BBC News (World)

Countries urge nationals to leave Lebanon as Mid-East war fears grow Several countries have urged their nationals to leave Lebanon, with the US warning its citizens to do so on “any ticket available”, as fears grow of a wider conflict in the Middle East. Iran has vowed “severe” retaliation against Israel, which it blames for the death of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday. Israel has not commented. His assassination came hours after Israel killed Hezbollah senior commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut. read more

Why Putin thinks he's the winner in prisoner swap It’s something Vladimir Putin does rarely: go to the airport to meet people off a plane. Personally. But he was there last night: on the tarmac at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport to meet and greet those Russians whose release he’d secured from foreign jails; part of the largest prisoner swap between Russia and the West since the Cold War. Out of the plane and down the steps came 10 people, including spies, sleeper agents and a convicted assassin. read more

Top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh killed in Iran - group says Top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh has been killed in Iran, the group has said. In a statement released on Wednesday, Hamas said Haniyeh was killed in an Israeli raid on his residence in Tehran. A number of other senior Hamas figures, including Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, have described Haniyeh's death as an "assassination" and vowed to retaliate. read more

Venezuelans clash with police after disputed election result Security forces in Venezuela have fired tear gas and rubber bullets at people protesting Sunday’s disputed election result. Thousands of people descended on central Caracas on Monday evening, some walking for miles from slums on the mountains surrounding the city, towards the presidential palace. Protests erupted in the Venezuelan capital the day after President Nicolás Maduro claimed victory. read more

Venezuelans clash with police after disputed election result Security forces in Venezuela have fired tear gas and rubber bullets against people protesting over Sunday’s disputed election result. Thousands of people descended on central Caracas on Monday evening, some walking for miles from slums on the mountains surrounding the city, towards the presidential palace. Protests erupted in the Venezuelan capital the day after President Nicolás Maduro claimed he had won. read more

Venezuela's Maduro declared winner in disputed vote President Nicolás Maduro has won Venezuela's presidential election, according to partial results published by the electoral council. The head of the National Electoral Council (CNE), Elvis Amoroso, who is a close ally of Mr Maduro, said that with 80% of votes counted, President Maduro had 51.2% of the vote, compared to 44.2% for his main rival. The Venezuelan opposition has alleged widespread fraud in the counting of votes, and has vowed to challenge the result. read more

Biden says he quit US presidential race to 'save democracy' US President Joe Biden has told Americans in a televised address that he decided to end his faltering re-election campaign in a bid to save US democracy. Mr Biden, 81, said he felt his record as president "merited a second term" but that "nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy". He said he endorsed US Vice-President Kamala Harris to unite their fellow Democrats and the country. read more

Kamala Harris slams Trump at first rally as he hits back US Vice-President Kamala Harris has gone on the offensive against Donald Trump in the first rally of her White House campaign, portraying November’s election as a choice between a former prosecutor and a convicted felon. Speaking to a crowd of about 3,000 in the battleground state of Wisconsin, Ms Harris likened her Republican opponent to fraudsters she said she had prosecuted. Trump, meanwhile, assailed her record on the border, and posted on social media: “Lyin’ Kamala Harris destroys everything she touches!” read more

Biden has endorsed Harris. What happens next? President Joe Biden surprised American voters on Sunday when he announced he would drop out of the race for president after weeks of resisting calls to step down. Though he will carry out the rest of his presidency, he has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take his place as the Democratic Party's nominee. The decision throws the party into uncharted waters with just a month to go before the Democratic National Convention. read more

UN top court says Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal The UN's top court has said Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories is against international law, in a landmark opinion. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) said Israel should stop settlement activity in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem and end its "illegal" occupation of those areas and the Gaza Strip as soon as possible. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the court had made a "decision of lies". read more

Ursula von der Leyen secures five more years in top EU job Ursula von der Leyen has been re-elected as president of the European Commission following a secret ballot among MEPs. She secured the backing of 401 Members of the European Parliament at a vote in Strasbourg on Thursday - 41 more than she needed. Ms von der Leyen, of the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), was first elected in 2019. She will now serve another five years at the helm of the EU. read more

