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Most American adults have cut spending this year, according to a new CNBC-Morning Consult survey, which also revealed that consumers plan to stay frugal through the holidays.

A whopping 92% of adults have cut back on discretionary spending over the past six months, CNBC found after polling 4,403 US adults last week.

Consumers were most skittish when shopping for clothes and dining out at restaurants — 63% and 62%, respectively.

The news site’s poll also showed that consumers at all income levels are feeling pinched by the economy. While labor strikes in Hollywood and Detroit provoke fresh uncertainty, inflation rose a surprisingly stiff 3.7% last month — still well above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.

Fifty-five percent of lower-income households earning $50,000 or less annually told CNBC that their personal finances are suffering from the state of the US economy, while 61% of middle-income earners bringing in $50,000 to $100,000 are feeling the squeeze.

Even among the highest earners with annual incomes exceeding $100,000, 46% said they’re feeling the impact of the economy on their finances.

More than three-quarters of respondents, 76%, plan to cut back spending on non-essential items over the next six months, during retailers’ all-important holiday shopping season, while 62% said they plan on budgeting “sometimes” or “more often” in the upcoming months, CNBC found.

Meanwhile, 56% of surveyed respondents said they were spending less on entertainment outside the house despite reports of recent summer splurges on blockbuster movies and concert tours, namely Taylor Swifts sought-after Eras Tour, which is on track to amass a record-breaking $1 billion in sales, making it the highest-grossing tour ever.

Groceries saw the next-biggest budget reduction, with 54% of respondents saying they’re spending less at the supermarket, according to CNBC.

The results came just one week after the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ closely-watched Consumer Price Index showed that food prices rose 0.2% for the third consecutive month in August as the index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs advanced 0.8%.

The index for pork edged 2.2% higher.

CNBC’s survey also showed that 53% of respondents will be cutting back on recreational travel spend, while 50% won’t be quick to splash out on electronics — a figure that could spell bad news for Apple, which is set to drop its “industry first” iPhone 15 on Sept. 22 for up to $899 depending on storage capacity.

The latest inflation numbers represent a stark slowdown from last summer when inflation hit a four-decade peak at 9.1%.

Still, it remains well above the Feds 2% goal and marks an acceleration from the previous two months.

In June, inflation bottomed out at 3%, and rose to 3.2% in July.

As Wall Street expected, rising gasoline costs were the main culprit of Augusts advance, ticking 10.6% higher last month and accounting for over half of the increase, the data showed.

As of Tuesday, the national average of a gallon of gas stood at $3.88, rising some eight cents in the span of a week, according to the American Automobile Association.

The most eye-watering prices were seen in some parts of California, where gas is running residents more than $6 in some parts of LA and as much as $7 in other parts of the state.

At this time last year, a gallon of gas was 18 cents cheaper nationally, AAA said.

And to make matters worse, relief doesnt appear to be on the horizon, at least not in the short term.

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth predicted that oil prices would get close to $100 a barrel.

Supply is tightening, inventories are drawing the trends would suggest, we are certainly on our way, we are getting close (to $100/bbl), Wirth, who heads the nations second largest energy producer, told Bloomberg TV on Monday.

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Power Rankings: How has each Top 25 team’s quarterback looked through Week 4?

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Power Rankings: How has each Top 25 team's quarterback looked through Week 4?

As we approach the one-month mark of the 2025 college football season, the state of quarterback play among the contenders (and pretenders) across the country is becoming clearer.

LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier, Penn State’s Drew Allar and Texas’ Arch Manning — all for different reasons — have followed hefty preseason hype with relatively slow starts this fall. Elsewhere, Josh Hoover (TCU), Haynes King (Georgia Tech) and Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt) are looking very much as expected, and some of the nation’s biggest offseason question marks, including Oregon’s Dante Moore and Texas A&M’s Marcel Reed, have emerged as surprise stars.

Week 4 was a big one for transfer passers as Joey Aguilar (Tennessee), Carson Beck (Miami), John Mateer (Oklahoma), Fernando Mendoza (Indiana) and Beau Pribula (Missouri) all built on impressive starts with their new programs. Meanwhile, fellow portal quarterbacks Jackson Arnold (Auburn), Devon Dampier (Utah) and Jake Retzlaff (Tulane) experienced their first stumbles in their new uniforms Saturday.

