THE GUARDIAN

Scrapping submarines deal broke trust, Macron tells Australian PM

The French president has told the Australian prime minister that the scrapping of a multibillion-dollar submarine contract “broke the relationship of trust” and said Canberra should propose “tangible actions” to heal a diplomatic rift.

THE GUARDIAN

Indian supreme court orders inquiry into state’s use of Pegasus spyware

India’s supreme court has ordered an inquiry by an independent committee into the question of whether the government used Pegasus surveillance software for illegal spying.

For the domestic opposition, civil rights activists and the journalists who have been demanding such an inquiry in the face of stonewalling by the government, Wednesday’s ruling came as a victory.

THE GUARDIAN

Astronomers spot first possible exoplanet outside our galaxy

A possible Saturn-sized planet identified in the distant Whirlpool Galaxy could be the first exoplanet to be detected outside the Milky Way.

The exoplanet candidate appears to be orbiting an X-ray binary – made up of a normal star and a collapsed star or black hole – with its distance from this binary roughly equivalent to the distance of Uranus from the sun.

THE GUARDIAN

Sudan’s army detains PM and other civilian leaders in coup attempt

Sudan’s military has launched a coup, arresting leading politicians and declaring a state of emergency, as thousands of protesters who flooded the streets of Khartoum in opposition reportedly faced gunfire.

THE GUARDIAN

China warns against ‘wrong signals’ as Biden suggests US would defend Taiwan

China has urged the US to “avoid sending any wrong signals” after President Joe Biden for a second time in three months said the US would come to Taiwan’s defence if it was attacked.

THE GUARDIAN

China Evergrande shares fall sharply after $2.6bn asset sale collapses

Shares in the struggling property giant China Evergrande have fallen sharply after plans to offload a stake in one of its units for $2.6bn fell through, casting further doubt over whether it can avert the country’s biggest ever corporate failure.