Why does Amazon have no Western rivals? Vitamins, repair tape and a jar of mango chutney - just some of what my household bought last month via Amazon's sprawling online shopping platform. We also shopped at the company's supermarket chain Whole Foods, streamed its TV shows, read books on Kindle e-readers, and browsed countless websites no doubt powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS), its highly profitable cloud-computing business. And that isn't half of the interconnected products and services offered by the global behemoth, which earlier this year overtook US superstore giant Walmart to become the world's largest company by annual sales. But why does Amazon, launched by Jeff Bezos in 1995 as an online bookstore out of a rented garage, have so few serious rivals in the West when it comes to e-commerce?

What would make the UK a better place to live? People across the UK are being urged to share their vision for how their community and country's future should look, as part of a major new research project. The National Conversation is being launched with voice notes submitted by high-profile figures, including former footballer Gary Lineker, Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, and broadcaster Mariella Frostrup. Participants will be asked to complete a survey carried out by researchers from the University of Oxford and leave a 60-second voice note. AI models will then be used to analyse thousands of responses to map what could bring us together.

Inside the'kill-zone' on Ukraine's front line, where new weapons have transformed war After 225 days stuck in a front-line foxhole, the Ukrainian infantryman's muscles were so weak he could barely walk. His commanders had tried five times to swap him with another soldier - but they could never reach him. Rotating soldiers on the front line in eastern Ukraine is extremely difficult because of the constant threat of drones. This area near Kostyantynivka is currently one of the most dangerous hotspots and the Ukrainian military admits that Russian forces have reached its outskirts. Known as Kenya, the infantryman took two days to walk 11km (6.8 miles) to get back to his brigade, avoiding mines and hiding from drones to get out.

Bulgarian pop star Dara was met by a crowd of fans in Sofia airport on Sunday, celebrating her historic Eurovision win. The 27-year-old's tune Bangaranga won Bulgaria its first ever title in the song contest. Thank you for being here, she told fans as she arrived in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, before adding I cannot wait to dip my toes in this atmosphere. Russia launched one of the biggest air strikes on Kyiv since the start of the war with several apartment blocks hit. Why is the Princess of Wales in Italy this week?

No one wants to hang out with her': Why Meghan and Harry have been ditched by A-list friends as insiders reveal Oprah's merciless snub, why the Clooneys now want nothing to do with them - and how SHE'S the problem Truth about Kate Middleton's past before Prince William... we Americans see this for what it is: KENNEDY I was on track to make $1 million... then I quit my job and moved into an off-grid tiny home with no running water or electricity Professional tasters decide best and worst fast food cheeseburger - do you agree? Hamptons cancer cluster: Rates are spiking in summer enclave of New York's wealthy elite... and doctors think they know the tragic reason why Disturbing trove of images woke Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass doesn't want you to see: Filthy truth is so much worse than people think... Comedian replacing Stephen Colbert appears to take a swipe at his predecessor as he vows to avoid politics and'just be funny' Jordon Hudson blasts double standards over Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini'affair' scandal: 'What is going on?' I've discovered my'nice' neighbor's dirty secret... what I caught him doing one night was far more disturbing than I realized: DEAR JANE SNL season finale cold open sees ghost of Jeffrey Epstein played by Will Ferrell'haunt' Trump as dark jokes leave viewers shocked Golf star becomes instant fan favorite after stopping to smoke a cigarette with crowd in the middle of the PGA Championship: 'Man of the people' New kind of penis enlargement surgery will add inches, claims the doctor set to offer it... but there is a gruesome detail that may make some think twice I saw a 40-year-old middle-class mom in a psychiatric ward after a single hit of this drug. Her symptoms were terrifying but it's so common now... here's what you must know: DR MAX PEMBERTON US airman returns home to every dog owner's nightmare as he finds his husky DEAD in garage after trusting pet sitter to take care of his beloved companion I'm an exorcist... Here's the chilling encounter that made me believe UFOs are the work of Satan A Catholic priest and exorcist who has encountered demons first-hand has revealed a chilling experience that led him to believe UFOs are actually the work of the devil. Father Carlos Martins, an Ontario-born priest who has performed exorcisms around the world, believes the UFO phenomenon is part of a larger spiritual deception designed to undermine Christianity and cast doubt on the Bible . The priest said a longtime friend who later converted to Christianity once witnessed a gigantic spacecraft hovering silently over a suburban park before it shot away'instantly to the speed of a bullet.'

