Plus: Surviving a massacre in Myanmar, and freed teen speaks of Russia-US swap ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
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| Hello. The first day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago was filled with tributes to Joe Biden as he gave one of the last major speeches of his presidency. Anthony Zurcher sums up what he said. At the border between Bangladesh and Myanmar, Yogita Limaye speaks to Rohingyas who survived a bombing in the Rakhine state. Finally, we look into the origins of Stockholm Syndrome and tune in with the songs that, according to TikTok users, marked the summer of 2024. | |
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TOP OF THE AGENDA | Democrats pay tribute to President Biden | | Kamala Harris made a planned but unannounced appearance on stage in Chicago. Credit: Reuters | Just over a month ago, US President Joe Biden would have expected to give a speech at the Democratic National Convention outlining his record and motivating party members to support him in his re-election bid. But his withdrawal from the 2024 election rewrote the script. Speakers at the convention on Monday paid tribute to Mr Biden's 50-plus years of public service as well as enthusiastically endorsing his Vice-President Kamala Harris. Mr Biden's speech also devoted time to sing the praises of the woman he hopes will succeed him in the White House, writes North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher. After all, how she fares against Republican candidate Donald Trump in November's vote could make or break how history, and his party, remembers him. North America editor Sarah Smith describes "genuine excitement" in the room following Mr Biden's speech, but also a sense of deep relief he is not the Democratic candidate for president.
Hillary Clinton's speech: As the Democratic Party takes its next shot at putting the first woman in the White House, the 2016 presidential nominee told a crowd of thousands in Chicago the time had come to pass the torch.
Outside the convention: In his speech, President Biden acknowledged the thousands of demonstrators who rallied outside the convention demanding an end to the war in Gaza.
Taylor Swift factor: Trump appears to have falsely implied he has the pop star's endorsement, posting fake images on social media of the singer and her fans supporting him. | |
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| | | Bangladesh-Myanmar border |
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| Harrowing tales from massacre | | Nisar lost his family in the attack on the banks of this river. Credit: BBC/Amir Peerzada | Most of Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims live as a minority in Rakhine – a Buddhist-majority state, where the two communities have long had a fraught relationship. As the junta fights a civil war against insurgent armies, the Rohingyas once again find themselves trapped. This article contains details some readers may find distressing. |
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| | Yogita Limaye, South Asia and Afghanistan correspondent |
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| | Wails and shouts filled the air around 17:00 local time on 5 August, Fayaz* says, as thousands of scared Rohingyas made their way to the banks of the Naf river in the town of Maungdaw. Nisar* had also made it to the riverbank by about that time, having decided to escape with his mother, wife, son, daughter and sister. “We heard drones overhead and then the loud sound of an explosion,” he recalls. “We were all thrown to the ground. They dropped bombs on us using drones.” |
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BEYOND THE HEADLINES | Teen released in prisoner swap speaks out |
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| | | Kevin Lik was taken to a German hospital for check-ups after his release. Credit: Lik family | Dual German-Russian citizen Kevin Lik was among the 16 people released by Russia on 1 August in a prisoner swap with the US and other Western countries. The 19-year-old was arrested last year while still at school and became the youngest person in modern Russian history to have been convicted of treason. |
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SOMETHING DIFFERENT | Siege mentality | The Stockholm Syndrome theory remains powerful, if controversial. | |
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And finally... | What makes a tune the song of the summer? These days, it could well be TikTok virality. In the UK, the social media platform has crowned Nasty - the ubiquitous, innuendo-heavy track from R&B star Tinashe - as its top summer hit. You can test your pop culture credentials by counting how many of the top 10 songs (UK and globally) you know. | |
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Football Extra | Get all the latest news, insights and gossip from the Premier League, weekdays to your inbox. | |
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