2026/08/23 Daily Edition

Even products labeled ‘eco’, ‘green’ or ‘natural’ can contain dangerous compounds including Pfas Common personal care products widely contain unlabeled toxic chemicals, results from a new peer-reviewed study suggest. The testing of more than 110 items ranging from shampoo to baby lotions found evidence of unlabeled toxic chemicals in about 85%. Many contained multiple ingredients known to be carcinogens or health hazards, and even 26% of products labeled “eco”, “green” or “natural” contained at least one dangerous compound. The products averaged more than three times as many chemicals than were listed on labels...

With opposition to the centers mounting, many Democrats and a growing number of Republicans are campaigning against them.

For Florida-based Powerus, becoming a global supplier of counterdrone technology has meant involving the Trumps, a golf course and a new way of doing business.

Bob Brown from Saltash has ridden a non-electric scooter from Perth to Sydney.

Content creator Good Good apologises and removes an advert that shows a woman being pushed to the ground as she reached for a man's golf club.

Humanoid robots smashed sprinting records and competed in boxing, football and martial arts at Beijing’s World Robot Games. While some machines stumbled, toppled or failed to start, the robo-athletes drew cheers from hundreds of spectators and showcased China’s growing dominance in humanoid robotics.

The embattled Ukrainian president slams Mykhailo Fedorov's idea as a 'tsunami' that would 'split' the country.

El-Sayed has hit back at JD Vance, saying his identity and religion aren’t causing the Trump administration’s problems.

The medal features the Allianz Arena in Munich, instead of Sydney's Allianz Stadium, as one of the city's landmarks.

Capitalism and the climate crisis are conspiring to destroy the concept of seasons. I’ll take solace in my pumpkin spice Happy spooky season, everyone! Get those jack-o’-lanterns out, because Halloween is just around the corner! Just kidding, no, it’s not...

Since Hurricane Sandy in 2012, a growing labor movement has addressed the climate crisis and economic inequality Ryan McElroen had spent years repairing the New York City subway underground when he got the opportunity to work in the middle of the ocean. “I had no views other than the darkness at work,” he said. “Then I went polar opposite.”..

Brazilian president Lula de Silva and his political opponent Flavio Bolsonaro pressed on with their presidential campaigns over the weekend, as both candidates held rallies in Rio De Janeiro. Top of the agenda for both candidates was crime, though the two took distinctly different approaches to the issue. Details by Camille Corcoran.

Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman arrives in France for a two-day visit this Sunday. President Emmanuel Macron is hosting the crown prince for the closing ceremony of the so-called Esports World Cup in Paris… which is organised and financed by the Saudis. Analysis by Andy Miah, chair of Sciences Communication & Future Media at the University of Salford.

The summer holidays in France are continuing. However, as we head towards the end of August, a trend has emerged. Destinations in the north of the country are proving more popular, due to the series of heatwaves the country has experienced this year.

The five-day World Humanoid Robot Games are underway in Beijing, featuring 51 events, 30 sport competitions and more than 2,000 humanoid robots. They have already revealed the technology can out-run and out-jump humans and that they are capable of sports such as table tennis and soccer. And the machines will also take on human tasks, such as connecting cables or handling packages. For China, the Games are another chance to showcase its competitiveness in the global tech race. Details by Eliza Herbert.

'Vinicius is no saint, but what they're doing to him was ​too much,' Mourinho said after Real's first match of La Liga.

Treasury secretary Scott Bessent’s attempt to calm bond markets is a sign of weakness not strength “Look, there’s nothing magic about that $40tn number,” the US Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, told CNBC insouciantly last week, as the country’s debt mountain surpassed another bleak record. Yet Bessent’s decision to intervene in government bond markets in an effort to combat soaring yields, belied his studied calm in TV interviews – and reignited fears the US may be on the road to a debt crisis...

The displaced in Gaza are struggling to find safe, discreet and sanitary toilets amid health crisis.

Israel faces mounting debt pressures as wars and declining tax revenues collide and more top earners leave the country.

Scammers set up a monthly subscription of £60 from Les Howard's account after he downloaded an app.

Far-right influencer Jake Lang was arrested after clashes erupted at his rally outside Minneapolis City Hall.

Asaad al-Shaibani urges Israel to seize 'historic opportunity' for diplomacy.