With four full weeks of college football in the books, here’s our take on the Top 25 and how early-season quarterback situations are developing across the country. — Eli Lederman

Previous ranking: 1

Freshman Julian Sayin is off to a terrific start through three games, having replaced national championship-winning quarterback Will Howard. Sayin ranks 29th nationally in QBR (77.2) and is completing almost 79% of his throws. Sayin didn’t put up big numbers in Ohio State’s season-opening 14-7 victory over then-top-ranked Texas. But he was accurate and avoided any big mistakes (sacks or turnovers), which allowed the Ohio State defense to salt away the win. In Week 2’s 70-0 victory, Sayin set a school record with 16 straight completions to begin the game. Then, in Week 3, he passed for 347 yards as the offense got rolling against Ohio in the second half after a slow start. Some big tests loom ahead, most notably on Nov. 1 against Penn State and in the regular-season finale at Michigan. But Sayin has impressed so far with his poise and precision. — Jake Trotter


Previous ranking: 3

Carson Beck has helped lead the Hurricanes to a 4-0 start following a 26-7 win over Florida on Saturday. Though his performance against the Gators was not up to his standard — Beck went 17-of-30 for 160 yards with one interception — he is still completing 73% of his passes on the season and has helped position Miami in the top five as a CFP contender. Beck has shown an ability to make big plays in the passing game with his receivers, who are skilled at going up and making acrobatic catches or coming down with jump balls. Following an open date, Miami plays Florida State in Tallahassee, and Beck said he is looking forward to playing in Doak Campbell Stadium for the first time. — Andrea Adelson


Previous ranking: 2

The Ducks continue to boast one of the most balanced offenses in the country as they totaled 305 passing yards and 280 rushing yards in their 41-7 win over rivals Oregon State Saturday. One slight difference about this week’s performance, however, was that they let quarterback Dante Moore loosen his arm a bit more. Whether it was by design or not, it worked; Moore threw 31 passes for 305 yards and four touchdowns, all season highs. It was another reminder that no matter how good the Ducks have been this season, Moore still has more in the tank. Even if he doesn’t have the kind of off-the-charts pop that others at his position might boast, the sophomore has proved he can be efficient, explosive when needed and, most importantly, capable of managing Oregon’s offense to perfection so far. — Paolo Uggetti


Previous ranking: 4

After a slow start to the season due to a torso injury, Tigers quarterback Garrett Nussmeier again looked like one of the best passers in the FBS on Saturday, albeit against FCS program Southeastern Louisiana. And with a trip to Ole Miss coming up next, it couldn’t have come at a better time for LSU. Nussmeier completed 25 of 31 passes for 273 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions in 2½ quarters of action against the Lions. It was the first game in which he threw for more than 250 yards this season. “This week was big about trying to find our rhythm and getting in stride heading into SEC play,” Nussmeier said. LSU coach Brian Kelly thought Nussmeier did a better job seeing the field and throwing in rhythm. — Mark Schlabach


Previous ranking: 7

Veteran Drew Allar is off to a bit of a slow start statistically. He ranks 111th in QBR (38.4) and has thrown just four touchdowns over three games. But the Nittany Lions have yet to be pressed, as they coasted past Nevada (46-11), Florida International (34-0) and Villanova (52-6). The spotlight, however, will be on Allar and Penn State next weekend when Oregon visits for a prime-time, “White Out” showdown. Allar admitted over the summer that the time has come for the Nittany Lions “to get over that hump” against big-time opponents. Under coach James Franklin, Penn State is 4-20 against teams ranked in the AP top 10 — and Allar has only one career top-10 win (Boise State last year) as Penn State’s starting quarterback. Beating the Ducks this time around would be a huge statement for Allar and the Nittany Lions. — Trotter


Previous ranking: 5

Any lingering quarterback concerns that Georgia fans had about Gunner Stockton were probably put to rest after his performance in a 44-41 overtime victory at Tennessee on Sept. 13. The sophomore completed 23 of 31 passes for 304 yards with two touchdowns and ran 13 times for 38 yards with another score. It was a much better performance for Stockton, who struggled to get the ball down the field in a 28-6 victory against Austin Peay the week before. He led the Bulldogs on four touchdown drives of 72 yards or longer, including one near the end of regulation that resulted in his 28-yard scoring pass to London Humphreys on fourth down. Georgia’s offensive line needs to get better, and Stockton needs to improve at keeping his eyes down the field while scrambling. — Schlabach


