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Jarry has fallen down the rankings because of an ear condition which affects his balance and vision, but has reminded everyone of his talent over the past fortnight.
After coming through three Wimbledon qualifying matches, he won another three in the main draw – starting with a stunning win from two sets down over eighth seed Holger Rune.
Opportunities against the world number 143’s serve are difficult to obtain – he hit 46 aces – and Norrie clinically took his chance in the first set to break for 5-3 before serving out.
A tight second set offered even fewer chances to either man, but it was again Norrie who struck at a crucial time.
Upping the aggression in his return of serve at the start of the tie-break led to a mini-break that he never relinquished, with a pinpoint cross-court winner on set point proving bold and brilliant.
The third and fourth sets were similarly balanced. With Jarry serving big and Norrie scrapping, it always felt likely they would be decided by tie-breaks.
Norrie led 4-2 in both but could not convert his advantage as Jarry roared back, but he reset wonderfully to eventually end his opponent’s resistance after striking early in the decider.
It sparked jubilant scenes in a partisan atmosphere on Court One, where Norrie has now won nine of his 10 career matches.
“It was a nice moment. It feels a little more deserved coming back from the injury and trying to push back into the top of the game,” said Norrie, who will climb back into the top 50 next week.
“All the hard work, it’s paid off. I’ve been a dedicated professional and have a good team around me. These moments are the icing on the cake.”
That leads nicely to England’s pace bowlers. Having opted to pick an unchanged side for Edgbaston, Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse and Josh Tongue have now bowled 82, 77 and 81 overs respectively.
Mohammed Siraj is the only India quick to have bowled more than 62.
All three of England’s pacemen struggled at times in Birmingham. Woakes was not as threatening after his new-ball spell while Tongue has been played well by India’s top order and was not as successful against the tail as in the first Test.
Change will surely come at Lord’s given three days off is little time to recover and Jofra Archer is waiting in the wings.
Could England conceivably leave out all three?
Gus Atkinson, who has not played since May because of a hamstring injury, is back in the squad but it would be a risk to play Atkinson and Archer, who has bowled in two innings in a match once in four years, in the same XI.
Woakes, 36, may need a rest but England like variety in their attack and he averages 12.9 at Lord’s – the best of any bowler in Test history.
England would also need to replace his batting at number eight if he is left out – even more so if Carse, an able batter, was also absent at number nine.
Sam Cook is the Woakes replacement in England’s squad but does not offer that same batting depth.
Do not rule out bowling all-rounder Jamie Overton adding to his one Test cap, which was earned in 2022.
Two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz produced an impressive fightback to overcome Andrey Rublev and set up a Wimbledon quarter-final against Britain’s Cameron Norrie.
Alcaraz edged a step closer to becoming only the fifth man in the Open era to win three consecutive Wimbledon titles with a 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-4 6-4 victory over the Russian 14th seed under the Centre Court roof.
The 22-year-old Spaniard clinched his only break point in both the second and third sets to turn the match around, before a single break of serve again proved enough to end Rublev’s admirable resistance in the fourth.
Alcaraz will face Norrie for a semi-final place after the British number three withstood a fightback from Chilean qualifier Nicolas Jarry to win in five sets.
Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ camp perched on the banks of the Guadalupe River in Texas, was a place of laughter, prayer and adventure just days ago.
Among the girls at the camp was eight-year-old Renee Smajstrla, smiling ear-to-ear in a picture taken on one of those days – “having the time of her life” with her friends.
But the next day, the camp she and so many other young girls loved turned into the site of one of the deadliest flood disasters in recent Texas history.
Renee was among those killed.
“She will forever be living her best life at Camp Mystic,” her uncle Shawn Salta wrote on Facebook.
Photos show the eerie aftermath: the bunk beds mud-caked and toppled, the detritus of a summer camp cut tragically short.
Destroyed personal belongings are scattered across soaked interiors where children once gathered for Bible study and campfire songs.
Eleven of its campers and one camp counsellor are missing. Many of the unaccounted-for girls were reportedly sleeping in low-lying cabins less than 500ft (150m) from the riverbank.
On Sunday, the rain was pouring down as the BBC reached Camp Mystic.
The entrance was cordoned off by police and the rubble of what might have been some kind of gatehouse was strewn across the ground.
More rain is forecast, which will make the rescue effort even harder.
Three days after the deluge, hope is fading and this is rapidly becoming a recovery exercise more than a rescue mission.
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Camp Mystic has been operated by the same family for generations, offering girls a chance to grow “spiritually” in a “wholesome” Christian atmosphere, according to its website.
Families from all across Texas and the US send their daughters each summer to swim, canoe, ride horses and form lifelong friendships.
But the beauty of the Guadalupe River, which draws so many to the area, also proved deadly.
The floodwaters arrived with little warning, ripping through the picturesque riverfront area that is home to nearly 20 youth camps.
Though Camp Mystic suffered the greatest losses, officials say the scale of the disaster is far-reaching.
Nearby, the all-girls camp Heart O’ the Hills also faced flooding.
Its co-owner and director, Jane Ragsdale, was among the dead. Fortunately, the camp was out of session at the time.
A statement from the camp said, “Most of those who were on camp at the time have been accounted for and are on high ground… We are mourning the loss of a woman who influenced countless lives and was the definition of strong and powerful.”
An unknown number of other campers were in the area for the holiday weekend.
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Questions are mounting over why so many camps were situated so close to the river, and why more was not done to evacuate the children in time.
