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Fit-again wing Robert Baloucoune returns to the Ireland line-up for Saturday’s much-anticipated Nations Championship game against New Zealand in Auckland.

Baloucoune, who won the Six Nations Rising Player award after starring in Ireland’s Triple Crown campaign earlier this year, missed the wins over Australia and Japan with a hamstring issue.

Head coach Andy Farrell recalls a host of key players after fielding a heavily rotated in last week’s 36-20 victory over Japan, with the return of captain Dan Sheehan, prop Tadhg Furlong and fly-half Sam Prendergast among nine changes.

Tom O’Toole, Tadhg Beirne, James Ryan, Jack Conan, Stuart McCloskey and Jimmy O’Brien are the six players retained in the line-up.

Having beaten the Wallabies and Brave Blossoms, Ireland aim to round out the southern hemisphere leg of their Nations Championship campaign with a statement win at Eden Park (08:10 BST).

The All Blacks, who beat France and Italy in their first two games, have not lost at the Auckland venue since 1994, a run of 52 Tests.

July 13 (UPI) — Scientists have discovered erythrulose, a type of sugar also found in raspberries, in a gas cloud near the center of the Milky Way, the galaxy that also includes our solar system.

This is the first time that researchers have discovered this sugar outside our solar system, although they have found other sugars, including ribose and glucose, in meteorites and asteroids. The study was published Monday in the journal Nature Astronomy.

Along with water and carbon, sugars are a key ingredient in life as we know it. They help to provide energy and serve other important purposes, researchers said.

“We were able to achieve this detection thanks to the combination of exceptionally sensitive observations, extensive frequency coverage and highly accurate laboratory spectroscopic data,” said Dr. Izaskun Jiménez-Serra, study co-author and staff researcher at the Spanish National Research Council. “In addition, our astronomical target is one of the richest chemical inventories in the galaxy, which enhances the probabilities of detection.”

Jiménez-Serra said erythrulose is “particularly relevant for the field of origins of life.”

Erythrulose is made up of four carbon atoms. It was confirmed by use of the Yebes 40-meter telescope and IRAM 30-meter telescopes in Spain, the study said.

The discovery is notable in part because it shows researchers that erythrulose could be found in the interstellar medium before finding its way into rocky planets such as Earth when they first formed, rather than later developing on the young planet. Lab experiments had shown that not enough of the sugar could have formed on pre-life Earth.

“The findings suggest that erythrulose can be made from simpler molecules on dust grains in space, and may then become part of more complex chemical systems,” researchers said.

Erythrulose is important because it changes the makeup of threose, another sugar, which in turn may be part of the origin of the nucleic acids that became RNA and DNA.

Spain-France clash is filled with superstars like Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Lamine Yamal, among others.

European giants France and Spain will compete for a place in the World Cup final on Tuesday, as the first semifinal kicks off in Dallas.

Both sides have some star names among their ranks, with the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Michael Olise and Lamine Yamal set to play a key role in securing their country’s place in Sunday’s final.

Here’s a closer look at some of the key players who will decide Tuesday’s first semifinal.

Kylian Mbappe

World Cup 2026 statistics:

• Goals: 8
• Assists: 3
• Minutes played: 563

The French captain has been in remarkable form at this World Cup, breaking numerous records along the way.

After bagging four goals in the group stages, Mbappe has now scored in every knockout round so far, and he has also provided a number of assists.

The Real Madrid forward is in the form of his life and is the biggest threat in a star-studded Les Bleus XI.

After scoring a hat-trick in a World Cup final loss to Argentina in Qatar, Mbappe will be determined to go one step further this year.

Michael Olise

World Cup 2026 statistics:

• Goals: 0
• Assists: 5
• Minutes played: 488

Michael Olise may not have got himself on the scoresheet at this World Cup so far, but he is the player that has provided the most assists.

He has set up five goals for France, and his partnership with Mbappe has been a highlight of the tournament.

The Bayern Munich midfielder has the technical ability to unlock defences, and he will be a key attacking threat in the semifinal with Spain.

Ousmane Dembele

World Cup 2026 statistics:

• Goals: 5
• Assists: 2
• Minutes played: 492

The dynamic Paris-Saint Germain (PSG) forward came into this tournament looking for his first-ever World Cup goal. He now has five of them.

He scored a first-half hat-trick in a group game with Norway and also bagged the second in France’s 2-0 win over Morocco in the quarterfinals.

Les Bleus have been having their own Golden Boot competition, with Dembele pushing Mbappe all the way.

The pair have now scored 13 goals between them at this World Cup, a feat that has not been achieved by two players from the same country since Brazil’s Ronaldo and Rivaldo in 2002.

Lamine Yamal

World Cup 2026 statistics:

• Goals: 1
• Assists: 0
• Minutes played: 405

At a tournament where stars like Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Harry Kane have been prolific, 18-year-old Lamine Yamal has just one goal to date, in a routine 4-0 group drubbing of Saudi Arabia.

Despite this, the Barcelona teenage sensation remains a key attacking threat for La Roja and scored against France in the semifinals of Euro 2024.

He was awarded player of the match for his performance in Spain’s quarterfinal win over Belgium, and he has also recorded the most successful dribbles at the tournament so far.

“I know I can contribute even if I don’t score. I know my movements draw in many opponents, so I do everything I can to help the team,” Yamal said after Spain’s victory over Belgium.

Mikel Oyarzabal

World Cup 2026 statistics:

• Goals: 4
• Assists: 1
• Minutes played: 519

The Real Sociedad forward is Spain’s top scorer at this World Cup, and he will be La Roja’s biggest hope for goals in Tuesday’s semifinal.

He scored six goals in six games during World Cup qualification and has followed that up with four goals at the tournament proper.

Oyarzabal also has experience of scoring crucial goals at the business end of tournaments. He bagged an 86th-minute winner against England in the Euro 2024 final, proving he can perform under pressure on the biggest stage.

La Roja will hope for more of the same this week.

Mikel Merino

World Cup 2026 statistics:

• Goals: 2
• Assists: 0
• Minutes played: 180

If Spain need a goal against France in the closing stages of the semifinal, then Luis de la Fuente will be turning to one man on his bench.

Mikel Merino has twice played the role of super-sub at this World Cup, coming off the bench to score late winners against Portugal and Belgium.

The Arsenal midfielder is unlikely to start against Les Bleus on Tuesday, but he remains a key part of Spain’s squad and will pose a real threat against tired legs towards the end of the match.

It was never actually in doubt. Dearica Hamby was going to stay a member of the Sparks. That was just how she worked.

Even when Nneka Ogwumike came into the fold and the frontcourt became crowded, Hamby didn’t doubt her decision to return to the organization that traded for her four years ago.

Loyalty mattered more than anything else.

“That’s who I am,” she said. “I don’t run away from things. I wanted to stay here and help L.A. get back to where it was and is capable of being.”

In a loaded frontcourt, the 32-year-old Hamby has still found ways to shine. Hamby has led the Sparks in scoring four times and led or tied for rebounding 16 times this season after signing a three-year, $3.5-million contract.

She ranks in the top 20 in the league in rebounds and field-goal percentage (plus 25th in scoring) and is eighth in offensive rebounds in establishing herself as an essential piece to the Sparks’ “win now” attempt.

“I think it’s the challenge, because we are so good and we have so much talent,” said Hamby, who is averaging 14.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists while shooting 52.8% from the field. “You’re forced to produce, but it’s also a blessing. I know it’s probably hard for coach to manage the three’s playing time and stuff like that, but it’s a beautiful problem.”

Hamby was in the headlines when the Aces traded her after she was pregnant. In September of that year, she filed a federal discrimination complaint against the team and league, claiming she was traded because she was pregnant. The two sides resolved matters before trial.

