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Spanish foreign minister says ‘every last person’ will be returned to Morocco, urging migrants to ‘not risk lives again’ – Europe live

In France, energy firm EDF has reported that a nuclear plant in the north of the country shut down three reactors after a swarm of jellyfish clogged pumps used to cool the units. Three reactors were taken offline on Monday and output at a fourth was cut by half, EDF said in a statement, leaving just one operating at full capacity. “This situation has no impact on the safety of the facilities, the safety of personnel, or the environment,” AFP reports EDF said. The Gravelines nuclear power plant, near the northern city of Dunkirk, is the largest in Western Europe, with six 900-megawatt reactors. The nuclear power plant was also temporarily taken offline a year ago after jellyfish clogged its seawater pumping stations.

Syrian court sentences Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia for war crimes

A Syrian court has sentenced the country’s former president Bashar al-Assad and his brother Maher to death in absentia for crimes against humanity and war crimes during the 14-year civil war, in which about half a million people died. The two men fled to Moscow after being ousted by a lightning rebel offensive in December 2024 which toppled the dictatorial regime in just 11 days. The former president and his brother, who commanded the feared fourth division and was considered the regime’s top security official, oversaw a brutal crackdown in which government forces killed, arrested and tortured indiscriminately to crush protests that started in 2011. The court said Bashar al-Assad had been sentenced to death for crimes of “premeditated and intentional murder of more than one person and of children” as well as “torture, arbitrary arrest and crimes against humanity”. It said it would pursue international legal avenues to try to prosecute the two men, but Russian officials have previously declined requests to extradite its former Syrian allies. The court also sentenced Atef Najib, Assad’s cousin and the former head of political security in Daraa, to death. Najib was responsible for the torture of a group of 15 young boys who had graffitied anti-Assad slogans on a wall in 2011 – an event that kicked off mass protests in the southern Syrian province, which then spread to the rest of the country. Najib’s trial was highly publicised, with pictures of him listening to proceedings while dressed in a prison uniform and held in a cage in court. The Syrian government has presented his trial as a landmark case in its pursuit of transitional justice, something experts say is key to healing divisions in the country. Syria has experienced explosions of violence in the post-Assad era. About 1,500 mostly Alawite civilians were killed in a wave of retaliatory killings in March 2025 after militants loyal to al-Assad attacked security forces. Al-Assad belonged to the Islamic Alawite sect – a minority group in Syria – and enjoyed strong support in the group’s coastal heartland during his rule. In July 2025, more than 1,700 people were killed in massacres in the Druze-majority province of Suweida when local fighting evolved into sectarian killings. Low-level violence has continued in northern Syria until the present day, particularly targeting Alawite civilians. Syrian authorities have taken steps towards transitional justice, establishing committees and arresting Assad-era officials, in an effort to end intercommunal violence. Al-Assad became president in 2000 at the age of 34, inheriting power from his father, Hafez. He had trained as an ophthalmologist in London and was not initially supposed to be president, but became the heir after his brother, Basil, died in a car accident. Though styled as a young reformer who was supposed to allow some liberalisation in Syrian politics and its economy, his legacy was largely defined by his brutal response to the country’s revolution. Under his rule, Syria’s fearsome security apparatus was given a free hand to arrest, torture and kill civilians on an industrial scale.

