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Israel continues airstrikes on Gaza after Hamas says it is ready for ceasefire talks

Israel has continued to launch waves of airstrikes in Gaza, hours after Hamas said it was ready to start talks “immediately” on a US-sponsored proposal for a 60-day ceasefire. The announcement by the militant Islamist organisation increased hopes that a deal may be done within days to pause the killing in Gaza and possibly end the near 21-month conflict. Saturday was relatively “calmer” after days of intense bombardment, aid officials and residents in Gaza said, although 24 Palestinians were killed, including 10 people seeking humanitarian aid, according to hospital officials. Airstrikes struck tents in the Mawasi coastal area in southern Gaza, killing seven, including a Palestinian doctor and his three children, according to medics at a nearby hospital. Four others were killed in the town of Bani Suheila, and three people were killed in three different strikes in the town of Khan Younis. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) made no immediate comment on the attacks. Israel’s security cabinet was due to meet after sundown on Saturday but officials in Jerusalem said there was “no guarantee” that ministers would make a decision on the Hamas response to the ceasefire deal. Separately, two US contractors with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) were injured in the south of the territory after unknown assailants threw grenades at them at a food distribution site, the organisation said. The GHF, a US-supported private organisation that began handing out food parcels in Gaza last month, has been mired in controversy, with the UN secretary general, António Guterres, saying it was “inherently unsafe” and that it was “killing people”. The GHF denies this, saying it has delivered tens of millions of meals in “safety and security”. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in recent weeks in shooting or shelling by the IDF while travelling to GHF sites or gathering in large crowds to get aid from convoys brought into Gaza by the UN that are often stopped and looted. Aid workers in Gaza have called again for an immediate cessation of hostilities, saying that fuel stocks for NGOs are close to running out, which would lead to the “complete collapse” of humanitarian operations, much of the health system and communications across the territory. Power supplies in Gaza rely primarily on large quantities of diesel for generators. “We are pretty much down to about half a day’s worth. When that is gone, everything has to shut down,” said one humanitarian worker in Deir al-Balah. Israel imposed a tight 11-week blockade on Gaza after the most recent ceasefire collapsed in March, which has only been partly lifted to allow a small amount of food aid and medical supplies into the territory. No fuel has been permitted to enter, and supplies that still exist in Gaza are often in Israeli-controlled areas or combat zones and so inaccessible. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, is to fly to Washington on Sunday for talks with the US president, Donald Trump, who has said in a series of social media posts that he wants the Gaza war to stop. Drafts of the proposed deal seen by the Guardian include a provision specifying that Trump would personally announce any ceasefire – possibly in the coming days during Netanyahu’s visit. However, sources close to Hamas said the organisation wants greater clarity over guarantees that the initial truce would lead to a permanent end to the war and the eventual withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. There is also disagreement over who would be allowed to deliver the “sufficient aid” described in the draft. Hamas want the GHF to be closed down. Israel wants to maintain a system of distribution independent from the UN or other countries. Speaking to reporters on board Air Force One late on Friday, Trump said he was optimistic and suggested there “could be a Gaza deal” next week. But Israeli media have described a series of steps involving separate Israeli delegations flying to Qatar and Egypt to complete negotiations, and the current draft specifies that Steve Witkoff, Trump’s personal envoy, will travel to the Middle East to finalise the deal. Analysts said this could mean lengthy delays before an agreement is reached. The war in Gaza was triggered by a surprise Hamas-led attack into Israel in October 2023, during which militants killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251. Fifty remain in Gaza, less than half still alive. Israel’s retaliatory military campaign has killed at least 57,000 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to a count by the territory’s ministry of health that is considered reliable by the UN and many western governments.

Fresh scandal hits Spain’s ruling party as official quits over sexual harassment claims

