Conflict appears to have reached painful stalemate, but leaders in Tehran and Washington seem to think victory is near

The month-old ceasefire between Iran and the US appeared to be in new peril on Tuesday with a fresh barrage of Iranian missiles reported to have targeted the United Arab Emirates as US naval forces pressed ahead with efforts to reopen the strait of Hormuz.

The Iranian strike on the UAE was the second in 48 hours, and came shortly after the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, insisted the shaky truce which has paused the war in the Middle East was intact, despite the new increase in violence.

Disclosure made at preliminary hearing for civil case in which four women accuse the influencer and his brother of rape

Andrew Tate sought written assurances from prosecutors that he would not be arrested if he returned to the UK for a civil case in which he is accused of rape, a court has heard.

Lawyers for the influencer and self-described misogynist, who has been charged with 10 criminal offences and is under investigation by various forces, made the submission last year.

Revelation comes after report commissioned by department released in response to charity’s FoI request

The Ministry of Defence has no system for examining whether UK military action has killed or injured civilians in war, a study commissioned by the department has revealed.

The MoD also “does not maintain a central register of civilian harm incidents or allegations” and, despite mass casualties caused by other countries, has concluded there is no need to do so because its existing mitigation is considered effective.

Microsoft, Google DeepMind and xAI products to be vetted for cybersecurity, biosecurity and chemical weapons risks

The US government has struck deals with Google DeepMind, Microsoft and xAI to review early versions of their new AI models before they are released to the public.

The Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI), part of the US Department of Commerce, announced the agreements on Tuesday, saying the review process would be key to understanding the capabilities of new and powerful AI models as well as to protecting US national security. These collaborations will help the federal government “scale (its) work in the public interest at a critical moment”, the agency said in a press release.

Staff told to prosecute as quickly as they can, rather than waiting to gather all evidence, to tackle ‘climate of fear’ felt by Jewish community

Prosecutors in England and Wales have been told to “fast-track” hate crime prosecutions after a spate of antisemitic attacks that the prime minister on Tuesday called a “crisis for all of us”.

Stephen Parkinson, the director of public prosecutions, issued guidance to his staff on Tuesday telling them to bring forward prosecutions against any sort of hate crime as quickly as they could, rather than waiting until they had gathered all possible evidence.