News 22/08/25

Foreign Secretary David Lammy has accused Israel of causing a “man-made catastrophe” in Gaza, calling its refusal to allow sufficient aid a “moral outrage.”

He said confirmation of famine in Gaza City was “utterly horrifying and wholly preventable.” Mr Lammy urged the Israeli government to act immediately, warning the consequences were “sickening, especially for children,” and stressing the situation must not be allowed to deteriorate further.

The US Justice Department has released a transcript of an interview with Ghislaine Maxwell, the jailed former partner of financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Speaking with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche last month, Maxwell said she never saw President Donald Trump in what she called “an inappropriate setting.” According to the transcript, she insisted the president “was never inappropriate with anybody.” Maxwell recalled possibly meeting Mr Trump as far back as 1990, when her father, Robert Maxwell, owned the New York Daily News.

The US government will take a 10 percent stake in chipmaker Intel, in what officials are describing as a historic move to secure the country’s technological edge.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the agreement would boost the economy and cement US leadership in semiconductors. President Donald Trump, confirming the deal in the Oval Office, called it “a great deal for them.” Shares in Intel rose more than five percent after the announcement.

A tour bus carrying more than fifty passengers has crashed on a major road in upstate New York, leaving several people dead and many more injured.

The vehicle was returning to New York City from Niagara Falls when it rolled on Interstate 90 near Pembroke, around twenty five miles east of Buffalo. State police say there were multiple fatalities, entrapments and injuries.

Emergency teams remain at the scene, with investigations into the cause of the crash already underway.

The Foreign Secretary has been given a formal warning by the Environment Agency after admitting he went fishing without a licence.

David Lammy reported himself following what he called an “administrative oversight” during a visit with US Vice President JD Vance at his official retreat in Kent earlier this month. Mr Lammy later purchased the licence and, while he failed to catch anything, Mr Vance and his children returned their catches to the lake.

The government has begun the process of appealing a High Court ruling that blocked asylum seekers from being housed in an Essex hotel.

The Home Office is seeking permission to intervene in the case, which would allow it to challenge the interim judgment. Epping Forest District Council secured the injunction to prevent migrants being accommodated at The Bell Hotel in Epping. The order gave the hotel’s owners, Somani Hotels Limited, 14 days to clear the property.

The Metropolitan Police say 100 people have been arrested and dozens of weapons seized ahead of this weekend’s Notting Hill Carnival.

Officers describe the operation as “intelligence-led”, aimed at individuals considered to pose the greatest risk to public safety. Eleven firearms and more than 40 knives have been recovered, and 21 people have been recalled to prison. A further 266 are subject to bail or licence conditions preventing them from attending the event. The operation comes a year after two people died following separate attacks during the Carnival.

The FBI has searched the home of John Bolton, the former national security adviser to President Donald Trump.

The raid on his property in Bethesda, Maryland, was carried out on Friday as part of what sources have described as a national security investigation into classified records. Mr Bolton has not been arrested. He served as President Trump’s top security adviser for 17 months before being forced out in 2019. Asked about the search, the President told reporters he had no advance knowledge, adding he was “not a fan” of Mr Bolton.

TikTok is cutting jobs in the UK as it shifts towards using artificial intelligence to police content.

The company says a global restructuring is underway, concentrating operations in fewer locations. Hundreds of roles are expected to go in its trust and safety teams, which currently handle content moderation.

Unions have condemned the decision, warning it could put millions of British users at greater risk online.

A famine has officially been declared in Gaza City and surrounding neighbourhoods by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification.

The UN-backed system, which monitors food insecurity, has only confirmed four other famines since its creation in 2004, all of them in Africa. Gaza City, home to around half a million people, is the first outside the continent to be recognised. Previous declarations were made in Somalia in 2011, and in Sudan in 2017, 2020 and again in 2024.

Actor Noel Clarke has lost his High Court libel battle against The Guardian.

The 49-year-old, known for Kidulthood and Doctor Who, sued the paper after a 2021 article reported claims of sexual misconduct from around 20 women who had worked with him. Clarke denied the allegations, but Guardian News and Media defended its reporting as true and in the public interest. The court agreed, ruling in the publisher’s favour.

The government says it will clamp down on people wrongly claiming child benefit after moving abroad.

Ministers believe the move could save £350 million over five years. Under new rules, those who are outside the UK for more than eight weeks will not usually qualify, except in exceptional cases. A specialist team will use travel data to spot claimants who have left the country. A pilot scheme has already blocked payments to more than 2,600 people.

Rail passengers through Slough faced disruption this morning after animals got onto the tracks at Taplow.

Trains on the Elizabeth Line and GWR have resumed but delays remain. The problems come as millions are expected to travel for the Bank Holiday weekend, with busy roads, engineering works and rail strikes all predicted to cause major disruption. The RMT strike will affect CrossCountry services running from Aberdeen down to Cornwall.

Protests are expected outside hotels being used to house asylum seekers in the coming days.

New figures show more than 32,000 people are currently in hotel accommodation, an 8 percent rise during Labour’s first year in office.

Campaign group Stand Up To Racism says it will stage counter-demonstrations on Friday in Bournemouth, Cardiff and Leeds, with more planned for Saturday.

At the same time, councils led by Labour, the Conservatives and Reform UK are exploring possible legal action against the use of hotels for asylum seekers.

Israel says it will resume negotiations with Hamas over the release of hostages taken during the October 7 attack.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed talks will also aim to end the war, but only on what he called “terms acceptable to Israel.”

His comments follow Hamas agreeing to a temporary ceasefire proposal.

Despite that, Israel’s military is pressing ahead with its offensive in Gaza City. The Defence Forces have begun urging medics and international organisations in the north to move south ahead of an expanded operation.