Tuesday briefing: To drill or not to drill – Burnham’s first big climate test

Good morning. What a difference a new job can make. “To have a shot at staying within 1.5C global warming, we can’t have any new oil or gasfields … It’s irresponsible and shortsighted to be funding new #fossilfuels when we need to be getting to #NetZero.” This was the 2022 message from Miatta Fahnbulleh, now the secretary of state for energy security and net zero. It’s a testament to her remarkable rise that Fahnbulleh wasn’t even an MP when she posted it four years ago. Today, she is in the cabinet, facing (or is the face of, at least) one of the most challenging, and potentially controversial questions looming for the new government: to drill or not to drill, baby? Two sites are the focus of fierce debate. Yesterday, a public consultation on whether to greenlight extraction at one of them – Jackdaw – closed. Next Monday, it’ll be the same for the other, Rosebank. Andy Burnham has been silent about the climate crisis since taking office. As we enter yet another heatwave, what his government does next will be a defining signal of intent on the issue. But what would extraction actually mean, and how many options are open to Fahnbulleh? That’s the subject of today’s First Edition, after a roundup of this morning’s headlines. Five big stories Colombia | More than 100 people have died after a powerful earthquake struck western Colombia, collapsing and severely damaging scores of buildings in major cities including Cali and Pereira. UK weather | Almost three-quarters of England is now in drought, with four more regions officially declared, and as much of Europe braces for its fifth climate crisis-driven heatwave this summer. Crime | Police are investigating whether Joshua Kerry, the man charged with the murder of the former Reform UK and Conservative politician Ann Widdecombe, had any role in an attempted burglary last year at the then London home of Nigel Farage. China | More than a million people were moved to safety across eastern China by Sunday evening as powerful Typhoon Dolphin made landfall amid fears torrential rain would cause flooding and landslides. Ukraine | Russia has banned voting against the war in September’s elections, after the supreme court upheld a suit brought by a small pro-Kremlin nationalist party, and stripped voters of their last option on the ballot: Yabloko, the country’s only remaining anti-war party. In depth: Two fields, one very big decision While often lumped together, Rosebank and Jackdaw are two separate sites, hundreds of miles apart. Rosebank is a proposed new oilfield 80 miles off the Shetland coast, containing 300 to 500m barrels of oil. It’s the UK’s last major undeveloped oil site. There is also gas at Rosebank, equating to roughly 1% of current demand. Jackdaw is a gasfield 150 miles east of Aberdeen. If operational, it could probably produce approximately 40,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (bpd), which at peak is equivalent to 6% of the UK’s North Sea gas supply. Jackdaw could displace 2% of the UK’s imports of gas over its nine- to 12-year lifetime. Under UK law, all oil and gas under the ground or seabed is owned by the state. It’s our collective asset. The government then dishes out licences for exploration and extraction of these fossil fuels to business. Often, these have complicated structures. Shell holds the licence to extract at Jackdaw. Rosebank is majority owned by Adura, a joint venture between Shell and Equinor (mostly owned by the Norwegian state). A minority stake of Rosebank is owned by UK-based Ithaca Energy, a subsidiary of the Israeli energy conglomerate Delek Group. Delek operates in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. *** The case for drilling – and the holes in it Unsurprisingly, the PR from fossil fuel companies on Rosebank and Jackdaw is full of optimism. It will bring down bills! Energy security! Jobs! These are all claims that have been repeatedly debunked. The UK Energy Research Centre is scathing in its assessment: “Assertions that drilling the North Sea will provide energy resilience and affordability in the face of current fuel price shocks are a delusion.” Jackdaw would create only 27 direct full-time jobs, according to its owner. Across both sites, there would be 880 jobs created during production, and 2,700 temporary construction roles. That’s no fix for structural decline. At least 70,000 jobs in the industry were lost in the decade to 2024, despite the Tories granting hundreds of licences. BP is now shutting down its North Sea operations. As our environment editor, Fiona Harvey tells me: “Whatever government does, jobs will decline. It’s unavoidable.” Because, the UK’s gas and oil is running out. Even if extraction is minimised, supplies are depleting: 90% has already been drained dry. Experts point to this as proof that new drilling won’t bolster long-term energy security. *** Who benefits from oil and gas? Drill or not, our household energy prices will unlikely be affected. Anything extracted wouldn’t be funnelled to UK residents at a knock-down rate: oil and gas are sold by private companies on international markets, which set the price. The scale of output from UK production is negligible in this global context. As we’ve seen, it takes one unreliable actor in charge of the world’s largest military to send global prices spiralling. Of course, there’s money to be made from tax – though these companies aren’t famed for coughing up when HMRC comes knocking. In 2024, Shell reported a negative UK tax figure of £12.5m while posting global post-tax profits of £18bn. In the same year, Equinor’s record was no better. Even if North Sea tax revenues were collected and somehow funnelled directly into energy bill subsidies, the impact would be limited. For context, after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Conservatives spent up to £80bn across two years shielding households and businesses from energy price hikes. Even by the oil and gas industry’s own estimates, the Rosebank and Jackdaw tax take would pale in comparison. And given the scale of tax subsidies available, campaigners suggest Rosebank could actually cost taxpayers money. That means underwriting the very businesses who help to cause the climate crisis we’re experiencing. This, of course, would be exacerbated by any fossil fuels extracted by Jackdaw and Rosebank. Burning just Rosebank’s oil and gas would produce about 250m tonnes of CO2 over its lifetime. As Areeba Hamid, co-executive director of Greenpeace UK, put it to me: “Sections of the media just keep repeating myths and lies. We are expecting a fifth summer heatwave, wild fires are burning the