Pedro Sánchez’s efforts to reset Spain’s ruling socialist party after damaging corruption allegations that threatened to topple his coalition government have suffered a severe setback after a party official resigned over accusations of sexual harassment. The prime minister had hoped this weekend’s meeting of the federal committee of his Spanish Socialist Workers’ party (PSOE) would help the party move past weeks of scandals that have undermined the ethical and anti-corruption pledges on which it came to power seven years ago. But such hopes were flattened late on Friday night after the online newspaper elDiario published allegations from various female PSOE workers who said they had been subjected to sexual harassment by Francisco Salazar, who oversaw institutional coordination at the Moncloa palace, the office and official residence of the prime minister. The accusations prompted Salazar to announce on Saturday that he was stepping down from that post and from his new role as a deputy in the PSOE’s organisational secretariat. He told elDiario he could not recall any inappropriate interactions. “I’ve racked my brains over it and it seems mind-boggling to me,” he said. “I keep wondering if I’ve screwed up and said something inappropriate to a workmate, and the truth is, I can’t find [an example].” Sources at Moncloa, in Madrid, said an investigation had been launched, but added that no official complaints had so far been made against Salazar. On Saturday, Sánchez apologised again for what he called his misplaced confidence in those accused of wrongdoing, adding: “I was wrong to place my trust in people who didn’t deserve it, but we won’t fall short in a time of democratic regeneration.” The prime minister, who is under growing pressure to call a snap election, said he had no intention of stepping down. “The captain doesn’t shirk his responsibility when the sea gets rough; he stays put to ride out the storm and guide the ship to port,” he said. Salazar’s resignation is the latest blow to the prime minister’s authority and judgment. On Monday, Santos Cerdán – who served as the PSOE’s organisational secretary and was Sánchez’ right-hand man – was remanded in custody after a supreme court judge found “firm evidence” of his possible involvement in taking kickbacks on public construction contracts. The investigation began after the Guardia Civil police anti-corruption unit handed material to the court that suggested Cerdán had discussed taking such kickbacks with the former PSOE transport minister José Luis Ábalos and one of the minister’s aides, Koldo García. Ábalos and García are also under investigation and have denied wrongdoing. Cerdán, who stepped down from his party role and resigned his parliamentary seat shortly after the news broke, has vowed to clear his name. Sánchez, who became prime minister in 2018 after using a motion of no confidence to turf the corruption-mired conservative People’s party (PP) out of government, is already contending with graft investigations relating to his wife and his brother, who deny any wrongdoing. A former PSOE member was also recently implicated in an alleged smear campaign against the Guardia Civil unit investigating the corruption allegations. The PP said the latest allegations were further proof of the prime minister’s poor judgment and his unfitness to lead the country. “He has no credibility and his supposed fight against corruption and sexism is mere posturing,” PP sources said on Saturday. “Sánchez is as good at being prime minister as he is at talent-spotting. Either there aren’t many decent people in his party or he’s not very good at choosing people who deserve to be in Spanish politics.” Calls for a fresh election are also beginning to bubble up within some sections of the socialist party. Emiliano García-Page, the PSOE president of the Castilla-La Mancha region, said the time had come to let parliament and the people have their say. According to elDiario, García-Page used Saturday’s party meeting to ask Sánchez to consider holding a confidence vote in parliament. “I don’t know if we’ll win it,” he said. “But if we don’t, then don’t rule out the option of calling an election.”

‘Harvey would say, we’re on the brink’: why conservatives are coming for a gay rights hero