Previous ranking: 8

So far, things could not have gone better for the Seminoles with transfer quarterback Tommy Castellanos, who has been a perfect fit for the offense and the team in general. Castellanos has thrown for 594 yards and three touchdowns this season, completing 71% of his passes, while adding 139 yards rushing and three scores. Florida State has not had to rely on the passing game just yet, as the Seminoles have steamrolled their opponents on the ground. Castellanos did have a bit of a scare in a 66-10 win over Kent State when his leg got rolled up on, but he said afterward he was “all good.” — Adelson


Previous ranking: 9

Washington State transfer John Mateer has delivered on the hype that followed his offseason arrival in Norman. Through four games, he has already taken care of his principal objective: stabilizing a Sooners offense that finished 113th in total offense a year ago. But Mateer has also brought with him a brand of playmaking ability Oklahoma hasn’t had at the quarterback position since Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray and Jalen Hurts rolled through the program in the late 2010s. Following Saturday’s 24-17 win over then-No. 22 Auburn, Mateer ranks sixth nationally in passing yards (1,215) and tied for second among Power 4 quarterbacks in rushing scores (five). He was far from perfect facing an SEC defense for the first time, and Mateer’s turnover tally (four) and propensity for working himself into trouble are worth keeping an eye on as Oklahoma stares down ranked matchups in six of its final eight games of the season. But there’s no doubt that Mateer has significantly raised the floor for the Sooners’ offense. The question now is just how high the ceiling can be this fall. — Lederman


Previous ranking: 6

The Aggies had a bye week, a fortuitous break after an emotional trip to Notre Dame where they won on a fourth-down touchdown with 13 seconds left. It was A&M’s first road nonconference win against a ranked team since 1979 and first road win against any ranked team at all since 2014. Marcel Reed was just 17-of-37 in that game but threw for 360 yards, and KC Concepcion and Mario Craver have provided the 3-0 Aggies with the big-play threats they lacked last season. Last year, A&M got off to a hot start, beginning 7-1, including a win over No. 8 LSU. Then, a slide started, beginning with a road loss to South Carolina followed by a 43-41 triple-overtime loss to Auburn. The Aggies get the Tigers at home next week, who are coming off a road loss to Oklahoma, to try to keep this year’s momentum rolling. — Dave Wilson


Previous ranking: 20

Although Indiana retained many of its top players from its 2024 CFP team, it needed to replace standout quarterback Kurtis Rourke. The team plucked one of the top available transfers in Cal‘s Fernando Mendoza, who joined his younger brother and fellow quarterback Alberto Mendoza at IU. How would Mendoza adjust? The answer came Saturday with a near-flawless performance, as Mendoza had three more touchdown passes (five) than incompletions (two), finishing with 267 passing yards and finding four different teammates for scores. He became the second FBS player with five passing touchdowns and 90% completions against an AP ranked opponent in the past 30 years, joining Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud in 2021 against Michigan State. Mendoza could end up being an upgrade from Rourke. — Adam Rittenberg


Previous ranking: 12

After four games, Rebels coach Lane Kiffin has a good problem on his hands. Ole Miss has two quarterbacks who are more than capable of running the offense. Starter Austin Simmons won the job in camp and has thrown for 580 yards with four touchdowns and four interceptions. Simmons injured his ankle in the fourth quarter of a 30-23 win at Kentucky on Sept. 6, and backup Trinidad Chambliss has played even better in his absence. In Saturday’s 45-10 rout of Tulane, Chambliss passed for 307 yards with two touchdowns and ran for 112 yards on 14 attempts. In the past two wins over Arkansas and Tulane, Chambliss threw for 660 yards with three touchdown passes and no interceptions, while running for 174 with two scores. With LSU going to Oxford, Mississippi, next week, Kiffin faces a difficult decision. “I’m not saying he’s Russell Wilson, don’t get me wrong, but there’s some similarities in that kind of in the ‘it factor’ and how he moves and holds himself, you know, that I’ve kind of said that since he’s gotten here,” Kiffin said of Chambliss, who won two Division II national championships at Ferris State in Big Rapids, Michigan. — Schlabach


