US threatens severe sanctions against countries with economic ties to Iran 24. August 2026 (20:57) Washington launches campaign to isolate Tehran but it is unclear whether it would apply sanctions to ChinaThe US has threatened to impose severe sanctions against any country or entity maintaining economic ties with Iran, hoping to achieve with economic measures what military means have so far failed to do.However, it is unclear how far the Trump administration is prepared to go in confronting China, Iran’s biggest trading partner, which has signalled its resistance to US economic pressure to cut off links with an ally. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump announces new 50% tariff on Canadian cars, trucks and steel 24. August 2026 (20:55) Move is latest deterioration in trade relations between neighbors with historically strong economic tiesDonald Trump announced a new 50% tariff on automobiles and crucial raw materials from Canada, the latest deterioration in trade relations between the two neighbors with historically strong economic ties.Trump said that the increased tariffs would start 1 January 2027 on all cars, trucks, automobile parts and steel. He also derided the nation’s tariffs on American farmers, writing on social media that Canada has been “ripping off” the US “for years”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
French tourist dies in Death Valley national park after stranded in heat 24. August 2026 (20:55) Man, 68, was left searching for help in 116F weather after his car became stuck in mud along remote park roadA French tourist recently died in Death Valley national park after a car mishap left him stranded in 116F (47C) weather.The visitor, identified as 68-year-old Pierre Michel Formosa, was traveling with another French man along the park’s remote West Side Road when their vehicle became stuck in mud near Queen of Sheba Mine Road. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Mark Carney says Canada can’t accept US trade deal that would weaken French language 24. August 2026 (20:22) Prime minister praised for rejecting US trade proposal as Trump shows little interest in retreating from disputeAre you a Canadian boycotting US products? We’d like to hear from youMark Carney said on Monday that while American negotiators saw the French language in Canada as an “irritant … in Quebec, these are rights,” days after receiving widespread praise from political leaders for rejecting a US trade proposal that many perceived as weakening the country’s Francophone culture.The prime minister’s remarks came hours after the US president, Donald Trump, showed little interest in retreating from the spat, posting on social media that Canada had been “ripping off the United States of America for years” and threatening a swath of new, economically devastating tariffs on cars and trucks. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
US immigration officers reassigned to screen South African refugees and find ‘unlawful’ voters 24. August 2026 (20:16) Exclusive: internal correspondence reveals USCIS anti-fraud officers shifted on to two ‘high-priority’ initiativesAll US immigration officers working for a key anti-fraud unit have been reassigned by Donald Trump’s administration to focus on screening South African refugees and alleged “unlawful” voters.Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS) immigration officers have been shifted full-time on to two “high-priority” initiatives, according to internal correspondence seen by the Guardian, leaving US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) unable to provide officers to train asylum officers in “the near future”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
NYPD to investigate another video of people emerging from manhole 24. August 2026 (20:16) Video posted on social media shows three people climbing out of sewer system at 4am, months after similar reportsNew York City’s police department (NYPD) says it is investigating a recent video of three people emerging from a manhole in the latest such episode to cause mystery.Posted to TikTok on Friday, the video showed three people – one after the other – climbing out of a manhole at 4.19am on 18 August wearing headlamps and black overalls near Madison Square Garden. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK to use Ukraine battlefield data to train AI to protect sensitive sites 24. August 2026 (20:16) London and Kyiv in deal to help stop protesters and hostile states targeting military bases and critical infrastructureAI models trained on Ukrainian battlefield data will be used to stop protesters and foreign states targeting UK defence sites, railways and energy plants under a deal struck between London and Kyiv.Private companies will also be given access to the vast trove of data from Ukraine’s Avengers AI lab to help build new systems, the first agreement of its kind in the UK. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Reform would evict social housing tenants over unkempt gardens 24. August 2026 (19:40) Plan part of a wider policy to remove foreign nationals from social homes and prioritise young British-born couplesSocial housing tenants will be evicted if they fail to keep their gardens well maintained under a Reform UK government, the party has announced.Lee Anderson, the party’s chair, said that if Reform came to power it would insist that those in social rented homes would be required to keep their properties decorated and gardens looked after. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Prince Harry quits board of wildlife charity after rangers’ human rights abuses 24. August 2026 (19:34) Spokesperson for Duke of Sussex says he remains an ‘active and avid supporter’ of African Parks’ missionThe Duke of Sussex has stepped down from the board of a major African wildlife charity that had been at the centre of a human rights controversy.Prince Harry’s spokesperson confirmed he was no longer a trustee of African Parks, which admitted last year that human rights abuses were committed by its rangers in the Republic of the Congo. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Problems brewing for the proper pint as Camra membership falls 24. August 2026 (19:01) Cost of living has hit campaign group while multinationals are threatening to squeeze out independent breweriesFor centuries, the wooden real ale pump has been the hallmark of a good British boozer. But now problems are brewing for the proper pint, as the Campaign for Real Ale has seen its membership sink to an eight-year low and its accounts show it is firmly in the red, making an £800,000 loss last year.Real ale is a traditional draught cask beer, a “living” product that is produced and stored in its cask. It differs from a cold, fizzy lager, in which the yeast is killed and carbon dioxide is added. Real ale contains live yeast so it continues fermenting until it is served. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
