today's INTERNATIONAL story

China denies targeting German plane with laser

What happened
German authorities have accused China of deliberately hitting one of its military aircraft with a laser from a warship. The German plane was taking part in EU operations to protect ships in the Red Sea from Houthi rebels in Yemen, but was forced to abandon its mission after the laser was fired directly at it.

Who said what
Lasers can "blind pilots", said the BBC, and there are some currently in development that are "capable of disabling targets in the air". The German government therefore accused the Chinese of "endangering German personnel and disrupting the operation" with their "completely unacceptable" actions.

"The incident comes amid growing concern about China's influence on critical technologies and security infrastructure in Europe," said Newsweek. But Mao Ning (pictured above), a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said the claims were "totally inconsistent with the facts known by the Chinese side". Both countries should "take a fact-based attitude" to the situation to avoid "misunderstanding", she said.

What next?
The German Foreign Ministry has summoned the Chinese ambassador for talks, which the embassy has yet to comment on.

Today's SPORT story

Red Bull sacks long-time team boss Horner

What happened
Christian Horner has been removed as team principal at Formula One team Red Bull after 20 years in charge.

Who said what
Horner was the "architect" of eight drivers' and six constructors' titles, "surviving politics, power shifts and, until now, a PR scandal", said Motor Sport. "Sharp-tongued and unapologetically competitive", the 51-year-old had been investigated over – and cleared of – inappropriate behaviour, and recently clashed with Jos Verstappen, the father of the team's star driver Max Verstappen. It has also been a "difficult 2025 season", with Verstappen dropping out of contention for the championship.

The sacking was not "completely out of the blue" as "things were not particularly rosy" in the team, F1 pundit Martin Brundle told Sky Sports. Red Bull said he would "forever remain an important part of our team history".

What next?
Horner will be replaced immediately by Frenchman Laurent Mekies, the principal of sister team Racing Bulls, ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix at the end of the month.

It's not all bad

More than five years after Mattel began selling Barbies with disabilities, the company has launched its first doll with type 1 diabetes in what activists have called a positive step for representation. The doll, designed in partnership with leading diabetes charity Breakthrough T1D, wears a continuous glucose monitor on her arm, secured with pink heart-shaped medical tape, to track her blood sugar levels. She also has an insulin pump to administer the vital hormone and a bag big enough to carry snacks.

under the radar

North Korea's 'mammoth' new beach resort

North Korea has opened a huge resort on its east coast in a bid to boost its struggling economy.

The Wonsan-Kalma Coastal Tourist Area, which can accommodate 20,000 people, is a "pet project" for leader Kim Jong Un, who was pictured by state media "watching a man flying off a water slide in the resort", said France 24.

Other photos released by state media showed "children with tubes and inflatable balls dipping into the sea", said The Associated Press. The "mammoth" resort is the "biggest tourist complex in North Korea" and is "at the heart" of Kim's push to boost tourism and improve the country's "struggling economy". But it is unlikely that Western tourists will be able to visit the resort "anytime soon".

North Korea "sealed itself off from the world" when Covid-19 struck, said The Economist, and tourists only began to trickle back in last year. "Visits have since been sporadic and mostly for Russians only." Yet despite the hermit kingdom's "reputation as a joyless place", it does have an "active domestic tourism industry" and "North Korea's Benidorm" is aimed at its own middle classes.

The first Russian visitors were due to arrive on Monday amid the "booming" military relationship between the two nations, said ABC News. But Chinese tourism, which made up 90% of visitors to the country before the pandemic, remains "stalled". Analysts say Beijing's relationship with North Korea has "cooled" due to China's reluctance to join an "anti-Western alliance" with Pyongyang and Russia.

Yet observers say the "huge investment" that has come out of "North Korea's limited budget" to build the resort will eventually push Kim to welcome Chinese and other foreign tourists in order "to break even" on the project.

on this day

10 July 1965

The Rolling Stones topped US charts for the first time with the single "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction". After the band's comeback in 2023 with its 24th studio album "Hackney Diamonds", there are reports that it's working on a new record after cancelling plans for a European tour.

Today's newspapers

'Migration deal hangs in the balance'

The Guardian says Keir Starmer's hopes of announcing a migration deal with France today may be thwarted. The UK contribution to the cost of policing is one of several remaining hurdles. In a "kick in the Gauls", says The Sun, the proposed deal will deport "just 50 migrants a week".

See the newspaper front pages

tall tale

Surgical stuffing

A hospital in Germany is helping to ease the fears of children by operating on stuffed toys. This year more than 600 children from the town of Darmstadt were invited to visit their local clinic to learn about the basic mechanics of the human body and dispel any worries they might have about doctors or medical procedures. The highlight was open heart surgery on a teddy bear called Fridolin who complained of stomach pains after swallowing too much cotton wool.

Morning Report was written and edited by Holden Frith, Chas Newkey-Burden, Richard Windsor, Martina Nacach Cowan Ros, Jamie Timson, Harriet Marsden and Hollie Clemence, with illustrations from Marian Femenias-Moratinos.