Previous ranking: 17

Behren Morton took some rough hits on Saturday, including a hit to the head that knocked him out of the Red Raiders’ road test at Utah. But Texas Tech did not miss a beat when backup Will Hammond stepped in to replace him. The redshirt freshman threw for 169 yards, rushed for 61 yards and led a 21-0 scoring run in the fourth quarter for a massive 34-10 victory against then No. 16 Utah. Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire said Morton will be fine, and a bye week is arriving at a good time for this team. But Hammond, who put up the second-best QBR (96.3) in FBS during Week 4, has done more than enough to prove he’s ready to help this team win if called upon. — Max Olson


Previous ranking: 10

A tuneup against 0-4 Sam Houston might have been what the doctor ordered for several scuffling Longhorns who had yet to find their stride this season. Arch Manning accounted for five touchdowns — three passing and two rushing — and completed 14 passes in a row a week after the Longhorns’ offense got booed after 10 straight incompletions against UTEP. Saturday, Manning finished 18-of-21 for 309 yards, including two touchdown passes of 53 and 13 yards to Ryan Wingo, who had just nine catches and one touchdown in the first three games, and edge rushing star Colin Simmons recorded his first solo sack of the year. The Longhorns head to Florida on Saturday hoping to keep building momentum in their SEC opener against the 1-3 Gators before facing Oklahoma, which beat Auburn to move to 4-0, in Dallas the following week. — Wilson


Previous ranking: 16

Joey Aguilar and Tennessee faced a unique test this week, needing to get back on track after a devastating loss to Georgia last week. Safe to say, they passed it. Aguilar threw for 218 yards and three touchdowns and needed to play only one drive in the second half as the Vols broke out to a 42-7 halftime lead and cruised 56-24 over UAB. The Vols are averaging 53.5 points per game through four games, and Aguilar has 1,124 passing yards and 12 touchdowns. They have an explosiveness that they lacked with Nico Iamaleava at quarterback last season, and the defense has been fine against teams not named Georgia. Starting next week at Mississippi State, however, the Vols embark on a run of three road trips in four games. We’ll see if Aguilar’s solid early form travels. — Bill Connelly


Previous ranking: 13

The Cyclones were idle this week ahead of next week’s home game against surging Arizona. At 4-0, Iowa State is off to a promising start, but it has to turn in a comprehensive win against an FBS opponent as all three such wins have come by one score. Quarterback Rocco Becht is finding a way to help pull these games out, but Iowa State needs more explosive plays from its offense if it expects to seriously compete for the Big 12 title. — Kyle Bonagura


Previous ranking: 15

Ty Simpson had to wait years to win Alabama’s starting job, and his tenure began as inauspiciously as possible with a dire loss at Florida State. Simpson has been almost perfect since, however, completing 41 of 46 passes for 608 yards and seven TDs against UL Monroe and Wisconsin. The Tide rolled in both games, setting the table nicely for an enormous and potentially season-defining trip to Georgia next Saturday. If Simpson looks good in a Tide win, he enters the Heisman discussion and Alabama’s CFP bona fides get a nice boost. If he struggles and Bama loses, the CFP starts to seem like a pipe dream. — Connelly


Previous ranking: 19

Beau Pribula has had it pretty easy early in his tenure as Mizzou’s starting quarterback. He has completed 72% of his passes with an 8-to-2 INT-to-TD ratio, he has been a solid scrambling weapon at times, and he has been able to turn around and hand the ball off to Ahmad Hardy and Jamal Roberts. They’ve taken it from there. The running back duo rushed 35 times for 214 yards and two touchdowns in Mizzou’s 29-20 win over South Carolina on Saturday night. Despite missing left tackle Cayden Green, Mizzou had 285 yards rushing, Pribula took only one sack and Mizzou went 7-for-13 on third downs. Only some third-down brilliance from the Gamecocks’ LaNorris Sellers kept this one competitive, but the Tigers moved to 4-0 by finishing the game on an 11-0 run. With a buy game against UMass and a bye week coming up, it looks like Pribula will lead an unbeaten team against Alabama in Columbia in a couple of weeks. — Connelly


Previous ranking: 18

Saturday’s win over Temple wasn’t exactly pretty, but then again, things rarely are for the Yellow Jackets. QB Haynes King likes it that way. Few quarterbacks in the country have proved their toughness more than King, who added three touchdowns in Week 4’s 45-24 win over the Owls. King’s ability to make plays with his legs is what sets him apart, but he has also been stellar as a passer — a big question coming off last season’s shoulder injury. Georgia Tech’s next two games are against Wake Forest and Virginia Tech — two of the ACC’s bottom-feeders — meaning he’ll have a shot to pad his stat line even more before a showdown at Duke on Oct. 18. — David Hale


