With 'rare' Paris talks, France hopes to cash in on Saudi investment programme
France 24

With 'rare' Paris talks, France hopes to cash in on Saudi investment programme

Saudi's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman is in Paris to meet France's President Emmanuel Macron. The two leaders are to hold talks on a variety of topics, but first and foremost about the situation in the Middle East. For France, this is a chance to benefit from Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 investment plan. FRANCE 24's Clovis Casali is at the Elysée Palace and tells us more.

Trump claims Iran is ‘completely collapsing’ ahead of new sanctions announcement – live
The Guardian

Trump claims Iran is ‘completely collapsing’ ahead of new sanctions announcement – live

It’s a common refrain from the president, but perhaps takes on a new meaning ahead of the fresh sanctions that we’re expecting later todaySign up for the US Breaking News emailNew Mexico will continue funding gender-affirming care for minors after a federal rule ending Medicaid support for such care goes into effect.On 13 August, the Trump administration finalized a rule – set to go into effect on...

Survivors of violent crime criticise MoJ for not explaining offender restriction zones
The Guardian

Survivors of violent crime criticise MoJ for not explaining offender restriction zones

Campaigners accuse ministers of trying to grab headlines with announcement before a working system is readySurvivors of violent crime and families of victims have criticised the UK government for announcing “world first” plans to introduce restriction zones for serious offenders freed from prison within a few weeks without spelling out how they would work.Key campaigners who have championed the id...

China and Jordan call for Strait of Hormuz to get back to normal after US-Iran conflict

China and Jordan call for Strait of Hormuz to get back to normal after US-Iran conflict

SCMP

China and Jordan have called for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to shipping and called for the ceasefire between the United States and Iran to be maintained in a joint statement issued during King Abdullah’s visit to Beijing. They also said they wanted to see “a comprehensive solution addressing the root causes of tension … through dialogue and negotiation, ensuring full respect for the sov...

Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon price rises in western Europe ‘highest in world’

Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon price rises in western Europe ‘highest in world’

The Guardian

World’s largest streaming services have also increased subscription costs repeatedly in US, research findsBusiness live – latest updatesSubscribers to Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video in western Europe have faced higher price increases than in any other market in recent years, according to research.Over the past four years the world’s largest subscription video streaming services have drama...

What could new US sanctions on Iran entail?

What could new US sanctions on Iran entail?

France 24

The US says it is preparing to announce new sanctions on Iran. It's been billed an economic D-day and is expected to add further pressure on the country's economy that's already been battered from previous sanctions and a US naval blockade. The renewed economic pressure would not be the first time the US has used economic tools at its disposal to corner Iran. But what could the new measures likely...

4 arrested as Kenya investigates 18 elephant deaths in Amboseli

4 arrested as Kenya investigates 18 elephant deaths in Amboseli

SCMP

Police have arrested four suspects in an investigation ⁠into the deaths ⁠of 18 elephants in Kenya’s Amboseli ⁠ecosystem, where authorities also seized assorted substances including chemicals, the tourism and wildlife ministry has said. A Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) spokesperson told Reuters on Monday that the four had since been released on bail. Preliminary laboratory ‌results pointed to the pro...

Indiana mayor calls it ‘unacceptable’ for thousands to have no power two weeks after storm

Indiana mayor calls it ‘unacceptable’ for thousands to have no power two weeks after storm

The Guardian

Gary mayor says 12 days is ‘too long’ for residents to go without power after storm downed trees on to power linesThe mayor of Gary, Indiana, has said it is “unacceptable” that thousands of residents in the city are still without power nearly two weeks after an 11 August storm known as a derecho brought 90 mph, straight-line winds, downing trees on to power lines.“We’re at day 12, and 12 days is t...

France's left fractures further as MEP launches presidential bid

France's left fractures further as MEP launches presidential bid

France 24

French centre-left politician Raphael Glucksmann announced his candidacy for France's presidential election next year, joining a crowded field of far-right figures, centrists and fellow left-wingers. Hard-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon is planning to stand while Greens leader Marine Tondelier is campaigning while pregnant, socialist Party (PS) leader Olivier Faure and even possibly ex-president Fr...

Ukraine showing ‘remarkable innovation’: Kyiv ‘holding front line’ while striking Russia’s economy

Ukraine showing ‘remarkable innovation’: Kyiv ‘holding front line’ while striking Russia’s economy

France 24

Genie Godula is pleased to welcome Samantha de Bendern, Associate Fellow at Chatham House, author, and political risk and financial consultant. Europe is taking increasingly consequential steps to support Ukraine, but de Bendern warns that they remain insufficient to address the country's fundamental vulnerability. The transfer of interceptor missiles and the prospect of producing Storm Shadow/SCA...

Meet Dai Zheng, the space veteran betting on China’s reusable rocket revolution

Meet Dai Zheng, the space veteran betting on China’s reusable rocket revolution

SCMP

Ten years ago, Dai Zheng made a career-defining gamble: he left his secure, prestigious engineering post in China’s state space programme to join an unproven private start-up. On August 19, that risk paid off when a rocket booster returned from orbit and landed upright for the first time in Chinese commercial space history. For Dai, now chief commander of the Zhuque-3 missions at LandSpace, the su...

EV maker Xpeng set to challenge Tesla in embodied AI after robotics unit raises US$900m

EV maker Xpeng set to challenge Tesla in embodied AI after robotics unit raises US$900m

SCMP

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker Xpeng has secured US$900 billion in funding from high-profile investors including Alibaba Group Holding and IDG Capital to spur its robotics unit, despite a widening second-quarter loss. Dogotix, a subsidiary of Xpeng, raised US$900 million in the latest round of financing, which valued it at US$6.3 billion, Xpeng said in a statement on Monday, adding that the f...

US unveils expanded sanctions aimed at Iran's 'economic asphyxiation'

US unveils expanded sanctions aimed at Iran's 'economic asphyxiation'

France 24

The US on Monday announced an expansion of secondary sanctions it hopes will "sever every economic lifeline" ​that sustains ‌Iran, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said at a press conference. The expanded sanctions target Iran's digital assets, technology, gold, aviation and shipping sectors.

US vows 'economic asphyxiation' of Iran with new sanctions

US vows 'economic asphyxiation' of Iran with new sanctions

France 24

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday laid out plans for the "economic asphyxiation" of Iran, expanding Washington's secondary sanctions threats and warning of dire consequences for countries that do not join the campaign.

Trump says Iran is ‘completely collapsing’ ahead of new sanctions announcement – live

Trump says Iran is ‘completely collapsing’ ahead of new sanctions announcement – live

The Guardian

It’s a common refrain from the president, but perhaps takes on a new meaning ahead of the fresh sanctions that we’re expecting later todaySign up for the US Breaking News emailNew Mexico will continue funding gender-affirming care for minors after a federal rule ending Medicaid support for such care goes into effect.On 13 August, the Trump administration finalized a rule – set to go into effect on...