Despite being declared the third-hottest year on record, 2025 was a relatively quiet year for climate disasters in the US. No major hurricanes made landfall, while the total number of acres burned in wildfires last year--a way of measuring the intensity of wildfire season --fell below the 10-year average. But starting this week, the West is experiencing what looks to be a record-breaking heat wave, while forecasting models predict that a strong El Niño event is likely to emerge later this year. These two unrelated phenomena could set the stage for a long stretch of unpredictable and extreme weather reaching into next year, compounding the effects of a climate that's getting hotter and hotter thanks to human activity. Beginning this week and heading into next, a massive ridge of high-pressure air will bring record-breaking temperatures to the American West.

Pakistan and Afghanistan agree to temporary Eid al-Fitr'pause' in conflict Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to a temporary "pause" in hostilities during the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr this week, officials said, amid weeks of deadly violence between the neighbouring countries. Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Wednesday that the pause - set to run from midnight on Thursday (19:00 GMT on Wednesday) until midnight on Tuesday (19:00 GMT on Monday) - had been requested by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkiye. However, he warned that "in case of any cross-border attack, drone attack or any terrorist incident inside Pakistan, [operations] shall immediately resume with renewed intensity". Shortly after the announcement, a spokesperson for Afghanistan's Taliban government also said it would temporarily suspend military operations against Pakistan. The pause in fighting is set to begin just days after Afghanistan accused the Pakistani military of killing hundreds of people in an air strike on a drug rehabilitation centre in the country's capital, Kabul.

Female pastor is suspended after her shocking Epstein link is exposed... as she compares herself to JESUS while defending their relationship'Tell me to my face': Republican senator torches Noem's replacement as their vicious personal feud spills into public Outrageous full story of scandalous affair that's the talk of Manhattan's exclusive private schools: Family insiders reveal humiliating sex secrets... shock'confession' letter... and the furious relative who exposed it all Ugly new Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban divorce fight ERUPTS: Her friends share humiliating details of'midlife crisis'... and reveal brutal REAL reason daughter Sunday Rose'snubbed' him Perfect All-American family lived in stunning $1.1m Colorado mansion and bankrolled glamorous daughter's horse stables... now matriarch has sullied their good name with a HUGE scandal Meghan unveils new As Ever line with Lilibet... amid claims Netflix has been left with huge $10m surplus of her unsold products after'split' with streamer Woke Democrat, 26, who can't get out of bed in time for meetings loses primary to professor accused of inappropriate relationship by former student I watched the children's book author who poisoned her husband from 5ft away. This is the off-camera moment her mask finally slipped... it was truly chilling I ran America's only Supermax jail: What history's most notorious terrorists and serial killers told me as they waited to die Sinister truth about explosive resignation of Trump's top counter-terror chief Joe Kent... and his shock claim Israel is manipulating the president: MARK HALPERIN Hairdresser who weighs 300lbs says Southwest airport check-in worker looked him up and down and told him he'd have to buy extra seat Kim Kardashian takes a VERY dramatic tumble in towering $80 'stripper heels' and accidentally grabs an'old lady' as she falls on her way out of Vanity Fair Oscar party Everything JFK Jr told friends about his love affair with'sexual dynamo' Madonna... her unprintable pillow talk... and his perverse incest request that she couldn't go through with Saudi, UAE and Qatar energy facilities are evacuated after Iran threatens'full scale economic war' as oil price jumps 5%: Live updates New PILL for psoriasis approved... giving hope to millions suffering from debilitating skin condition How I lost 8st in my 50s and now finally have the figure of my dreams. I've been large my whole life, but I now feel happier than I ever did in my 20s. New York City's accent is dying out, study finds It's something that's fixed from roughly the age of 14. But your accent could be hindering your job prospects, according to a new study.

Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard pioneered quantum information theory. Now they've been awarded the highest honor in computer science. Today it's widely acknowledged that the future of computing will involve the quantum realm . Companies like Google, Microsoft, IBM, and a few well-funded startups are frantically building quantum computers and routinely claiming advances that seem to bring this exotic, world-changing technology within reach. In 1979 all of this was unthinkable.

Do Taliban's drone attacks expose a chink in Pakistan's armour? On the evening of March 13, drones struck three locations across Pakistan. Two children were wounded in Quetta. Civilians were also injured in Kohat and in Rawalpindi, the garrison city that houses the headquarters of Pakistan's armed forces and neighbours the capital, Islamabad. Pakistan's military said the drones were intercepted before reaching their targets.

Iran war: What is happening on day 19 of US-Israel attacks? Iran has pledged "revenge" after Israeli strikes killed security chief Ali Larijani and commander of Basij paramilitary forces Gholamreza Soleimani, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying Tehran's political system remains strong as the war entered its 19th day . Iran launched more attacks on Israel, causing extensive property damage, after an earlier strike killed two people in Ramat Gan. Political tensions are also rising in the United States, as senior counterterrorism official Joe Kent resigned, saying "we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby". Meanwhile, President Donald Trump criticised NATO allies and partners for failing to provide stronger military support in efforts to end Iran's chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has fired missiles and drones at several Gulf Arab nations, which have sought to intercept them, in a now-daily fallout from the United States-Israel war launched on Iran nearly three weeks ago that has engulfed the Middle East with deaths, destruction, assassinations, and an energy crisis spreading far beyond the region. Early Tuesday, Qatar's Ministry of Defence said its armed forces intercepted a missile attack against the country. The statement came hours after the Kuwaiti army said it was intercepting hostile missile and drone attacks. The UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have also reported intercepting missiles and drones in recent hours. Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Defense reported the interception and destruction of a drone in the Eastern Region.

Over 200 Ukrainian military experts in Gulf region to counter Iran's drones More than 200 Ukrainian military experts are in the Gulf region and wider Middle East helping governments in their defence against Iran's drone attacks, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. In an address to dozens of members of the United Kingdom Parliament in London on Tuesday, the Ukrainian leader said 201 Ukrainian anti-drone experts are in the region and another 34 "are ready to deploy". "Our teams are already in the Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and on the way to Kuwait," the Ukrainian leader said. "We are working with several other countries - agreements are already in place. We do not want this terror of the Iranian regime against its neighbours to succeed," he said.

The BBC has obtained footage and interviews from the Iranian capital Tehran which evoke a city of strained nerves, of constant waiting for the next air strike and relentless fear of the state security apparatus. The identities of the people in this report have been protected. While independent journalists still try to gather testimony that offers a credible alternative view, they run the risk of arrest, torture and possibly worse. Displaced Palestinians were told to secure their tents to prevent them being blown away as a storm swept through the enclave. Video filmed by a witness and verified by the BBC shows a drone crashing close to the airport.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to visit Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in the UK on Tuesday to agree a new defence partnership aimed at tackling cheap attack drones. Downing Street said the deal would bring together Ukrainian expertise and the UK's industrial base to manufacture and supply drones and other capabilities. The two leaders are also expected to discuss further support Ukraine against Russia's full-scale invasion, now in its fourth year. Their meeting comes as the US-Israeli war with Iran enters a third week, during which US President Donald Trump has criticised the UK and other countries over the extent of their response to the conflict. Under the partnership between the UK and Ukraine, closer co-operation in the defence industries will also be sought with third countries as part of efforts to bolster international security.