UNITED KINGDOM

Militant group said to want stronger guarantees of a permanent end to the war as Israeli prime minister prepares to fly to WashingtonHamas leaders are close to accepting a proposed deal for a ceasefire in Gaza but want stronger guarantees that any pause in hostilities would lead to a permanent end to the 20-month war, sources close to the militant Islamist organisation have said.Hamas officials met on Thursday in Istanbul to discuss the new ceasefire proposals and later issued a statement confirming they were talking to other “Palestinian factions” before formally announcing a response. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/04/gaza-ceasefire-talks-hamas-deal-israel

Ministers raise prospect of regulatory crackdown on sector over court case brought by 62 franchise operatorsMinisters are closely watching a court case in which Vodafone is alleged to have “unjustly enriched” itself at the expense of franchise operators, and have raised the prospect of a regulatory crackdown on the sector.The small business minister, Gareth Thomas, has said he will “track very carefully” a £120m legal claim brought against Vodafone last year by a group of 62 of about 150 franchise operators. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/jul/04/uk-government-closely-watching-franchise-operators-120m-legal-claim-against-vodafone Author : Simon Goodley Publish date : 2025-07-04 04:00:00 Copyright for syndicated content

President holds rally after passage of sweeping policy bill and uses slur in speech about estate taxes and bankersTrump’s tax-and-spending bill passes Congress in major win for presidentJeffries has just passed the five-hour mark and has no intention of stopping: “We still got some ground to cover.”“We are going to continue as Democrats to take our sweet time on behalf of the American people because the issues are too significant to ever walk away from,” Jeffries said, to cheers from the Democrats in the chamber. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2025/jul/03/trump-big-bill-tax-spend-latest-voting Author : Robert Mackey (now); Lauren Gambino and Kira

Victoria police say they attempted to engage with armed man before ‘siege of several hours’. Follow the latest updates liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSmoke coming from Sydney tram causes to be suspended on Randwick lineLight rail services on the Randwick line have stopped due to smoke coming from the roof of a tram.The man managed to get back into his car and drive a short distance before being overcome by his injuries. Continue reading... Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2025/jul/04/victoria-daisy-hill-ebikes-anthony-albanese-sussan-ley-labor-coalition-politics-updates-ntwnfb Author : Rafqa Touma Publish date : 2025-07-03 22:58:00 Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the