Congressman Chip Roy, who represents the area, acknowledged the devastation while urging caution against premature blame.
“The response is going to be, ‘We’ve gotta move all these camps – why would you have camps down here by the water?'” Roy said.
“Well, you have camps by the water because it’s by the water. You have camps near the river because it’s a beautiful and wonderful place to be.”
Families of the missing meanwhile face an agonising wait for news. Search and rescue teams – some navigating by boat, others combing through debris – are working round the clock.
Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said on Sunday the search for survivors continued.
“Until we can get them reunited families, we are not going to stop,” City Manager Dalton Rice said.
Governor Greg Abbott has declared a state of emergency, and officials warn the final toll may rise in the days to come.
United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reports the vessel is taking on water after being targeted with gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades.
A commercial vessel in the Red Sea has come under attack after small boats fired rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons towards the ship.
According to the organisation United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the incident took place 94km (51 nautical miles) southwest of the Yemeni port of Hodeidah.
“The vessel has been engaged by multiple small vessels who have opened fire with small arms and self-propelled grenades. [The] armed security team have returned fire and situation is ongoing,” said UKMTO, which is run by Britain’s Royal Navy.
The UKMTO said the attack resulted in a fire onboard and the vessel began taking on water Sunday night as its crew prepared to abandon ship.
“Authorities are investigating,” it said, adding later the ship was ablaze after being “struck by unknown projectiles”.
“UKMTO has had confirmation from the Company Security Officer that the vessel is taking on water and crew are preparing to abandon ship,” a statement said.
Maritime security sources added that the vessel was identified as the Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned bulk carrier Magic Seas.
British maritime security firm Ambrey said in an advisory that the ship was attacked by four unmanned surface vehicles [USVs].
“Two of the USVs impacted the port side of the vessel, damaging the vessel’s cargo,” Ambrey added.
The Yemen-based armed group the Houthis began targeting vessels in the Red Sea shortly after Israel’s war on Gaza began in October 2023, which the Houthis say is in defence of the Palestinians living in the besieged enclave.
Since November 2023, the Houthis have launched more than 100 attacks targeting commercial vessels, disrupting global shipping and forcing firms to reroute.
Their campaign has expanded to include vessels linked to the United States and the United Kingdom since the two countries initiated military strikes in January 2024.
In May, the Houthis and the US agreed on a ceasefire that would see the end of attacks on US ships. But the Houthis vowed to continue to target Israeli-linked vessels.
A renewed Houthi campaign against shipping could again draw in US and Western forces to the area.
This comes at a sensitive moment in the Middle East as a possible ceasefire in the war on Gaza hangs in the balance, and as Iran weighs whether to restart negotiations over its nuclear programme following US air strikes targeting its most sensitive atomic sites.
BRICS countries have been in disagreement over how strongly to denounce Israel’s bombing of Iran and its actions in Gaza.
Brazil’s president says the world must act to stop what he describes as an Israeli “genocide” in Gaza as leaders from 11 emerging BRICS nations gathered in Rio de Janeiro.
“We cannot remain indifferent to the genocide carried out by Israel in Gaza, the indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians and the use of hunger as a weapon of war,” President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told leaders from China, India and other nations on Sunday.
His comments came as Gaza truce talks between Israel and Hamas resumed in Doha and as pressure mounted to end the 21-month war, which began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attacks in southern Israel.
Lula said “absolutely nothing could justify the terrorist actions” of Hamas on that day, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly Israeli civilians.
But he also offered fierce criticism of Israel’s subsequent actions. Israel’s military campaign has killed at least 57,418 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians.
BRICS countries have been in disagreement over how strongly to denounce Israel’s bombing of Iran and its actions in Gaza.
‘Autonomy in check once again’
Leaders in Rio called for reform of traditional Western institutions while presenting BRICS as a defender of multilateral diplomacy in an increasingly fractured world.
With forums such as the G7 and G20 groups of major economies hamstrung by divisions and the disruptive America First approach of United States President Donald Trump, expansion of BRICS has opened new space for diplomatic coordination.
In his opening remarks, Lula drew a parallel with the Cold War’s Non-Aligned Movement, a group of developing nations that resisted formally joining either side of a polarised global order.
“BRICS is the heir to the Non-Aligned Movement,” Lula told leaders. “With multilateralism under attack, our autonomy is in check once again.”
BRICS nations now represent more than half the world’s population and 40 percent of its economic output.
Leaders from Brazil, Russia, India and China gathered for the its first summit in 2009. The bloc later added South Africa and last year included Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as members. This is the first summit of leaders to include Indonesia.
Some leaders were missing from this year’s summit, however. Chinese President Xi Jinping chose to send his prime minister in his place. Russian President Vladimir Putin is attending online because of a warrant issued for his arrest by the International Criminal Court.
Still, several heads of state were gathering for discussions at Rio’s Museum of Modern Art on Sunday and Monday, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
More than 30 nations have expressed interest in participating in BRICS, either as full members or partners.
The race started on a wet track after a soaking wet morning, but with the sun out and more rain heading towards Silverstone.
Verstappen held the lead through a brief challenge from Piastri off the line but he could not shake the McLarens, and Piastri was soon challenging him hard for the lead.
Before he could try a move, though, a virtual safety car was deployed after Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto crashed at Turn Two on lap four.
The race was restarted on lap seven, and Piastri was past Verstappen on the Hangar Straight before two laps were over, building a 2.9-second lead after just one lap.
