USA - Workers on the Boeing 737 Max that lost a door plug on a January flight told federal safety investigators that they felt pressure to do their jobs too fast to avoid mistakes, according to testimony released Tuesday at the start of a two-day investigative hearing. The revelation came at the start of the hearing by the National Transportation Safety Board into the blowout, with investigators questioning Boeing personnel about safety issues at the planemaker and what that might mean for passengers on its ubiquitous planes. Previously, the NTSB said the door plug ripped off in mid-flight because the plane left a Boeing factory without the four bolts needed to keep the door plug in place.

UK - With £40 billion wiped off the FTSE 100 on Monday, concerns are growing for the stability of financial markets. The global financial crisis is far from over, according to analysis by a major Wall Street bank, as European markets continue to decline.

JORDAN - Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, has made a rare visit to Iran in a last-ditch effort to persuade it to hold back from attacking Israel in response to the assassination of the Hamas political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran last week. The western ally with a large Palestinian population is facing a tough balancing act as it faces domestic calls to break off relations with Tel Aviv and to stop protecting it after shooting down Iranian missiles aimed at Israel earlier this year. The visit looks doomed to fail given that Iran insisted on Sunday that there was no room for compromise and that it would make a decisive response to the assassination. In a meeting with Safadi, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the assassination of Haniyeh was a “major mistake by the Zionist regime [Israel] that will not go unanswered”, Iranian state TV reported.

ISRAEL - Israel is already in a “multi-front war” with Iran and its proxies, Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, told a cabinet meeting on Sunday. Tensions in the Middle East have soared following the assassinations last week of a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut and Hamas’s top political leader in Tehran. Iran and its allies have blamed Israel for the attacks and threatened retaliation. Mr Netanyahu said Israel was ready for any scenario as its allies attempt to contain the conflict. Jordan’s foreign minister was making a rare trip to Iran as part of diplomatic efforts while the Pentagon has moved significant assets to the region. “We are doing everything possible to make sure that this situation does not boil over,” White House deputy national security adviser Jon Finer told ABC on Sunday.

USA - Supreme court justice says ‘too much law’ impairs liberties and talks about importance of an independent judiciary. US supreme court justice Neil Gorsuch has said ordinary Americans are “getting whacked” by too many laws and regulations in a new book that underscores his skepticism of federal agencies and the power they wield. “Too little law and we’re not safe, and our liberties aren’t protected,” Gorsuch told the Associated Press in an interview in his supreme court office. “But too much law and you actually impair those same things.” The problem, he said, is that there has been an explosion of laws and regulations, at both the federal and state levels. The sheer volume of Congress’s output for the past decade is overwhelming, he said, averaging 344 pieces of legislation totaling 2-3 million words a year.

USA - Could an economic “Black Swan” of a recession upend the November election? Even before Friday’s shockingly worrisome jobs report (unemployment ticking up to 4.3%, a slowdown in hiring followed by a 610-point drop in the Dow) that’s what some savvy market analysts and economists told me could be ­happening. They see some weird stuff in the economic data that hasn’t been factored into the recent Dow and the Nasdaq run-ups to record territory. Given the supreme importance of the economy to voters, it could turn a neck-and-neck race between Don­ald Trump and Kamala Harris strongly in favor of Trump. The reason economists and analysts believe a recession would be a Black Swan is because it’s not expected based on many readings of the economic data, and because if it happened, it would take an already volatile race for the White House to new levels of confusion. Trump, who has been losing momentum, would change the nature of the ­debate over who deserves to lead the country.

UK - Calls to make Islamophobia a specific crime in the wake of riots threaten free speech, MPs have warned. There is no single agreed definition of anti-Muslim hatred but Labour has previously signalled its support for one. Left-wing Labour MPs and Muslim groups have urged Sir Keir Starmer to take a stronger stance on Islamophobia after a far-Right mob attacked a mob in Southport last week. But opposition backbenchers warned any new legislation would only serve to stifle criticism of religion and freedom of expression. Sir Christopher Chope, the Tory MP for Christchurch, said: “I think to subdivide different types of rioting, depending upon the aim of the rioters, is ridiculous. We should treat all rioters equally. "We don’t need any more rules. What we need is to make the current law apply equally to everybody.”

