First Thing: Democrats express ‘grave concerns’ over secretive ICE deportation flights | US news

Good morning.

A group of 40 House Democrats declared “serious concerns” about the Trump administration’s secret deportation flight program and demanded that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) address allegations of mistreatment and inhumane conditions on ICE charter jets.

In a letter shared with the Guardian and addressed to FAA administrator Bryan Bedford, lawmakers describe an “urgent need for transparency” about ICE’s increased use of commercial aircraft to transport detained immigrants and criticize “inappropriate and dangerous” efforts to conceal those operations.

The letter follows a Guardian investigation that found the administration was transporting immigrants irregularly, often in violation of their constitutional rights.

• How much did deportation flights increase during the Donald Trump era? The number of ICE flights increased by 84% in 2025 compared to 2024. monitoring by human rights groups.

Trump declares ceasefire with Iran on ‘life support’ after rejecting peace overtures

Donald Trump said the month-long ceasefire with Iran was on “life support” and said he was considering resuming the US Navy’s military escort to ships in the Strait of Hormuz in a bid to break the Iranian blockade.

The US president rejected counterproposals sent by Iran this weekend and denied he was under any domestic pressure to reach a deal. Referring to the ceasefire that has been in effect since April 7, Trump said: “After reading that piece of garbage they sent us, I would call it the weakest ceasefire right now – I haven’t even finished reading it. I would say the ceasefire is massive life support where the doctor walks in and says, ‘Sir, the person you love has about a 1% chance of survival.'”

Last week, the United States sent Iran a set of conditions to stop the war, mostly related to limiting Tehran’s nuclear capabilities. Over the weekend, Iran sent counteroffers that Trump rejected, with points related to its nuclear program said to be the main sticking point.

• What did Tehran say? Trump’s latest comments came after oil prices rose again after Iran said there would be no further talks on ending the blockade unless it accepted its terms.

• Follow the latest updates on our live blog.

Alabama could use electoral map and supreme court rules favoring Republicans

The US supreme court has ruled that Alabama can use a congressional map that a lower court previously said was drawn to discriminate against Black voters.

The court’s decision allows Alabama to use the congressional map it adopted in 2023 after courts struck down an earlier version of its map for violating the Voting Rights Act; This decision was also accepted by the Supreme Court at that time. A three-judge panel concluded that the 2023 map was deliberately drawn to weaken the voting power of Black voters in the state.

• How quickly can this have an impact? Alabama will be able to use the map in this year’s midterm elections.

• Has a statement been made regarding the Supreme Court decision? Although he stated two weeks ago in the Voting Rights Act case that the relevant law in the Alabama case had not been overturned, no reasoning was provided for his decision.

In other news…

• The mayor of a small city in southern California has resigned after being accused of being a foreign agent of China. Eileen Wang, 58, agreed to plead guilty to the felony charge and could face up to 10 years in prison.

• Two Israeli soldiers were arrested for desecrating a statue of the Virgin Mary in Lebanon. The photo of a soldier holding a cigarette in the mouth of the statue caused great anger.

• The U.S. interior department has rescinded a rule that would have put conservation on equal footing with development on U.S. public lands. The Trump administration is seeking to expand the exploitation of taxpayer-owned land.

Stat of the day: Best World Cup ticketwill retail for almost $33,000

FIFA has tripled the price of prime seats for the World Cup final in New Jersey to $32,970. For the opening group match of the USA against Paraguay in Los Angeles, the price of the cheapest tickets initially offered was 1,200 dollars. The Guardian’s view: “These are ludicrous, exploitative prices that undermine the integrity of the world’s most followed sporting event.”

Culture pick: Rivals season two review – If I could give this delightful madness 10,000 stars, I would

The second season of Rivals was a huge hit for TV critic Sarah Dempster, who couldn’t get enough of the utterly ridiculous adaptation of British author Jilly Cooper’s silly and sassy 1980s novel. “How can we best reward such a graceful escape? Ten stars? Ten thousand stars? The rivals are beyond earthly praise.”

Don’t miss this: The sinister spread of France’s killer seaweed

When Jean-René Auffray did not come home from his daily run in 2016, his family panicked and set out to look for him. They found his body on a dried seaweed husk in one of the estuaries that empty into Brittany’s Saint-Brieuc bay. In her initial shock, Rosy Auffray did not think to question whether her husband’s death was connected to the foul-smelling seaweed that was choking the area; This boom was caused locally by the use of fertilizers in industrial agriculture. But in the months that followed, Rosy learned there was evidence that suggested seaweed was to blame. This was the beginning of a 10-year struggle to uncover the truth.

Climate control: High-tech missions track record snowpack loss in western US

Flying over California’s Sierra Nevada, the jagged peaks appear to be covered in snow. But sensors on a private plane reveal that the snowpack is at critically low levels.

Last Thing: A hot summer of divorce?

We had hot girl summer, brat summer; This year’s trend… could it be hot divorcee? Apparently you don’t even need to get divorced for this. Comedian and author Tatty Macleod told Zoe Williams: “Divorce is an energy, not a legal situation.”

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