It was then Norris’ turn to challenge the Red Bull, but Verstappen gifted him the position when he slid off at Becketts on lap 11, just as heavy rain started.
That brought the drivers into the pits for fresh intermediates. By then, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll had gained time by an earlier change to soft tyres when the track was drying and emerged in fourth place, with Hulkenberg in fifth after stopping for inters on lap 10, so benefiting when others had to drive on a wet track on slick tyres and then pit.
The rain became heavier and a safety car was deployed on lap 14. The race restarted on lap 18, but a second safety car was sent out within a lap after Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar ran into the back of Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes at Copse because he could not see him in the spray.
When the race restarted for the last time on lap 22, with Verstappen spinning from second down to 10th, Piastri started to try to build a lead but he was not able to get more than four seconds ahead before Norris came back at him – he was less than two seconds back by the time Piastri pitted to serve his penalty with nine laps to go.
Stroll was unable to hold on to his third place, soon being passed by Hulkenberg and then Hamilton and eventually dropping down to seventh place.
Behind Verstappen, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, who was fifth at the restart, lost places to Hamilton and the Dutchman but was able to secure sixth place.
Williams’ Alex Albon was eighth, ahead of Fernando Alonso, who was frustrated by his team’s strategy costing him places in the topsy-turvy early part of the race, and then pitted a couple of laps too early for slick tyres as the track dried in the closing stages.
That dropped him to last, but he recovered to take ninth, ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell, who also stopped early for slicks for the final time.
The Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday has been celebrated with cake and cultural performances by devotees around the world, including actor Richard Gere. The Nobel Prize-winning Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader says he will reincarnate after his death, but hopes that isn’t any time soon.
Cultural performances mark the occasion, while messages from global leaders are read out during the ceremony.
The Dalai Lama, spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, has turned 90 to cap a week of celebrations by followers during which he riled China again and spoke about his hope to live beyond 130 and reincarnate after dying.
Dressed in his traditional yellow and burgundy robe, the Dalai Lama arrived at a Buddhist temple complex to smiles and claps from thousands of monks and followers who had gathered on a rainy Sunday morning in the north Indian hill town of Dharamshala, where he lives.
He waved and greeted them as he walked slowly to the stage with support from monks.
“As far as I am concerned, I have a human life, and as humans, it is quite natural for us to love and help one another. I live my life in the service of other sentient beings,” the Dalai Lama said, flanked on the stage by longtime supporters, including Western diplomats, Indian federal ministers, Hollywood actor Richard Gere, and a monk who is expected to lead the search for his successor.
Fleeing his native Tibet in 1959 in the wake of a failed uprising against Chinese rule, the 14th Dalai Lama, along with hundreds of thousands of Tibetans, took shelter in India and has since advocated for a peaceful “Middle Way” to seek autonomy and religious freedom for the Tibetan people.
A Nobel Peace Prize winner, the Dalai Lama is regarded as one of the world’s most influential religious leaders, with a following that extends well beyond Buddhism – but not by Beijing, which calls him a separatist and has sought to bring the faith under its control.
In a sign of solidarity, Taiwan’s President William Lai Ching-te, leaders of Indian states bordering Tibet, and three former United States presidents – Barack Obama, George W Bush, and Bill Clinton – sent video messages which were played during the event.
In the preceding week of celebrations, the Dalai Lama had said he would reincarnate as the leader of the faith upon his death and that his nonprofit institution, the Gaden Phodrang Trust, had the sole authority to recognise his successor.
China has said the succession will have to be approved by its leaders, and the US has called on Beijing to cease what it describes as interference in the succession of the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan Buddhist lamas.
Show of solidarity
Guests gathered at the ceremony took turns to speak, including Indian Parliamentary and Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, a practising Buddhist, who had earlier made a rare statement contradicting China by backing the Dalai Lama’s position on his successor.
He later clarified that the statement was made in his personal capacity as China warned New Delhi against interfering in its domestic affairs at the expense of bilateral relations.
On Sunday, Rijiju said the Dalai Lama was India’s “most honoured guest”. “We feel blessed for his presence here in our country,” he said.
Cultural performances were held throughout the morning, including from Bollywood playback singers, while messages from global leaders were read out.
“I join 1.4 billion Indians in extending our warmest wishes to His Holiness the Dalai Lama on his 90th birthday. He has been an enduring symbol of love, compassion, patience and moral discipline,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on X.
Football clubs should pay towards the £70 million cost of policing their matches in the UK, the head of the Metropolitan Police has told the BBC.
Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, the country’s most senior police officer, asked why organisers of events that require policing to support their security do not pay for it, and said there should be “more of a polluter pays approach”.
Sir Mark’s comments came as he called for the creation of 12 to 15 bigger police forces as part of his plans for radical police reforms.
He told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme the current model of 43 forces across England and Wales needed to be reduced to cope with increased demand and overstretched funding.
Sir Mark said reforms would help police forces, including the Met, “make the best use of the money we’ve got”.
As part of funding concerns, the commissioner also cited the £70 million cost of policing football in the UK, most of which is spent on Premier League matches in England.
“Why isn’t the organiser paying for that, rather than local communities who lose their resources to go to football matches?” he said.
A move to make football clubs pay was previously suggested to the Times by the head of the UK’s football policing unit and later criticised by sports bodies who said it could threaten events and lead to increased ticket prices.
