Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 22 Jul 2019

1. May to chair emergency meeting after Iran seizes tanker

Theresa May is today chairing a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee to discuss the seizure of a British-registered tanker in the Gulf by the Iranian navy. Tehran stopped the vessel in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday in response to Britain seizing an Iranian tanker said to be breaching EU sanctions by carrying oil to Syria. The British government is being accused of failing to sufficiently guard UK vessels in the Gulf.

Is the Royal Navy too small to deal with Iranian threat?

2. Blair urges Johnson to hold second Brexit referendum

Conservative Party members have until 5pm today to return their ballots backing either Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt to become the next Tory leader. With Johnson tipped to claim victory when the results are announced tomorrow, former PM Tony Blair has penned an article in The Times urging the front runner to hold a new EU referendum. Theresa May’s successor is due to take office on Wednesday.

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Cabinet resignations and MP defections await Boris Johnson

3. Hong Kong: democracy protesters beaten

A masked gang last night attacked and savagely beat commuters and demonstrators in Hong Kong, in the latest alarming development in the ongoing anti-extradition protests. The attackers, thought to be triad gangsters, injured 45 people, one critically. Several lawmakers have questioned why police were slow to arrive at the scene.

Hong Kong extradition bill is ‘dead’, says Carrie Lam

4. Son of murdered woman leading police anti-domestic abuse campaign

A police officer whose mother was murdered by her abusive husband is spearheading a campaign to encourage hairdressers and beauticians to report signs of domestic abuse, the BBC reports. PC Mike Taggart was 15 when his mother, Donna Crist, was killed by his stepfather, Derek Evans, in 1997. Taggart is now domestic abuse lead for North Wales Police.

5. Women warned of fatigue linked to breast implants

Women considering having breast implants should be warned that they could develop symptoms including chronic pain and fatigue, the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) has said. Tens of thousands of women are claiming in online forums that they have experienced a condition known as breast implant illness. Surgeons say more research is needed.

6. UK to send 250 troops to Mali for peacekeeping mission

Britain is to deploy 250 troops to help the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali - where they are likely to be targeted by Islamist extremists, according to experts. The soldiers will form a long-range reconnaissance task group that will gather intelligence in areas of the West Africa nation where rebel groups are fighting to claim power.

7. Swimmer refuses to share podium with ‘drug cheat’

An Australian swimmer yesterday refused to share a podium with the Chinese rival to whom he had just lost the 400-metre freestyle, claiming he was a drugs cheat. Mack Horton came second to Sun Yang in the World Aquatics Championships race in South Korea. Sun accused him of “disrespecting China”.

Today’s back pages: Gareth Bale’s £1m-a-week offer and Shane Lowry’s Open glory

8. New photos show Prince George supporting England

Three new photographs of Prince George have been released to celebrate his sixth birthday today, all taken recently by his mother. One snap shows the third-in-line to the throne in the garden at Kensington Palace wearing an England shirt during the Women’s World Cup. The Times notes that the pictures show George has been “a drain on the tooth fairy’s resources”.

Prince George celebrates birthday - six years in pictures

9. Snail farmers milking slime and profits in Thailand

Snail farming is booming in Thailand, thanks to growing demand in the beauty industry for the slime that the creatures secrete, The Guardian reports. The snails are “milked” for their “mucin” after being found in rice fields and other crops. Farmers in the global slime industry - worth an estimated £251m a year - insist the process is humane.

10. Briefing: is there a cure for Ebola?

The Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been declared a “public health emergency of international concern” by the World Health Organization (WHO), following the spread of the disease to a major city.

On Sunday, the central African nation’s Health Ministry confirmed the first registered case of the deadly virus in the eastern city of Goma, home to two million people and a major transport hub. Amid growing fears of an outbreak across the continent, on Wednesday the UN agency issued the highest level of alert that it can sound.

Ebola: what are the symptoms and is there a cure?