GERMANY - The right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has hit a new popularity record and would win a hypothetical election with 28% of the vote, according to a Bild/INSA poll published on Saturday. Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democratic bloc (CDU/CSU) would receive 24%, falling behind the right-wing party by one percentage point compared with earlier polls, according to the survey. The ruling coalition partner Social Democrats (SPD) maintained a 14% approval rating. Last week, Merz was rated Europe’s most unpopular leader, with a 76% disapproval rating, according to the US-based opinion research institute Morning Consult.

USA - Hours before a two-week ceasefire with Iran was set to end this week, President Trump announced its extension, claiming a power struggle in Tehran was impeding its ability to negotiate. Pakistan had requested the extension, he claimed on Truth Social, “based on the fact that the government of Iran is seriously fractured”. An anonymous American official put it more bluntly to an Israeli journalist for Axios. Trump was giving the Iranians a few more days “to get their act together”, the official said. And yet a few days later, Tehran has not budged, insisting there is nothing to talk about until the US stops blockading its ports. On Thursday, Trump doubled down on the notion of his own generosity towards a conflicted Tehran. “They are very disorganised right now,” he told reporters at the White House. “We thought we’d give them a little chance to get some of their turmoil resolved.”

UK - The stock market is too high and will fall soon. This is what the Bank of England’s deputy governor, Sarah Breeden, warned today. Despite the turmoil caused by the Iran war, global stock markets have hit fresh highs and shrugged off fears about the economic fallout of the war. The S&P 500 index of big American companies is up 4.15 per cent in 2026, the UK’s FTSE 100 is up 4.3 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei 225 is up 15.2 per cent. Breeden is not alone in warning of a potential stock market fall amid growing concerns about risks ranging from war to the AI bubble bursting and a private credit crunch. She said today: “The thing that really keeps me awake at night is the likelihood of a number of risks crystallising at the same time. What happens in that environment and are we prepared for it?”

USA - Sometimes the long-term economic consequences of major geopolitical events are easier to foresee than their more immediate ones. A case in point is the Iran war; it’s anyone’s guess how this is going to pan out over the weeks and months ahead. The deadline for some kind of negotiated settlement has been deferred again, and the ceasefire extended, apparently indefinitely. Stock markets assume the war is already essentially over, with a Pakistan-brokered peace deal only a matter of time. But nobody really knows, and for the moment, Donald Trump continues to strengthen his military presence in the region in a manner that would suggest imminent, renewed conflict. Meanwhile, the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, cutting off vital global supplies of oil, gas, fertiliser, jet fuel and much else besides. The longer this continues, the more damage it does to the world economy and the greater the chances of a nasty correction in stock markets.

UK - Do good, honest people ever shoplift? The unlikely figure of Archie Norman, the former Conservative MP and now chairman of Marks and Spencer, seems to think so. To be fair to Mr Norman, he is not making a general excuse for theft, but rather arguing that the aggravations of self-service checkouts not working properly may on occasion drive even the most morally upstanding individual to pinch a punnet of strawberries. This is not a matter for the state to intervene on. What very much is a matter of public concern is the general rise in shoplifting. When brazen theft is all too often seen as having no consequence for the offender, delinquent behaviour is normalised. If there is a rise in usually honest people taking self-service to a new level, is this not the real culprit?

USA - The US is burning through missiles built for a war with China, raising concerns about the feasibility of the Pentagon’s contingency plans to defend Taiwan. Since the start of the Iran war on February 28, it has fired 1,100 long-range stealth cruise missiles that had been designated for a potential conflict with China, leaving about 1,000 in America’s stockpile, according to a report. So far during Operation Epic Fury, the US military has also fired more than 1,000 Tomahawk cruise missiles – almost 10 times the number the Pentagon buys each year – and 1,200 Patriot interceptor missiles, which each cost $4 million (about £3 million). Officials said this would leave inventories at a worrying low level. William Yang, a senior analyst on north-east Asia at the International Crisis Group think tank, told The Telegraph that dwindling US stockpiles would be “met with unease in key Asian capitals”, especially Taipei, Tokyo, Manila, and Seoul. He said: “These countries have long been relying on US-led deterrence to counter China’s increasingly frequent and assertive military activities."

USA - President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were rushed out of the White House Correspondents' Dinner after a shooter opened fire. DC's biggest night of the year was plunged into chaos after shots rang out in the lobby of the Washington Hilton at around 8.15 pm. The President and First Lady were immediately taken to safety, followed by members of the cabinet who were hauled over barriers by the Secret Service. The president has since confirmed that a Secret Service agent wearing a protective vest was shot, but is in 'great shape.' It was not immediately clear what happened. A law enforcement official confirmed there was a shooter but no further details were immediately available.

UK - British centers will start selling “lunch-hour abortions.” kill your baby and go back to work. The Government has announced plans to financially incentivize abortion clinics to provide ‘lunch-hour’ or ‘same-day’ abortions. The changes were announced last week as part of the Renewed Women’s Health Strategy for England. Under the current NHS Payment Scheme, abortion clinics are typically paid separately for each part of the abortion pathway – the consultation, scan, and procedure. This encourages abortion providers not to rush the process in one day and also gives women more time to consider their decision before the actual abortion procedure happens. Under the Government’s new approach, abortion clinics will now be paid a bundled payment for providing all stages of the process – and the Government has made it clear they are doing this to financially incentivize clinics to provide abortion “consultations, scans and procedures on the same day”. In what was described as a “cattle market culture”, staff felt “encouraged” to ensure women went through with abortions. Staff described this as a “very target-driven culture”.

USA - The case of yet another top NASA nuclear engineer turning up dead in a fiery crash has hit the headlines, adding to the dark and mysterious pattern of experts tied to advanced propulsion and space secrets apparently being targeted. Joshua LeBlanc, 29, a team lead on NASA’s most cutting-edge nuclear thermal propulsion projects, was found charred beyond recognition inside his burned Tesla after vanishing from his Huntsville, Alabama home. His family immediately feared abduction. He left his phone and wallet behind — an act they called completely uncharacteristic. Tesla Sentry Mode data later showed the vehicle sat motionless at Huntsville International Airport for four hours the morning of July 22, 2025. The car was discovered that afternoon after colliding with a guardrail, slamming into trees, and erupting in flames. Authorities confirmed his identity days later through forensic examination.

CHINA - According to a report from Newsweek, Chinese researchers working in critical military and technological fields have suffered a series of untimely deaths, raising parallels to similar cases under investigation in the United States. At least nine prominent scientists in sensitive areas such as military AI, hypersonics, and space defense have died in circumstances often described as accidents or left unexplained, prompting speculation about a possible “silent scientist war.” One case that has drawn particular scrutiny involves Feng Yanghe, a 38-year-old professor at China’s National University of Defense Technology and a leading figure in artificial intelligence for defense applications. These incidents mirror US concerns over 11 cases of missing or deceased scientists in comparable fields, which Washington is actively probing. No definitive links or evidence of targeted campaigns have been established, but the pattern has fueled debate among analysts about potential efforts to disrupt technological progress in a fiercely competitive global landscape.