As San Francisco’s pride festivities came to a close last week, a cloud hung over the otherwise joyful celebrations as the city’s LGBTQ+ community learned that the US government had stripped a naval ship of its name honoring the gay rights pioneer Harvey Milk. Donald Trump’s defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, claimed the action showed the administration’s commitment to “taking the politics” out of military naming conventions. San Francisco’s queer community saw things differently. For many, the move was yet another example of Trump taking a swipe at progressive values. To others, the decision to remove Milk’s name from the frigate represented something more sinister: an intention, on the part of an emboldened administration, to take the LGBTQ+ community out of public view and to strike their accomplishments from the historical record. “On its own, it is not the most significant offense that we’ve witnessed in the past six months,” said Marc Stein, a professor of history at San Francisco State University who researches sexuality and politics. “But when combined with so many other things, it sends a powerful message.” Hegseth’s announcement is the latest attack on Milk’s legacy from conservatives in California and on the national stage. In 2023, the southern California city of Temecula made news when its school board attempted to remove references to Milk from elementary school textbooks. Before that, it was revealed that Tucker Carlson, while a college student, had apparently been connected to a society celebrating Milk’s murderer. Since Trump took office, the rollback of LGBTQ+ rights and visibility has only accelerated, from a directive to purge the military of transgender service members, to a supreme court decision allowing K-12 students to opt out of reading materials with LGBTQ+ themes. Taken together, LGBTQ+ advocates and community members fear that much of the progress made to secure their rights since Milk’s assassination in 1978 is in peril. “The renaming of the ship is part of a broader pattern wherein the Trump administration and its allies are trying to roll back the advances of the last several decades,” said Stein. At the Cinch Saloon, a historic gay bar in San Francisco’s Castro district, June’s Pride month celebrations were held against a backdrop of conversations about the fate of the community. Bartender Eric Berchtold expressed fear that the administration is working up to rescind the right to same-sex marriage. “It’s blatant malice,” Berchtold said. “They want to erase us and eradicate our history like we don’t exist.” Suzanne Ford, executive director of San Francisco Pride, said that fears of rolling back progress have been felt most acutely by older members of the community who were part of the gay liberation movement in the 1960s and 70s. Among those affected people are Cleve Jones, an activist and friend of Milk’s who worked in Milk’s office when he was city supervisor. “I can remember when we were criminalized, when we were routinely beaten and fired, when you could not have a job if you were known to be gay,” said Jones. When Milk was elected as city supervisor in 1977, he was the country’s first openly gay politician. Two decades prior, he had been forced to resign from the navy due to his sexuality. That’s why publicly displaying Milk’s name on a military vessel represents much more than a public gesture, explained Craig Loftin, professor of American studies at California State University, Fullerton and a scholar of LGBTQ+ history. “In the big-picture history of LGBTQ people, the quest for public visibility and recognition is at the core and center of that narrative,” he said. “[Milk] was a leader in this idea of not hiding in the shadows.” A swinging pendulum That isn’t to say that the quest for gay liberation has been linear. While the gay liberation movement made enormous strides on the fronts of decriminalization and visibility in the 1960s and 70s, the rise of the religious right as a powerful political bloc in the 80s paused progress. That coincided with the onset of the Aids pandemic, which devastated gay communities across the country – nowhere more acutely than in San Francisco. In response to silence on the part of the federal government and the Reagan administration, a new wave of activism was spurred that demanded research into treatment and condemned homophobic discrimination. “It’s waxed and waned,” said Loftin. “It took several years before we had activist groups like Aact Up channeling their rage in a strategic, focused way that yielded significant results and moved gay culture further than where it had been,” Loftin said. In the decades that followed, the community saw same-sex marriage legalized, the military’s “Don’t ask don’t tell” policy repealed, and, most recently, a surge of visibility for trans Americans. “There is a pendulum quality to a lot of history, but especially LGBT history.” Knowing this, Loftin is hopeful that the community will come together and fight back with vigor. “My optimistic thought is that because they’re hitting us so hard and so fast, the pendulum will swing back the other direction, hopefully harder and faster,” he said. “[Trump] is awakening a dragon.” Berchtold, the Cinch Saloon bartender, said he saw a lot more activism among patrons today than he did when he started working at the bar 22 years ago. Jones is more fearful. To him, there is a gulf between an older generation that remembers the traumas of past decades, and a younger cohort that takes the advances for granted. “Younger ones never watched everyone they knew die,” said Jones. “I carry those memories with me as I interact daily with young people who are completely oblivious to that reality.” ‘Everything feels very fragile’ To Stein and others, what is most jarring about the renaming of USNS Harvey Milk is that it lifts the veil on which groups the administration plans to target. Until now, policy decisions have primarily focused on restricting the rights of trans Americans – which advocates say has had the effect of making cisgender members of the LGBTQ+ community complacent. “It is a lie that the administration is only going after trans people,” said Stein. “They are especially targeting trans people … but [cis] gay and lesbian people should not feel like they are going to be safe from what’s happening.” Jones echoed: “There is a significant number of gay and lesbian men and women who may think this is going to stop with trans people. That’s just foolishness.” Advocates and scholars also see attacks on the LGBTQ+ community as connected to the administration’s larger ambitions to curb civil liberties, including those of women and immigrants. “There is going to be great variation depending on … where you live,” said Stein, drawing a thread between disparities in access to gender-affirming care, abortion rights and immigrant protections. “Those of us who are in San Francisco and California are protected in some respects from the worst of what’s going on, but we also live in a nation with a powerful federal government. “Everything is very fragile at this moment,” added Ford. “You can’t take for granted that they’re not going to try to take your rights.” Jones says that if he were alive today, Harvey Milk would agree. A Jewish American who came of age during the second world war, he would have seen the government’s actions as indicative of an unhealthy democracy and sounded the alarm. “He would say, ‘Watch out. We are on the brink. It is happening again. It is unfolding all around us.’”

Buddhist rebirth v Chinese control: the battle to choose the Dalai Lama’s successor