More than 2,000 people have died from Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since the first case of this epidemic was recorded in May. The Guardian's global health correspondent, Kat Lay, spoke to CDC Africa's Yap Boum II to understand why health teams on the ground are struggling and what is being put in place to try to contain the spread Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo now deadliest in country’s history..

Saudi Arabia is betting big on the global gaming industry. It's already gobbled up Electronic Arts in a $55 billion deal and the flagship Esports World Cup is now being held outside the country -- in Paris -- for the first time. This is part of efforts to diversify away from its oil and gas driven economy.

Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen broke record for farthest distance traveled from Earth The crew of the historic Artemis II lunar flyby mission have earned the US’s top space medal, officials have announced. Cmdr Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen are set to receive the Congressional Space Medal of Honor on 28 August, the US space agency Nasa said...

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, which the military said "aimed at creating unrest".

Customers say the disruption to virtually all UK CrossCountry services is the "worst case scenario".

Buoys, dog muzzles, capes, national flags and “base metal statuettes” from Canada are now more expensive for U.S. shoppers.

Israeli air attack near Gaza's Maghazi camp kills one person and injures two others.

The priorities are clear: reach every affected area, protect frontline workers, and turn commitments into action.

Canada suspended trade negotiations, triggering President Trump’s 50 percent tariffs on a range of Canadian goods. Mark Carney said he would retaliate “dollar for dollar.”

With cheers, endorsements and insults for rivals and “wokismo,” a new crop of right-wing leaders are openly stepping into one another’s elections.

The second-edition of the five-day competition kicked off in Beijing, China, on Saturday.

Kryvyi Rih is still digging through the wreckage. The Russian strike on a shopping centre there, in President Zelensky's own hometown, has now claimed at least sixteen lives, with several people still unaccounted for. It has added urgency to the request Zelensky has been making for months: he needs Patriot interceptors as the threat of winter looms. Camille Knight has more.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday said that his country was facing "many problems" and that authorities were striving "to overcome inflation, livelihood problems, unemployment, and to secure the future of the people". His comments came after the US vowed last week to bring about the "collapse" of the regime through a newly announced sanctions campaign. Follow our liveblog fot the latest updates.

Two months after two earthquakes struck Venezuela, more than 12,500 people are still living in temporary camps in La Guaira. Many survivors are still struggling to come to terms with the loss of loved ones and their homes. They have been forced to adapt to precarious living conditions, exposed to the elements, with little access to medical care and humanitarian aid. France 24 reporters Herminia Fernández and Julio Uribarris visited three camps housing earthquake survivors.

In Gaza, the war has upended the lives of an entire generation of children. In an effort to help them cope with the trauma of the conflict, an NGO has launched a project in Khan Younis: a huge swimming lesson that could even set a world record. Hundreds of children have gathered on the beach to learn how to swim. Story by Charlotte Hughes.

37 injured as magnitude 5.9 earthquake strikes eastern Japan

Companies like Google and Microsoft have used their money, their might and their massive reach to influence nearly every step of the education supply chain.

New quotas to protect UK firms and jobs appear to be having opposite effect in products such as galvanised steel At Tata Steel’s factory in Llanwern, south Wales, production lines that should be running full-time are now falling quiet for parts of the day, with workers being put on to maintenance and cleaning work while machines sit idle. There aren’t enough orders to keep them running all the time, the company says, because of a surge of cheap steel coming from Asian countries that is threatening the viability of several UK sites that make similar products, and risk hundreds of jobs...

Water-related conflicts have nearly quadrupled since 2020. As World Water Week 2026 begins, Al Jazeera unpacks the data.

Canada and the US were closing in on a trade deal earlier this week until the negotiations fell apart. Both sides blame each other for last-minute changes to the terms. Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced retaliatory tariffs on the United States after Washington imposed a 50 percent levy on 20-billion-dollars worth of Canadian goods. On Saturday, he addressed the nation for the first time since the talks collapsed, as Charlotte Lam explains.

Israeli forces launch wide search in Jordan Valley after a stabbing incident in the occupied West Bank village of al-Auja.

Tensions between Iran and the United States continue to escalate. Tehran is threatening to regard as enemies any countries that join the US sanctions, in response to Washington’s calls to isolate its economy. A press conference is scheduled for Monday to outline the US strategy. Story by Camille Corcoran.

