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Sunak to announce new defence secretary as Ben Wallace departs
James Heappey and Liam Fox are two of the well-known names in the frame for the post of Defence Secretary. Heappey, the current Armed Forces Minister, is a former soldier who served in Afghanistan. He has been an MP since 2015. Heappey endorsed former PM Boris Johnson during the 2019 leadership election, and went on…
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Abba’s Agnetha Fältskog returns with solo song: ‘I didn’t know if I could do this’
By Mark Savage BBC Music Correspondent Abba’s Agnetha Fältskog has revealed her first new music in 10 years, a solo song called Where Do We Go From Here? The star says she was was lured back to the studio by producer Jörgen Elofsson, who oversaw her 2013 album, A. “He played me the demo, and…
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South Africa fire: More than 50 dead in Johannesburg tower block blaze
You join us as news reaches us from South Africa that more than 50 people have died following a fire at a block of flats in Johannesburg overnight. There is still an unclear picture as to what sparked the blaze and emergency services tell us the search and recovery of bodies is continuing. Stay with…
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47 dead in Johannesburg apartment block fire
By Antoinette Radford BBC News At least 52 people have died after a fire broke out in a block of flats in Johannesburg, South African authorities say. More than 40 others are injured. Johannesburg authorities say it’s unclear what sparked the blaze at the five-storey building in the city centre. A spokesman for the emergency…
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Andrew Tate: Chats in ‘War Room’ suggest dozens of women groomed
By Jamie Tahsin and Matt Shea BBC News Evidence that dozens of women were groomed into online sex work by members of influencer Andrew Tate’s “War Room” group has been uncovered by the BBC. Leaked internal chat logs identify 45 potential victims between March 2019 and April 2020 but the total number is likely to…
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Country Garden: Debt crisis-hit China property giant in record loss
By Annabelle Liang Business reporter Country Garden, one of China’s biggest property developers, has become the latest real estate giant to warn that it could default on its debts. This came as the crisis-hit company reported a record $6.7bn (£5.2bn) loss for the first six months of the year. Country Garden said in the statement…
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Xóchitl Gálvez: Mexican opposition pick female election candidate
By George Wright BBC News Mexico’s opposition coalition has named an outspoken female senator with indigenous roots as their candidate for the 2024 presidential election. Xóchitl Gálvez is a 60-year-old computer engineer and businesswoman. Her nomination raises the prospect of Mexico having a female president for the first time. Former Mexico City mayor Claudia Sheinbaum…
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US health department recommends looser restrictions on cannabis
By Max Matza BBC News, Seattle The US Department of Health and Human Services has called on the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to loosen federal rules on cannabis. The drug is illegal at the federal level despite 40 of 50 US states having passed laws legalising its use in some form. Cannabis is currently listed…
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Gabon coup: Why military takeovers are all the rage
By Paul Melly Africa analyst Yet another coup in Africa – just five weeks after Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum was taken hostage by the troops of his own presidential guard, Gabon’s Ali Bongo also finds himself detained in his own residence. A sudden statement on national television in the early hours of Wednesday, to declare…
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Wildlife Photographer of the Year: ghostly face or fish?
By Maddie Molloy BBC News Climate & Science What do you see when you look at this photo? The image appears to show an enormous, scary face suddenly emerging from the ocean. But what you’re actually looking at is a stargazer fish which has buried itself in the sandy floor of the Mediterranean. The photo was…