Here are the top headlines from select sources today.
China accuses Hong Kong protesters of committing ‘evil acts’
The Chinese government has accused pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong of committing “evil and criminal acts” that have seriously damaged the semi-autonomous city’s “reputation” and “stability.”
Suspected Boko Haram attack on a funeral leaves 65 dead in Nigeria, official says
At least 65 people are dead following a suspected attack by Boko Haram on a funeral gathering in northeastern Nigeria, according to local officials.
Fortnite gives away $3 million to its first-ever solo world champion
Fortnite has wrapped its first-ever massive sporting event in New York’s Arthur Ashe tennis stadium. It was anyone’s game: It didn’t matter how famous a player was nor what large organization was backing each member of the all-male playing field.
Meghan guest-edits a star-studded, female-led British Vogue
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, is guest-editing the September edition of British Vogue — and she’s bringing a host of change-making women with her. Student climate crisis activist Greta Thunberg, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and actress-turned-campaigner Jane Fonda are among 15 leading female figures set to appear on the magazine’s cover.
Michelle Obama shades Trump after his derogatory tweets about Baltimore
The former first lady made no mention of the President in her tweet honoring a Baltimore step-dancing team, but her message was clear.
Trump nominates staunch loyalist John Ratcliffe to head US intelligence community
President Donald Trump’s nomination of John Ratcliffe to replace Dan Coats as the next Director of National Intelligence would launch a lawmaker with less than five years national experience under his belt to the pinnacle of US espionage and sets the stage for what is likely to be a bruising and partisan confirmation battle.
Vietnam seizes huge haul of trafficked rhino horn
Fifty-five pieces of rhino horn were found hidden inside shipments of plaster at Hanoi International Airport, Vietnam’s state media reported Saturday.
Just Eat and Takeaway.com team up to fight Uber and Amazon in Europe
Just Eat and Takeaway.com want to join forces to fight Uber Eats and Amazon in Europe’s crowded food delivery market.
Colombian Bernal makes Tour de France history
Egan Bernal was crowned as the first Colombian to win the Tour de France and the youngest in more than a century after safely negotiating the 21st and final stage into Paris Sunday.
Outrage over ‘racist and disturbing’ black rag dolls designed to be slammed against walls
Black rag dolls designed to be slammed against the wall as a stress reliever have been pulled from the shelves after customers and politicians complained that they were racist. The “Feel Better Doll” sold in One Dollar Zone outlets in the US featured instructions to “whack” the doll “whenever things don’t go well”.
Mysterious odour causes flight diversion
An American Airlines flight was forced to divert after a mysterious odour was detected onboard. The flight from Philadelphia International Airport to London Heathrow touched down in Boston at 11.48pm local time, around 90 minutes after take-off. The airline confirmed that a maintenance team was examining the aircraft following the incident.
Plane diverted after woman gives birth to baby girl onboard
A plane was diverted when a passenger gave birth to a baby girl onboard. Lebanon-based Middle East Airlines flight ME435 was flying from Doha to Beirut when a passenger gave birth just after entering Iraqi airspace. The flight was diverted to Kuwait.
Apple’s three 2020 iPhones will all reportedly be 5G-ready
Get your salt shakers ready; it’s time to talk about future Apple products. Sagacious Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is expecting three new iPhones in 2020, and he’s saying they’ll all be wired for 5G support. The detail comes from an investor note obtained by MacRumors so it’s not exactly straight from Apple, but Kuo is a highly regarded analyst.
Despite Trump’s anti-crypto tweets, the IRS wants its cut of virtual currency profits
Cryptocurrency might be a challenge to the primacy of the U.S. dollar, but that’s not stopping the Internal Revenue Service from wanting a piece of the action. The IRS announced Friday that it was sending letters to 10,000 cryptocurrency holders informing them that they needed to report, and pay taxes on, their crypto transactions and capital gains.
Las Vegas is facing a grasshopper invasion of Biblical proportions
It might be time to accept that the city of Las Vegas is now lost to us humans. It belongs to the grasshoppers now. Swarms of the winged insect have overrun the Nevada city in the past week, making parts of Sin City look like they’ve been inflicted with a Biblical plague.
Samsung says an improved Galaxy Fold will launch in September
Samsung’s foldable phone is back on. An improved version of the Galaxy Fold will be ready to launch in “select markets” beginning in September, Samsung announced. The company said it has made a number of improvements to the design of the foldable phone, including “additional reinforcements.”
Seth Rogen calls out Twitter on Lil Nas X’s big day as CEO
Forget the Old Town Road, Lil Nas X spent Friday taking his horse to Twitter HQ for a nice change of scenery. The 20-year-old rapper announced his planned visit to the New York office on Twitter, of course, and also let everyone know that he planned to steal Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s job while he was there.