Previous ranking: 21

Freshman phenom Bryce Underwood earned his first Big Ten road victory on Saturday with a 30-27 win at Nebraska. He didn’t put up crazy stats on the day — 105 passing yards, 61 rushing yards, one TD — but didn’t need to while the Wolverines’ run game overwhelmed a top-10 scoring defense with 292 rushing yards on 9.1 yards per carry (excluding sacks). Interim coach Biff Poggi loved the poise Underwood brought to the sideline and huddle that gave his team no doubt it’d win. The young QB’s developmental trajectory through four games remains extremely exciting to watch. — Olson


Previous ranking: 22

Diego Pavia fought for an extra year of eligibility in 2025 and is absolutely making the most of it. The sixth-year senior avenged last year’s upset loss to Georgia State with a 70-21 rout on Saturday night that has Vanderbilt off to a 4-0 start for the first time since 2008. Pavia has dramatically raised his completion percentage from 59.4% last season to an SEC-best 73.9%, ranks among the top 10 in QBR (85.7) and is powering a top-10 scoring offense that’s putting up 47.5 points per game. The Commodores have one more nonconference tuneup against Utah State before an epic October schedule against four of the SEC’s best in Alabama, LSU, Missouri and Texas. — Olson


Previous ranking: 25

The Horned Frogs played a bit sloppy but never panicked against SMU in a 35-24 win, the last iteration of a rivalry that dates back to 2015. Josh Hoover threw for 379 yards and a career-high five touchdowns, and a stacked receiving room saw Eric McAlister become this week’s star, with eight catches for 254 yards (second best in school history) and three touchdowns, narrowly missing two more, one on an interception that was wrestled away from him and another on a possible TD catch that was ruled incomplete and wasn’t reviewed by officials. The defense held SMU to 384 yards, 4-of-13 on third down and the Mustangs’ fewest points all season. The Frogs, who snuck into the AP Top 25 at No. 24 this week, head to Tempe to take on defending Big 12 champs Arizona State on Friday night, a test that could start to reveal if TCU is back on its 2022 trajectory. — Wilson


Previous ranking: NR

If there wasn’t much talk about Jayden Maiava‘s season so far, then let the chatter begin. The Trojans’ quarterback was impressive against Michigan State in a 45-31 win, looking as comfortable as ever in Lincoln Riley’s offense. Maiva completed 20 of 26 passes for 234 yards (and crossed the 1,000-yard mark for the season) while adding three passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns too. It’s not clear yet just how good USC is and can be in the Big Ten and beyond this season, but through four contests, there’s no doubt that the explosive offense the sport has come to expect when Riley has a dynamic quarterback in tow is alive and well with Maiava under center. In fact, after putting up 517 yards of offense against the Spartans, the Trojans’ average yards per game for the year (604 per game, tops in the country) will go down. At the center of it all has been Maiava. — Uggetti


Previous ranking: 24

When the season opened, the biggest question looming over Notre Dame was at quarterback. It took until late in fall camp before CJ Carr won the job, and the Irish — fresh off a trip to the national championship game — might’ve reasonably been concerned about putting their fate in the hands of a QB with no starting experience. Turns out, Carr has been fine — throwing for 223 yards and two touchdowns in a 56-30 win over Purdue on Saturday — and Notre Dame’s Achilles’ heel has been the area the Irish might’ve felt best about: the secondary. Purdue threw for 303 yards and three touchdowns Saturday, and the battered and struggling defensive backs in South Bend showed little ability to adjust. Notre Dame might have its QB1, but the job now is stopping the other team’s quarterback. — Hale


Previous ranking: 11

When the Illini slogged through the first half Sept. 6 against Duke, struggling along the line of scrimmage, quarterback Luke Altmyer kept the team on track, avoiding major mistakes and buying enough time for a second-half surge. But Altmyer had no chance to be a hero at Indiana, which swarmed him all night, recording five sacks in the first half and seven in the game. Other than a 59-yard touchdown pass to Collin Dixon, Altmyer was limited to 87 passing yards on 13 completions and constantly faced pressure. He certainly can play better and will need to beginning this week against USC. But Altmyer was far from Illinois’ biggest problem in the Indiana debacle. He has given the Illini a veteran presence who, when given time, can pick apart defenses. — Rittenberg


Previous ranking: 14

The celebration in Utah about a revived Utes offense was premature, it turns out. Utah and Texas Tech were locked in a defensive tussle for much of Saturday’s 34-10 Texas Tech win before the Red Raiders finished the game with a flurry of touchdowns in the fourth quarter. The Utes struggled in both phases on offense, managing just 101 yards rushing on 31 carries (3.3 yards per carry) and only 162 yards through the air. The ineffectiveness of the offense was compounded by four turnovers that served as an unpleasant reminder of the past two seasons. — Bonagura

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With one of his proudest achievements on the line, will Trump force Netanyahu’s hand?