country, oil and gas companies are posting billions in profits, while the rightwing press and fossil fuel companies are pushing for Rosebank and Jackdaw approval. It’s pure cognitive dissonance.” *** Over to Burnham Under the Conservatives, Rosebank and Jackdaw were approved, but a court ruled these permits unlawful after a legal challenge from Greenpeace and Uplift. New approval needed to be sought – the results of which are impending. Labour’s 2024 manifesto ruled out new licences for North Sea exploration, while stating existing ones would not be revoked. Insiders say a compromise might be struck, with only Jackdaw OK-ed. Gas is needed for home heating and electricity generation, though in what should be diminishing quantities, and its extraction is less carbon intensive than oil. “Allowing it to go ahead is far less harmful than Rosebank,” Fiona tells me. And Jackdaw is a tieback, so can be connected to existing infrastructure. “It could therefore come online quicker.” Fahnbulleh is on holiday for the next couple of weeks. In the absence of answers, the briefing wars are in full swing. Reports that oil and gas execs are “near certain” that Rosebank and Jackdaw will get the go-ahead should be treated with caution, given their incentive to will this into fruition. Remember how Shabana Mahmood was definitely going to be Burnham’s chancellor? For all his flip-floppery, Starmer was generally steadfast in his climate commitments while PM, even if rightwing backlash tempered his ambitions. Burnham had a strong environmental track record as Manchester mayor. But he’s an unknown entity in Downing Street. Until last month, Ed Miliband held the energy brief, driving the last government’s decarbonisation agenda. An experienced Westminster operator with decades of experience and press attacks, Miliband was resolute enough to stick with climate plans, however often he was heralded the “MOST DANGEROUS MAN IN BRITAIN”. Fahnbulleh looks like continuity. She has Miliband’s backing and before entering parliament, she held top jobs at left-leaning thinktanks, including as CEO of the New Economics Foundation (NEF), which expressed opposition to further fossil fuel extraction. But she’s a parliamentary newbie. How she’ll respond to power and significant external pressure remains uncertain. In an interview last weekend, she struck a vague but cautious note: “We’ve always been clear that oil and gas are part of the mix … We are doing the hard trade-offs to make sure that we are doing this transition in a way that still delivers affordability.” “It’s going to be tough,” Hamid says, “but Miatta has to stick to her position. Otherwise, it’s a slippery slope: the pressure won’t stop at Rosebank and Jackdaw.” We want to hear from you What comes next after the A-level results land? We’d like to hear from students, parents and teachers about the educational and working landscape facing young people once they get their results this Thursday. To get in touch hit reply or email first.edition@theguardian.com What else we’ve been enjoying I enjoyed this interview with the UK Palestinian comic Sami Abu Wardeh – another reason I’m still trying to plot a trip to the Edinburgh fringe this year. Michael My grandmother introduced me to Beryl Bainbridge via a dog-eared copy of the Dressmaker, which I found rivetingly adult as a 10-year-old. Our ranking of her greatest novels reminds me I’ve still, happily, got a few more to discover. Libby Simon Hattenstone’s column on prisons is characteristically compelling, and a reminder that amid all the talk of early release, some have been forgotten. Michael The Guardian’s senior economics commentator, Aditya Chakrabortty, is brilliant on Over the Top Under the Radar podcast, discussing why he doesn’t think a wealth tax is the magic bullet many progressives claim it to be. Libby Deadpan, full of warmth and generous to a fault – do make time to read one of Sam Neill’s final interviews, on the making of Taika Waititi’s Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Libby Sport European championships | Britain’s Amy Hunt sprinted to women’s 100m glory in 11.00sec in Birmingham, with Ewa Swoboda claiming silver and Delphine Nkansa a bronze. Fifa | US president Donald Trump has warned Fifa would be making a “terrible mistake” if they get rid of Gianni Infantino as the head of world football’s governing body. Football | A consortium including the Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, is close to completing a deal for a 30% stake in Liverpool after months of talks with Fenway Sports Group. The front pages “Firefighters raise alarm over surge in ‘unprecedented’ summer blazes”, is the Guardian’s front page today, while the i Paper writes “45 million people in the UK now living in drought”, the Mirror says “High & dry”, and Metro has “It never rains … but it pours”. On politics, the Times has “Burnham demands plan to keep PC’s killers in jail” and the Express writes “Kemi: Rule out new taxes to prevent more hardship”. The Mail’s headline is “Day small boats crisis became a BIG boats crisis”, the Telegraph says “‘No limit’ to migrant mega dinghies”, and the Sun’s take is “Not-so-small boats crisis”. Finally, the FT splashes “Wall Street big names join Nvidia to build $500bn AI financing package”. Today in Focus Why did Saudi Arabia just spend billions on a video games company? Last week Saudi Arabia’s wealth fund and a group of investors spent $55bn (£41bn) on Electronic Arts, the video games company behind the Sims, Madden NFL and Battlefield. But why would such a powerful government take a risk with video games? As Keith Stuart and George Osborn tell Annie Kelly, it’s part of a pattern of superpowers and authoritarian regimes seeing games as handy propaganda tools. Cartoon of the day | Martin Rowson The Upside A bit of good news to remind you that the world’s not all bad At 60, Darren Miles is about to represent Great Britain at the world championships in slalom skateboarding – a sport he took up only in his late 50s. After a lifetime on a skateboard, he noticed his flexibility fading and his old tricks becoming increasingly difficult to do. Then, during lockdown, a stranger praised him for performing a simple 180 manoeuvre. It was a life-changing inflection point. Rather than give up, Miles found a new challenge in slalom, racing downhill between cones and learning to move his body in a different way. Now, after years of skating for the joy of it, he is discovering what he can still achieve – and seeing how far he can push himself. Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday Bored at work? And finally, the Guardian’s puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword Wordiply