Writing in the Sunday Times, Sir Mark suggested the number of police forces needed to be reduced by two-thirds and said bigger forces would be better able to utilise modern technology.
He added the 43-force model designed in the 1960s had not been “fit for purpose” for at least two decades and hindered “the effective confrontation of today’s threats”.
Speaking to the BBC, the commissioner referred to an “invisible spaghetti” behind police forces that was responsible for “sucking resources and costs”.
“Lots of the smaller forces can’t actually do all the services locally and they’re having to club together and run complicated collaborations,” he said, adding that with “bigger local forces and one national body” they could “cut away” with a lot of that cost and waste.
The commissioner was questioned by Kuenssberg on the likelihood of the reform going ahead, referencing similar Labour plans in 2006 which were dropped following significant opposition.
Sir Mark said reform was “essential”, adding that spending on policing and public safety has dropped substantially over the last decade or more.
“I don’t see that changing dramatically. We’ve got to make the best use of every pound the government can give to us,” he added.
Put to him that he had warned he would have to de-prioritise some crimes, and asked what the force will not investigate, Sir Mark said: “So I don’t want policing activity to fall off the list, and I know that the mayor and the home secretary have pushed hard for the most police funding that we can get.
“We are determined to improve day in and day out experiences of Londoners on the streets. We can only do that if we focus ruthlessly on police work.”
Spending decisions have been made “harder” by the government’s U-turn on welfare changes, the education secretary has said, as she did not commit to scrapping the two-child benefit cap.
Bridget Phillipson told BBC One’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme that ministers were “looking at every lever” to lift children out of poverty.
But she said removing the cap would “come at a cost” and insisted the government was supporting families with the cost of living in other ways.
It comes after a rebellion of Labour MPs forced the government to significantly water down a package of welfare reforms that would have saved £5bn a year by 2030.
The climbdown means the savings will now be delayed or lost entirely, which puts pressure on Chancellor Rachel Reeves ahead of the autumn Budget.
Before its retreat on benefits, the Labour government was considering lifting the two-child benefit cap, a policy that restricts means-tested benefits to a maximum of two children per family for those born after April 2017.
When asked if the chances of getting rid of the cap had diminished, Phillipson said: “The decisions that have been taken in the last week do make decisions, future decisions harder.
“But all of that said, we will look at this collectively in terms of all of the ways that we can lift children out of poverty.”
Syria’s Civil Defence teams are battling wildfires sweeping through northeastern Syria, with the coastal region of Latakia among the worst hit. Emergency workers expressed concerns that unexploded ordnance from the war might be contributing to the rapid spread of the flames.
Family hubs offering parenting support and youth services will be rolled out across every local authority in England, the government has announced.
The £500 million plan aims to support 500,000 more children in the most disadvantaged areas.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said the “Best Start” family hubs would “give a lifeline” to families.
The Conservatives said there was “little clarity on what’s genuinely new and what simply rebrands existing services”.
The idea of a family hub dates back to the early 2000s when New Labour introduced “Sure Start” centres – focused on supporting young families with early education, childcare and health advice.
Many closed after 2010 when funding was cut by the Tories. But last year the Conservative government under Rishi Sunak rolled out 400 new “family hubs” offering a wider range of services across 75 local authorities.
Now Labour say the hubs will be in every local authority by April 2026, before expanding them to up to 1,000 by the end of 2028.
They will offer services ranging from birth registration and midwifery support to debt advice and youth clubs.
Officials hope the spaces will also provide families access to other services and social care.
Ms Phillipson said: “It’s the driving mission of this government to break the link between a child’s background and what they go on to achieve – our new ‘Best Start’ family hubs will put the first building blocks of better life chances in place for more children.”
Shadow Education Secretary Laura Trott said the lack of clarity about what was actually new was “part of a wider pattern”.
“This is a government defined by broken promises and endless U-turns,” she added.
Charity Save The Children has said it is “pleased” to see the government “making it easier for families to get the help they need”.
Dan Paskins, executive director of policy, advocacy and campaigns at Save The Children UK, said: “We know from our work in local communities that bringing together parenting, healthcare and education support services in one place is an approach which works, so we are pleased to see the UK government making it easier for families to get the help they need.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is visiting the United States on Monday, a visit analysts expect will focus on celebrating Israel and the US’s self-anointed victory against Iran and discussing a proposal for a ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza.
Last week, Trump said Israel had agreed to conditions for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, which would allow all parties to work towards an end to Israel’s 21-month-long war on the besieged enclave.
On Friday, after Hamas’s response to the proposal, Trump said there could be a “deal next week” and promised to be “very firm” with Netanyahu to ensure a ceasefire.
Israel has since said that Hamas has requested changes to the proposal that it found “unacceptable”, but that Israeli negotiators would be going to Qatar on Sunday to discuss the proposal.
According to a leaked copy of the deal obtained by Al Jazeera, the ceasefire entails a 60-day pause in hostilities and a phased release of some of the 58 Israeli captives held in Gaza since a Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 57,000 people, mostly women and children, in what United Nations experts, legal scholars and human rights groups describe as a genocide against Palestinians.
Many experts told Al Jazeera that they are not optimistic a temporary ceasefire will lead to a permanent end to the war.
“The way [the ceasefire talks] are being framed leaves me sceptical,” said Omar Rahman, an expert on Israel-Palestine with the Middle East Council for Global Affairs.
