65 m. ago Voices: I’m obsessed with a celebrity and I know he’d like me too if he met me

The Independent’s agony aunt Victoria Richards is here to help. Email dearvix@independent.co.uk for advice on love, work, family and relationships

Politics

2 h. ago As Ukraine battles to hold lines, Trump may find Putin difficult to persuade

Despite huge numbers of casualties, Russian leader believes he is slowly winning war – so he can afford to string talks outFor Ukraine, the break in the frontline is unfortunately timed. Lightly armed Russian saboteur groups – three on one count – cut though Ukrainian positions in the Donbas countryside east of the key junction at Dobropillia. Though one group has been eliminated, as of Tuesday two were thought to remain at large – and although their numbers are small for now, perhaps 20 to 30, the breach is significant.At the beginning of the year it was safe to visit Dobropillia, which had become a bustling market centre busy with soldiers and locals, nearly 15 miles north of the frontline in Pokrovsk. But since then the town, where once busy supply roads from Pokrovsk to Kramatorsk split, has come under sustained attack with glide bombs, while FPV (first person view) drones strike targets on the move. Continue reading...

Politics

3 h. ago Father of New Zealand woman held in US by Ice along with six

Rod Price recounts ‘frantic’ call he received from Sarah Shaw after her detention at US border while returning from CanadaThe father of a New Zealand woman who has been held in a US immigration detention centre for three weeks with her six-year-old son is hopeful the pair will be released by the end of the week.US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detained Sarah Shaw and her youngest son after they attempted to re-enter the US from Canada on 24 July. Continue reading...

Politics

5 h. ago Photos of Bolivia’s road to the polls under the shadow of an economic crisis

Bolivia is facing its worst economic crisis in decades, marked by high inflation and severe fuel shortages, as voters prepare for the Aug. 17 general election, where they will choose a new president and legislators in both chambers.

Economics

6 h. ago 9 people plead not guilty in a Texas elections probe involving 'vote harvesting'

Nine people have pleaded not guilty to felony charges brought forth in a rural Texas county by Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton as part of a widening elections investigation

Politics

7 h. ago Children often having final say when it comes to families moving house, survey reveals

Seventy-four per cent of families in the study said the significant voice in any house move came from the children

Society

9 h. ago Rita Wrote a Letter: Paul Kelly’s sequel to How to Make Gravy is an affectionate goodbye to Joe

Almost 30 years after Kelly released his Christmas classic, we finally learn what became of his cast of characters Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email“She’s the one to save me,” errant protagonist Joe declares of Rita, his long-suffering partner and unpaid therapist, in the prison letter that forms the lyrics of Paul Kelly’s 1996 single How to Make Gravy.The perennial Christmas classic was recently voted the ninth-best Australian song of all time. Almost 30 years after he wrote it, Kelly has released a sequel, Rita Wrote a Letter, in which we finally learn what became of Rita while Joe was in jail: she wised up and moved on.Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning Continue reading...

Politics

10 h. ago New York man charged with cyberstalking a family member of slain UnitedHealthcare CEO

A New York man has been charged with cyberstalking a family member of slain UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, allegedly leaving threatening voicemails that expressed glee about the killing within hours of the fatal shooting

Society

11 h. ago Donald Trump warns Putin there will be 'VERY severe consequences' if Russia does not stop the war in Ukraine

The US President took a tougher tone against the dictator yesterday saying he was yet to be convinced he would be able to persuade Putin to stop killing civilians.

Events

11 h. ago Policing must strike a balance between transparency and justice

Editorial: No democratic society should concede the principle of the right to a fair trial, one uncontaminated by misreporting that might influence a jury. But new guidance that permits police to share a suspect’s ethnicity and nationality with the public will enable the force to defend itself against often baseless allegations of ‘two-tier’ policing

Events

13 h. ago AI could soon detect early voice box cancer from the sound of your voice

Scientists analysed more than ten thousand voice notes to detect distinctive ‘vocal biomarkers’

Politics

15 h. ago Voices: Labour can’t hit ‘working people’, so now they’re after people who used to work

Whatever weasel words they may use to justify any changes to inheritance tax, the message is clear: you’re better off not making money under Labour, because they will get you in the long run, writes Chris Blackhurst

Events

18 h. ago Hefin David remembered as 'powerful voice for the people of Wales'

Welsh Labour MS Hefin David has died suddenly at the age of 47

Politics

18 h. ago Keir Starmer leads tributes to Hefin David after Welsh Labour MS dies suddenly aged 47

The Prime Minister said the Caerphilly MS, who had been a member of the Welsh Parliament since 2016, was 'a powerful voice for the people of Wales'.

Events

18 h. ago Voices: So Gen Z need special coaching to make actual phone calls. Get a grip!

Ahead of A-level results day, schools have been offering students workshops on how to use their smartphones to talk to a real person and secure a university place. So what hope have they got in the real world, wonders Victoria Richards

Politics

18 h. ago Voices: Is Keir Starmer just one crisis away from a Labour coup?

Party strategists are busy working out how to escape the chancellor’s doom loop of tax rises – and to crush damaging speculation about her boss’s ability to lead his party into the next general election. But the race to replace the PM may already have begun, says Andrew Grice

Events

20 h. ago Residents say community is 'blighted' by hotel amid plans for expansion

Fears voiced over affect of 'temporary accommodation' on neighbourhood

Politics

21 h. ago Voices: ‘Complete mess’: Readers slam Kemi Badenoch’s proposal to put asylum seekers in ‘migrant camps’

Our community described the Tory leader’s suggestion as cruel – and a distraction from deeper political failures

Events

34 h. ago New York City mayoral race: Mamdani leads Cuomo by 19 points, poll shows

Poll says 44% of voters for Mamdani and 25% for Cuomo as Elise Stefanik chips away at Hochul’s lead in governor raceThe closely watched New York mayoral and governor’s races appear to be forming into shapes that will bring little comfort to centrist Democrats, with both elections happening in November.A new Siena Institute poll released on Tuesday shows New York City’s Democratic socialist mayoral candidate, Zohran Mamdani, leading former New York governor Andrew Cuomo by 19 percentage points – while the Republican congresswoman Elise Stefanik is chipping away at incumbent Democrat Kathy Hochul’s lead in a hypothetical contest for the New York governor’s mansion in 2026. Continue reading...

Politics

34 h. ago Republican’s town hall descends into chaos as angry voters rage over Epstein files and Trump agenda

Voters called the California lawmaker a ‘liar’ and launched expletives at him throughout Monday’s event

Politics