Few celebrations have the hills of Dharamshala abuzz like the birthday of the Dalai Lama. But this year, as monks and devotees flooded into the mountainous Indian city before the Tibetan spiritual leader turns 90 on Sunday, the mood of anticipation has been palpable. For years, the Dalai Lama had promised that around his 90th birthday he would make a long-awaited announcement about his reincarnation. Finally, in a video broadcast to Tibetan monks and leaders on Wednesday, he laid out what the future would hold. It came amid fears of a ruthless succession battle between the Tibetan community and the Chinese government, which for decades has sought to control the institution of the Dalai Lama, revered as the highest teacher in Tibetan Buddhism. Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, confirmed he would remain in the role until he died. Then, as per centuries of tradition, he would be reincarnated, and only his inner circle – a trust of closely allied monks – would have the “sole authority” to locate his successor; an often lengthy process to track down a child in which his spirit has been reborn. “No one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter,” the Dalai Lama told his monks. The announcement ended years of speculation that, in an attempt to prevent Chinese interference, the Dalai Lama might put forward an alternative mode of reincarnation, such as transferring his spiritual essence to a successor who could be found while he was still alive. To the great worry of many in the Tibetan diaspora, he had even hinted that he may not reincarnate at all. The Dalai Lama’s latest statement was a clear defiance of the Communist party in China, which has long held the view that only it has the authority to decide the next Dalai Lama and has even enshrined the right into Chinese law. However, Tansen Sen, a scholar of Indo-Chinese relations and Buddhism, noted that the Dalai Lama’s message struck a more diplomatic tone than some of his previous statements. In earlier writings, he had said the 15th Dalai Lama would be born in the “free world” – taken to mean outside China – but this time he did not repeat that. “I see this as a very strategically handled announcement which avoided ruffling China’s feathers too much,” said Sen. “The Dalai Lama is not only a religious leader, he is also a shrewd thinker and I think he realises that there are larger issues at play, particularly that he is caught geopolitically between India and China.” However, China’s sensitivity over the issue was evident in the absence of the Dalai Lama’s statement from all Chinese or Tibetan media. “China’s propaganda managers seem very reticent for this news to reach Tibetans or even Chinese,” said Robert Barnett, a scholar of Tibetan history at Soas University of London. “Presumably that’s because Chinese leaders fear a popular outpouring of support for the Dalai Lama, or they are struggling to agree on how to respond.” China invaded and took control of the autonomous region of Tibet in 1950. After a failed uprising by Tibetans in 1959, China threatened to arrest the Dalai Lama – who acted as a religious and political leader – forcing him into exile in India. After his perilous escape across the Himalayas, in April 1959 the Dalai Lama met the then-Indian prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, who declared – against much opposition within his own government – that the Tibetan spiritual leader “should be allowed to live in peace” in India. Since then, the Dalai Lama, along with other Tibetan religious leaders, civilians and parliamentarians in exile, have established their political and religious headquarters in Dharamshala, high in the Himalayan mountains. From his outpost, the Dalai Lama has been both a religious leader and a tireless and highly effective global advocate for the Tibetan cause and community over the past 66 years. He has vocally resisted calls by China for it to have any say over the institution of the Dalai Lama or to meddle in the succession process. Within greater Tibet, home to 6 million people, Chinese authorities have imposed increasingly draconian measures and censorship to try to crush the influence of the Dalai Lama, including banning images of him. Beijing has described the Dalai Lama as a “wolf in monk’s clothing” and views him as a dissident and separatist, even as he advocated for greater Tibetan autonomy within China, rather than full independence. Chinese efforts are widely seen to have failed, and as the Dalai Lama’s international profile has grown – he has a Nobel peace prize and millions of devotees, including some of the world’s biggest celebrities – he remains more revered than ever. His presence as a constant thorn in the side of Chinese efforts to impose complete homogeneity over Tibet means officials have become increasingly determined to control what happens when he dies. In a statement after the Dalai Lama’s announcement this week – which was only published in English – the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, said his successor “must be chosen by drawing lots from a golden urn and approved by the central government”. Analysts have widely agreed the most likely scenario after the death of the Dalai Lama is that two successors will be appointed; one located by Tibetan monks, as per tradition, probably outside China and recognised by the Tibetan community in exile, and another selected by the Chinese Communist party from within China. Over the decades, the Dalai Lama’s presence in Dharamshala and the free movement he is afforded by India has remained a source of tension in Indo-Chinese relations. Yet since 2020, when border tensions erupted into violent skirmishes, it appeared the Indian government, led by the prime minister, Narendra Modi, began to see the Tibet issue as a direct form of leverage over China. China has emphasised that any country that interferes in the Dalai Lama reincarnation will be sanctioned – a message seen to be directed at India. In a notable break from convention, this week India’s minister of minority affairs, Kiren Rijiju, himself a Buddhist, said publicly that reincarnation of the Dalai Lama “is to be decided by the established convention and as per the wish of the Dalai Lama himself. Nobody else has the right to decide it except him.” China’s foreign ministry instantly called on India to “stop using Tibet issues to interfere in China’s domestic affairs”. Amitabh Mathur, a former adviser on Tibet to the Indian government, said it was highly likely that the Dalai Lama’s office would have pre-informed New Delhi of the reincarnation announcement, and that Rijiju’s statement would not have been made without consulting senior ministries. “It certainly goes above and beyond what has been said by India before,” said Mathur. He suggested the geopolitical challenges over the Dalai Lama were likely to become more complicated after his death, particularly if the Tibetan officials located his reincarnation inside India, in defiance of China’s own possible selection. Tibetan officials have confirmed that unofficial back channels remained open with the Chinese and that the Dalai Lama was doing all he could to prevent the 600-year-old Tibetan Buddhist institution being hijacked by Chinese political interests. “He’s viewing these things from a very practical lens,” said Mathur. “Don’t forget, the Dalai Lama is as well versed in statecraft as he is in spiritual matters.” Nonetheless, as he led prayers on the eve of his birthday, the Tibetan leader – who appeared in good health – emphasised that he did not foresee his death coming any time soon. “I hope,” he said, “to live another 30 or 40 years.”

