laden Facebook messages in which she had called Simon a "deadbeat" and his parents "a lost cause".
The prosecution opted not to present a specific motive, however, saying the jury may still be wondering what drove Erin to kill long after the trial wrapped.
EPA
Prosecutor Nanette Rogers and defence counsel Colin Mandy are two of the state's top barristers
The lack of a clear motive was key to Erin's defence: why would she want to kill her family, people she said she loved like her own parents?
"My parents are both gone. My grandparents are all gone. They're the only family that I've got… I love them a lot," she told police in her interrogation.
Everything else could be explained away, Erin's barrister argued.
The messages critical of her in-laws were just harmless venting, they said; the cancer claim a cover for weight-loss surgery she was planning to have but was too embarrassed to disclose.
Cell phone tracking data isn't very precise, so there's no real evidence she actually visited the towns where death cap mushrooms were sighted, they argued.
They also suggested that Erin was sick after the meal, just not as sick as the others because she'd thrown it all up. She strongly disliked hospitals, which was why she had discharged herself against medical advice.
And her lies and attempts to dispose of evidence were the actions of a woman worried she'd be blamed for the accidental deaths of her guests.
"She's not on trial for lying," Colin Mandy said. "This is not a court of moral judgment."
He accused the prosecution of trying to force a jigsaw puzzle of evidence together, "stretching interpretations, ignoring alternative explanations because they don't align perfectly with the narrative".
But the prosecution argued Erin had told so many lies it was hard to keep track of them.
"Perhaps the starkest," Dr Rogers said, were her attempts to explain the cancer fib. To prove that she actually had plans to undergo gastric-band surgery, Erin claimed to have booked an appointment at a Melbourne clinic – one that did not offer the treatment.
"She has told lies upon lies because she knew the truth would implicate her," Dr Rogers said. "When she knew her lies had been uncovered, she came up with a carefully constructed narrative to fit with the evidence – almost."
Dr Rogers said the jury should have "no difficulty" in rejecting the argument "this was all a horrible foraging accident".
Ultimately, after a week of deliberations, the jury did just that.
She will return to court for a sentencing hearing at a later date.