Rahman added that he believes Trump was focused on getting the Israeli captives released, but not on ending the war and the suffering of the people of Gaza.
However, two months later, Trump did nothing when Israel unilaterally resumed its attacks on Gaza, killing thousands more people.
Mairav Zonszein, an expert on Israel-Palestine for the International Crisis Group, said that could happen again.
Relatives of Palestinians killed in the Israeli attack on Khan Younis receive the bodies from Nasser Hospital for funerals, in Gaza City, July 4, 2025 [Abdallah F.s. Alattar/Anadolu Agency]
“It all rests on Trump and the US to sustain real pressure [on Netanyahu], but that is highly doubtful,” she told Al Jazeera.
“I’m optimistic there could be some kind of ceasefire, but longevity and the terms are highly questionable,” Zonszein said.
“It’s also possible we could see a ceasefire that does not last because … Israel still every so often just bombs something without repercussions [in Gaza],” she added.
Yaser al-Banna, a Palestinian journalist in Gaza, said many in the Strip are divided over whether a ceasefire will end the war. While everyone prays it will, some people cannot imagine Netanyahu sticking to a deal.
Netanyahu insists that the war will not end without a “total victory” over Hamas, a concept he has not defined.
“About half the people in Gaza are very pessimistic… The other half believes this time could be different due to shared interests among Israel, the Palestinians, Arab states and the US to end this war,” he said.
Glory and pragmatism
Many analysts believe that Trump is driven by his desire to strike grandiose deals in order to boast about his achievements in global affairs.
On Monday, he is likely to take credit for ostensibly dismantling Iran’s nuclear programme – even though that may not be true – and express his desire to retrieve the rest of the Israeli captives in Gaza.
He also wants to get the “Gaza issue” out of the way to pursue more normalisation deals between Israel and neighbouring Arab states, said Khaled Elgindy, an expert on Israel-Palestine and a professor of Arab Studies at Georgetown University in Washington, DC.
“Trump wants to be able to say that he got back the Israeli hostages… and got a Palestinian state… Then he can call himself master of the universe, but getting those things is much harder than he thinks,” Elgindy told Al Jazeera.
It’s unclear whether Netanyahu’s political calculations align with Trump’s ambitions.
Israel’s next parliamentary elections have to take place before October 2026, and Netanyahu could go to the polls sooner, riding on a likely wave of popularity if he succeeds in returning the remaining captives.
Those considerations are important because it is likely that Netanyahu’s frail far-right coalition, held together by pressure to prolong the war on Gaza, would collapse if a permanent ceasefire is reached, said Hugh Lovatt, an expert on Israel-Palestine with the European Council on Foreign Relations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends his trial on corruption charges at the district court in Tel Aviv, Israel, March 12, 2025 [ Yair Sagi/ Reuters]
“At the end of [the possible] 60-day ceasefire, [Netanyahu] could go to elections by committing to a full end to the war and collapse his coalition; or he could go back to war to keep his [far-right] coalition together should he judge the time not right for elections,” he told Al Jazeera.
A possible, nearly unfathomable, outcome
Staying in office is particularly important for Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, who faces several domestic legal charges of fraud and bribery.
During his much-anticipated meeting with Trump, experts expect them to discuss Netanyahu’s trial, which many believe plays a large role in dictating his political calculations.
Netanyahu’s position as prime minister has enabled him to undermine the Israeli judicial system by appointing loyalists to high courts and delaying court hearings – an influence he would lose if his coalition unravels.
Trump is acutely aware of Netanyahu’s dilemma.
On June 25, he called on Israel to drop the charges against Netanyahu, referring to the trial as a “witch hunt”.Trump’s comments suggest that he is trying to pressure Netanyahu’s opponents to issue a pardon in exchange for ending the war on Gaza, said Georgetown’s Elgindy.
Elgindy referenced Trump’s recent social media post where he alluded to suspending military aid to Israel unless charges against Netanyahu were dropped.
“The United States of America spends Billions of Dollars a year, far more than any other Nation, protecting and supporting Israel. We are not going to stand for this,” Trump wrote on June 28.
That would be a major – almost unfathomable – decision to emerge out of the meeting between Trump and Netanyahu, said Elgindy.
“I don’t see him following through, but this is a typical [threat] that Trump would make,” he told Al Jazeera. “His [modus operandi] is to blackmail and coerce. That is his version of diplomacy.”
Elgindy added that it was distressing that Trump would threaten to cut military aid to Israel to protect Netanyahu and not beleaguered, starving Palestinians in Gaza.
The decision to pardon Netanyahu lies with Israel’s President Isaac Herzog, but such a move would be unprecedented, and the president has not indicated that he plans to do so.
Analysts believe Herzog may be willing to pardon Netanyahu if he agrees to exit political life, but not simply to secure a ceasefire.
Zonszein, from Crisis Group, adds that there are lawyers and justices in Israel who have warned “for years” that it is in the public’s interest to reach a plea bargain with Netanyahu due to the power he holds over the country.
Their only condition is for Netanyahu to agree to leave politics.
“I don’t think that is something Netanyahu is considering. If he was willing to leave political life, then he could have already negotiated a plea bargain,” she told Al Jazeera.
Dan Biddle returned to Edgware Road station nine years after the attack, in 2014
Two decades have passed since the 2005 London attacks, but the face of the lead suicide bomber, Mohammad Sidique Khan, has never left Dan Biddle’s memory.
It feels as real today as the day they looked into each other’s eyes.