‘We felt abandoned by Francis’: Pope Leo heads to traditional papal residence for summer break

When, soon after being elected in 2013, Pope Francis broke from longstanding Vatican tradition by choosing not to spend his summer holiday in the papal retreat of Castel Gandolfo, a sleepy hilltop town overlooking a lake about an hour south of Rome, residents were taken aback. One shopkeeper, Anna, compared the perceived rejection to a divorce, while another said it slightly ruptured a sense of belonging. Now, after 12 summers without a pontiff among them, their spirits have been restored by Pope Leo, elected in early May after the death of Francis, opting to revive Castel Gandolfo as the go-to papal holiday destination. Leo arrives on Sunday for a two-week stay and will return in mid-August for a few more days of rest and relaxation. “To say we are happy would be an understatement,” Anna said. “Not only because his presence generates some activity but because this is a papal town – it is the air that we breathe.” The Vatican’s connection with Castel Gandolfo began in 1596 when it bought a castle in the centre of the town from a noble Roman family. Thirty years later it became established as the papal summer bolthole after undergoing renovations commissioned by Pope Urbano VIII, the first pontiff to holiday in the town in a quest to flee the stifling heat of Rome. The tradition continued almost uninterrupted until Francis, who tended to shun the Vatican’s pomp and privilege. He visited Castel Gandolfo on only three occasions, and all during the first months of his papacy – twice to preside over mass and once to see his predecessor, Benedict. Francis spent his summers in his humble Vatican abode. But he did help to transform Castel Gandolfo from a pilgrim site into more of a tourist destination after the papal palace became a museum in 2015. Visitors can wander through its Renaissance-era gardens and vast rooms, which contain garments worn by popes dating back to the 16th century, and marvel at the views over Lake Albano from the windows of the papal bedroom. “We did feel abandoned by Francis and the first few years were difficult,” said Maurizio Carosi, who with his son owns a bar and gift shop opposite the palace. “But now we’ve moved on from a pilgrim town to a tourist one – so even if Francis didn’t come, he gave us a spiritual charge.” The palace will remain a museum while Leo and his accompanying Swiss Guards reside in another newly renovated property within its grounds. The excitement in the town is palpable as it prepares for the American pontiff’s arrival. Gardeners were preening the lawns within the palace on Friday morning while workers were putting the finishing touches to the pope’s holiday home and tidying up its tennis court so that Leo can indulge his passion for the game. As with pontiffs over history, the break will not only be about resting. Leo is expected to host audiences and rosaries for the local residents and carry out Vatican duties. “Just because they’re on holiday, they don’t necessarily stop working,” said Tadeusz Rozmus, the parish priest of San Tommoso dal Villanova church. “Pope John Paul II wrote encyclicals here and others have hosted heads of state. Castel Gandolfo is a much more pleasant place for them to reside in summer as they can escape the heat of Rome, and with the way things are going, summers are only going to get hotter.” Alberto De Angelis, the mayor of Castel Gandolfo, has readily embraced the papal return, especially as it is expected to help fill the town’s coffers. “Knowing that Pope Leo has listened to the wishes of our community, which for years has been waiting to see a pope in its square, fills our hearts and souls with joy,” he wrote on social media. The town’s smattering of gift shops are yet to be filled with souvenirs featuring Leo’s image. “Everyone is asking for his image but I heard he doesn’t want to see his face on glasses, plates, candles or whatever,” Carosi said, claiming that whatever was being sold in Rome was bootleg. “Leo souvenirs have not been officially authorised.” Carosi was born in Castel Gandolfo and recalls popes of the past greeting people in the square and shaking hands. When it comes to Pope Leo, he said his character was “yet to be discovered”. “But I know he’ll be happy here,” he added. “He’ll have a view of the lake, will breathe the fresh air and will find himself among good people. Being an athletic pope, he will also have the possibility to enjoy long walks in the gardens.”

‘Like working in a volcano’: stories from six countries in Europe on a day of extreme heat