The new CBA this year created a new rule that requires a pregnant player’s consent to be traded.

“I feel like she’s such an anomaly,” said forward Rae Burrell. “I remember when she had her son, and it was crazy because everybody was saying she was coming back so early, I thought that was insane, but now being her teammate, I see it, she’s just kind of a freak of nature, like she’s so athletic, she can do all types of things on the court that you think looks unorthodox, but she makes it happen, but also just love being her teammate. She’s just good people.”

Since that trade, she has been a regular in the Sparks’ starting lineup while averaging double-digit scoring and around eight rebounds per game. She’s one of the most efficient scorers in the league, too.

But Hamby’s games have been all over the board. Against the Aces, she missed all seven of her shots. Against Dallas and Indiana, she made six of eight shots. She’s had eight games with a shooting percentage above 60% and four games under 40%.

Sparks forward Dearica Hamby, left, tries to steal the ball from Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner during a game in Phoenix.

(Christian Petersen / Getty Images)

Having the three frontcourt players has been an adjustment for coach Lynne Roberts to find how to implement them all in the offense.

“I’m trying to implement the new offense, we’re plugging pieces into play, and things that I may have been able to do last year as freely I’m not as able to do this year,” Hamby said. “So just adjusting for sure, but I think that’s across the board for everybody.”

Before the season, Roberts said that Cameron Brink would come off the bench and Hamby would start. Brink, the only natural center on the team, averages just 17.5 minutes per game primarily because of her 3.7 fouls.

“She’s my vet,” Brink said of Hamby. “I think she’s just such a grounding force for us, and she’s someone that does everything, so I just really feel like I learn from her every day, and I’m just very thankful to be in her presence.”

Hamby averages 3.2 fouls per game and has expressed frustration about the new officiating norms this season, but has avoided true foul trouble. She and Ogwumike work as two fours instead of a team with a traditional five.

“She has a lot of energy,” Ogwumike said. “I think she does a really good job of just having a high motor and going out there and kind of like doing the dirty work. I feel like it’s beneficial to have a loaded frontcourt, to be able to have so many different types of players and a depth where anytime one of us is in, there’s no letdown.”

The Sparks have been the worst defensive team in the league this season and struggled to score when point guard Kelsey Plum was out of the lineup with an ankle injury. Ogwumike might be the other veteran leader, but Hamby has stayed with this Sparks team the past two seasons while Ogwumike was in Seattle.

Now her role has changed, even with that loyalty. She’s playing just over a minute less and they’re asking for better defense and efficiency.

Hamby chose to come back. Now she’s choosing to help build the Sparks up.

“I know my usage is a lot lower,” Hamby said. “A goal of mine the last two seasons was to have those numbers, so to have the same numbers just at a more efficient rate, and so I mean offensively, but with like two fewer shots a game, that’s pretty impressive.”

The architect of modern Qatar, former Emir ⁠Sheikh Hamad bin ⁠Khalifa Al Thani, has died at the age of 74.

Fondly known as Father Emir, ⁠Sheikh Hamad, who ruled Qatar from 1995 to 2013, leaves behind a legacy that includes sweeping economic, social and cultural reforms in Qatar, raising the Gulf country’s profile on the regional and global stage.

During his 18-year rule, Qatar’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew more than 24-fold as the small nation of nearly 2.5 million people became one of the world’s largest exporters of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Sheikh Hamad’s tenure also saw the adoption of Qatar’s permanent constitution and the launch of the Qatar National Vision 2030, a long-term strategy aimed at transforming the country into a knowledge-based economy and achieving sustainable development.

Here is a look at some key moments in the former Qatari emir’s life:

Path to leadership

Born in January 1952 in Doha, Sheikh Hamad was raised and received his early education in the city.

In 1971, he graduated from the British Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, United Kingdom, and joined the Qatar armed forces, where he reached the rank of major-general. He was credited with playing a pivotal role in developing the armed forces in terms of ordnance, according to a statement by the Amiri Diwan.

On May 31, 1977, Sheikh Hamad was appointed the heir apparent and minister of defence. On May 10, 1989, he was appointed the chairman of the Supreme Council for Planning, where he was tasked with developing Qatar’s social and economic policies.

After a successful career in the military and senior government positions, Sheikh Hamad assumed leadership of Qatar on June 27, 1995. He remained the ruler of Qatar until June 25, 2013, when he transferred power to his son, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

Economic transformation

Under Sheikh Hamad’s leadership, Qatar saw rapid economic growth driven by the expansion of its energy sector.

He viewed the country’s untapped North Field, which is the largest nonassociated natural gasfield in the world, as the cornerstone of Qatar’s future economic dominance, and invested heavily in the LNG sector. In 1996, the country began exporting LNG, with the first shipment sent to Japan.

According to the Amiri Diwan, in 2006, Qatar became the largest LNG exporter in the world, and in 2010, its LNG production capacity reached 77 million tonnes per annum. Qatar’s LNG exports currently represent 20 percent of the global market, it said.

Besides the energy sector, Sheikh Hamad also formulated comprehensive reconstruction plans which helped Qatar’s development in the education, healthcare, sports, culture and media sectors.

In October 2001, he established the Supreme Council for Economic Affairs and Investment to oversee the economy, energy and investment affairs and diversify local and foreign investments and sources of income.

Press freedom and launch of Al Jazeera

A few months after taking office as the emir of Qatar, in October 1995, Sheikh Hamad abolished the censorship of the local press, seeking to improve the country’s press freedom status.

In 1996, he launched the Al Jazeera Media Network, which resulted in “a new dawn” in the Arab and international media world, according to the Amiri Diwan.

Since its launch, Al Jazeera has become one of the world’s most prominent media outlets covering global news, geopolitics and underreported topics and giving a voice to minority communities through its stories.

In August 1995, Sheikh Hamad founded Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, which helped expand the country’s influence in media, education, and innovation.

Constitution and national vision

Sheikh Hamad played a key role in introducing democratic measures in the country after he assumed power. In March 1999, he introduced municipal elections, in which women were allowed to vote and stand as candidates.

On June 8, 2004, Sheikh Hamad led Qatar to adopt its first permanent constitution.

According to the Amiri Diwan, the permanent constitution sets out the country’s “preamble, the foundations of democratic rule” and lays out the “basic pillar” for society to guarantee the rights and freedoms of Qatar’s citizens.

In 2004, Sheikh Hamad launched “Qatar National Vision 2030” to guide the country’s long-term development and modernisation and help it transform into a knowledge-based economy.

Global profile

Qatar’s political influence today stretches across North Africa, the Middle East and Asia, with the country using its diplomacy to mediate several conflicts.

Sheikh Hamad drove the country’s mediation efforts in conflicts including the Hanish Islands dispute between Eritrea and Yemen in 1995, the Yemen war between 2007 and 2010, the Lebanese political crisis in 2008 and the Darfur peace process between 2010 and 2011, among others.

In October 2012, he became the first Arab leader to visit Gaza, since the imposition of a widespread international boycott of the Palestinian territory, which was spurred after Hamas began its rule in 2006.

Sheikh Hamad arrived with 90 tonnes of aid and pledged $400m to invest in housing and infrastructure, as he embraced the Hamas leadership of Gaza with an official visit, breaking the isolation of the Palestinian movement, much to the dismay of Israel, its allies, as well as the Western-backed Palestinian leaders in the occupied West Bank.

Besides diplomacy, the late former leader also focused on improving Qatar’s international status by projecting the country as a suitable venue for global sports and entertainment events.

In 2022, Qatar hosted the men’s FIFA World Cup, the world’s most-watched football tournament. Sheikh Hamad received rapturous applause from fans when he attended the tournament’s opening match.

July 10 (UPI) — The Trump administration on Friday rescinded a key provision of the Endangered Species Act that protected habitat crucial to imperiled wildlife.