“I can be in in the kitchen and he is stood in the garden,” says Dan, who has complex post-traumatic stress disorder.
“He’s there, dressed as he was on the day, holding the rucksack, just with his hand above it, about to detonate it again.”
Even if Dan looks away, the bomber is still there when he looks back.
“I saw this guy literally disassemble himself in front of me, and now I’m seeing him again.”
Warning: This article contains details some readers may find distressing
Tony Woolliscroft
Dan’s underground ticket from 7/7
Dan was in touching distance of Khan, on a rush-hour London Underground Circle line train on 7 July 2005. How he survived is almost beyond rational explanation.
“As as we pulled out of Edgware Road station, I could feel somebody staring at me. I was just about to turn around and say, ‘What are you looking at?’, and I see him put his hand in the bag.
“And then there was a just a brilliantly white, bright flash – heat like I’ve never experienced before.”
Khan had detonated a homemade bomb – made using an al-Qaeda-devised chemical recipe – that he was carrying in his rucksack.
The device killed David Foulkes, 22, Jennifer Nicholson, 24, Laura Webb, 29, Jonathan Downey, 34, Colin Morley and Michael Brewster, both 52.
Aftermath of the bombing onboard the train at Edgware Road station on 7 July 2005
Dan was blown out of the train, hit the tunnel wall and fell into the crawl space between the tunnel wall and the track.
His injuries were catastrophic. His left leg was blown off. His right leg was severed from the knee down. He suffered second and third-degree burns to his arms, hands and face. He lost his left eye – and his hearing on that side too.
He suffered a massive laceration to his forehead. A pole from the tube train’s internal fittings went into his body and he endured punctures and ruptures to his kidneys, lungs, colon and bowel. He later lost his spleen.
Dan was the most severely injured victim of the attacks to survive. And he was conscious throughout.
He initially thought the white flash was an electrical explosion.
Debris had fallen onto him, and his arms and hands were alight. He could see the flames flickering.
“Straight after the explosion, you could have heard a pin drop. It was almost as if everybody had just taken a big breath,” Dan says, “and then it was like opening the gates of hell. Screaming like I’ve never heard before.”
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More wreckage onboard the train at Edgware Road station
Dan could see some of the dead. He tried to push down to lever himself up from the debris. He realised how profusely he was bleeding.
“The initial feeling was one of total disbelief. It was like, surely God, this is just a nightmare.”
Dan’s mind immediately turned to his father, and how he couldn’t bear for him to witness this.
“My dad cannot be the person that walks into a mortuary and goes, ‘Yeah, that’s my son’,” Dan says. “I couldn’t bear the thought of that.”
He didn’t believe he would get out of the tunnel. But the will to survive instinctively kicked in and he screamed for help.
The first person to respond was fellow passenger Adrian Heili, who had served as a combat medic during the Kosovo war. If it had been anyone else, Dan believes he would have died.
“The first thing he said to me was, ‘Don’t worry, I’ve been in this situation before, and never lost anyone.’
“And I’m thinking, ‘How can you have gone through this before?’
“And then he said to me: ‘I’m not going to lie to you. This is really going to hurt.'”
Adrian applied a tourniquet and pinched shut the artery in Dan’s thigh to stop him bleeding to death. Dan’s life was literally in Adrian’s hands until paramedics were able to reach him about half an hour later.
Adrian helped many more in the hours that followed – and in 2009 received the Queen’s Commendation for Bravery.
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Adrian Heili and Dan Biddle in 2011
Dan’s trauma was far from over. He was taken to nearby St Mary’s Hospital where he repeatedly went into cardiac arrest. At one point, a surgeon had to manually massage his heart to bring him back to life. He was given 87 units of blood.
“I think there’s something in all of us – that fundamental desire to live.
“Very few people ever get pushed to the degree where that’s required.
“My survival is down to Adrian and the phenomenal care and just brilliance of the NHS and my wife.”
Physical survival was one thing. But the toll on Dan’s mental health was another.
After eight weeks in an induced coma, Dan began a year-long journey to leaving hospital – and he realised he’d have to navigate the world outside differently.
His nights became consumed with mental torture.
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CCTV shows the four London bombers arriving at Luton train station on the morning of 7 July 2005
He dreaded having to close his eyes and go to sleep, because he would find himself back in the tunnel.
“I wake up and [the bomber] is standing next to me,” Dan says. “I’ll be driving – he’s in the back seat of my car. I’ll look in the shop window and there’s a reflection of him – on the other side of the street.”
Those flashbacks have led to what Dan describes as survivor’s guilt.
“I’ve replayed that moment a million times over in my head. Was there something about me that made him do it? Should I have seen something about him then tried to stop it?”
By 2013 Dan had reached a dangerous low. He tried to take his own life three times.
But he had also started a relationship with his now-wife Gem – and this was a crucial turning point.
The next time he came close to suicide it was Gem’s face he saw when he closed his eyes, and he realised that if he ended his own life he would inflict appalling trauma on her.
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Gem and Dan pictured on their wedding day
Gem persuaded Dan to take a mental health assessment – and he began to get the expert help he needed.
In 2014 he agreed – as part of his therapy and attempts to manage the condition – to do something he thought he would never do: return to Edgware Road.
When the day came, Dan sat outside the station experiencing flashbacks and hearing the sounds of 7/7 again: screams, shouting and sirens.
He and Gem pressed on. As they entered the ticket hall there were more flashbacks.