Hundreds of millions of people across Europe suffered an extreme heatwave this week, with temperatures smashing records as the continent sweltered. With the human-caused climate emergency pushing the mercury ever higher, early in the summer Europe is experiencing troubling temperatures. From an Italian chef who works in a 60C kitchen to a homeless Dutch man given shelter in a basement, here is the story of how people across Europe coped, told over a single day this past week: Turkey Ruth Michaelson Onur Yıldırım woke up early on Tuesday morning and had a cold shower. If he starts the day any later, or without the shower, he’ll be “tired, depressed, and sweaty” all day. With a 12-hour shift of taxi driving ahead of him, he wanted to get on the road quickly. The temperature was already above 20C, and by the end of the day, Turkish firefighters across the country would have fought back multiple wildfires. Yıldırım is lucky – his car has functioning air conditioning, and many of his customers expect he’ll use it. But he knows from previous summers that weeks of extreme temperature changes throughout the day can make him sick. Italy Lorenzo Tondo In the searing heart of inland Sicily, Luigi Randazzo, 47, a sous-chef at a restaurant was plating a dish of mussels. “I was working next to the kettle, where the thermometer read 60 degrees,” he said. “The fryer was on. So was the oven. It felt like working inside a volcano.” While diners waited in the cool comfort of air conditioning, Randazzo moved from burner to burner in the kitchen, clad in a chef’s uniform soaked with sweat. “It felt like someone had thrown a bucket of water in my face,” he said. “We have an air conditioner in the kitchen, but it’s completely useless when all the machines are running.” In 2021, temperatures in Sicily hit a record 48.8C (119.8F). Randazzo works in the part of the island where the desert is slowly advancing across the countryside, and where, in the last six months of 2023, just 150mm of rain fell. On Tuesday, Randazzo said he was dreaming of going home and taking an ice-cold shower. But the lunch service had just begun. ‘‘My legs were trembling with exhaustion. But you know at that moment you can’t stop – not even for a second,” he added. “That hour felt like an entire summer.” The Netherlands Senay Boztas It was early afternoon in Amsterdam, and Karim Taif, 46, tried to escape the heat at a shelter for homeless people in the city. “It’s cool here and a good place,” said Taif. The well-known shelter, called De Kloof, is in the basement of a historic canal house and is open until 6pm to offer shade, showers, refreshments and sunscreen to the homeless community. For the first time, the city now has a “summer heat ruling” extending the opening hours of shelters. Taif, who was born in Morocco, grew up in Amsterdam and once worked as a barman in Switzerland. But he struggled to find housing in the Netherlands after returning in 2021 and in October, he said, he crept into a boat tied to a dock. He was found by the owner, but they agreed to let him stay. “In the winter, it is very cold and in the summer it is so hot, you have to get out of it very early,” said Taif. “Everything is getting hotter and hotter,” said Taif, smoking a cigarette in the garden of the shelter. “The south of Europe is drying up … and it feels like the Sahara is moving ever closer.” Germany Ajit Niranjan Sven, 58, had felt the heat creep up over the last two weeks as he rewired a telecommunications box. By Tuesday afternoon, it had hit 33C, and would rise to a sweltering 37C the following day. “I’ve set this up to meet my needs,” he said from under a bright green umbrella. “I’ve got a coolbox, I avoid working under the blazing sun, and I put a cap on when it hits. Otherwise, it’s a case of not moving too fast.” German employees do not have a legal right to take time off work in the heat but bosses have a duty of care to their workers. This can mean setting up fans in offices or setting up shade on construction sites. “For me, the heat is normal,” said Sven, “but you do have to do things differently.” France Jon Henley Built of cast iron and glass in 1866, a couple of decades before the Eiffel Tower, the Marché St Quentin is the largest covered food market in Paris. It was designed to be light and airy in all seasons, but not for 39.3C – which is what the nearby Lariboisière weather station recorded at 5pm on Tuesday. “It was inhumane, really brutal,” said Sahra Baadache, 27, one of the market’s three cheesemongers. “A sauna. A steam bath. St Quentin is basically a greenhouse and there’s no way of ventilating or cooling it down. It was 42C in here by mid-afternoon. People really suffered. Stallholders who live nearby were going home for cold showers.” Cheese and heat do not mix; textures and flavours change irreversibly. Baadache did what she could to save her 150-odd varieties, bringing out only a small fraction of her stock and covering up her two refrigerated display cabinets to keep the cold in. “They survived, just,” she said. “But I was a wreck – sweating about my cheeses, and sat behind two fridge motors generating even more heat.” And, of course, there were no customers: “No one came. So it was like a double punishment.” Spain Ashifa Kassam On Tuesday evening, as most tourists wandered through Madrid’s Plaza Mayor wearing as little clothing as possible, David, 40, climbed into a furry gorilla suit, layered with a Real Madrid shirt. “I’m soaked through with sweat,” the street performer said. “It’s even hotter inside the suit, as the inner layer is canvas.” Originally from Peru, he had started the job three months ago, perspiring his way through Spain’s hottest June on record and now the first heatwave of the summer. “I make enough to eat,” he said. While the beating sun meant most tourists were huddled under the shade cast by the plaza’s arcade or under the parasols and misting systems of the plaza’s restaurants and cafes, Daniel hovered in the middle of the shadeless plaza, aiming to attract attention. Every now and then, he was successful, with a trickle of tourists darting towards him just long enough to snap a photo. As temperatures climbed this week, he had done what he could to mitigate the heat, shifting his start time to early evening in the hope that the one- or two-degree drop in temperatures would offer some respite. A quick cold shower, before and after his shift, had also become a necessity. “I play football, so that helps my body deal with the heat of the summer,” he said. “But a job’s a job – I have no other choice.”

