Andy Burnham has taken the reins as Britain's prime minister after winning Labour's leadership race without opposition, stepping into the role vacated by Keir Starmer, who stepped down two years into his tenure despite securing a massive election victory. King Charles granted Burnham authority to establish his government following Starmer's departure.
Outside his new residence at Downing Street, Burnham laid out his vision in his maiden address. He promised to restore calm to British politics, reshape how government operates and roll out policies to ease the nation's cost of living strain.
Burnham arrives at a precarious moment, becoming Britain's seventh prime minister in ten years as the country grapples with deepening economic and political turmoil.
Donald Trump has declared that recent American air strikes on Iran were mounted "in honour" of three US soldiers who died in the past week. The military action marks the ninth straight day of direct confrontation between Washington and Tehran.
US Central Command confirmed it targeted Iranian military facilities and communications networks to curb Tehran's capacity to endanger vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran responded by firing on American bases in Syria and launching missiles at Aqaba airport in Jordan, the country reported, while Kuwait said it shot down Iranian unmanned aircraft.
The fresh fighting erupted after two American troops fell in Jordan and one in Iraq, intensifying regional hostilities.
Vice President JD Vance announced the arrival of his fourth son, whom he and his wife Usha named Alec Neel Vance. Both mother and child are doing well, Vance told the public, and he commended the team at Walter Reed Medical Center.
Trump sent his congratulations, hailing the newborn as "a perfect baby boy." The birth marks the first child born to a sitting US vice president in over 150 years, according to the Associated Press.
A Russian missile barrage on a cargo vessel off Ukraine's coast claimed 10 lives as recovery teams pulled additional bodies from the wreckage in the Black Sea. The Guinea-Bissau-registered ship was transporting grain via Ukraine's sole remaining sea trade route when cruise missiles struck near Odesa.
Four of those killed were Indian citizens, India's ministry of foreign affairs stated, condemning the assault on merchant ships carrying civilians. This strike ranks among the deadliest attacks on commercial ships since Russia invaded Ukraine, intensifying alarm about the security of Black Sea shipping lanes.
The European Union hit Chinese retailer AliExpress with a fine of €550 million, its steepest penalty yet, for permitting banned and hazardous goods to be hawked on its marketplace. The European Commission determined the company breached rules set out in the Digital Services Act by allowing fake merchandise, dangerous playthings and unsafe personal care items to remain on sale even after discovering them.
AliExpress, controlled by Alibaba, said it plans to fight the ruling, calling the penalty excessive. The sanction stands as the largest ever levied under the EU's sweeping digital legislation.