Why Trump picked JD Vance as his running mate In 2016, when Donald Trump picked Indiana Governor Mike Pence as his running mate, it was widely viewed as an effort to court evangelical Christian voters who may have been wary of supporting Trump, a thrice-married former Democrat. This time around, he opted for JD Vance. And like his previous choice, the Ohio senator’s selection offers some insight into the former president’s campaign strategy – and, possibly, how he would govern if he returns to the White House. The pick suggests Trump knows this election will be won and lost in a handful of industrial Midwest battleground states. read more

Tragedy at Trump rally upends election campaign - for now The 2024 election campaign has a new iconic image: Donald Trump, moments after narrowly avoiding serious injury or death from an assassin’s bullets, standing with his fist raised, lines of blood streaked across his face, an American flag billowing in the breeze behind him. “Fight! Fight! Fight!” the former president said, as some of the supporters, who moments before had feared for their lives, began cheering. The bloodshed in Pennsylvania will leave a lasting mark on the American psyche, puncturing the veneer of security around the highest levels of presidential politics – of magnetic screening, bulletproof limousines and heavily armed Secret Service agents. Even former presidents are not insulated from the violence that can erupt in everyday American life. read more

Trump 'safe' after shots fired at rally Donald Trump was rushed off stage during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania after loud bangs were heard Trump, the leading Republican presidential contender, dropped to the ground and was seen with what appeared to be blood on the side of his face He appeared to raise a fist into the air as he was escorted off stage Trump's condition is reportedly 'fine' according to his campaign source

Alec Baldwin's Rust trial dismissed over hidden evidence Alec Baldwin broke down in tears as a New Mexico judge dismissed the involuntary manslaughter case against him for a fatal shooting on the set of the film Rust. The trial collapsed three days into Baldwin's trial in Santa Fe, at a court just miles from where Halyna Hutchins, a cinematographer, was shot with a revolver that Mr Baldwin was using in rehearsals. It is the second time the case against the actor has been dismissed since the October 2021 shooting. He will not be tried again. read more

Pressure builds on Biden as news conference fails to stop rebels Joe Biden's press conference in which he insisted he was still fit to run for US president has failed to silence critics from his own party. Three Democratic politicians joined the growing list calling on Mr Biden to drop out of the US presidential race. Calls for the 81-year-old to step aside have escalated since he stumbled through a TV debate with Republican Donald Trump last month. At an hour-long briefing taking reporters' questions on Thursday night he was more steady and fluent but there were also gaffes. read more

Ukraine in mourning after day of deadly attacks A day of mourning is being observed in Ukraine after one of the worst waves of Russian missile strikes in months, with at least 41 people killed and 166 injured. The main children's hospital in the capital Kyiv was among buildings hit in cities across the country on Monday. Two people died when a missile flattened part of the Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital - Ukraine's biggest paediatrics facility - and a search for survivors beneath the rubble continued into the early hours of Tuesday. read more

French people reject the far right - again The French have said it again: they do not want the far right in power. They gave them a big win in the European elections; they gave them a big win in the first round of this parliamentary election. But when it came to a vote that really counted, just as in the presidentials, they drew back from the brink. read more

Reformist Masoud Pezeshkian elected Iran's president Reformist Masoud Pezeshkian has been elected as Iran's new president, beating his hardline conservative rival Saeed Jalili. The vote was declared in Dr Pezeshkian's favour after he secured 53.3% of the more than 30 million votes counted. Mr Jalili polled at 44.3%. The run-off came after no candidate secured a majority in the first round of the election on 28 June, which saw a historically low voter turnout of 40%. read more

Biden faces donor pressure as he digs in on re-election bid President Joe Biden is facing pressure from some major Democratic donors as he faces a critical few days in his campaign for re-election. A number of donors are publicly warning they will withhold funds unless Mr Biden is replaced as the party's candidate following his disastrous debate performance last week. read more