SNL season finale cold open sees ghost of Jeffrey Epstein played by Will Ferrell'haunt' Trump as dark jokes leave viewers shocked Jordon Hudson blasts double standards over Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini'affair' scandal: 'What is going on?' No one wants to hang out with her': Why Meghan and Harry have been ditched by A-list friends as insiders reveal Oprah's merciless snub, why the Clooneys now want nothing to do with them - and how SHE'S the problem Truth about Kate Middleton's past before Prince William... we Americans see this for what it is: KENNEDY Kim Kardashian roasted over'ridiculous' outfit at Gucci show as she sits front row with Anna Wintour and Mariah Carey I was on track to make $1 million... then I quit my job and moved into an off-grid tiny home with no running water or electricity Professional tasters decide best and worst fast food cheeseburger - do you agree? Hamptons cancer cluster: Rates are spiking in summer enclave of New York's wealthy elite... and doctors think they know the tragic reason why Disturbing trove of images woke Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass doesn't want you to see: Filthy truth is so much worse than people think... Taylor Swift dazzles in glittering gown as she and Travis Kelce steal the spotlight at friend's wedding in NYC Golf star becomes instant fan favorite after stopping to smoke a cigarette with crowd in the middle of the PGA Championship: 'Man of the people' New kind of penis enlargement surgery will add inches, claims the doctor set to offer it... but there is a gruesome detail that may make some think twice She was every bit the adoring mother... then a leaked video exposed a'sadistic' secret even cops said'will bring tears to your eyes' I saw a 40-year-old middle-class mom in a psychiatric ward after a single hit of this drug. Her symptoms were terrifying but it's so common now... here's what you must know: DR MAX PEMBERTON Expert reveals the best way to cut the bread - and why you should never leave a'hinge' 'I saw things I can never unsee': Man who snuck into Air India crash morgue reveals what he saw... why it could blow apart the pilot suicide theory... and what happened when we visited the lone survivor Scientists are baffled by mysterious blue flashes coming from deep space that are'unlike anything we have observed before' For almost a decade, scientists have been baffled by a series of mysterious blue flashes emerging from deep space. Since the first lit up astronomers' telescopes in 2018, only 14 of these strange pulses have been detected, making them some of the rarest astronomical events on record. Known as Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transients (LFBOTs), these lights burn faster and up to 100 times brighter than anything else scientists have seen .

SNL season finale cold open sees ghost of Jeffrey Epstein played by Will Ferrell'haunt' Trump as dark jokes leave viewers shocked Jordon Hudson blasts double standards over Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini'affair' scandal: 'What is going on?' No one wants to hang out with her': Why Meghan and Harry have been ditched by A-list friends as insiders reveal Oprah's merciless snub, why the Clooneys now want nothing to do with them - and how SHE'S the problem Truth about Kate Middleton's past before Prince William... we Americans see this for what it is: KENNEDY Kim Kardashian roasted over'ridiculous' outfit at Gucci show as she sits front row with Anna Wintour and Mariah Carey I was on track to make $1 million... then I quit my job and moved into an off-grid tiny home with no running water or electricity Professional tasters decide best and worst fast food cheeseburger - do you agree? Hamptons cancer cluster: Rates are spiking in summer enclave of New York's wealthy elite... and doctors think they know the tragic reason why Disturbing trove of images woke Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass doesn't want you to see: Filthy truth is so much worse than people think... Taylor Swift dazzles in glittering gown as she and Travis Kelce steal the spotlight at friend's wedding in NYC Golf star becomes instant fan favorite after stopping to smoke a cigarette with crowd in the middle of the PGA Championship: 'Man of the people' New kind of penis enlargement surgery will add inches, claims the doctor set to offer it... but there is a gruesome detail that may make some think twice She was every bit the adoring mother... then a leaked video exposed a'sadistic' secret even cops said'will bring tears to your eyes' I saw a 40-year-old middle-class mom in a psychiatric ward after a single hit of this drug. Her symptoms were terrifying but it's so common now... here's what you must know: DR MAX PEMBERTON Expert reveals the best way to cut the bread - and why you should never leave a'hinge' 'I saw things I can never unsee': Man who snuck into Air India crash morgue reveals what he saw... why it could blow apart the pilot suicide theory... and what happened when we visited the lone survivor Many people have reported near-death experiences, but in some cases, survivors appeared to bring back something far more unsettling than memories. Some survivors claimed they saw and heard things that should have been impossible while they were clinically dead, including conversations in operating rooms and objects located far outside their hospital beds. Several of the most famous cases involved patients whose brains allegedly showed little or no measurable activity at the time of their experiences.

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What are Russia's gains from the Iran war? 'We are not losers; we are winners' At least four people have been killed after Ukraine launched large-scale drone attacks on several Russian regions, including Moscow, in what officials described as the biggest drone assault in more than a year. Russian authorities said on Sunday three people were killed in the Moscow region and another person died in Belgorod, near the Ukrainian border. Rescue workers were searching the rubble for another possible victim. Two other men were killed in the village of Pogorelki in the Mytishchi district, he said. Vorobyov added that apartment buildings and infrastructure sites were damaged in the attacks.

Russian rescuers work in a heavily damaged house following an air attack at an undisclosed location in the Moscow region. Moscow - A huge wave of almost 600 Ukrainian drones attacked Russia overnight, killing three people in the Moscow region and one in the Belgorod region, authorities said on Sunday. Air defenses shot down 556 drones overnight across the country, Russia's defence ministry said, with another 30 drones neutralized after dawn in one of the largest Ukrainian barrages of the conflict so far. These interceptions -- far above the few dozen more often reported -- took place across 14 Russian regions, as well as the Crimean Peninsula annexed from Ukraine and the Black and Azov seas, the ministry added, with the region around the capital among the worst-hit. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.