WeekDay AM: 10 Things you need to know this morning
Telegram CEO charged, Paralympics opens, and the race to be Oxford's next chancellor

 
today's international story

France charges Telegram founder Durov

What happened 
Telegram Chief Executive Pavel Durov has been charged by French authorities with permitting a range of illegal activities on his online messaging app.

Who said what
Officials say Durov was complicit in illicit transactions and that his platform is being used for child sexual abuse material and drug trafficking – allegations he denies. The Russian-born entrepreneur has shown a "near-total absence" of response to requests for co-operation from law enforcement, Laure Beccuau, the Paris prosecutor, said in a statement.

In a rare interview with the Financial Times in March, Durov said child abuse material and public calls for violence were "red lines" for Telegram, but he has also "repeatedly promoted the platform's minimal moderation policies and commitment to free speech", said The Guardian.

The charges come as a "rare instance of the top official of one of the world's social media platforms being personally charged", said The Telegraph. The arrest "escalates the debate over the role of tech companies in online speech, privacy and security, and the limits of their responsibility", said The New York Times.

What next? 
Telegram responded that it had abided by EU laws and its moderation was "within industry standards and constantly improving", adding that it was "absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform".

Durov has been allowed bail of €5 million (£4.2 million), but cannot leave the country and must report to French police stations on a weekly basis.

 
 
today's sport story

Paralympics opening ceremony illuminates Paris

What happened
Athletes paraded along the Champs-Elysees to Place de la Concorde last night in a spectacular opening ceremony marking the start of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

Who said what
The opening ceremony represented the start of "the Paralympic revolution" led by the athletes, said Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris 2024 organising committee. "What makes you revolutionaries is that when they told you 'no', you continued."

The ceremonial opening of the 17th Paralympic Games "lit up the night", said The Guardian, as Paris made a "powerful start in extending to disability sport the same energy and joy that has so far characterised its historic summer".

What next?
"Let the moveable feast resume," said France 24. The first of 11 days of competition takes place today with about 4,400 athletes from a record 168 delegations set to take part in the 22 Paralympic sports, competing for a total of 549 gold medals.

 
 
Today's entertainment story

Hotel cancels bookings and 'triples prices' for Oasis

What happened
A hotel group is under fire for allegedly cancelling bookings in Manchester during Oasis's recently announced reunion tour, only to resell the rooms at triple the price. The accusations came "as hotels across the city sold out or are being advertised at more than double their usual rate", said The Times.

Who said what
Sacha Lord, Greater Manchester's night-time economy adviser, urged Maldron Hotels to "do the right thing" after receiving multiple complaints that rooms were now being offered for three times the original price. He wrote on X: "I'm sure this is a 'computer error' … easy to correct. Do the right thing."

What next?
Speaking to Sky News, Maldron Hotels said a "technical error" had caused overbooking during the July 2025 Oasis concerts, leading to cancellations. "As a result we are unable to honour all bookings made on these dates and we are actively engaging with customers regarding their bookings," said a spokesperson for the group.

 
 

It's not all bad

An Australian start-up has developed a mobile factory that transforms rubble from destroyed buildings into Lego-like bricks, offering a sustainable housing solution in disaster areas. The machine, hailed as the "first of its kind", according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, can produce up to 8,000 bricks a day. The technique uses cement and clay to create durable, interlocking bricks without needing a kiln. With plans to aid the rebuilding in Ukraine, the factory's first project will focus on constructing townhouses near Kyiv, with further expansion dependent on funding.

 
 
under the radar

The race to be Oxford University's next chancellor

Several British politicians have endorsed cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan to be the next chancellor of Oxford University after the incumbent Lord Patten stands down in February.

Formerly Pakistan's prime minister, Khan was removed from office by a contentious no-confidence vote in 2022. Since then he has faced a series of what his supporters describe as politically motivated charges, including corruption and violations of Pakistan's Official Secrets Act. Those legal entanglements mean Khan is running for the "prestigious role" from his prison cell, noted Middle East Eye, but that hasn't stopped Tory peer Lord Hannan and independent MPs Shockat Adam and Adnan Hussain from backing him.

Khan faces competition from other candidates, including "stalwarts of British politics" Peter Mandelson and William Hague, the university's Pro Vice Chancellor Lady Elish Angiolini, and east London bartender Ryan Ahmad.

The position of Chancellor of the University of Oxford has existed since 1224. A "largely ceremonial" role, according to the BBC, past officeholders include figures such as Oliver Cromwell, the Duke of Wellington and former prime minister Harold Macmillan.

A graduate of Oxford's Keble College, Khan studied politics, philosophy and economics in the 1970s "while winning honours for the university's cricket team", said The Guardian. Khan's Oxford connections and a CV that includes an eight-year tenure as chancellor of the University of Bradford may give him an edge in the election, despite having been in prison for more than a year.

His appointment would also send a message to the Pakistani government "that although the country has gone so far back it's put its most popular leader behind bars", from "the UN to Oxford University everyone can see he shouldn't be there".

 
 
on this day

29 August 1882

Australia's cricket team won its first Test victory on English soil, defeating England by seven runs in a historic two-day match at The Oval. Following England's shock defeat The Sporting Times published a mock obituary lamenting the death of English cricket and declaring that "the body will be cremated, and the ashes taken to Australia" – a joke that would give the Test series its iconic name. The 74th Ashes series will take place in Australia from late next year.

 
 
Today's newspapers

"Brexit reset" says The Mirror as it reports on Keir Starmer saying the UK will work closer with the EU on defence and trade. "Not a word from our PM on boats crisis!" says the Daily Express, quoting Nigel Farage who criticises the PM for not discussing the hundreds of people intercepted in the English Channel on Tuesday. The chief inspector of probations warns in The Times that plans to release thousands of prisoners a month to tackle overcrowding is "rolling the dice" on crime. "No cigarettes and alcohol", says The Sun as it reports on leaked documents which suggest smoking will be banned from pub gardens, outside stadiums and in parks.

See the newspaper front pages

 
 
tall tale

Hole story emerges

An Austrian neurosurgeon is under criminal investigation for allegedly allowing her 13-year-old daughter to drill a hole in a patient's skull during an operation. The patient, a 33-year-old man, was flown to University Hospital Graz in January after suffering severe head injuries in a forestry accident. The neurosurgeon allegedly allowed her daughter to "actively participate" in the emergency procedure, including "drilling the patient's skull", said The Telegraph. Although the surgery was a success, an anonymous complaint led to an investigation by the Graz public prosecutor.

 
 

Morning Report was written and edited by Arion McNicoll, Sorcha Bradley and Chas Newkey-Burden.

Image credits, from top: Steve Jennings / Getty Images for TechCrunch; Franck Fife / AFP via Getty Images; Leon Neal / Getty Images; Shahzaib Akber / Epa-Efe / Shutterstock.