Israel's Supreme Court has ruled that ultra-Orthodox Jews can be conscripted into military service, triggering protests by the powerful religious minority.

Thousands of ultra-Orthodox men have taken to the streets, but the decision has been welcomed in wider Israeli society following "decades of controversy" over the role of the Haredim, said The Washington Post.

Who are the Haredim?
The singular "Haredi" comes from the Hebrew word "hared", meaning "one who trembles" (at the word of God). The community grew during the 20th century, forming religious schools (yeshivas) and institutions to preserve Orthodox Judaism. 

Owing to high birth rates, what was once a few hundred students of the Torah has grown to nearly 13% of the Israeli population: about 1.3 million people. This has led to increasing political influence – and tensions within the broader community, where military conscription and integration are highly contentious issues. Few Haredi "work, pay taxes or serve in the military", said The Washington Post. Last year, 66,000 Haredim did not enlist – about 90% of the community. They also benefit from "substantial government benefits". 

Why were they exempt from military service?
An arrangement made during the founding of the Israeli state exempted the Haredim from the draft, which conscripts most Jewish men and women into three and two years of military service respectively.

"Haredim believe that religious devotion in the form of Torah-study, no less than the actions of foot soldiers or intelligence officers, is important for Israel's security," said Newsweek. But about 81% of Israelis favour removing the exemption, according to the results of a survey in March by The Jewish People Policy Institute, a Jerusalem-based non-partisan think tank.

What impact will the ruling have on the Haredim?
The immediate effects will be "largely financial", said Newsweek. Funds for institutions where draft-eligible men study "will be slashed". But the Haredim will "somehow manage to make up the shortfall".

The military is also "unlikely to immediately call up all draft-age Haredi men", said CNN. The Israel Defense Forces has committed to recruiting only 3,000 yeshiva students next year, according to the attorney general's office.

"Queen of quiet luxury" Sofia Richie is selling her signature $21 "Sweet Cherry Smoothie" at an upmarket organic grocery store in Santa Monica. The star ingredient? Colostrum. 

Dubbed "liquid gold" in a nod to its rich, golden colour and slew of potential health benefits, colostrum is the first milk produced by female mammals in the days immediately after giving birth. The nutrient-dense liquid is packed with antibodies and antioxidants to boost newborns' immune systems. 

Now, bovine colostrum is being touted by the wellness sector as a health supplement for humans. According to an industry report cited in Forbes, the colostrum industry was worth £1.76bn in 2023 – a figure expected to climb to $1.83bn this year.

Disappearing bald spots
Dr Sarah Rahal, founder of ARMRA Colostrum, spent two years developing a low-temperature pasteurisation technique that keeps it in its "raw form" to retain the nutrients, and transforming the ingredient into a powder. She claims her supplements can help with everything from digestion to muscle repair and fuller hair. "My bald spot that's been there for 20 years has started to grow back in," she told Forbes.

Although "experts said it's not entirely clear" how colostrum supplements improve gut issues, said Claudia Lopez Lloreda in The New York Times, some studies indicate it could help to "maintain the integrity of the gastrointestinal system" and relieve digestive problems. However, there is no "rigorous, published data" to support claims that colostrum can lead to skin regeneration, weight loss or "reverse age-related changes". 

Jersey cream on steroids
Colostrum is also starting to appear on menus, including at Josh Overington's restaurant, Mýse, in North Yorkshire. Guests finish their meal with a "bite-sized custard tart" made with sweetened bovine colostrum. It tastes like "Jersey cream on steroids", the chef told Tessa Allingham in The Telegraph, and has a hint of "grassiness". 

Rebecca Mayhew sells unpasteurised colostrum at her pasture-fed dairy, Old Hall Farm in Norfolk but she told the paper that supply is dictated by the animals and "there's often a waiting list". Like the supplements, it doesn't come cheap: Mayhew's unpasturised colostrum sells for £19.50 a litre – "but then it is liquid gold".

Season three of "The Bear" premiered to its highest numbers yet, pulling in more than 5.4 million worldwide views in the first four days of streaming.

Given the success of the first two seasons, and how the show is "churning out superstars quicker than plates on the pass", it's little wonder expectations were sky high, said Rebecca Nicholson in The Guardian.

The show follows troubled chef Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) as he tries to transform his family's Chicago sandwich shop into a fine-dining restaurant following the death by suicide of his brother Mikey (Jon Bernthal). "When the show is flying, it really is wonderful television," said Nicholson, but season three is "not 'The Bear' at its best".

Showrunner Christopher Storer seems more interested in showing off his technical abilities than weaving together a "cohesive" series, said Richard Lawson in Vanity Fair.

But there is "room for hope", said John Nugent in Empire. There are some high points: perhaps the best episode of the season is Ayo Edebiri's directorial debut, "Napkins", in which we discover how line cook Tina (a "superb" Liza Colón-Zayas) came to work at the sandwich shop. And the "most profound" scenes come from the guest stars. Celebrated chefs Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud are among the real culinary talents to make an appearance.

All in all, the show's signature blend of "peace and chaos framed in superb camerawork and terrific performances" ensures "The Bear" remains "one of the very best shows on television", said Benji Wilson in The Telegraph. Could season three have been better? "I know what Carmy would say."

With the final hours upon us, Labour insiders remain cautious – but can't help feeling the party's time has come
Beth Rigby for Sky News
Keir Starmer's team are "acutely aware that a victory on Thursday is just the end of the beginning", before "the hard work begins", writes Beth Rigby. Boris Johnson is a "shining example of a leader who appeared to have redrawn the political map only to find out that his landslide was built on very shaky ground". While Starmer could pick up "a wide base of support", even his own team have acknowledged "it could be very shallow too".

France's 'hard left' has been demonised – but its agenda is realistic, not radical
Julia Cagé and Thomas Piketty in The Guardian
"Some may argue that the far right is here" in France and "we should simply get used to it", write French economists Julia Cagé and Thomas Piketty, "but we cannot". The left alliance is France's "best chance", but some "seek to scare" voters by claiming that its programme for government would be "dangerous" for the our economy. The only threat is "posed by far-right victory", so "we hope that centrist voters understand what is at stake" and "turn back to the left".

Why is Pret so expensive now?
Josh Barrie in the London Evening Standard
"I can measure my life in Pret sandwiches", says Josh Barrie. In my late teens, a BLT and a flat white cost under £5, but today a fiver "barely touches the sides" and "wouldn't even pay for some of the sandwiches", let alone that and a "now over-£3 coffee". Pret is charging up to 75% more for some sandwiches and baguettes than pre-pandemic, but between 2020 and 2023, inflation was around 20%. "It just doesn't need to be that expensive, does it?"