USA - Europe needs to “step up and take a bigger role” in funding Ukraine in its war against Russia, JD Vance, the US vice-president, said on Sunday. Speaking to Fox News, he claimed Americans were “sick” of spending their tax dollars abroad and Washington was “done funding” Kyiv. “If you care so much about this conflict, you should be willing to play a more direct and a more substantial way in funding this war yourself,” he said. He spoke as European leaders again scrambled to build a united defence behind Ukraine, after President Trump suggested he may cut a deal with President Putin that could mean Ukraine has to concede territory.

USA - Trump sends National Guard to purge Washington DC of ‘wild youths and maniacs’. US president called out five other cities, including New York and Los Angeles, which could face similar measures. Donald Trump has deployed the National Guard to Washington DC as part of a crime purge that will also banish homeless people from the capital. Mr Trump also said he would bring the city’s police department under federal control, becoming the first US president in history to do so. The president told a press conference on Monday he was taking “historic action to rescue our nation’s capital from crime”, declaring: “This is liberation day in DC.” He claimed his hand had been forced by “abject failures of the city’s leadership”, hitting out at the “radical Left city council” for abolishing the system of cash bail.

UKRAINE - Ukraine could agree to stop fighting and cede territory already held by Russia as part of a European-backed plan for peace. Volodymyr Zelensky told European leaders that they must reject any settlement proposed by Donald Trump in which Ukraine gives up further territory – but that Russia could be allowed to retain some of the land it has taken. This would mean freezing the front line where it is and handing Russia de facto control of the territory it occupies in Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Crimea. The softening of the negotiating position comes ahead of talks between Mr Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday. “The plan can only be related to the current positions held by the militaries,” a Western official said, characterising a frantic weekend of diplomacy between Kyiv and its allies. Ukraine and Europe have become increasingly concerned that Mr Trump and Putin could negotiate an end to the long-running war over Mr Zelensky’s head.

ISRAEL - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Thursday that Israel “intends to” take full control of the entire Gaza Strip to eliminate Hamas and transfer authority to non-hostile Arab forces, outlining his most comprehensive vision yet for ending the war as his security cabinet met to approve the operation. Speaking to Fox News host Bill Hemmer ahead of the critical security cabinet meeting, Netanyahu laid out his vision for completely dismantling Hamas rule and transferring Gaza to new leadership. “We have three missions: One, to eliminate Hamas as a governing and military power in Gaza, otherwise there’s no future for anyone and we will have many more kidnappings and hostages,” Netanyahu declared. “Second, achieve the liberation of all of our hostages. And third, make sure that Gaza doesn’t pose a threat to Israel again.”

UK - Reform UK leader Nigel Farage warned that Britain is facing a “national emergency” as apparent illegal boat migrants were filmed chanting “Allahu Akbar” as they crossed the English Channel. On Sunday, Brexit boss Nigel Farage shared footage of what appeared to be one of the migrant boats crossing the Channel, comprised — as is typical — of mostly young, military age males. In the footage, the illegals could be heard shouting what sounded to be the Islamic declaration “Allahu Akbar”. The phrase, often used by jihadists as a battle cry, is typically translated in the West as “God is great”. However, others have noted that a more accurate translation would be “Allah is greater” or, in other words, “Allah Is Greater Than Your God or Government.” "These men will now be free to roam our streets thanks to [Prime Minister] Keir Starmer. This is a national security emergency,” Mr Farage warned. “Allowing these men to invade our country will not end well,” he added.

USA - Why are social media platforms filled with videos of Americans complaining about grocery prices right now? Needless to say, those videos must be striking a chord, because some of them are receiving millions of views. Government bureaucrats are telling us that the cost of food is only going up a few percentage points per year, but we can all see that is a load of nonsense. A trip to the grocery store has become an enormous expense, and this is especially true if you have kids to feed. As I wrote about earlier this month, one survey found that in 25 percent of US households at least one person is skipping meals so that there will be enough money to pay the bills. Sadly, we are being warned that the cost of groceries will go even higher in the months ahead. Several years ago, I kept warning my readers over and over again that soon the cost of groceries would become very painful. Without a doubt, that time has arrived.

UNITED NATIONS - The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations' Food Price Index, a global benchmark for food commodity prices, registered its highest level since early 2023 in July. This marks a notable inflection point after a multi-year downward trend that followed the Covid and Russia-Ukraine war price spikes. The FAO Food Price Index averaged 130.1 in July, up 1.6% from June, driven primarily by sharp increases in meat and vegetable oil prices. "The index tracks monthly changes in the international prices of a set of globally traded food commodities. In July, price increases in the meat and vegetable oil indices more than offset declines in the cereal, dairy and sugar indices," FAO wrote in its monthly report. In the US, the Trump administration needs to place a larger emphasis on strengthening local food supply chains to mitigate external supply shocks. That means know your local rancher and farmer, as well as make plans for a backyard garden and chicken coop.