Typhoon Dolphin: Beijing braces for one-third of its annual rainfall as storm sweeps China

Beijing is expected to hit by more than one-third of its annual rainfall over a ⁠24 hour period starting late Tuesday, as Typhoon Dolphin moves deeper ⁠inland prompting the closure of tourist areas and suspension of construction projects. From ‌Tuesday evening through to Thursday, most areas in Beijing will experience heavy ‌downpours with a cumulative rainfall of more than 150mm in 24 hours, the city’s meteorological service has forecast. That compares with Beijing’s average annual rainfall of 528mm, the bulk of which normally falls between June and September. Four districts on Beijing’s outskirts activated level one emergency flood responses. In the mountainous district of Mentougou in western Beijing, authorities issued the highest ‌level of flood emergency alert on Tuesday and advised people to stay indoors unless necessary, and avoid travelling to mountainous areas and rivers. The strongest typhoon to hit China this year, Dolphin has proved an unusually resilient storm system, travelling nearly 6,000km (3,728 miles) ⁠before making landfall over the weekend, drenching China’s eastern coast and bringing with it a sprawling cloud field. More than a million people were moved to safety across eastern China over the weekend, amid fears torrential rain would cause flooding and landslides. Wenzhou, a coastal city in Zhejiang province, said it relocated more than 900,000 people and opened more than 1,500 emergency shelters. In neighbouring Fujian, 98,900 people were moved. In Shanghai, 215,600 people were moved from areas considered at risk by Sunday evening. Early on Tuesday Dolphin moved over the central Chinese province of Hubei, a major auto and hi-tech electronics manufacturing ‌hub and home to more ‌than 58 million people. On Tuesday, the National Meteorological Center renewed an orange alert for heavy rain, the second-highest warning level, with north-western Hubei expected to receive up to 250mm in a 24-hour period. Hubei authorities have issued a yellow warning for cities including Xiangyang, Huanggang and Suizhou, citing a heightened risk of flooding and landslides. Scenic areas across the province have announced temporary closures, ‌including the popular Three Gorges Dam tourist area in Yichang. Of 107 major highway and waterway construction projects under way in the province, 26 projects deemed high-risk have been suspended. In neighbouring Henan province, authorities issued a flash-flood alert as the storm continues to ⁠channel moisture northward. Japan is also preparing for landslides, flooding and strong winds after the Japan Meteorological Agency said Typhoon Chan-hom, could move across Japan’s mainland later on Tuesday. With Reuters