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With one of his proudest achievements on the line, will Trump force Netanyahu's hand?

The moment could have felt so different. It should have felt so different.

It was supposed to come a long time ago, and it was supposed to be the outcome of a peace process, of reconciliation, of understanding, of coexistence and of healing.

If it had happened the right way, then we’d be celebrating two states living alongside each other, coexisting, sharing a capital city.

As it happened: France recognises Palestinian state

Destroyed buildings in Gaza, as seen from Israeli side of the border.
Pic: Reuters
Image:
Destroyed buildings in Gaza, as seen from Israeli side of the border.
Pic: Reuters


Instead, the recognition of Palestine as a state comes out of the rubble of Gaza.

It has come as a last-ditch effort to save all vanishing chances of a Palestinian state.

Essentially, the countries which have recognised Palestine here at the UN in New York are jumping to the endpoint and hope to now fill in the gaps.

Those gaps are huge.

Even before the horror of the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023, there was almost no realistic prospect of a two-state solution.

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Two-state solution in ‘profound peril’

Israeli settlement expansion in the West Bank and Benjamin Netanyahu’s divide-and-conquer strategy for the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Hamas in Gaza had made reconciliation increasingly hard.

The Hamas attack set back what little hope there was even further, while settlement expansion by the Israelis in the West Bank accelerated since then.

An updated map of Israel and Palestine on the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office website after the UK recognised the state of Palestine
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An updated map of Israel and Palestine on the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office website after the UK recognised the state of Palestine

The same questions which have made all this so intractable remain.

How to share a capital city? Who controls Jerusalem’s Old City, where the holy sites are located? If it’s shared, then how?

What happens to the settlements in the West Bank? If land swaps take place, then where? What happens to Gaza? Who governs the Palestinians?

And how are the moderates on both sides emboldened to dominate the discourse and the policy?

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Two-state solution ‘encourages terrorism’

Hope rests with Trump

Right now, Palestinian extremism is holding out in Gaza with the hostages, and Israeli extremism is dominant on the other side, with Netanyahu now threatening to fully annex the West Bank as a reaction to the recognition declarations at the UN.

It all feels pretty bleak and desperate. If there is cause for some hope, it rests with Donald Trump.

Donald Trump is the only man who can influence Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu (below). Pic: AP
Image:
Donald Trump is the only man who can influence Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu (below). Pic: AP

Pic: Reuters
Image:
Pic: Reuters

Over the next 24 hours in New York, he will meet key Arab and Muslim leaders from the Middle East and Asia to present his latest plan for peace in Gaza.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, Indonesia, and Pakistan will all participate in the meeting.

Delegates applaud after Emmanuel Macron announced France's recognition of a state of Palestine. Pic: AP
Image:
Delegates applaud after Emmanuel Macron announced France’s recognition of a state of Palestine. Pic: AP

They will listen to his plan, some may offer peacekeeping troops (a significant development if they do), some may offer to provide funding to rebuild the strip and, crucially, all are likely to tell him that his Abraham Accords plan – to forge ahead with diplomatic normalisation between Muslim nations and Israel – will not happen if Israel pushes ahead with any West Bank annexation.

Netanyahu will address the UN at the end of the week, before travelling to the White House on Monday, where he will tell Trump what he plans to do next in both Gaza and the West Bank.

Read more from Sky News:
Typhoon brings 183mph winds as thousands evacuated
Flights suspended at European airport after drone sightings

If Trump wants his Abraham Accords to expand and not collapse – and remember the accords represent a genuine diplomatic game changer for the region, one Trump is rightly proud of – then he will force Netanyahu to stop in Gaza and stop in the West Bank.

He is the only man in the world who can.