USA - Furious bikers have turned their back on iconic motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson, accusing its CEO of 'going woke.' The growing movement - spearheaded by conservative influencer Robby Starbuck - cites CEO Jochen Zeitz's support for hardline policies on trans care for kids, critical race theory, climate change and diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Starbuck, 35, is now demanding the company drop its CEO - and is rallying motorcycle enthusiasts to his cause at the largest bikers' event in the world, the 84th Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota. 'Bikers @SturgisRally are going to be spreading the word about this,' Starbuck vowed last week, just days before the 10-day event kicked off. 'Harley is hoping this all blows over. Are y'all ready to give up, or make your voices heard?' Starbuck added: 'Do Harley riders want the money they spend at Harley to be used later by corporate to push an ideology that's diametrically opposed to their own values?'

UK - Muslim mobs roam the streets with knives and machetes unchecked by police as Labour Government prepares to crack down on “far-right thugs”. Riots continued in Liverpool, Hull, Manchester, Belfast and at least 7 other UK cities Saturday as the System Media blamed the indigenous population for defending their country and mobs of Muslim men armed with knives and machetes roamed the streets in several British cities. Police braced for fresh violence after protests Saturday resulted in at least 90 arrests, several police officers being injured, and looting, the Express reported. More anti-immigration protests are planned for Sunday in Bolton, Lancaster, Middlesbrough, Weymouth and Rotherham.

IRAN - In April Iran officially launched a massive drone attack against Israel, a development that could have sparked an all-out war and draw in more countries. One US official at the time reported that the number of drones was between 50 and 100. The attack was widely expected to occur after Israeli forces killed a senior officer in Iran’s embassy in Damascus a week earlier. US military personnel later announced that they had successfully intercepted several unmanned Iranian drones that were purportedly heading towards Israeli territory in the attack, according to statements from three high-ranking US officials.

UK - Fears of a global recession have exploded after $2.9 trillion (£2.27 trillion) was reportedly wiped off global stock markets, according to a financial expert. Stocks around the globe have plummeted wiping off an estimated $2.9 trillion (£2.27 trillion) from the markets today, according to a financial expert. Writing on X, Financial Analyst and Value Investor Jacob King wrote: "Over $2.9 trillion has been wiped out from major indices and stocks this morning due to growing fears of a global recession. This is the worst day for stocks since March 16, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic fears." The slump affected markets in Europe, Asia and New York on Friday, August 2, as fears the US may be on the brink of a recession sparked a global sell-off.

VATICAN - As we’ve reported, parts of the Paris Olympics opening ceremony were offensive, lewd, religion-mocking performances that had nothing to do with sports or athletic excellence. The blowback was intense, as it should have been, but there has been one voice that's been missing from the response: that of the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis. Many were outraged that one section in particular seemed to mock the final evening of Jesus Christ depicted in Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic painting, “The Last Supper.” But now the Pope has spoken out, and like many, he’s disturbed.

USA - Tropical Storm Debby could be upgraded to hurricane status by Monday as it heads toward Florida from the Gulf of Mexico, weather officials have predicted. Portions of Southwest Florida are already feeling the storm’s impact even before it makes it to land, with officials issuing tornado warnings, watches, and evacuations as the wind and rainfall pick up, FOX Weather reported. According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), there is danger of a “life-threatening storm surge” along parts of Florida’s Gulf Coast, with six to ten feet of flooding expected between the Ochlockonee and Suwanee Rivers.

UK - Britain is braced for a weekend of unrest, as jail cells are cleared and lawyers put on standby in the wake of the Southport stabbings. More than 35 rallies are planned in towns and cities across the UK, raising fears that scenes already seen this week of police being attacked and vehicles set alight could be repeated. It comes as Sunderland was besieged last night, when rioting yobs torched a police station and looted shops, as riot police were attacked with bricks and missiles by hooligans.

USA - From New York Times, Defense Secretary Lloyd J Austin III on Friday ordered additional combat aircraft and missile-shooting warships to the Middle East in response to threats from Iran and its proxies in Gaza, Lebanon and Yemen to attack Israel in the coming days to avenge the death of Ismail Haniyeh, the Pentagon said. The military will send one additional squadron of Air Force F-22 fighter jets, an unspecified number of additional Navy cruisers and destroyers capable of intercepting ballistic missiles, and, if needed, more land-based ballistic-missile defense systems. Some ships already in the western Mediterranean Sea will move east, closer to the coast of Israel to provide more security, a senior Pentagon official said.