Top World News
Middle East crisis live: Jordan says it foiled Iranian missile attack as US launches ‘heavy’ strikes on Iran after pause
Jul 30, 2026 - World 
Jordanian military says it intercepted five missiles targeting the kingdom after US military says it hit dozens of Revolutionary Guard targets on ThursdayUS launches fresh strikes on Iran after days-long pause, amid fears the war is wideningA liquefied natural gas tanker controlled by QatarEnergy exited the strait of Hormuz overnight – the first such vessel visible on ship-tracking data to leave the waterway since 11 July, data from analytics firms showed on Thursday.The Al Areesh tanker, which loaded a cargo at Qatar’s Ras Laffan terminal around 4-6 July, sailed out of the strait overnight on 29 July, according to Kpler and LSEG data. Continue reading...
Death toll in Japan earthquake rises to 30 as aftershock and heat hamper rescue efforts
Jul 30, 2026 - World 
Soldiers and emergency teams search badly damaged shopping centre, paper mill and homes for survivorsThe death toll from the powerful earthquake that hit Japan on Tuesday has risen to 30, as the search for survivors trapped in a badly damaged shopping centre, paper mill and collapsed homes across the south-west of the country continues.The 6.8-magnitude quake, which struck Kumamoto prefecture on the island of Kyushu, injured at least 62 people, according to the prefectural government. Continue reading...
Archibald prize 2026: portrait of Jewish leader after Bondi terror attack wins people’s choice award
Jul 30, 2026 - World 
Artist Michael Zavros says he was inspired by a deep respect for Alex Ryvchin’s leadership, as well as an uncanny likeness between the two menAn artist’s portrayal of a Jewish leader produced just weeks after the Bondi massacre has won the Archibald people’s choice category.Michael Zavros won the $5,000 prize for his portrait of Alex Ryvchin, the co-head of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, who Zavros called an “unmistakably and unashamedly Jewish” leader.Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading...
Campaigners rail against ‘plundering’ of ancient Kent woodland to make way for quarry expansion
Jul 30, 2026 - World 
Forty hectares of Oaken Wood could be razed after it was identified as potential site of expansion by Reform-run councilIt was at the confluence of seven forest paths that Allison Sweetman came to a stop. Trees rose on all sides, save for a recently coppiced section to the north-east. The noon heat had silenced most birds, but the quiet was peaceful.“This is what they call Seven Wents,” she said. For centuries, the people of Kent had travelled this way, from East Malling to Barming, from Ditton to Teston, for church, commerce and friends. “It’s on maps going back 400 years.” Continue reading...
Polls open in Greater Manchester mayoral byelection overshadowed by new PM and Farage’s antics
Jul 30, 2026 - World 
Labour’s Bev Craig expected to win contest that lost column inches to Andy Burnham’s ascent and Reform UK leader’s self-imposed Clacton voteVoting has begun in the biggest byelection in British political history, with more than 2 million people eligible to choose Andy Burnham’s successor as Greater Manchester mayor.In normal times, such a large and politically significant byelection would have dominated the headlines for weeks, particularly as senior Labour figures only weeks ago feared losing the prize mayoralty to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. Continue reading...