USA - Saying the American public "is not going to put up with it any longer," President Donald Trump is now providing some details about cleaning up the nation's capital city of Washington, DC. On Truth Social on Sunday, Trump said a news conference is slated for 10 am Monday in the White House Press Briefing Room to address the matter. "I'm going to make our Capital safer and more beautiful than it ever was before," the president began. "The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY. We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital. The Criminals, you don't have to move out. We're going to put you in jail where you belong. It's all going to happen very fast, just like the Border. We went from millions pouring in, to ZERO in the last few months. This will be easier – Be prepared! There will be no 'MR NICE GUY.' We want our Capital BACK."

USA - A discovery beneath the ocean floor has revealed evidence of a catastrophic event that may be linked to the destruction of the legendary lost city of Atlantis. Some researchers, including well-known author Graham Hancock, have long proposed that around 12,800 years ago, a giant comet passed through Earth's atmosphere, triggering devastation that wiped out advanced civilizations worldwide. While credible proof of Atlantis itself remains elusive, scientists have now uncovered geochemical clues supporting the theory of this cataclysmic event, known as the Younger Dryas. Now, researchers led by the University of South Carolina have uncovered metallic debris, like comet dust and thousands of tiny microspherules, in Baffin Bay seafloor sediments, strengthening the comet impact theory. Many mainstream scientists argue that the cooling was caused not by a comet but by glacial meltwater flooding the Atlantic Ocean. This influx of fresh water weakened ocean currents that transport warm tropical waters northward, leading to the temperature drop.

UK - The study found people in Sheffield on average spent just four minutes and 36 seconds in natural spaces each day. People’s connection to nature has declined by more than 60% since 1800, almost exactly mirroring the disappearance of nature words such as river, moss and blossom from books, according to a study. Computer modelling predicts that levels of nature connectedness will continue to decline unless there are far-reaching policy and societal changes – with introducing children to nature at a young age and radically greening urban environments the most effective interventions. “Nature connectedness is now accepted as a key root cause of the environmental crisis,” said Richardson. “It’s vitally important for our own mental health as well. It unites people and nature’s wellbeing. There’s a need for transformational change if we’re going to change society’s relationship with nature.”

USA - WINDS OF PEACE: Armenia and Azerbaijan Sign Trump-brokered Deal to End a 35-year Conflict. Many tried before, but TRUMP is the only one who succeeded. As we anticipated yesterday, the peace effort by the Trump administration has yielded yet another fruit, as today (8th) the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Nikol Pashinyan and Ilham Aliyev, traveled to Washington, DC and met in the White House. Pashinyan and Aliyev signed a historical peace agreement brokered by President Trump, aiming to put an end to almost four decades of a bloody Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Azerbaijan’s President Aliyev said, "The countries of Armenia and Azerbaijan are committing to ending all fighting forever’, Trump said at a joint press conference with the two leaders. ‘They suffered greatly for so many years, many tried to find resolution, the European Union, the Russians, never happened’, he added. ‘But with this accord we finally succeeded making peace’.”

UK - Too much tolerance risks violence and anarchy. Britain's turning somersaults to accommodate cultures whose values are opposite to our own: Liberal thinking, the kind that is practically compulsory in most universities, teaches that whenever different societies meet and overlap, the results can be overwhelmingly positive. Every culture is good, and no culture is worse than any other, unless, so many say, it is the ‘colonialist’ culture of the West.

UK - In a successful multi-faith democracy, religious freedom should be enjoyed equally by all. Simon Pearson, the teacher accused of Islamophobia and sacked for saying that Lucy Connolly was a victim of two-tier justice, has said that he believes he would still be in a job if he had been accused of offending Christians and not Muslims.

IRAN - The shock revelations came at a press conference hosted by the Washington, DC, Office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has sanctioned the execution of Donald Trump, dissidents with access to leaked internal documents said today. The Islamic dictator’s website even has a video showing a remotely controlled gun targeting the US President. The shock revelations came at a press conference hosted by the Washington Office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), where NCRI Deputy Director Alireza Jafarzadeh demanded the immediate closure of Iran’s Embassy in London, which is close to Albert Hall and its Consular Section in nearby Kensington Court, South Kensington. The NCRI is both a grassroots opposition group in Iran and an international lobbying body working for an end to the Islamic theocracy in Tehran and restoring Iran to full and free democracy.

USA - After the news of the upcoming meeting between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin meeting in Alaska, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine won't be ceding any land. Trump suggested there could be "swapping of territories" as part of a deal to end the war in Ukraine. Ukraine “will not give Russia any awards for what it has done," Zelensky said on Telegram. “Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier.” Zelensky posted a video on X after the announcement of the meeting. "Ukraine is ready for real decisions that can bring peace. Any decisions that are against us, any decisions that are without Ukraine, are at the same time decisions against peace," the post said. "They will not achieve anything. These are stillborn decisions. They are unworkable decisions. And we all need real and genuine peace. Peace that people will respect."