For 50 years, the ESA definition of “harm” included not only specific species, but also their habitat from modification or degradation.

But on Friday, the administration said it was reversing the rule to focus on “actions that directly injure or kill listed wildlife.”

“For years, federal agencies abused the ESA to obstruct lawful land use and burden American families and businesses,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement.

“That approach turned routine activity into a regulatory trap, drove up costs that impacted people’s lives, and expanded federal authority beyond what Congress intended,” Burgum said. “This action restores common sense, respects private property, provides much-needed certainty for landowners and follows the statute Congress actually passed.”

Enacted in 1973, the ESA has played a vital role in maintaining biodiversity.

Conservation experts say the act was key in saving many species from extinction, including the whooping crane, bald eagle and gray wolf.

Environmental advocates have vowed to sue over the rule change.

“For the first time ever, a presidential administration now claims that species protected by the Endangered Species Act shouldn’t be safe from habitat modification that destroys where they live, raise their young, or search for food,” Earthjustice attorney Kristen Boyles said in a statement.

“Let’s be clear: there is no support for the Trump administration’s rule — no scientific support, no legal support, no public support,” Boyles added. “We will see the Trump administration in court.”

Travellers have reacted with anger after the change was made to services on flights

TUI has emailed passengers telling them of an ‘important change’ to holidays already booked. Travellers have reacted with anger after the change was made to services on the flight – with alcoholic drinks off the menu.

In messages posted on Facebook pages from holiday travel companies, it emerged TUI is making the change from November 1. Anyone travelling long-haul with the company has been told that complimentary drinks will no longer be service in economy class.

Instead travellers will receive one complimentary beer or wine with the main meal. All other drinks will now have to be paid for – however, passengers travelling in Premium will continue to receive complimentary alcoholic drinks as part of their experience.

Anyone already booked is being offered a small amount of money back: “If you’ve already booked and paid for a long-haul holiday departing after 1st November, TUI has announced a £12.50 per person, each-way goodwill refund for affected customers.” Many have been sent an email with the subject in caps saying ‘IMPORTANT NEWS REGARDING A CHANGE TO YOUR HOLIDAY’.

The travel operator said: “Everyone will have their own opinion, but for some travellers this could take away a little of that ‘holiday starts on the plane’ feeling.”

TUI traveller Sharon said: “It would be interesting to see if this is reflected in the price.” Another user replied: “Sadly I think we know the answer to that!”

Jamie thought it was a good thing: “Probably a good thing with the number of alcohol related incidents onboard these long-haul holiday flights. “ However, Nigel was taking his trade elsewhere: “Plenty saying book with another airline, good luck with that, particularly if you do not have easy access to London airports.” One user said: “That is a tiny amount of refund.”

Some have not had nice experiences. Charlotte said: “Last time we did long haul paid premium it wasn’t loads of drinks it was moderated and disappointing for the amount of money we spent and rudeness of staff.” A user added: “It would make me consider another airline first. But I’ve had issues with TUI when we were supposed to go to Jamaica last year so already not in my good books. If the £12.50 was ongoing, that’s actually reasonable, but to have to pay for drinks moving forward sucks a bit.”

Graeme added: “This is a total joke.” Olive said: ”TUI can ram that nonsense. The whole idea of long haul is getting smashed.”

June added: “The drinks were never ‘free’…they were complimentary. There’s a difference. The complimentary drinks were meant to be limited, but people just take the proverbial’ **** Not surprised it’s been pulled.”

TUI responded to one user: “Thank you for your comment. We’re sorry to hear of your disappointment with the changes to our long-haul service. This change helps us focus on the things that matter most, like keeping fares competitive, maintaining great value overall, and giving customers more flexibility in how they spend onboard.

“Soft drinks will remain free, customers will still get a complimentary beer or wine with their main meal, and there’ll be a wider range of alcoholic drinks available to buy, so people can choose exactly what they want during their flight. Thanks!”

Last month, it emerged that TUI Airways was ranked among the worst airlines for UK flight punctuality, with one route having an average delay of more than three-quarters of an hour.

The leisure carrier’s departures from UK airports were an average of 20 minutes and 24 seconds behind schedule in 2025, according to analysis of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) data.

The least punctual of its routes with at least 100 flights was from Birmingham to the Greek island of Zante, which had an average delay of 46 minutes.

Rory Boland, editor of consumer magazine Which? Travel, said it was “unacceptable” that airline passengers “continue to face unreliable service” amid fare rises. He went on: “Airlines must do more to support travellers during delays, including clearly communicating their rights and eligibility for compensation.

“It’s worth putting in a claim with your airline if you think it’s responsible – and escalating the complaint if it refuses to pay.” TUI Airways is owned by TUI Group, which also operates the UK’s second-largest package holiday company.

Many of its holiday customers use the airline, which serves more than 20 UK airports.

The punctuality analysis took into account all scheduled and chartered departures from UK airports by the 34 airlines which operated more than 2,500 of these flights last year. Cancelled flights were not included.

Aage Dunhaupt, TUI Group’s director of communications, said: “We fully understand that for holidaymakers, every minute counts. Minimising delays remains a top priority, and our teams work continuously to improve operational performance across our network.”

Mr Dunhaupt said the airline makes “a conscious choice” to operate flights “wherever possible, even if they are delayed, rather than cancelling them”, as this ensures passengers reach their destination “rather than facing the risk of extended disruption”.

He added: “If we were to follow broader industry practices of cancelling flights more readily, our punctuality ranking would improve significantly.

“However, this would come at the expense of our customers.”

The second half of the year rests on a delicate chain of dominoes, according to a new briefing from Oxford Economics, and whether the US-Iran peace agreement holds is the factor that determines how the rest fall.

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“Its durability will determine whether the global economy gets an energy-driven disinflation tailwind or absorbs a second oil shock,” stated chief global economist Ryan Sweet in the report, calling the deal “the key domino that will determine whether other risks are amplified or dampened”.

The consultancy expects the global economy to accelerate, forecasting annualised growth of 3.1% in the second half against an estimated 1.6% in the first, powered chiefly by cheaper oil feeding through to household incomes, although Sweet puts the odds of reaching a durable deal at “a coin flip”.

If the truce holds, Oxford Economics sees Brent crude averaging in the low $70s per barrel, easing inflation and financial conditions across emerging markets and tech valuations.

If it breaks, the consequences would not stay contained to the oil market.

Early on Wednesday, the US military attacked Iran after it said Tehran struck three ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran retaliated with strikes targeting Bahrain and Kuwait. The regional crossfire raised the risk that the interim agreement to halt fighting in the war could break down. However, the exchange of fire followed a pattern of similar attacks during the deal’s shaky ceasefire, and neither country immediately signalled it would step away from the negotiating table.

Oil prices reacted to the attacks by increasing more than 3% by Wednesday morning, with international benchmark Brent trading above $76 a barrel.

“A peace deal breakdown won’t just raise oil prices, it would also increase pressure on AI supply chains in Asia, force central banks to be hawkish, tighten financial conditions, and could shift the outcome of the US midterms and Israeli elections […] the cascade runs fast,” Sweet stated.

A coinflip with a $20 spread

Not everyone shares Oxford Economics’ outlook for oil prices.

Morgan Stanley’s mid-year outlook, published in May, forecast crude climbing back to roughly $90 a barrel by the end of the year, a gap of some $20 compared with Oxford Economics’ forecast that amounts to two different bets on the same peace process.

The World Bank is also more cautious, forecasting Brent crude to average about $94 a barrel this year while warning that global GDP growth will slow to 2.5% in 2026.

Reflecting on how the recent exchange of attacks is testing the fragile truce, Sweet said, “Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is a good bellwether. The deal committed to fully restoring traffic through the chokepoint within 30 days, making mid-July the first hard deadline,” he explained.