‘They’re skin and bones’: doctors in Gaza warn babies at risk of death from lack of formula

Doctors in Gaza have warned that hundreds of babies are at risk of death amid a critical shortage of baby milk, as Israel continues to restrict the humanitarian aid that can enter the beleaguered strip. Dr Ahmad al-Farra, the head of paediatrics at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, said his ward had only about a week’s worth of infant formula remaining. The doctor has already run out of specialised formula meant for premature babies and is forced to use regular formula, rationing it between the infants under his care. “I can’t begin to describe how bad things are. Right now, we have enough formula for about one week. But we also have infants outside the hospital without any access to milk. It’s catastrophic,” al-Farra told the Guardian over the phone. Stocks of infant formula have dwindled in Gaza as Israel has blocked all but a trickle of aid into the Palestinian territory. Food aid that comes through the controversial US-Israeli-backed private company Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) does not include infant formula, according to doctors. Hanaa al-Taweel, a 27-year-old mother of five living at al-Nuseirat refugee camp, said she was unable to breastfeed as she herself was not getting enough to eat. She has struggled to find infant formula for her 13-month-old child. “The problem of getting milk started since my son’s birth, as due to my malnutrition and general weakness I wasn’t able to breastfeed my baby,” al-Taweel said. Doctors have told her that her son is suffering from stunting due to malnutrition and she has noticed he was developing slower than her other children, who had already begun speaking and walking at his age. “I try to keep a small piece of bread next to me when he sleeps because he wakes up often asking for food. I feel sadness and fear for my children, I fear they will die from hunger, thirst and disease,” she said. Already 66 Palestinian children have starved to death since the war in Gaza began in October 2023, according to local health authorities. Amnesty International accused Israel of using starvation as a weapon of war against civilians in Gaza, which it said was a tactic intended “to inflict genocide against Palestinians”. Cogat, the Israeli authority responsible for coordinating humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip, said it does not restrict the entry of baby food, including formula, into the Gaza Strip. The agency added that more than 1,400 tons of baby food had been delivered to Gaza in recent weeks. Doctors entering Gaza have resorted to packing individual cans of infant formula in their personal luggage. On at least one occasion, Israeli authorities confiscated 10 cans of infant formula from the luggage of an American doctor recently entering Gaza for a medical mission. “In the end they confiscated all the cans of baby formula, which was specifically formula for pre-term babies. What on earth is baby formula going to do against the security of the state of Israel?” said Dr Diana Nazzal, a Palestinian-German eye surgeon who helped the American doctor pack his bags in a way that would be acceptable to Israeli border authorities. Nazzal added that many medical staff entering Gaza are filling their bags with calorie-dense foods such as protein bars and nuts, rather than medical supplies. Infant formula has become more critical as the hunger crisis has worsened in Gaza, with almost 500,000 people facing catastrophic hunger while the rest of the population is experiencing acute food insecurity. Mothers who are severely malnourished themselves or have been killed are unable to breastfeed, creating a higher need for formula. On the parallel market, what little supply exists has become exorbitantly expensive, with one can of formula going for about $50 – 10 times the normal price. “I was able to breastfeed her naturally for one month, but due to lack of food I could no longer continue,” said Nourhan Barakat, a 25-year-old mother of three displaced to Khan Younis. “I know that breastfeeding strengthens the bond between mother and child – but what can I do?” In late June, the director-general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said about 112 children were being admitted daily to Gaza’s hospitals for malnutrition treatment. Malnutrition before the age of three can cause permanent developmental problems. “This whole generation is being targeted. They will suffer from memory problems, developmental delays … And the problem is even if nutrition becomes available later on, the damage is permanent,” al-Faraa said. Doctors said the deaths of infants was a worrying sign of Gaza’s looming starvation crisis, as young children are the most vulnerable to the effects of malnutrition. “When you see babies start to die, panic and alarms should start to flare. Essentially, children are the first to die in starvation crises,” said Dr Thaer Ahmad, a member of a medical delegation trying to deliver aid through the international group Avaaz. Doctors have blamed the Israeli aid blockade for the shortage, as Israel prevents all but a few aid trucks entering the territory – far below what humanitarians say is required to feed the population. UN agencies say Gaza needs at least 500 trucks a day to meet basic needs, but often less than 50 are admitted. What UN aid does come through is often confiscated by hungry crowds and armed gangs who have begun looting trucks out of desperation. If Palestinians want to access aid given by GHF, they have to navigate a complicated, ever-changing set of instructions to queue at one of four distribution sites. More than 500 people have been shot dead by Israeli forces while queueing for aid over the last month. Humanitarian groups have condemned the GHF, saying it could be complicit in war crimes and that it violates the core principles of humanitarianism. Previously, the UN-led aid system in Gaza maintained more than 400 aid distribution points throughout Gaza set up at points of need. The GHF said it had delivered more than 52m meals in five weeks and that other organisations “stand by helplessly as their aid is looted”. Israel has said the UN system was being exploited by Hamas to hoard aid, an accusation for which humanitarians say there is no evidence. The war in Gaza has killed more than 56,000 people since 7 October 2023, and was launched in retaliation for the Hamas-led attack on the same day that killed 1,200 people in Israel. Israel and Hamas have signalled in recent days that they are nearing a US-brokered ceasefire, though key sticking points remain. In the meantime, doctors in the territory say time is running out. “You should see the children arriving,” said al-Farra. “They’re just skin and bones. It’s horrifying. The real solution is to end the war, open the crossings and allow baby formula in.”