The station manager and staff were expecting him and asked if he wanted to go down to the platform. Dan said it was a “bridge too far”. Gem insisted they all go together.
When they reached the platform, a train pulled in. Dan began to feel sick. But the train quietly moved on without incident – and by the time a third train had arrived he found the courage to board it.
“I feel really, really sick. I’m sweating. She’s crying. I’m tensing, waiting for a blast. I’m waiting for that that big heat and that pressure to hit me.”
And then the train stopped at the point in the tunnel where the bomb had gone off – an arrangement between the driver and the station manager.
“They’d stopped the train exactly where I’d been lying. I remember looking down onto the floor and it was a really weird feeling – knowing that my life really came to an end there.”
Tony Woolliscroft
Dan, pictured here with Gem in 2014, feels compelled to do something positive with his life because 52 people were denied this chance on 7/7
As the train pulled away, something inside Dan urged him to get off at the next station and move forward with his life.
“I’m going to leave the station, I’m going to do whatever I’m going to do today, and then I’m going to marry this amazing, beautiful woman,” he says. The two tied the knot the following year.
Eleven years on, Dan feels driven to do something positive with his life.
He now runs his own company helping disabled people into work – a professional journey he might never have embarked on had it not been for the bomb.
He still has flashbacks and bad days but he’s finding ways to manage them – and has published a book of what he has been through.
“I’m very lucky to still be alive. I’ve paid an immense, enormous price. I’ll just keep fighting every day to make sure that him and his actions never win.”
A list of organisations in the UK offering support and information with some of the issues in this story is available at BBC Action Line
Elon Musk says he is launching a new political party, weeks after dramatically falling out with US President Donald Trump.
The billionaire announced on his social media platform X that he had set up the America Party, billing it as a challenge to the Republican and Democratic two-party system.
However, it is unclear if the party has been formally registered with US election authorities. Musk, who was born outside of the US and is thus ineligible to run for the US presidency, does not say who will lead it.
He first raised the prospect of forming a party during his public feud with Trump, which saw him leave his role in the administration and engage in a vicious public spat with his former ally.
During that row, Musk posted a poll on X asking users if there should be a new political party in the US.
Referencing that poll in his post on Saturday, Musk wrote: “By a factor of 2 to 1, you want a new political party and you shall have it!
“When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy.
“Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.”
As of Saturday, the Federal Electoral Commission had not published documents indicating the party had been formally registered.
While there have been high-profile players outside the traditional two-party system in US politics, it is difficult for them to gain strong enough nationwide popularity to pose a real threat.
In the presidential election last year, candidates from the likes of Libertarian Party, the Green Party and the People’s Party all tried in vain to stop Trump or his Democratic rival, Kamala Harris, from winning.
Musk was until recently a core supporter of Trump, dancing alongside him during election rallies last year and bringing his four-year-old son to meet Trump in the Oval Office.
He was also Trump’s key financial backer: Musk spent $250m (£187m) to help him regain office.
After the election, he was appointed to lead the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which was tasked with identifying swingeing cuts in the federal budget.
His fallout with Trump began when he left the administration in May and publicly criticised Trump’s tax and spending plans.
The legislation – which Trump has called his “big, beautiful bill” – was narrowly passed by Congress and signed into law by the president this week.
The massive law includes huge spending commitments and tax cuts, and is estimated to add more than $3tn to the US deficit over the next decade.
Crucially for Musk, who owns electric-vehicle giant Tesla, Trump’s bill does not focus on green transition or subsidies for products like Teslas.
“Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far,” Trump wrote on his social media site, Truth Social, this week. “Without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa.”
Trump threatened to have Doge look into subsidies in favour of Musk’s companies, alluding also to the billionaire’s other businesses.
Musk also owns SpaceX, which launches rockets for the US government, and Starlink, which provides satellite service for US and European defence forces.
Grace is still struggling to find a summer job without previous paid work experience
Grace Pickett has been applying for part-time jobs for two years now – with no luck.
The 18-year-old from Corby is hoping to head to Liverpool John Moores University to study history in September, and now her A-levels are over, she’s ramped up her job hunt.
But she’s found herself facing the same issue many other young people across the UK say makes it hard for them to get their first part-time or summer job – not having enough previous experience.
“It is very frustrating,” says Grace, who has been told by several companies they cannot hire her due to a lack of prior work experience.
Lauren Mistry, from charity Youth Employment UK, which helps young people find jobs, says it’s “a vicious cycle”.
“To have experience, you need experience.”
Grace volunteered at a charity shop for six months and says she doesn’t understand why some employers don’t think this is enough. She’s been dropping off her CV in pubs, emailing potential employers, and filling in applications on job site Indeed – but hasn’t found anything yet.
Some of Grace’s friends have “given up” on their job hunts because they don’t think they’ll ever find anything, she says. She’s not reached that stage yet, but she’s started to feel pessimistic about whether she’ll find a job before the summer ends.
Oliver Holton, a 17-year-old college student in Retford, is also struggling to find a summer job, despite nearly four years’ experience doing a paper round. Many employers in the retail and hospitality sectors want him to have more specific experience, he says.
Summer jobs are more competitive than they were 20 years ago because online applications mean there are generally more candidates for each job, says Chris Eccles, from jobs site Employment 4 Students. Increases in the minimum wage and National Insurance have also affected hiring, according to Lauren Mistry.