Flight paths and fridge magnets: how a fireball hunter tracked down New Zealand’s newest meteorite

Days after a massive fireball flashed through New Zealand’s skies last month, Steve Wyn-Harris spotted a small, black stone on the bare ground. The citizen astronomer was on the hunt for debris from the meteor that had flown over the North Island. He bagged the rock but wasn’t too confident, as he says most finds turn out to be “meteor-wrongs”. But when he held the thumb-sized rock next to a fridge magnet, to detect iron and nickel in meteorites, it clicked. Wyn-Harris did the test on a video call with other citizen scientists and geologists and after the click “we were all yelling”. “I went from doubting Thomas to a convert,” says Wyn-Harris. His discovery marks the 11th confirmed meteorite to be found in New Zealand. Meteorites are the leftover rock that hits the ground after the meteor has burned up entering Earth’s atmosphere. Finding the debris in New Zealand can be difficult, a consequence of the country’s sparsely populated, rugged terrain. Wyn-Harris is the director of Fireballs Aotearoa, an alliance of astronomers, geologists and citizen scientists that now has a network of 200 cameras set up around the country designed to help document meteor showers and recover meteorites. On 28 July, the group and their cameras had tracked a meteor over the North Island, and people had rushed online to describe the dazzling display and a “huge boom”. Footage indicated there was an exciting possibility of many fragments from the meteor on the ground. After crunching data, including wind speed and flight path projections, the group zeroed in on an area where they calculated meteorites could be strewn. They kept the location a secret, worried a public appeal for help could trigger a “meteor rush” – a martian meteorite found in Niger sold for more than $5m last year – though New Zealand law prohibits such sales. Wyn-Harris says he found the meteorite near a riverbank while scouting farmland a day before he and the group were due to search the area. “I wasn’t so excited when I first spotted and bagged it because I’d only been looking around … for 40 minutes,” he says. But on the video call later that night a geologist looked at the rock and noted its crust had a meteorite quality. The next day, a team of 11 people carried out a wider search of the area. Two days after Wyn-Harris’s discovery, which weighed eight grams, Liam McGovern, a geology PhD student, found a second fragment, weighing 39 grams. Over 10 days, the search party discovered four pieces, weighing 75g in total, including a fragment that had crashed on to the driveway of a house. Wyn-Harris says the meteor’s trajectory before it entered the atmosphere indicated it came from the asteroid belt, making it an “ordinary chondrite”. The name is “unfortunate, because they’re not ordinary,” he says. All four fragments will now be analysed further by Dr Marshall Palmer, a geologist who is part of Fireballs Aotearoa. Palmer will give the meteorites an official name and, together, they will become New Zealand’s 11th documented meteorite. Prof James Scott, a geoscientist and the founder of Fireballs Aotearoa, says the pieces are “100%” meteorite, and he believes they likely share origins with New Zealand’s first meteorite discovered in 1863 nearby in Masterton. “Both likely come from the same parent body, which was an asteroid from near the start of the solar system. That blows my mind. We have two rocks, formed elsewhere in space from a smallish asteroid … that has been catastrophically destroyed, and yet they land within 10km of each other.”