‘Will AI take my job?’ A trip to a Beijing fortune-telling bar to see what lies ahead

In the age of self-help, self-improvement and self-obsession, there have never been more places to look to for guidance. Where the anxious and the uncertain might have once consulted a search engine for answers, now we can engage in a seemingly meaningful discussion about our problems with ChatGPT. Or, if you’re in China, DeepSeek. To some, though, it feels as if our ancestors knew more about life than we do. Or at least, they knew how to look for them. And so it is that scores of young Chinese are turning to ancient forms of divination to find out what the future holds. In the past couple of years, fortune-telling bars have been popping up in China’s cities, offering drinks and snacks alongside xuanxue, or spiritualism. The trend makes sense: China’s economy is struggling, and although consumers are saving their pennies, going out for a drink is cheaper than other forms of retail therapy or an actual therapist. With a deep-rooted culture of mysticism that blends Daoist, Buddhist and folk practices, which have defied decades of the government trying to stamp out superstitious beliefs, for many Chinese people, turning to the unseen makes perfect sense. This week, I decided to join them. My xuanxue haunt of choice is Qie Le, a newly opened bar in Beijing’s wealthy Chaoyang district. On a Thursday evening, the bar, adorned with yellow Taoist talismans and draped translucent curtains, is quiet. All the better for hogging the fortune-teller’s attention with questions from my deep wells of narcissism. But Wan Mo, either because of her spiritual intuition or because I am not the first self-involved millennial to seek her services, sees me coming a mile off. It’s strictly one question per drink bought. Wan Mo, a stylish 36-year-old dressed in a loose white Tang-style jacket fastened with traditional Chinese knots, specialises in qiuqian, or Chinese lottery sticks. The practice involves shaking a cylindrical wooden container full of wooden sticks, while focusing on a question in your mind. Eventually, one of the sticks, engraved with text and numerals, falls out, and a fortune-teller can interpret the answer. Qiuqian dates back to the Jin dynasty (AD266 to AD420) and has survived centuries of war, upheaval, a Cultural Revolution and the rise of artificial intelligence to remain a stalwart of Taoist temples, and now, Beijing cocktail bars. So I’m hoping that qiuqian will be well placed to answer my first question: Will AI take my job? “Use both hands,” Wan Mo says firmly. She is a no-nonsense savant. “Focus on your question.” She tells me that as a foreigner, my connection with the sticks might not be as profound as a Chinese person’s. So I need to “think carefully”. After a few seconds of focused yet vigorous shaking, not one but two sticks drop on to the table between us. Wan Mo studies the first one. “This stick means that later on, AI will have an impact on your job … even though you’re very talented, you can’t compete with its scale. For example, if you write one article, it can write 10. It will definitely affect you.” This is not the spiritual salve I was hoping for. Wan Mo tells me that the second stick even provides a timeline for my professional redundancy. “It says that within one to three years, there won’t be a major impact. But after three years, AI will become a major force.” Wan Mo’s predictions don’t leave me full of hope for my next question. But in the spirit of xuanxue, I decide to try my luck again, and order another round. We take a brief break for Wan Mo to have a cigarette break and catch up with a friend who has wandered into the bar. His chipper demeanour makes me think that he is yet to discover that AI will take his job – or he’s just made his peace with it. Eventually I muster up enough liquid courage to ask my second question. Wan Mo’s stern demeanour sends a slight chill through my hands as I grasp the qiuqian box for the second time. Shake, shake, shake. Think, think, think. A single wooden stick falls out of the container. “Will I get a pay rise?” I ask, tentatively. The answer comes unnervingly quickly. “There’s not much possibility at the moment. Although [the stick] is about transition … it shows there is no major change … There is some hope, but it’s not immediate. You need to make some personal adjustments.” I ask what kind of personal adjustments I could make, hoping that she won’t make me order another drink to find out. “If you want a pay rise, xuanxue can only offer support,” she demurs. “For example, the bracelet I’m wearing is for attracting wealth. It’s made from natural materials … we’d recommend wearing something like this. It can help bring in some financial luck and may have a positive effect. But the most important thing is still communicating with the superiors.” I am not sure if she means my spiritual or editorial superiors. But with that my time is up. Wan Mo’s friend says that everyone comes to Qie Le with the same kinds of questions: how to get rich, stay healthy, find love. I feel as if all I’ve discovered is how dim my chances are on the first question, and it’s getting too late to ask the second and third. I slink off home to get some sleep before my early start the next day. I bet AI doesn’t have to worry about feeling tired. Additional research by Lillian Yang