Friday briefing: What Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar’s death means for the war in Gaza

In today’s newsletter: The architect of the 7 October attack is dead, but Benjamin Netanyahu gave no indication that the war is about to end• Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First EditionGood morning.Yesterday, Israel confirmed that its forces had killed the Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, architect of the 7 October attacks that killed 1,200 Israeli civilians and in which a further 250 were taken hostage.Budget | Rachel Reeves is considering raising the tax on vaping products in her budget this month as figures show that a quarter of 11 to 15-year-olds in England have used e-cigarettes.Home Office | The Home Office has recruited 200 staff to clear a backlog of 23,300 modern slavery cases left by the last government, a minister has told the Guardian. It follows reports that some have been waiting years to be defined as victims of modern slavery.China | Labour has backtracked on plans to push for formal recognition that China’s treatment of the Uyghurs is genocide in the run-up to David Lammy’s trip to the country. The foreign secretary is expected to arrive in Beijing today for high-level meetings before travelling to Shanghai on Saturday.AI | Child sexual abuse imagery generated by artificial intelligence tools is becoming more prevalent on the open web and reaching a “tipping point”, according to the Internet Watch Foundation, a safety watchdog.Conservatives | Almost half of Conservative councillors polled this week have said neither Robert Jenrick nor Kemi Badenoch will be able to win the next election, while a significant minority said they did not plan to vote in the leadership contest. Continue reading...

Friday briefing: What Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar’s death means for the war in Gaza

In today’s newsletter: The architect of the 7 October attack is dead, but Benjamin Netanyahu gave no indication that the war is about to end

Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First Edition

Good morning.

Yesterday, Israel confirmed that its forces had killed the Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, architect of the 7 October attacks that killed 1,200 Israeli civilians and in which a further 250 were taken hostage.

Budget | Rachel Reeves is considering raising the tax on vaping products in her budget this month as figures show that a quarter of 11 to 15-year-olds in England have used e-cigarettes.

Home Office | The Home Office has recruited 200 staff to clear a backlog of 23,300 modern slavery cases left by the last government, a minister has told the Guardian. It follows reports that some have been waiting years to be defined as victims of modern slavery.

China | Labour has backtracked on plans to push for formal recognition that China’s treatment of the Uyghurs is genocide in the run-up to David Lammy’s trip to the country. The foreign secretary is expected to arrive in Beijing today for high-level meetings before travelling to Shanghai on Saturday.

AI | Child sexual abuse imagery generated by artificial intelligence tools is becoming more prevalent on the open web and reaching a “tipping point”, according to the Internet Watch Foundation, a safety watchdog.

Conservatives | Almost half of Conservative councillors polled this week have said neither Robert Jenrick nor Kemi Badenoch will be able to win the next election, while a significant minority said they did not plan to vote in the leadership contest. Continue reading...