“A sustained return to 75% or more of pre-war traffic by mid-July would increase the odds that the agreement is holding and vice versa,” Sweet concluded.

The other indicator, he says, is whether Iran formally invokes the accord’s Lebanon clause over Israeli strikes, and whether its response comes in military or rhetorical form.

Tariffs, trade and AI

Trade is another risk that could reshape the outlook.

US Section 122 tariffs are due to expire on 24 July, but Washington has already lined up replacement levies under Section 301. Oxford Economics expects the changes to push effective tariff rates higher from late July as the US seeks to maintain monthly tariff revenues of between $25 billion (€21.8bn) and $30 billion (€26.2bn).

Europe is also taking a tougher stance. The European Commission has more than 50 trade-defence investigations open against China, up from 17 a year ago, and plans to unveil a broader economic security strategy by September.

These trade tensions also feed into the AI boom that has powered financial markets this year.

Oxford Economics notes the US AI industry depends heavily on semiconductors and other hardware shipped from Northeast and Southeast Asia, the regions with the most to lose from any further disruption to commodities passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the umbrella body for central banks, warned that the AI boom increasingly rests on opaque “circular financing” between chipmakers, cloud giants and artificial intelligence labs, as well as lightly regulated private credit, where lending to the sector has quadrupled in five years.

The BIS’s Asia-Pacific chief, Zhang Tao, cautioned that the sector’s reliance on non-bank funding means an AI downturn could trigger a sharper and faster correction than a traditional banking crisis.

Sweet modelled what such a reversal could look like.

“We have created a so-called tech bust scenario where US technology stocks fall by 25% over the course of a year,” he told Euronews.

According to Sweet, such a shock would cause the US economy to “grind to a halt”, spilling over to technology exporters and investor sentiment worldwide, leaving global growth 1.1 percentage points below Oxford Economics’ baseline next year.

Central banks, ballots and the calendar

The final dominoes are policy and politics.

Oxford Economics expects the major central banks to prove more dovish than financial markets currently anticipate, though they could pivot quickly if traffic through the Strait of Hormuz falters or AI-input prices signal supply stress.

The nearest test is the Federal Reserve’s rate decision under chair Kevin Warsh later this month, coming on the heels of June’s soft jobs report.

Beyond that lie November’s US midterms and Israel’s general election, due by late October, both of which could influence the Middle East peace process. In September, German state elections could also test the coalition behind Germany’s fiscal policy, a key driver of the eurozone economy.

Oxford Economics also flags genuine upside, from stronger AI-driven productivity to an EU economy that weathered the second quarter surprisingly well.

Whether the resilience in Europe is real will show up first in Germany and in credit data, Sweet argues.

“If corporates were absorbing margin compression from the jump in energy prices without cutting investment and drawing down credit lines, that would strengthen the case that underlying momentum in the economy is better than we expected,” he told Euronews, adding that a contraction in eurozone bank lending would push the other way.

It is important to highlight that the typical Oxford Economics forecast miss is nearly a full percentage point, and the range around this assessment in particular is wider than usual.

One of Russia’s commercially flagged vessels in the Baltic has appeared armed with heavy machine guns, and it isn’t just any cargo hauler. The weapons fit is likely intended to provide close-in protection against naval drone attacks but is also evidence of increasingly bold measures taken by Moscow to ensure that military bases in its strategically important Kaliningrad exclave continue to be supported. After all, the ship in question, the Marshal Vasilevskiy, is a highly strategic one — Russia’s only floating storage and regasification vessel — that plays a key role in supporting Kaliningrad.

This comes at the same time that Russia ramps up efforts to protect its notorious ‘shadow fleet,’ used to circumvent Western sanctions on oil exports, despite efforts to interdict it.

Evidence of the armed tanker development was brought to light in an exclusive report from Holger Roonemaa, an investigative journalist working for Delfi Estonia, an Estonia-based news website.

Roonemaa secured the release of imagery from the Estonian Border Guard showing the Marshal Vasilevskiy operating in the Baltic Sea last month, with machine gun positions on either side of the deck above the bridge.

The Marshal Vasilevskiy, a 945-foot liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker of 118,000 gross tonnage, was spotted by an Estonian Border Guard surveillance aircraft as it was sailing past Estonia’s western islands toward the Russian port of Bolshoi Bor in the Gulf of Finland.

The sandbagged gun positions were armed with 12.7mm Kord heavy machine guns, a belt-fed weapon that is used by infantry, as well as being mounted on vehicles and ships.

KORD Heavy Machine Gun

The Marshal Vasilevskiy is not a part of the shadow fleet, but it has been subject to sanctions. Moreover, this appears to be the first direct evidence of Russia installing weapons on a civilian ship in the Baltic region.

The vessel is owned by the Gazprom company and regularly supplies Kaliningrad with natural gas, with four such voyages identified since last August.

Almost certainly, the guns on the Marshal Vasilevskiy are intended to help defend against Ukrainian drone attacks.

The Kord fires at a rate of 600-650 rounds per minute and has an effective range of around 2,000 yards.

Earlier this month, Ukraine used aerial drones to attack the prestigious Russian Navy base at Kronstadt, near St. Petersburg, in what appears to have been the first strike of its kind against the Baltic Fleet.

By targeting Kronstadt, Ukraine signaled the opening up of a new front in its drone war with Russia, namely against the Baltic Fleet while it is in port.

Previously, Ukraine’s naval campaign had focused overwhelmingly on the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Many successful attacks have been recorded against Black Sea Fleet vessels and facilities, forcing the general evacuation of Russian naval assets from occupied Crimea and to bases in Russia proper. Ukrainian attacks on Russian-linked shipping have also extended, to a more limited extent, into the Mediterranean.

These attacks have also involved a growing and increasingly advanced array of uncrewed surface vessels (USVs, or ‘drone boats’) as well as uncrewed underwater vessels (UUVs).

Ukraine’s proven ability to launch long-range aerial drone attacks, as seen in the video below, as well as to bring kamikaze drones closer to Russian targets, and strike them from short range, underscores the potential vulnerability of Russian tankers working the Baltic, too.

While Ukraine, as far as is known, has not launched any USV or UUV attacks in the Baltic, it would certainly be within its capabilities to do so.

At the same time, Russia has no doubt also considered the possibility of an Operation Spiderweb-type attack in the Baltic, in which short-range drones could be launched covertly, in mass, from locations much closer to their targets.

In the same way that Operation Spiderweb used commercial trucks as covert launch platforms for one-way aerial attack drones, any suitable vessel could be used in the same way by Ukraine in the Baltic, whether to launch aerial drones, USVs, or UUVs.

In this context, the Marshal Vasilevskiy would be a particularly prized tanker. It is currently Russia’s only floating storage and regasification vessel, a ship that takes on board super-cooled LNG and then converts it into gas that is then fed into pipelines, in this case, in Kaliningrad.

As well as countering potential drone attacks, putting guns on the Marshal Vasilevskiy sends a signal to NATO forces not to interfere with it. Warning shots could be fired to send a message to boarding parties or helicopters. Russia’s willingness to use warning shots was demonstrated in the English Channel earlier this month. With the Kord gun, the vessel could bring down a helicopter with ease, forcing a boarding force to kinetically attack the ship before attempting boarding.

Typically, the crew of a vessel such as the Marshal Vasilevskiy would not be trained to operate heavy machine guns. This raises the likelihood that the ship’s crew includes members of the Russian military or, more likely, the Federal Security Service (FSB), Russia’s principal security agency. It is not inconceivable that man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) could also be stowed below decks to defend against an aerial drone attack.

The development comes as Russia takes increasingly forceful measures to protect the vessels of its shadow fleet. These provide Russia with a critical lifeline, allowing oil to be sold and funds generated to continue the country’s war against Ukraine. Both China and India regularly accept such deliveries.