At a temple in Thailand, parents mourn a 12-year-old mass shooting victim, and a father pleads for forgiveness

When the mother and father of the youngest victim of last week’s school mass shooting arrived at the temple north of Bangkok, teary-eyed parents came up to quietly offer condolences before the prayers began in front of the 12-year-old girl’s casket. Then, in a moment, the tone changed. A man arrived and dropped to his knees in supplication, sobbing and bowing his head in the traditional “wai” gesture before the couple who had lost their daughter, Naphat Chaimar. It was Nithi Yimruang, the father of the 14-year-old boy who had carried out the shooting, pleading for their forgiveness. Naphat’s father, Pongthon Chaimar, helped raise the man up by his arms, but his head remained hung in shame, even as Pongthon accepted the apology. The girl’s parents told Nithi they understood he too was going through a difficult time. His son, Patchat Yimruang, had shot his grandfather and grandmother dead before killing six people and injuring more than 30 at the prestigious Debsirin Nonthaburi school north-west of Bangkok. The teenager had then turned the gun on himself. The father told the Guardian before the funeral service: “I’m experiencing so many emotions all at once. I feel guilty and heartbroken because I’ve suffered a loss too. I’ve lost my child, as well as my parents. And seeing the little girl’s father being so kind and understanding toward me makes me feel even more guilty.” He still does not understand why his son did what he did, but he is left to reckon with the violence his own flesh and blood had committed. He leaves the temple of Wat Lat Pla Duk in Nonthaburi province before Monday’s funeral service begins. Grief, and a royal wreath The teenage boy had used his grandfather’s gun to carry out the attack. He had lived with his grandparents ever since his parents separated when he was two years old. But his father visited him every weekend, and took him to extra tutoring classes. “For me, he was number one. But he was a quiet, reserved child. He didn’t talk much and usually kept things to himself. Toward the end, though, he became even quieter than before. “I used to ask him quite often how things were at school, and he would just say, ‘so-so’. I’d ask him how his classes were going, and he’d just say ‘so-so’. “But now, there’s no way for me to find out or ask him any more.” The shooting has resonated across the country, with the king and prime minister leading an outpouring of grief. Inside the temple’s pavilion in Nonthaburi province, Naphat’s coffin is flanked by a yellow wreath from King Maha Vajiralongkorn and a violet and pink tribute from Queen Suthida. They are joined by wreaths from the prime minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, and several other cabinet ministers. The palace announced on Sunday the king had granted royal patronage for the victims, their family and relatives. The move means all the injured would be treated as patients under royal care, and royal sponsorship would be awarded for the funeral rites and cremations of those killed. ‘What I miss most about her … are her dreams’ At the temple on Monday, hundreds of mourners – including the deputy prime minister, teachers, parents and friends – fill the room where Naphat’s casket lies as monks chant prayers. The wreaths and chairs are so numerous they spill out into the undercover area outside. Mourners burn incense next to the images on display that trace her transition from a baby to a confident young girl on the brink of adolescence, playing guitar and performing on stage. Naphat had been at the school only three months, as part of its newest cohort of grade 7 pupils. Father Pongthon says: “What I miss most about her, and what her mother and I miss the most, are her dreams.” “After the new school term began, she took part in a dance competition and a Thai traditional costume competition. And toward the end of this month, she was supposed to compete in a cheerleading competition as well. “She took on all these activities, and she was able to do them all. She really enjoyed expressing herself.” When Naphat’s parents heard the news of the shooting at the school, they kept calling their daughter’s phone. Later, an officer called to say she was at Phranangklao hospital in a critical condition. Naphat died on Saturday, bringing the total death toll to nine, including the attacker. Naphat’s teacher, who did not wish to be named, remembered her as an entertainer. He told the Guardian, she would not normally have been in the building where the shooting occurred but had gone to get a vaccination along with some other students. She was walking out of the room where she received the vaccination when she was struck. Her father, Pongthon, says he does not blame the school. “To put it simply, I think something like this can happen anywhere. Anywhere in the world.” • International helplines can be found at befrienders.org. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123. In the US, you can call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14.