Oliver Holton
Oliver is trying to find a summer job, but it’s not easy
As well as earning money, working part-time while at school, college or university, or during holidays can also help boost your CV when the time comes to apply to full-time jobs.
But figures from the Office for National Statistics show fewer young people have jobs while studying than 30 years ago. From 1992, when records began, to 2004, more than 35% of 16-17 were employed while in full-time education each summer, compared to fewer than 20% in summer 2024.
For those aged 18 to 24, about a third had jobs last summer, which is also lower than in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
We asked careers experts what you need to do to to land a summer job, and how you can stand out – even with no work experience.
Where can I find jobs?
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Many young people get their first job in retail or hospitality. There are also part-time roles in healthcare, warehousing and offices.
Though many jobs get posted on jobs boards like Indeed, LinkedIn and Reed, some employers only advertise them directly on their websites or social-media profiles.
Is it old-fashioned to drop your CV off speculatively at local pubs and cafes? Careers experts think it’s still worth trying, especially at smaller businesses.
“I actually prefer it when people come in,” says Edward Frank, manager of the Brewers Arms pub in Berwick-upon-Tweed. “It shows initiative.”
Jane Meynell, owner of Olive and Bean cafe in Newcastle, agrees. She says when candidates pop in with their CV it doesn’t just show their interest in the role, it also allows her to find out more about their personality than she might over email. And if she doesn’t have any vacancies, she often keeps the CVs on record, she says.
Show off your volunteering or teamwork experience
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Even if employers list previous work experience as desirable or required, they might be flexible if you find other ways to prove you’ve acquired the same skills, according to Matt Burney, an advisor at Indeed.
“You’re not going to be expected to have a really packed CV at 16, 17, 18,” he says.
Think about how you can show you’ve learned the skills employers are looking for -like teamwork, communication, problem-solving and team management.
Careers experts say this could be through volunteering at a charity shop, being on a football team, delivering a presentation or even taking on caring responsibilities at home.
Keep your CV simple
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If you’ve never written a CV before, there are countless examples online demonstrating how to format them, as well as templates.
Include your contact details, then list your work experience, if you have any, followed by your education and any volunteering or extra-curriculars. Matt Burney recommends keeping it to one page. “Don’t pad it out just for the sake of it,” he says.
“Make it easy for them to find your best skills and achievements without having to wade through large blocks of waffly text,” Chris Eccles says.
Show some personality but keep the appearance simple. Go for a size 11 or 12 font and “stay away from highly-designed PDFs”, which CV-scanning software may struggle to read, Lauren Mistry recommends.
And make the document easy for the employer to find by saving it with an appropriate title, which includes your name, she adds.
Don’t waffle in your cover letter
Some jobs also require a cover letter. This should summarise why you’re interested in the role and why you’re suitable for it.
“It’s very easy to waffle,” Matt Burney says, but people should keep it “short and specific” instead.
Cover letters a bit like exams with marking criteria, according to Chris Eccles. Study the job advert carefully to see which skills and experience the employer is looking for – and make sure you include this information, he says.
You should address the letter to the person recruiting, if you can find their name on the job listing or company website, Matt Burney says. Otherwise, open with “Dear Hiring Manager”, and end with “Sincerely” or “Best”, he recommends.
Use AI carefully
Some people use generative AI to craft CVs and cover letters. Attitudes towards that vary between companies, Lauren Mistry says – some big companies scan CVs for AI and automatically reject candidates who’ve used it. But others don’t mind.
Sam Westwood, people experience director at KFC UK and Ireland, says AI is a “really good starting point” for writing a CV or cover letter, and that recruiters at his company “actively embrace” the technology.
Careers experts recommend that if you do opt to use AI, you should check for accuracy and make sure you refine results to show your personality.
Don’t worry about your grades
Don’t stress too much about your GCSE and A-Level grades when you’re applying for a summer job. For part-time roles in retail and hospitality, “maths and English GCSEs shouldn’t be a barrier”, though the importance of exam results varies by employer, Lauren Mistry says.
Most employers just want to know that an applicant has good numeracy and literacy skills, which they can demonstrate through their CV, emails and job interview, she says.
You can never be too prepared for an interview
Matt Burney advises people ask friends or family to conduct a mock interview with them or get an AI platform to generate some questions, and think of specific examples for your answers. Chris Eccles recommends structuring your answers using the STAR answer method – situation, task, action, result.
Research both the role and the company as much as possible too. If you can, visit the place you’re applying to before your interview – cafe owner Jane says the first question she always asks candidates is whether they’ve been there before.
Present well at the interview
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It can be hard to know what to wear for an interview because dress codes vary so much by company. Lauren Mistry advises against wearing trainers, and recommends keeping your shoulders covered and avoiding blue jeans. If you’re unsure what’s appropriate, ask the company how you should dress, she says.
Careers experts say interviews are a two-way process. It’s not just an opportunity for an employer to find out about you, it’s also an opportunity for the candidate to learn more about the role and the company. Asking questions shows your interest in the role too.
You can ask about training, the company culture, and what a typical day in the job looks like. You can also ask about the next steps in the application process and when you’re likely to hear about the outcome.
And don’t just save your own questions until the end – asking them throughout the interview shows curiosity, Lauren Mistry advises.
Make sure you’re polite when you’re speaking to other staff at the company. Managers often ask other workers, like receptionists, what they thought of the candidates, she says.
Matt Burney recommends sending a short, polite follow-up email after your interview and says this will help set you apart from other candidates.