Bad harvests and attacks on trade passages threaten to drive food prices higher.

Company says decision comes after spate of antisocial behaviour since free travel scheme was introduced For some, it is a quotidian nuisance that inevitably occurs when you are in the vicinity of teenagers. For others, it is an expression of modern-day lawlessness among young people. Whatever view you take, antisocial behaviour on public transport has become a hot debate – and with the introduction of free bus travel for kids aged 5 to 15 across England during August, matters have come to a head in Staffordshire...

Chris Lehane tells Guardian of need to implement new safety standards as critics say AI firms acting ‘recklessly’ A senior leader at OpenAI has said people should prepare to defend against “ongoing, persistent” cyber-attacks from AIs, as cutting-edge artificial intelligence models gain advanced capabilities to plan and launch offensives. The leading AI company this week announced a pause in development of its most advanced internal models amid rising safety fears, and Chris Lehane, its chief global affairs officer, said: “We are hitting a different chapter, a different moment within AI, in terms of what the capabilities of this technology can do.”..

In a week, up to 40,000 runners will take part in Sydney's Marathon, but a mix-up means they will be handed medals decorated with a German stadium.

Roadmap follows a week of talks in Switzerland aimed at making progress on a framework agreement they signed last year.

The sacked former defence minister has also called for elections to be held in Ukraine.

President Donald Trump is betting new sanctions, a naval blockade and ramped-up economic pressure against Iran’s trading partners can accomplish what thousands of bombs and missiles could not: force Tehran to accept a deal to end the war on US terms. But like other US efforts to force Iran into capitulation, there is one main problem: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has claimed control of the vital Strait of Hormuz and sent volleys of attack drones across the Gulf, may be...

Only state-approved parties loyal to President Tokayev permitted to take part amid a sweeping constitutional overhaul.

Supporters held banners in support of women as others expressed conflicted feelings at SCG double-header Some Sydney Swans fans have walked out of the Sydney Cricket Ground in protest during a historic double-header amid a scandal that has shaken Australian football. Five AFL players – Isaac Heeney, Nick Blakey, Chad Warner, Riley Bice and James Jordon – have been stood down for the rest of the season by the Swans for breaching the club’s standards, including drinking and bringing women back to their hotel after their round 23 win over Essendon...

FIFA boss turns up at event after CONCACAF chief Montagliani asked him to reconsider amid the body’s governance crisis.

Britons report that EES digital entry and exit system has led to frustration, visa mix-ups and long queues On top of fears about extreme heat and possible jet fuel shortages, Britons planning summer holidays in the EU this year had another thing to worry about – long queues and waiting times caused by the bloc’s new border checks. The EU digital entry and exit system (EES), which requires non-EU citizens to register and be photographed and fingerprinted on arrival and departure from the Schengen zone, has been technically in full force since April after launching last autumn, but has been beset by teething problems...

Two studies will be used to shape government policy amid claims about a former franchisee who took his own life Ministers have commissioned a pair of in-depth reports into how franchising businesses are policed in the UK, as the government considers introducing new laws after high-profile allegations about conduct in the sector. The action follows a Guardian investigation last December, which revealed claims that Adrian Howe, a former Vodafone employee who had agreed to start a franchise in 2018, had taken his own life after pressure from the FTSE 100 telecoms group...

The 23-time Grand Slam champion will not be playing singles, but could team up with her older sister Venus for doubles.

Australia bounce back after losing first Test, bowling out the visitors for 64 and 95 to win by an innings and 51 runs.

Victims have lost tens of thousands – and in one case £300,000 – due to fake emails from solicitor or estate agent You are poised to move house and are awaiting the solicitor’s instructions that things are ready to go and it is time to hand over your deposit. When the email arrives giving you their bank details, you set up the transfer and move the cash. And then the solicitor calls to ask where the money is. Conveyancing fraud involves criminals getting access to an email chain between homebuyers and their solicitors or estate agents and requesting payment to a bank account they control. Sometimes the solicitor has been hacked, but often the homebuyer has been the victim of a phishing exercise...

The women’s all-American final will be followed by a men's title clash between Frances Tiafoe and Arthur Fils of France.