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Grooming victim’s family ‘angry’ and ‘shocked’ prosecutors didn’t see police interview video

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Grooming victim's family 'angry' and 'shocked' prosecutors didn't see police interview video

The family of a grooming victim say they are “angry” and “heartbroken” that prosecutors didn’t see a video of her police interview during their investigations.

Jodie Sheeran, then 15, was allegedly taken to a hotel and raped in November 2004.

She’s believed to have been groomed by young men of Pakistani heritage for a year beforehand. Jodie’s son, Jayden, was born nine months later.

A man was charged, but the case was dropped a day before the trial was meant to start in 2005.

Her father, David, said they were told it was because Jodie had a “reckless lifestyle” and was “an unreliable witness”, but that they never received a formal reason.

In July, he told Sky’s The UK Tonight with Sarah-Jane Mee he thinks police “bottled it” because they were worried about being called racist.

Jodie died in November 2022 from an alcohol-related death.

It’s now emerged the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) didn’t view the video of Jodie’s police interview as it “was not shared with us” and they didn’t know at the time that it still existed.

Instead, they only had a transcript of what she told officers.

It’s unclear exactly why this happened, but Staffordshire Police said the footage was available in 2019, when the CPS and police reviewed the case, and in 2023, when the investigation was opened again.

Jodie Sheeran with her mother Angela
Image:
Jodie Sheeran with her mother Angela


“I don’t know if I’ve been misled [or] it was an accident,” Jodie’s mother, Angela, told Sky News’ Sarah-Jane Mee.

“To suddenly say evidence has been there all along – and I’ve got every single letter, every email to tell me they haven’t got the evidence any more… and then it’s emerged Staffordshire Police did have the evidence after all – it was shocking really.”

The CPS watched the video last month and said the transcript is an accurate representation of what Jodie says on the tape.

However, it hasn’t changed their view that there’s no realistic prospect of conviction – and won’t be taking any further action.

Jodie's father David (right, with Jayden) says it seems police and CPS 'didn't know what one another were doing'
Image:
Jodie’s father David (right, with Jayden) says it seems police and CPS ‘didn’t know what one another were doing’

Jodie’s father told Sky News he believes it shows the police and CPS “didn’t know what one another were doing – and it makes you so angry”.

“I feel like they’ve gotten away with it,” added Jodie’s son Jayden. “It’s years on now – I’m grateful they’ve found the evidence but what are they doing about it?”

‘I’ll keep fighting until I get justice’

Angela said it shows that other families in a similar situation shouldn’t “take no for an answer” from police or the CPS.

“Since losing a child, nothing else matters, so I’m not going anywhere,” she said.

“So I will keep fighting and fighting and fighting until I get justice for Jodie – and hopefully justice for probably thousands of other victims out there as well.”

Angela says she will 'keep fighting until I get justice for Jodie'
Image:
Angela says she will ‘keep fighting until I get justice for Jodie’

A national inquiry into grooming gangs was announced in June after a series of cases uncovered sexual abuse of mainly white girls by men of predominately Pakistani heritage had taken place in a number of towns and cities.

A Staffordshire Police spokesperson said their thoughts remain with Jodie’s family and that a “significant amount of work has been undertaken reviewing this case several times”.

They said the interview video was “available to the Senior Investigating Officers in 2019 and 2023” and a “comprehensive contemporaneous written record” of it was given to the CPS on both occasions.

The statement added: “In August 2025, a copy of the recording was provided to the CPS who conducted due diligence to ensure the contemporaneous written record of Jodie’s ABE interview, that they reviewed in 2019 and 2023, was an accurate account of the video recording. They have confirmed this is the case.”

Read more:
Telford child abuse victims speak out

What we know about grooming gangs, from the data
The women who blew whistle on Rotherham

Jodie died in November 2022
Image:
Jodie died in November 2022


Police said the case had been submitted for a further evidential review.

“Should any new evidence come to light, it will be referred to the CPS for their consideration,” the spokesperson added.

The CPS said: “We carried out reviews of our decision-making in this case in 2019 and 2023 using records provided by Staffordshire Police – both these reviews found that there was not enough evidence to charge the suspect with rape.

“While we requested all available records, Jodie’s video interview from 2005 was not shared with us, we were not informed that it had been retained, and it was only made available to our prosecutors recently after further requests.

“Having cross-referenced the video with detailed accounts of it previously available to us, we have determined that the conclusions we reached in our previous reviews still stand.”

:: Watch the full interview on The UK Tonight with Sarah-Jane Mee from 8pm on Tuesday

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