Israel is appearing at the international court of justice (ICJ) after South Africa asked it to urgently order an end the assault on Rafah

Yemen’s Houthis said they downed a US MQ9 drone on Thursday evening over the south-eastern province of Maareb, the group’s military spokesperson said on Friday.

According to Reuters, the Iran-aligned group said they would release images and videos to support their claim and added that they had targeted the drone using a locally made surface to air missile.

Graham King, whose firm is paid £3.5m a day to accommodate arrivals in the UK, listed among country’s 350 richest people

An Essex businessman who won government contracts paying his firm £3.5m a day for transporting and accommodating asylum seekers has been named among the 350 richest people in the UK.

Graham King, the founder and majority owner of a business empire that includes Clearsprings Ready Homes, which won a 10-year Home Office contract for housing thousands of asylum seekers, was on Friday named alongside King Charles III, the prime minister and Sir Paul McCartney on the Sunday Times rich list of the wealthiest people.

Interior ministry says armed suspect ‘neutralised’ after attempting to set fire to synagogue in Normandy city

• French police shoot dead armed man who set fire to Rouen synagogue – latest updates

French police have shot dead a man armed with a knife and iron bar who tried to set fire to a synagogue in the Normandy city of Rouen, officials said.

The interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, posted on X that the man had been “neutralised”, and he thanked officers for their “reactivity and their courage”.

Chancellor attempts to draw election battle lines, suggesting he wants to reduce national insurance and Labour intends to raise tax

• UK politics live – latest updates

Jeremy Hunt has said further tax cuts are on the way in the autumn after the economy has “turned a corner”, as he criticised Keir Starmer for promising “motherhood and apple pie”.

The chancellor attempted to draw the battle lines for the next election by painting the Conservatives as tax-cutters and Labour as intending to raise tax.

Suppressed DWP study told of hardship endured by carers forced to repay thousands after minor allowance breaches

Ministers were warned three years ago that unpaid carers were being treated unfairly and forced to repay huge sums for minor benefit breaches, a long suppressed government report has revealed.

A Department for Work and Pensions document presented to politicians in 2021 detailed how carers – the majority of whom were on low incomes and spending 65 hours a week caring for loved ones – endured financial hardship, stress and anger after being heavily penalised for falling foul of strict carer’s allowance eligibility rules.

John Woodcock, whose review proposes bans for protest groups, has lobbying links to firms in arms and fossil fuel sectors

Activists have accused the government’s independent adviser on political violence of a conflict of interest, after it emerged that he had lobbying links to companies that would benefit from curbs to protesting.

John Woodcock, formerly a Labour MP and now a crossbench peer, has prepared a review of “far-left” involvement in disruptive protest, which includes activism against climate change and war. At the same time, he has been chairing and advising lobby groups representing arms manufacturers and fossil fuel firms.

Academics’ union calls offer a ‘descent into parody’ while mosques complain about C of E special treatment

It is meant to remind Britons of the “example set by our ultimate public servant”, but a £4.4m government scheme to send out free portraits of Charles III for display in public buildings is not quite going to plan.

After first limiting the availability of the oak-framed pictures of the king in his admiral’s uniform to courts, schools and police and fire services, the deputy prime minister, Oliver Dowden, said this week that any jobcentre, university, Church of England church or hospital could also have one.

Residents told cases could continue for up to two weeks as businesses hit by cancellations ahead of half-term

Cases of an illness caused by a microscopic parasite in a Devon harbour town could continue for a further two weeks, experts said, with businesses predicting thousands of pounds of losses as school half-term approaches.

About 16,000 households and businesses in the Brixham area have been told by South West Water (SWW) not to use their tap water for drinking without boiling and cooling it first.

One in 10 officials to be based in city within three years and 70-strong team will increase to 500

The Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey, has announced a big expansion of its operations in Leeds, with one in 10 officials to be based in the West Yorkshire city within three years.

Bailey said the 70-strong team at the central bank’s northern hub would swell sevenfold to 500 by 2027 through a combination of voluntary relocation and local recruitment.

Owners of historic buildings used in likes of Bridgerton warned of potential damage to possessions and reputations

When the owner of Drayton House in Northamptonshire was approached to allow his 127-room mansion to be the location of a film called Saltburn, it was “100%” the generous fee on offer that swayed his decision, he said, adding: “These houses don’t run on water.”

But there were unintended consequences of Charles Stopford Sackville’s decision after the movie’s release last year. The popularity of Emerald Fennell’s class satire led to a rush of selfie-taking trespassers after TikTok videos giving directions to the estate went viral.