Several of Saturday’s papers lead with the beginning of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. The Times reports that an initial withdrawal by Israel triggered thousands of Palestinians to begin “trekking home”. It adds that US President Donald Trump gave a personal guarantee to Hamas that he would not let Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu break the “fragile ceasefire”.
The Guardian also leads with the return of Palestinians to “the ruins of their homes” after the ceasefire came into effect, “the first relief from relentless violence since March”. The agreement has “raised hopes of a durable end to the two-year conflict”, the paper reports, though all parties recognise there are challenges ahead.
“Hope in Gaza” is the headline for the i Paper, which also features a photo of Palestinians returning to their homes through a “devastated landscape”. Netanyahu warns that Israeli forces remain in parts of Gaza over fears “Hamas will regroup”, the paper reports.
Palestinians trekking home also features on the front page of the Financial Times, but the paper leads with threats from Trump that he will cancel an upcoming meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. After Beijing imposed export controls on critical minerals, Trump threatened to impose additional tariffs of 100% on Chinese exports to the US, adding Beijing had become “very hostile”.
Conservative politician Alicia Kearns fears “she was secretly filmed or bugged” in a hotel room by Beijing, in an exclusive for the Daily Mail. The paper reports that Christopher Cash, a British man who was accused of spying for China, was at the “heart of government policy on China”. Charges against Cash – who denies the allegations – were dropped by prosecutors last month.
Oasis member Liam Gallagher was one of the attendees to offer a “farewell kiss” to boxer Ricky Hatton, whose funeral took place on Friday, the Sun reports. Thousands lined Manchester streets to pay their respects to “Hitman” Hatton, who died last month aged 46.
Wayne Rooney and Claire Sweeney were among the other “tearful mourners” at Hatton’s funeral, the Daily Star reports. “You live forever in our hearts,” is their headline.
The Daily Mirror also leads with the funeral of Hatton, whom the paper describes as “boxing’s humble hero”.
Weight loss jabs are being used by 2.5 million people in the UK, the Telegraph reports. Health Secretary Wes Streeting has pledged to make the jabs free on the NHS, but “tight rationing” means more are purchasing them privately, with sales rising sevenfold in one year.
The Prince of Wales fought back tears as he listened to the story of Rhian Mannings, a woman whose husband died by suicide, the Daily Express reports. Prince William pledged £1m in support for a new National Suicide Prevention Network, as he said: “The best way to prevent suicide is to talk about it.”
Pictures of huge crowds of people walking back to their homes in Gaza feature on several front pages, with the Times saying the coastal road was “clogged with refugees”. The i Paper headlines it as “Hope in Gaza”, while the Financial Times calls it a “torrent of humanity”, and says Palestinians’ relief at the ceasefire “was marred by the pain of returning to devastated cities”. The Guardian describes their journey as a “long walk to uncertainty” – saying all of those involved in the US-led deal recognise the difficulties still ahead.
The Daily Telegraph says previously unseen figures reveal that weight loss jabs are now being used by 2.5 million people in the UK, with July sales up sevenfold on the year before. The paper says although the Health Secretary Wes Streeting has vowed to make the injections widely available on the NHS, very few people are obtaining free prescriptions, and record numbers are going private.
British travellers are being warned to prepare for chaos this weekend, according to the Daily Mail, as new EU travel arrangements come into force. It says UK officials have not been told which European airports will introduce what it calls the “travel red tape”. The i Paper says airlines have already raised concerns about possible delays, and a lack of testing of the systems.
The row about the collapse of a case against two men who denied spying for China rumbles on. The Times says cabinet ministers are worried Jonathan Powell, the prime minister’s national security adviser, is “too close to China” and might have to be removed. The Daily Mail hears from an MP who fears she may have been secretly recorded on a visit to Beijing. Meanwhile the Telegraph says the decision on whether to approve the Chinese super-embassy in London is set to be delayed, amid what the paper calls “intense scrutiny of the government’s attempts to get closer to Beijing”.
The funeral of Ricky Hatton is on the front of the Daily Mirror, which calls the former boxer “a champ to us all”. The Daily Express says thousands of fans joined family and friends to say farewell to him. The Sun and the Daily Star both highlight the presence of the Oasis singer, Liam Gallagher, and say Ricky Hatton will “live forever” in people’s hearts.
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