Over the past year, European authorities have intercepted shadow fleet tankers on several occasions, typically on the grounds of flying a false flag or for being suspected of damaging undersea cables.

There have been previous reports indicating that shadow-fleet oil tankers regularly include former mercenaries and soldiers among their crews.

Holger Roonemaa has helped establish that almost half of the “passengers” listed as going aboard the Marshal Vasilevskiy also have backgrounds in the Russian military, the National Guard, and/or the FSB.

At the same time, Russian Navy warships are increasingly used for escort, monitoring, and security missions for shadow fleet tankers as they transit the Baltic Sea carrying sanctioned Russian oil to markets prepared to bypass Western restrictions. You can read more about this here.

Returning to this vessel, the appearance of heavy machine guns on it is significant because it illustrates Russia’s militarization of civilian shipping supporting critical operations. There are many historical precedents of merchant vessels being armed during wartime, but it remains unusual to see a commercially flagged tanker openly carrying heavy machine guns in this region. In areas with piracy, it is not uncommon for security crews on vessels to be equipped with small arms, but this is a different kind of weapon, and the ship is operating in waters with no piracy risk attached.

In practical terms, a pair of Kord machine guns could be effective against small drones or boats at close range, but would offer little protection against larger, coordinated attacks, let alone modern anti-ship missiles.

With that in mind, it’s possible Russia might further boost the weapons fit of the Marshal Vasilevskiy to provide a more comprehensive defense. After all, this vessel is a critical asset, due to its unique capabilities in the Russian merchant fleet, and its special role supporting Kaliningrad. This makes it a strategic vulnerability that demands protection. If lost, it could have an asymmetric impact, threatening the ability to keep military assets in the exclave operational.

More broadly, this is evidence of Russia’s growing concern that logistics vessels, including civilian ones supporting critical infrastructure, could become targets in the Baltic region, too, as the war increasingly extends beyond traditional battlefields and further from Ukraine.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

Russian forces have claimed capture of Kostiantynivka in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region after roughly a nine-month battle. The city sits within Ukraine’s “fortress belt,” a defensive network of cities forming Donbas’s main defensive line. Ukrainian officials denied the city fell.

Taylor’s 12th album, The Life of a Showgirl, dropped in October 2025, with a flurry of lovestruck lyrics about her now fiancé.

She reminisced about date nights spent on ferris wheels, and dreamt of raising kids in a house with “a driveway with a basketball hoop”. There’s also an entire song about his, ahem, manhood.

On the promo trail, she was peppered with questions about the wedding, but gave away very little, except to tell the BBC’s Graham Norton it wouldn’t be a small affair.

Since those interviews, Team Taylor has gone quiet.

A rumoured wedding date of 13 June 2026 passed without incident. A few days later, a flurry of activity at Swift’s Rhode Island mansion had fans speculating that a bachelorette party was in full swing.

Then the New York Times reported that Swift had hired the entirety of Madison Square Gardens for a mega event just before Independence Day weekend.

According to officials with knowledge of the booking, the plans involve an intimate gathering of about 100 people on Thursday 2 July, followed by a more extravagant celebration with about 1,000 guests the next day.

TV cameras have captured trucks unloading drapes, lights, food and even a “40-inch mirror ball”.

Tabloids are speculating about wedding performers and bridesmaids. – but we’ll only know for sure, when Taylor decides it’s time.

And given that she’s recently been spotted at New York’s Electric Lady recording studios, there’s even speculation that confirmation could come in the form of a wedding song.

Watch this space.

Mercedes’ George Russell took his second win of the season with victory from pole position at the Austrian Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen recovered from a crash in the final part of qualifying to finish second at Red Bull’s home race, with championship leader Kimi Antonelli in third.

Russell’s win moves him back up to second in the drivers’ standings, 40 points behind team-mate Antonelli.

BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson answers your latest questions before this weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

I think a pole position under a yellow flag sets a dangerous precedent, because it’s clear that from now on, everyone will continue to push hard after a small slow down, or else their lap will be cancelled. I’d be curious to hear your opinion – Lorenzo

George Russell’s pole position at the Austrian Grand Prix, the foundation for his victory on Sunday, came about in controversial circumstances.

According to the rules, Russell did nothing wrong.

Marshals trackside initially waved a single yellow flag when Max Verstappen crashed at Turn Nine.

Kimi Antonelli mis-read the light board as a double yellow, and backed out of his lap – the correct response for what he thought to be the case. Under a double yellow, drivers have to “slow down and be prepared to stop”.

But under a single yellow, a driver does not have to abandon their lap. They only have to not set a fastest time in the relevant section of the track.

Russell complied with this, but the rest of his lap was fast enough to put him on pole anyway.

The concern here is less the specifics of these rules, but whether the correct flag was shown in the circumstances.

The answer to that has to be no.

Verstappen crashed at the fastest corner on the track, which is taken at close to 140mph.

Turn Nine is notoriously challenging, with its downhill entry, and an exit kerb that’s easy to over-run.

Both Verstappen and Antonelli questioned the decision to show only a single yellow at the time, when Verstappen’s car was in the barrier at this corner as other drivers were seeking to set what would be their fastest laps of the weekend.

Verstappen described it as “quite crazy”.

Antonelli said: “There was a car in the wall in a fast corner. I don’t know why it didn’t go double-yellow straight away, because it’s a super-quick corner, and if you go off at the same time, it can end up very badly. That was a bit confusing.

“For sure it’s something that needs to be reviewed, especially when it happens in a high-speed corner.

“If it’s a slow-speed [corner], single yellow can be OK but fast corners should be double yellow straight away.”

To underline the point, within 20 seconds, race control upgraded the flag to a double yellow, but everyone had completed their laps by then.

When David Jacks published a biography of Peter Asher in 2022, the veteran record producer and manager expressed surprise that anyone would have deemed his life worthy of the treatment. Four years later, he’s no less baffled to have become the subject of a new documentary, “Peter Asher: Everywhere Man,” directed by the filmmakers Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine.

“It just seemed to me,” he says, “that I wouldn’t be that fascinating.”

The movie, in theaters now, argues otherwise: A child actor alongside his two younger sisters, the bespectacled Asher became an unlikely pop star during the British invasion as half of the duo Peter & Gordon, whose debut single, “A World Without Love” — written by Paul McCartney — hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 in 1964. (McCartney offered the song to Asher while the Beatle was dating Asher’s sister Jane.) In 1968, the Beatles made Asher head of A&R at Apple Records, where he signed James Taylor; the two soon moved to Los Angeles and turned Taylor into music’s biggest heartthrob folkie.

Asher went on to shepherd Linda Ronstadt to stardom and to produce records by Diana Ross, Cher, Bonnie Raitt, Randy Newman, Neil Diamond and 10,000 Maniacs, among many others. And at 82 he’s still at it: Last year he produced Barbra Streisand’s latest duets album — they’re due to start work on a new Streisand solo LP, he says — and he’ll perform a show of his own July 19 at the Grammy Museum. Asher, who broke his leg in a recent fall, spoke about it all the other morning at his home in Malibu, where he walked into the kitchen using a cane before sitting down at a table set with pastries and several of the day’s newspapers.

What unites the jobs of musician, producer, executive, manager? What’s the through line?
Love of music and admiration for the people who do it. They’re very different jobs, and I came at them from very different perspectives. Record production was something I set out to do once I understood what a record producer did. Hire musicians much better than yourself and tell them what to do? That’s a cool job — how do I get in on that racket? Whereas I never had any ambitions to be a manager. It’s just that when James and I decided to go out on our own and try to put a career together, we didn’t know who we trusted to do it, so I kind of went, I’ll do it.

What’d you discover about the job of management?
The ingredients are common sense, not being a crook and having a great client.

