Morning Briefing: Thursday 20 August 2026
- Petrol and energy: Oil rose for a fourth day to near $92 as the US ramped up economic pressure on Iran and the Strait of Hormuz stayed shut. Petrol and energy bills are likely to stay high, and would climb further on any escalation.
- Prisons and safety: With prisons months from full, thousands of inmates will be released earlier than planned. It eases the immediate crisis but means some offenders return to communities sooner.
- Children and vaping: Paediatricians warned vaping is not harmless for children, linking it to breathing, sleep and mental-health problems. If you have teenagers, the advice is blunt: they should not vape at all.
Trump Launches 'Economic D-Day' Against Iran and Its Partners
President Trump announced what he called an “unprecedented” economic assault on Iran, warning that any country whose banks, businesses or airports offer Tehran a “lifeline” will face “tremendous economic consequences”. The threat of second…
Israel-Turkey Rift Deepens After Strike on Syrian Airbase
A rift between Israel and Turkey widened after Israeli air strikes on a Syrian airbase, with Ankara branding Israel’s justification “frivolous” and accusing it of trying to legitimise unlawful attacks. Israel said it struck to stop Turkish…
Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Safety at Its Worst, IAEA Warns
The safety situation at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant is the most precarious of the war, the UN atomic watchdog warned, after the site lost all external power three times in a week and was forced to run on emergency diese…
Zimbabwe Ferry Disaster Toll Passes 90 in Deadliest Sinking
The death toll from a ferry that capsized on Lake Kariba has risen above 90, making it the deadliest such disaster in Zimbabwe’s history, officials said. The vessel, which was overloaded and running on a single engine in worsening weather,…
Oil Climbs a Fourth Day as Hormuz Blockade Drags On
Oil prices rose for a fourth straight session, with Brent holding near $92 a barrel, as the Strait of Hormuz remained effectively closed almost six months into the crisis. Traffic through the waterway, which normally carries a fifth of the…
Thousands to Be Freed Early as Prisons Near Capacity
The prison system in England and Wales is close to running out of space, with a senior official warning that male prisons could be full by November and fewer than 1,800 places left. Up to 5,000 inmates on standard sentences will become eli…
Hundreds of Thousands Collect GCSE Results as Reforms Bite
Hundreds of thousands of teenagers across England, Wales and Northern Ireland collected their GCSE results this morning, with pupils in Wales the first to receive grades under a reformed curriculum that teachers say has piled pressure on s…
Vaping Is Not Harmless for Children, Doctors Warn
Vaping is “not a harmless part of growing up”, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health warned, publishing a major review linking it to a range of harms in children. The review of 81 studies found associations with breathing probl…
Government Launches Crackdown on Illegal-Waste Gangs
The government announced a crackdown on the organised gangs behind illegal waste dumping, promising AI-equipped drones to catch offenders, a bigger role for the police and National Crime Agency, and steeper fines. Andrew Burnham said minis…
Two Jailed Over Disorder at Epping Asylum Hotel
Two men were jailed for violent disorder during protests outside an asylum seekers’ hotel in Epping, as tensions over asylum accommodation continued to spill into the streets. Jonathan Glover and Charlie Land were given custodial sentences…