WeekDay AM: 10 Things you need to know this morning
Gaza ceasefire hopes, a verdict on Diddy, and Jared and Ivanka's Albanian island

 
today's middle east story

Israel has agreed to Gaza ceasefire, says Trump

What happened
Israel has given the green light to the "necessary conditions" for a proposed 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, according to Donald Trump. The breakthrough follows months of diplomatic efforts led by Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff, with a new proposal submitted simultaneously to both Israel and Hamas by Qatari officials. The deal, backed by both Egypt and Qatar, aims to halt hostilities and allow for the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

Who said what
"My Representatives had a long and productive meeting with the Israelis today on Gaza," Trump posted on Truth Social. "Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions … I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal because it will not get better – IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE."

Even with a new proposal on the table, "agreeing to a ceasefire remains a major challenge", said CNN. Hamas has long pushed for a permanent halt to hostilities, so it is "unclear if it would agree to a temporary 60-day truce". Trump's social media post came after a "particularly bloody day in Gaza", said Al Jazeera. Israeli attacks have "destroyed clusters of homes in the north and south of the enclave" amid "fears of yet another looming ground invasion".

What next?
Trump predicts that a deal could be finalised next week and he will be "very firm" in a scheduled meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu. Hamas has yet to accept the offer.

 
 
today's crime story

Jury reaches partial verdict in Diddy trial

What happened
Jurors in the high-profile trial of music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs have reached verdicts on four of the five charges he faces, but remain deadlocked on the most serious count: racketeering conspiracy. A note delivered to Judge Arun Subramanian yesterday evening said jurors were unable to agree on that charge due to "unpersuadable opinions on both sides".

Who said what
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to charges including sex trafficking and transporting women for prostitution. Prosecutors allege that he forced two former girlfriends, including singer Cassie Ventura, into coerced sex acts that he called "freak-offs", using his business empire and staff to intimidate them.

Racketeering conspiracy is "the most complicated of the charges against Combs", said Sky News, requiring jurors to determine whether he ran a criminal enterprise and committed offences like kidnapping, arson and bribery under the Rico Act, a law typically used to prosecute organised crime. As the jury continues to deliberate, "one thing is clear", said Kelly Rissman in The Independent: Diddy's blockbuster eight-week trial will have a "lasting effect on his public persona even if he is acquitted".

What next?
The jury has been instructed to continue deliberating and will reconvene today.

 
 
Today's politics story

Public wants deep House of Lords reform, poll suggests

What happened
The government's plan to remove only the hereditary peers from the upper chamber doesn't go far enough, according to new polling. Only 3% of those surveyed by YouGov backed the plan, with 56% believing the number of peers a prime minister can appoint for life should also be limited.

Who said what
Labour promised to make the House of Lords smaller in its manifesto , but this year "ministers argued against every amendment proposed to the bill that would have implemented these changes", said The Guardian.

The government said the bill was "not the right vehicle" for the commitments, but the "steady flow" of new life peers appointed by prime ministers will "limit the effectiveness" of the government's attempts to reduce the chamber's size.

"These things come around on roughly a generational kind of cycle" said Meg Russell, director of the Constitution Unit at University College London, which commissioned the polling. "If peers want change, they should seize it."

What next?
The bill is due to enter its report stage in the House of Lords today.

 
 

It's not all bad

Britain's tennis stars are off to a roaring start at Wimbledon, with 10 players reaching the second round – the joint-best showing since 1976. Seven of them are men, the highest number to progress at any grand slam since 1997. Jack Draper, Dan Evans and wildcard Jack Pinnington Jones led the charge with standout wins. And while Jodie Burrage fell short, a strong showing from Britain's women added to a memorable start on home soil.

 
 
under the radar

Jared and Ivanka's Albanian island

The Albanian government has approved a controversial $1.4 billion deal with Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner to develop the island of Sazan into a "luxury resort", according to Balkan Insight.

Sazan, an uninhabited island off the southern city of Vlorë, was an "isolated military outpost" of Fascist Italy and later of Communist-era Albania.

Kushner's investment firm Affinity Partners has "big plans for tiny Albania", said Air Mail, and although "not all of the plans are crazy", they have already elicited plenty of opposition.

Albania's "Cold War designation" as the "North Korea of Europe" means that it is one of the last undeveloped spots in Western Europe.

Affinity's plans include an 1,100 acre luxury resort on the country's Adriatic Coast, with 6,000 hotel rooms and villas. Architectural designs for the project show "modernist multi-storey structures" built along the shore, dunes and headlands around the Narta lagoon, a spot currently "prized by birders for its rich avian diversity", said The New York Times.

Asher Abehsera, the executive overseeing the developments, said the firm recognised the "rich biodiversity and natural landscape" of the area and had a "master plan" designed to "restore and improve ecological conditions".

Even so, locals have "expressed fears of over-tourism" and water shortages, or that they would lose their land or public access to the lagoon and beaches. Others said "more infrastructure" would only mean "more government corruption".

Albanians are "not anti-tourism", said one. They're just "against tourism that will destroy our land and our traditions".

 
 
on this day

2 July 2005

Live 8 concerts were held around the world in 10 locations to raise awareness of poverty. Speaking recently about Live 8's precursor Live Aid, organiser Bob Geldof said: "It won't happen again because this sort of thing isn't romantic any more, it's not a thing. Rock 'n' roll is the most powerful art there has ever been, but it has ceased to be the spine of our culture."

 
 
Today's newspapers

There are "no winners" in the "welfare bill fiasco" after Keir Starmer's concessions, says The Mirror, while the Financial Times says the PM's "gutted" bill has prevented a "full-scale Labour rebellion" but left "a multibillion hole in the public finances". It's "buggy useless", says The Sun, reporting that "French kit" to stop migrants, including a buggy, is "paid for" by the UK while the "cops don't stop boats". It's "20,000 this year… and counting", says the Daily Mail as the number of migrants crossing the Channel reportedly reaches a "record high".

See the newspaper front pages

 
 
tall tale

Great balls of fire

Brussels’ landmark Atomium attraction is having to close early each day this week due to soaring temperatures that are turning the iconic steel structure into an oven. The famous stainless-steel balls absorb and retain heat, making the interior uncomfortably warm during days of high temperatures. The Atomium has been opening at 10am and closing at 2.30pm, with last entry at 1pm.

 
 

Morning Report was written and edited by Arion McNicoll, Jamie Timson, Harriet Marsden, Ross Couzens and Chas Newkey-Burden, with illustrations by Julia Wytrazek.

Image credits, from top: Mahmud Hams / AFP / Getty Images; Johnny Nunez / WireImage / Getty Images; Bettmann / Getty Images; Illustration by Julia Wytrazek / Getty Images.