Which is the hardest of those three?
The last one. I got to induct the first managers inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: Brian Epstein and Andrew Loog Oldham — the Beatles and the Stones. That’s the hard part. The only thing that would tempt me back into management would be lightning striking for a third time — to see James, to see Linda, then to see somebody comparably brilliant, which I occasionally do. But usually they have a manager already.

What’s the last new act that knocked you out?
Ed Sheeran.

Was that just because he looks like he could be your grandson?
That certainly crossed my mind.

As a producer, your records helped define the sound of rock in the ’70s.
The so-called California sound.

Then the zeitgeist shifted.
One became aware of that. Pop music got very electronic, which I loved.

Was there a place for you in that style?
I didn’t consciously try to make records in that style because I don’t think I could have — not as well as they were being made anyway.

What’s a record from the early ’80s that made you think that?
“Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).” I couldn’t do that.

Back to the ’70s: The doc is filled with pictures of James looking —
Like a movie star. With the cover of “JT,” I finally went all the way and said, “We’re doing the the glamour shot.” Then we did “Flag,” which everyone hated.

With the maritime flag. A truly perverse album cover.
I loved it. James loved it. Everyone thought we were crazy.

How crucial do you think James’ good looks were to his whole proposition?
I don’t know.

Oh, come on.
I really don’t. I mean, how would you gauge that? There’s probably girls who fell in love with him without listening to the record.

I think you just gauged it.
If he was ugly, would he be as big a star? Probably not.

(Evan Mulling / For The Times)

Same applies to Linda, right?
When I first saw Linda, it was stages of realization. Someone said to me, “You’ve got to go down and see this girl at the Bitter End.” I walk in and she’s singing so well — unspeakably good. Then she looks incredibly great — barefoot, short-shorts. Oh, my God, my heart. Then you meet her, and it turns out she’s a remarkably brilliant woman — extremely well read. You just kind of go, “All these things together — how can it be?” It’s the same thing talking about the Beatles: If you cast it like the Spice Girls, you still couldn’t have gotten four to fit together so perfectly.

Did you like the Spice Girls?
Terrific. “Tell me what you want / What you really, really want” — it’s a smash. And yet none of them are particularly good singers, which is kind of the point.

I went to an event not long ago where Paul McCartney played his new album for a small group of fans. It was fascinating to see the spell McCartney casts over people.
He’s had to get used to it — to admit to himself that he can’t meet people who aren’t amazed that they’re meeting him. Even as someone who’s known him off and on for a long time, you still get the wave of: Holy s—.

You’re still amazed to be around him?
Of course. I get it less — I’m ready for it. But you can’t pretend he’s not Paul McCartney. And he’s gotta live with that his whole life.

You grew up a member of the upper crust, I think it’s fair to say.
I don’t think we were that crusty. But upper, probably, yes.

I wondered how that situated you to live and work among artistic types.
If anything, the upper crust have more time to be artistic — less preoccupied with getting a job and making a living. But my parents worked incredibly hard — we weren’t upper crust in the sense of inherited wealth. My father was a doctor, my mother was a professor of music. But I never struggled, to be honest. I had a comfortable allowance, and then I went to school and worked hard. Everyone talks about sharing a flat with a million people, living on borrowed sandwiches — I skipped that phase.

Did that shape you in any meaningful way?
I don’t know. But I think when people do struggle, it becomes a meaningful part of their lives to get away from it. With someone like James, the struggle was a struggle with drugs. Now he says the worst thing about drugs is they’re a complete waste of time — you waste time doing nothing except looking for drugs. And I think that made him anxious to succeed and to be taken seriously.

I’m sure you saw the New York Times’ list of the 30 greatest living American songwriters.
You knew it was gonna be silly. Randy Newman, for God’s sake — you just cannot not include him.

No Neil Diamond either.
Insane.

And no Billy Joel.
[Shrugs].

How’s your health?
High blood pressure, high cholesterol, need to work out more — old man stuff. Other than that and a broken leg, great.

You’re OK with the cane?
It’s a considerable upgrade from the wheelchair. I like the cane — it’s kind of elegant.

What seems scarier: the body going or the mind going?
The mind going. And it is, slightly. I had a stroke, and bits of my brain aren’t quite working right. But compared to other people I know, I’m fine.

We’re at a moment when a lot of foundational rock ’n’ roll figures —
Are dying. It’s all the rage.

What’s it feel like to see your friends and colleagues go?
Better them than me.

Couple more for you: You managed Courtney Love for a spell.
I met her here in Malibu. I also managed Pamela Anderson for a while because she was a neighbor and asked me to help.

What, you put a shingle out?
“Manager for hire.” I’m trying to remember how I first met Courtney — I think Merck Mercuriadis was talking to her about publishing and Kurt stuff. I liked her. Very smart. I like smart women.

She’s easy to work with? Hard to work with?
Impossible to work with.

What’s James Taylor’s best album?
“JT,” maybe.

What’s Linda Ronstadt’s best album?
“Heart Like a Wheel.” With Linda, it’s unfair because they’re so radically different. How do you compare that to a mariachi record and then to Nelson Riddle?

Working with Riddle on those albums must have been a thrill.
He told us all these incredible stories about Frank Sinatra, who he didn’t like although he admired him enormously. It was John David Souther who originally suggested Nelson. Linda had tried doing the album a different way — did some versions with Jerry Wexler and it didn’t work out. So we had a meeting with Nelson: Would he consider doing a couple of arrangements for us? He went, “No.” We said, “What?” He said, “I’ll do an album, though.”

“A World Without Love” was one of eight songs to top the chart in 1964 with “love” in the title. What’s that say about pop music in the mid-’60s?
Same thing it says about pop music of all time: It’s either “I love you” or “She loves you” or “Why don’t you love me?” Weird Al pointed out to me that when you’re looking for a parody of a song, any song that has “love” in the title, substitute “lunch” and it’s funny. “A World Without Lunch” — I mean, who would want to live in such a place?

Chris Appleton could be about to count on the support of pal Kim Kardashian from the Strictly stands as he gets ready to take on the BBC dance competition

Kim Kardashian could be set for a part in Strictly Come Dancing after playing a key role in Chris Appleton’s sign-up, according to reports. The reality TV star is said to have been a big player in making the celebrity stylist join the current roster of celebs hitting the dance floor.

The hairstylist was the fourth star announced for the upcoming series after Lacey Turner, Dani Dyer and Delta Goodrem. And he is set to get the support from some of his high profile clients, which have included Jennifer Lopez, Kim Kardashian, Sofía Vergara, Ariana Grande, and Katy Perry.

And it’s the Kardashians star who is said to have helped him bag the gig in the first place. A source said: “Kim’s most important advice to him was simple: before you launch a brand or product, make people feel like they know you, are invested in your life, in you.”

It comes as Chris reportedly wants a little more in life, namely, his own brand of hair products. And Kim sees the reality contest as the perfect way to introduce him to the British public.

The source went on to tell The Sun: “It was Kim who pushed him toward Strictly – he’s had a lot of reality TV show invites in the US.

“He was initially very hesitant to put himself out there as a ‘star’ but Kim argued that a successful run on the show would do more for his brand than a year of PR campaigns and huge ad budgets.”

They added: “Being in the Strictly spotlight makes him a household name in the UK, gets him into every room and red carpet event that matters in London, and builds the kind of public warmth that no advertising budget can manufacture – and that’s exactly the diving board you want to launch a brand from.”

And it’s claimed if Chris ventures into the later stages of the competition then Kim could come to the UK to support him from the crowd. The source said Kim has given Chris “free rein” to discuss their friendship too.

After he was announced as a Strictly contestant, Chris said: “I’m thrilled to be joining Strictly Come Dancing and coming home to the UK for this incredible experience. I’ve always believed that the best things happen when you take a chance and try something new.

