Good morning.
Donald Trump’s signature tax-and-spending bill passed a procedural step in the House of Representatives at close to 4am local time, paving the way for the possible passage of the legislation later today as lawmakers continue to debate.
The House speaker, Mike Johnson, is determined to pass the bill as soon as possible but has been frustrated by lawmakers – Democrats but also a handful of Republicans – who object to its provisions and overall cost. Overnight, they had blocked the House from approving a rule that was necessary to begin debate on the measure and set the stage for the proposed legislation’s passage.
But the procedural passage appeared to suggest that the Republican holdouts had been brought into line, and that Trump’s bill – which he has made the centerpiece of his legislative agenda – would soon pass.
The bill would add $3.3tn to the US budget deficit from 2025 to 2034, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimates.
What would it mean for deportation policy? Thousands of new immigration enforcement officers; tens of thousands of extra detention beds; fees on asylum applications; and further construction on the border wall. Here’s how Trump’s bill will supercharge mass deportations by funneling $170bn to Ice.
And social security? According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the welfare cuts will result in about 10.6 million people losing their Medicaid healthcare and 8 million people losing their Snap food stamp benefits.
Follow our live coverage here.
Exclusive: Israeli military used US-made 500lb bomb in strike on Gaza cafe
The Israeli military used a 500lb (230kg) bomb – a powerful and indiscriminate weapon that generates a massive blast wave and scatters shrapnel over a wide area – in an attack on a target in a crowded beachfront cafe in Gaza on Monday, evidence seen by the Guardian has revealed.
Experts in international law said the use of such a munition despite the known presence of many unprotected civilians including children and elderly people was almost certainly unlawful and may constitute a war crime.
Fragments of the weapon from the ruins of al-Baqa cafe photographed by the Guardian have been identified by ordnance experts as parts of an MK-82 general purpose 230kg bomb, a US-made staple of many bombing campaigns in recent decades.
What was the civilian death toll from Monday’s bombing? Medical and other officials said between 24 and 36 Palestinians were killed in the attack and dozens more were injured. The dead included the film-maker Ismail Abu Hatab, the artist Amna al-Salmi, and a four-year-old child. Among the injured were a 14-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl. Read the report on the strike here.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs found guilty on two of five counts but acquitted of more serious charges
A jury in New York has found Sean “Diddy” Combs guilty of two counts and not guilty on three counts after a closely watched seven-week federal trial marked by emotional and graphic testimony.
In a mixed verdict, Combs was found not guilty of the biggest charge, racketeering conspiracy, as well as not guilty of the sex trafficking of Casandra Ventura or of “Jane”. He was found guilty on two counts of the transportation to engage in prostitution in relation to the two women.
What happens next? The judge proposed a sentencing date of October 3, but said he was willing to move up the date at the defense’s request. Combs’s bail request was denied, with the judge saying he had demonstrated a “disregard for the rule of law and a propensity of violence”.
In other news …
Kilmar Ábrego García was physically and psychologically tortured in Salvadorian custody, according to court documents of the man who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador.
The Dalai Lama said the centuries-old spiritual institution bearing his name would continue after his death, and that only his inner circle, not Beijing, would have the authority to identify his successor.
Thailand’s constitutional court has suspended the prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, while it investigates a leaked phone call with Cambodia’s former leader Hun Sen.
Stat of the day: Paramount settles with Trump for $16m over 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris
Donald Trump has reached a $16m settlement with Paramount, the parent of CBS News, over what he claimed was false editing of an interview with Kamala Harris, in what is likely to be seen as further media capitulation to Trump. Paramount is preparing for a $8.4bn merger that requires FCC approval.
Don’t miss this: the rise and fall of the world’s first ayahuasca multinational
Alberto Varela claimed he wanted to use sacred plant medicine to free people’s minds. But as the organisation grew, his followers discovered a darker reality. Traditional ayahuasca practitioners protested he was bringing their practice into disrepute. Accidents would happen, they said.
Climate check: droughts pushing tens of millions towards starvation
Drought is pushing tens of millions of people to the edge of starvation around the world, according to a report published by the US National Drought Mitigation Center, UN Convention to Combat Desertification and International Drought Resilience Alliance. In Somalia, a quarter of the population is edging towards starvation.
Last Thing: Colombia’s enchanted parking lot – how a ruined multistorey became a garden paradise
Once a hangout for drug users, a parking lot in Medellín, Colombia, has been reborn as a green haven for all. “You dig up the concrete, water gets into the ground, vegetation grows up, and the people come back,” said one of the social urbanists credited with reducing crime and temperatures.
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