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Hello, I'm David Harper with the BBC News.
President Trump has said he's considering invoking the Insurrection Act if necessary to overcome opposition to the use of National Guard troops to police U.S. cities. The act gives the president broad powers to deploy the military at home. "We have no choice but to do this and when judges give us rulings that, you know, you don't have to do it. Portland is on fire. Portland's been on fire for years. That's so much saving it. We have to save something else because I think that's all insurrection. I really think that's really criminal insurrection. These are unsafe places we're gonna make them safe." The Insurrection Act hasn't been invoked since 1992. With more, here's Peter Bowes. President Trump has threatened to send members of the National Guard to several U.S. cities either to help fight crime or intervene during protests against immigration and customs enforcement activity. At the weekend he was blocked by a federal judge from sending troops to Portland in the state of Oregon which Mr. Trump claims has been taken over by left-wing domestic terrorists. Democratic state governors have accused the president of abusing his power. Meanwhile President Trump has said he believes there's a good chance of making a lasting deal to end the war in Gaza as indirect talks between Israeli and Hamas negotiators have got underway in Egypt. Speaking at the White House, Mr. Trump also said Hamas had agreed to things he described as "very important." Both Hamas and Israel are seeking clarification of key details including the disarmament of Hamas and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. Renewable energy including nuclear power has overtaken coal as the world's leading source of electricity for the first time. Data from the global energy think-tank Ember covering the first six months of this year found the growth in solar and wind was so strong it met 100 percent of the new global electricity demand. Our climate editor is Justin Rowlatt. Ember described this as a "crucial turning point" but the new data from the think-tank shows the world is moving at different speeds. Developing countries are now leading the charge with China's dominance of the global clean tech industry unchallenged. It added more solar and wind capacity than the rest of the world combined. But in some developed countries, notably the U.S. and EU, electricity demand grew faster than clean energy output, leading to a rise in coal and gas generation. The German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is urging the European Union to scrap its 2035 deadline for ending sales of new combustion engine vehicles. Mr. Merz said he didn't want Germany on the wrong side of the fossil fuel phase-out and expressed hope that synthetic fuels could make combustion engines more environmentally friendly. The EU agreed last month to fast-track a review of the target after pressure from car makers. You're listening to the latest world news from the BBC. The embattled president of Madagascar, Andry [Rajoelina], has named an army general as his new prime minister a week after dissolving the government in response to angry protests over power cuts and water shortages. General Ruphin Fortunat Zafisambo was chief of staff to his sacked predecessor. In a televised address, President [Rajoelina] said the man he was appointing is honest, open-minded and works quickly. The French President Emmanuel Macron has given his outgoing prime minister 48 hours to reach a deal with political parties to form a government. It follows Sébastien Lecornu's sudden resignation a day after confirming his cabinet lineup. He'd held office for less than a month. Opposition parties want new elections. The Metropolitan Police says it's dismantled an international gang suspected of smuggling up to 40,000 stolen phones from the U.K. to China in the last year. Sima Kotecha reports. The Metropolitan Police says it carried out the U.K.'s largest operation against mobile phone theft, resulting in the arrest of 15 suspects and the discovery of more than 2,000 devices. Three people, including two Afghan men, have since been charged with conspiring to receive stolen goods. They're suspected of running an international smuggling gang that helped transport stolen phones to China, where they're believed to be sold for up to £4,000 each because they're unlocked, unlike devices on the market there. The Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has condemned the shooting dead of a judge in his court in the capital Tirana. He said any aggression against the judicial system demanded an extreme legal response. The judge, Astrit Kalaja, was presiding over a property dispute appeal when one of the parties opened fire. UNESCO's executive board has elected the former Egyptian Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anani to lead the U.N.'s main cultural organization. The United States, which says UNESCO promotes "woke values", did not vote. Washington plans to withdraw from the agency next year. BBC News. |