“I may know my way around a salon floor, but the dance floor is a whole different story – and I can’t wait to get started.”

Chris grew up in Leicester, but he now lives in Los Angeles. But it’s said the UK will always be home to the star and he will be using the contest to be closer to home.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.

Here’s a look at the viral moments and on-field controversies as well as the biggest players, best performances, goals and more.

Cristiano Ronaldo joined the party, Lionel Messi set a new record, Iran once again displayed their fighting spirit and Turkiye were shown the door.

The second round of the 2026 World Cup group stage had a fair amount of drama.

Al Jazeera breaks down the key moments:

Better late than never: Ronaldo strikes for Portugal

Unlike other high-profile strikers at the tournament who came out all guns blazing from the get-go, Ronaldo needed some time to open his account. But his two goals in Portugal’s 5-0 thrashing of Uzbekistan on Tuesday were enough to silence the critics as the 41-year-old became the first player in history to score in six World Cups.

Messi is saving his best for last

Age is just a number for Messi, who is celebrating his 39th birthday on Wednesday. His apparent last dance is bringing out the best in him as the Argentinian has set a new record for the most World Cup goals at 18 – a figure that is sure to increase with La Albiceleste now the number one favourites to add back-to-back World Cups to their trophy cabinet.

Is Messi “Mr Argentina”? It’s hard to argue otherwise with all five of the team’s goals scored by him. That also makes him the leading Golden Boot contender with one goal more than France’s Kylian Mbappe.

Triple treat: Messi, Mbappe, Haaland score on same day, again

FIFA has come under criticism for a series of issues this tournament, but one thing it’s got spot on is the scheduling of Argentina, France and Norway games on the same day. For the second time in a row, fans were treated to back-to-back goals galore on Monday as Messi started the party with a brace before Mbappe did the same, and Erling Haaland topped it off with another double.

Norway’s ‘Viking row’ goes viral

Back at the World Cup after 28 years, Norway celebrated their round of 32 qualification in typical fashion: bringing out the famous “Viking row”. With the squad sitting in rows resembling those of a Viking longboat, captain Martin Odegaard began beating the drum to a joyous climax as thousands of Norwegians in the stadium also joined the fun.

Salah, Egypt celebrate on streets of Vancouver

It took Egypt an incredible 92 years to register their first World Cup win, so it wasn’t a surprise that they celebrated in style. Shortly after beating New Zealand 3-1 on Sunday, the Egypt squad was pictured on the streets of Vancouver with fans, singing and dancing to music blaring from a huge speaker. Mohamed Salah, nicknamed the “Egyptian King”, was the centre of attention yet again, held up on the shoulders of a teammate, as he grooved to the tunes.

Japan are Asia’s best hope at the tournament

While Asian teams enjoyed a great run during the first round of the group games, only one team – Japan – built on the momentum. After a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands in the first match, Japan thrashed Tunisia 4-0 in the next fixture on Saturday, collecting four points – the highest by an Asian team so far. According to Opta’s supercomputer, Japan have a 20.8 percent chance of reaching the quarterfinals and 9.41 percent probability of making the semifinals.

Persistent Iran fight hard to stay in contention

Despite travel restrictions imposed on them by the United States for their first two World Cup games, Iran have remained unbeaten with two draws. That keeps them alive in the knockout race, and with the squad now allowed to fly into the US from Mexico  two days before their next match instead of one as was the case earlier, Iran can better prepare for their final group game on Saturday against Egypt in Seattle. A win would see them through while a draw might also suffice, depending on other results.

Turkiye’s talented team disappoints

From Arda Guler and Kenan Yildiz to Hakan Calhanoglu and Merih Demiral, Turkiye is filled with talent across all departments. But none of them could turn around Turkiye’s fortunes as they crashed out of the tournament after losing to Paraguay on Saturday. The early exit crushed the hopes of millions of Turkish fans, who waited 24 years to see their team return to the World Cup.

No Pulisic, no problem for USA

For years, Christian Pulisic has been the poster boy of the USA team, but the cohost nation proved that they can get the job done even in the influential winger’s absence. With Pulisic ruled out with a calf injury, Alex Freeman scored one, and the USA benefitted from a Cameron Burgess own goal as they sailed into the knockouts with a 2-0 victory on Friday against Australia.

Red-carded Almiron to go down in history

Paraguay midfielder Miguel Almiron made history, albeit for the wrong reasons, when he became the first player to be sent off at the 2026 World Cup for covering his mouth. Almiron – also handed a one-match ban – covered his mouth during a confrontation with Turkiye’s Mert Muldur. The straight red handed to him follows a new rule under which players are not allowed to cover their mouths to disguise what they are saying during confrontations with infringements leading to instant dismissals.

US Vice President JD Vance has touted significant progress in talks with Iran over its nuclear programme and Israel’s war on Lebanon, while refusing to commit to an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory. He said Trump is trying to bring ‘permanent peace’ to a region that’s been ‘a basket case for a long time’.

Ship tracking data shows sharp fall in transits as US and Iranian officials hold talks to save fragile peace framework.

Shipping in the Strait of Hormuz has plunged following Iran’s announcement that it has closed the waterway once again over Israel’s strikes on Lebanon, according to ship tracking data.

A total of 12 vessels crossed the strait on Sunday, down from 35 transits the previous day, an analysis by maritime intelligence company Windward showed on Sunday.

Five of eight vessels entering the strait had their Automatic Identification Systems turned off, according to Windward.

“The current traffic profile: dark, sanctioned, Iranian-linked, resembling the late-blockade baseline more than a functioning open strait,” Windward said in a post on X.

Maritime traffic in the strait had been showing signs of recovery since US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding on ending the US-Israel war on Iran.

Twenty-five vessels transited the strait on Thursday, the highest number since mid-April, according to data from maritime intelligence provider Kpler.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Saturday declared the waterway shut, citing Israeli “crimes” in Lebanon and the failure of the US to maintain a ceasefire in the country.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) on Saturday denied that Iran had closed the strait, which normally carries about one-fifth of global oil and liquified natural gas supplies, saying that safe passage through the waterway remained “intact”, with 55 merchant ships transiting that day.

The cause of the discrepancy between the transit figures provided by CENTCOM and commercial ship tracking providers is unclear.

US and Iranian negotiators on Sunday held make-or-break talks in Switzerland as the conflict in Lebanon threatened to derail efforts to turn their 60-day ceasefire extension into a permanent peace deal.

In a briefing to Iranian media after the talks, Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the sides had discussed the safe passage of ships through the strait, and “a mechanism was set up, which is important”.

Despite renewed tensions between Washington and Tehran and signs of slowing traffic in the strait, oil prices moved lower on Monday morning in Asia.

Brent crude, the primary international benchmark, was down about 0.9 percent as of 01:30 GMT, at just below $80 a barrel.

Asia’s major stock markets opened higher, with key indices in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan making substantial gains.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 and Seoul’s Kospi were up 1.8 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively, while the Taiex in Taipei surged 2.6 percent.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index bucked the rally, dipping 0.7 percent.

Lebanon to top the agenda as US and Iran to hold talks in Switzerland’s Burgenstock mediated by Qatar and Pakistan.

United States Vice President JD Vance has arrived in Switzerland for talks with Iran days after they signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at ending the US-Israel war on Iran, which had sent oil prices soaring above $100 per barrel and rattled international markets.

The latest round of talks mediated by Pakistan and Qatar is scheduled on Sunday as Israel has intensified attacks on Lebanon, killing dozens of people on Saturday.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Saturday that it was closing the Strait of Hormuz, accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire in Lebanon. The Iranian delegation, including parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, has also arrived in Switzerland.

Here’s what we know about the conflict, which has entered its 114th day:

Diplomacy

• The US and Iran are to hold high-level talks in Switzerland’s Burgenstock on Sunday with the US delegation led by Vance. US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner are also part of the US delegation. Before departing for the talks, Vance told reporters he hoped to make “progress on the nuclear issue” and “on the Lebanon ceasefire issue”.
• Iran’s delegation, led by Ghalibaf and Araghchi, said its main goal is to ensure all parties fully implement the interim deal to end the war.
• Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Iranian delegation “will be pressing for implementation” of US commitments outlined in the MoU and “seeking clarity on how exactly the other side intends to carry out those commitments”.
• Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and military chief Field Marshal Asim Munir have left for Burgenstock to take part in the talks. “Pakistan will continue to support and advance the implementation of the understandings reached between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States,” the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement posted on X.
• Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani is also expected to take part in the key talks as Israel’s Lebanon attacks threaten to unravel the deal signed electronically by Trump and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, on Thursday.
• Egypt will host a four-way meeting with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan amid the Iran-US talks. The group first met in Riyadh on March 18, followed by meetings in Islamabad on March 29 and Antalya on April 18, reflecting growing efforts by regional powers to address crises through regional diplomacy rather than external intervention.

In Iran

• Mohammad Mokhbar, adviser and assistant to Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, warned that Tehran will not accept a paper agreement unless Washington fully implements its commitments. In a post on X, Mokhbar said the US understood pressure in economic terms. “Americans understand the language of economics and cost-benefit better,” he wrote. “When the agreement remains just on paper, the flow of Middle East energy will also come to a halt.”

• Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Vall, reporting from Tehran, said the delegation from Tehran is going to drive home the idea that Iran is not going to move forward in the implementation of the MoU unless the Israelis abide by the agreement. “They say the Americans bear the responsibility for that and that the Americans have to guarantee that the Israelis comply,” he said.
• Iran’s ⁠oil ⁠industry will be a key testing ground ⁠for any final peace agreement ⁠with the US if Western parties remain committed to its ‌spirit, Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad says. The ministry’s Shana news agency quoted Paknejad as ⁠saying that in a ⁠post-agreement era, Iran’s oil sector would offer the global ⁠economy significant investment ⁠opportunities and ⁠has hundreds of investment projects as well as technical ‌and operational partnership contracts ready to be ‌signed.
• Amir Ghalenoei, the coach of Iran’s national football team, has criticised increasingly difficult preparation conditions for the team before Sunday’s World Cup match against Belgium, saying “conditions have become even harder” than before their opening match with New Zealand. Iran have been based in Tijuana, Mexico, for the tournament and have been travelling to the US for Group G matches due to restrictions on their stay, an issue that has drawn scrutiny throughout the World Cup.

In the US

• Trump said there will be no tolls for passage through the Strait of Hormuz unless they are collected by the US. This came after the IRGC said it had closed the waterway, through which a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed before the war.
• David Sacks, Trump’s technology adviser, has defended the US-Iran MoU, calling it “a tremendous achievement” and a better path than prolonged conflict. Speaking on the All-In Podcast on Saturday, Sacks dismissed calls to escalate, arguing a ground invasion of Iran would make no sense, given Iran’s size and could require as many as a million troops. He branded any such attempt a “suicide mission”.
• Members of the Democratic Party are continuing to criticise Trump over his handling of the war with Iran. Johnny Olszewski, a Democratic congressman from Maryland, said Trump’s “war of choice” was a “disaster” and argued that the agreement with Iran was already breaking down.

In Lebanon

• Five people were killed, among them a child, a woman and two elderly people, in an Israeli raid on the village of Sohmor in Lebanon’s western Bekaa Valley, according to the National News Agency (NNA), citing the Ministry of Public Health. Sunday’s report did not specify when the attack took place. Two people of Palestinian origin were killed in Rashidieh in southern Lebanon’s Tyre district, the NNA reported.
• The Times of Israel reported on Sunday that an Israeli soldier has been killed and 13 others wounded when a barrage of rockets and a drone struck the soldiers’ position in Kfar Tebnit in southern Lebanon.
• Israeli media reports said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered invading troops to hold fire in Lebanon except for those engaged in a battle raging on the Ali al-Taher Hills near Nabatieh.

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has cruised to victory in a high-stakes by-election in northern England, paving the way for him to challenge Prime Minister Keir Starmer for the leadership of the Labour Party and the United Kingdom.

Burnham handily defeated his closest challenger, Robert Kenyon, the candidate for the anti-immigration Reform UK, in the seat of Makerfield, vote results showed early on Friday, securing the House of Commons seat he needs to mount a bid for the prime ministership.

Burnham won 24,927 votes, beating Kenyon by more than 9,000 votes.

Rebecca Shepherd of Restore Britain was a distant third, trailed by Michael Winstanley of the Conservative Party, Sarah Wakefield of the Green Party, and the Liberal Democrats’ Jake Austin.

“Everyone knows that politics is not working,” Burnham said in his victory speech.

“Everyone can feel that the country isn’t where it should be. Tonight could – just could – be the turning point. From here on, I will give everything that I have got to make it so, to ensure the name Makerfield is forever synonymous with bringing about the change this country needs.”

Burnham’s victory is likely to either precipitate Starmer’s resignation or set off a leadership contest pitting the prime minister against the outgoing mayor and Wes Streeting, the former health secretary.

Under the UK’s political system, MPs can choose a new prime minister without holding a general election.

Burnham is widely considered a strong favourite to become the next prime minister if he challenges Starmer.

In an Ipsos poll published earlier this week, Burnham was chosen by 25 percent of British adults as the preferred prime minister, compared with 12 percent for Starmer.

If he does succeed Starmer, Burnham, who was the early favourite in the 2015 Labour leadership race before coming second to Jeremy Corbyn, would be the UK’s seventh prime minister since the country voted for Brexit in 2016.

After leading Labour to a thumping election victory in 2024, Starmer has been under mounting pressure to step down amid widespread public dissatisfaction with his leadership.

Calls for his resignation within Labour have mounted since the party suffered crushing losses in local and regional elections in May.

Twenty ministers have resigned from Starmer’s government in less than two years, nearly half of whom expressed a loss of confidence in his leadership or clashed with him on policy, including Streeting.

Starmer has rebuffed calls to resign, pledging to fight any challenge to his leadership and insisting that such a contest would be a “bad thing for the country”.

Burnham – dubbed the “king of the north” for his grassroots appeal across northern England and his willingness to challenge Westminster – ran on the promise to “change Labour” to “change politics and change the country”.

As mayor of Greater Manchester, Burnham built an avid following across the UK’s less developed northern regions by channelling populist themes about elite apathy and industrial decline.

First elected mayor in 2017, and re-elected in 2021 and 2024, he has criticised the UK’s political system as “too London-centric” and taken aim at neoliberal economic policies and trickle-down economics that did not “trickle down very much at all”.

In his victory speech, Burnham said that Makerfield would be the “touchstone” for his politics.

“A Makerfield test at the heart of British politics will ensure that the places Westminster has neglected will now get fairness,” he said.

Burnham, who served in several ministerial portfolios under former Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, had been the narrow favourite in the race, holding a five-point lead over Kenyon in an opinion poll released on Saturday by pollster Opinium.

Labour’s Josh Simons, who previously held the seat of Makerfield, triggered the by-election last month by resigning his seat to allow Burnham to challenge Starmer.

About 75,000 people were entitled to vote in the constituency, which is located about 320km (200 miles) northwest of London.

Turnout was 58.75 percent, up from 52.4 percent at the 2024 general election.

Al Jazeera’s Dominic Kane explains that the EU won’t lift crucial sanctions on Iran until a formal nuclear agreement is reached. The bloc’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas also clarified that human rights-related sanctions will continue regardless.