The death toll from the twin earthquakes that struck Venezuela in June has risen to 6,438, according to the latest official figures released on Monday, as rescue teams and relatives continue searching for people still missing.

The updated figure was announced by Parliament Speaker Jorge Rodriguez, increasing the previous death toll of 6,301 reported last week.

The two powerful earthquakes, measuring 7.2 and 7.5 in magnitude, struck near Venezuela’s coast on June 24 and caused extensive destruction. At least 190 buildings were brought down during the disaster.

Nearly two months after the earthquakes, the effects of the disaster continue to be felt across affected communities, with families and rescue workers still searching through the rubble for missing people.

Authorities estimate that at least 60,000 homes were affected by the earthquakes, with about 24,000 considered uninhabitable.

Thousands of people remain in temporary camps as they wait for permanent accommodation. Conditions in some of the camps have become increasingly difficult, particularly following heavy rainfall.

In Caracas over the weekend, heavy rain destroyed some of the tents being used to shelter earthquake victims, further worsening conditions for displaced residents.

The government of Interim President Delcy Rodriguez has promised to provide permanent housing for people whose homes were destroyed or rendered unsafe by the earthquakes.

However, progress has so far fallen short of the government’s target. Authorities had promised to make 4,000 homes available by the end of the year, but only 335 homes had been provided as of the latest update.

The rising death toll and continuing housing crisis highlight the scale of the devastation caused by the June earthquakes, with thousands of survivors still depending on temporary shelter and humanitarian assistance while reconstruction efforts continue.

A student was shot dead at a Catholic high school in the Philippines on Tuesday after another student allegedly livestreamed the attack before taking his own life, authorities said.

The incident occurred at Ateneo de Zamboanga University, a private Catholic institution in Zamboanga City in western Mindanao. It is the second school shooting reported in the Philippines within two months.

Regional police spokeswoman Shella Chang said the suspect entered the classroom where the victim was located before shooting the student. The suspect then reportedly went to the fifth floor of the school building and shot himself.

“What we know so far is that (the shooter) went to the classroom of our known victim. He shot the victim, and after doing that, he went up to the fifth floor and shot himself,” Chang told AFP.

Interior Secretary Victor Remulla separately confirmed that the ninth-grade suspect had livestreamed the incident on social media. The Facebook account allegedly used during the broadcast has since been disabled.

Local media circulated footage from the livestream, which reportedly showed a gun being moved through a school hallway before it was pointed into a classroom and fired. Students in school uniforms could then be seen fleeing while screaming.

Authorities had not immediately established whether other people were injured.

The national police have launched an investigation to determine what led to the attack, where the firearm came from and how it was brought onto the school premises.

The interior ministry said police were working to “establish the motive behind the shooting, determine the ownership and source of the firearm used, and find out how it was brought inside the school campus”.

Police had yet to release the ages of either the suspect or the victim.

Ateneo de Zamboanga University President Father Guillrey Andal confirmed the two deaths and said the institution was “deeply saddened” by the incident.

He said the school was working with investigators to identify those involved and contact their families.

“We are in the process of working with the police for us to be able to identify them, so that we can communicate first with their loved ones,” he told reporters outside the school, while acknowledging that the incident had caused “deep concern and worry”.

Andal also said the school had already been considering additional safety preparations before the shooting.

“Prior to this, our security team had even been preparing a simulation exercise, precisely because we understand the value to everyone — our students, our personnel — of safety.”

School shootings remain relatively uncommon in the Philippines. However, the latest incident follows a June attack at a school in the central part of the country in which three teenage students were killed and 20 others injured.

Following that tragedy, Ateneo de Zamboanga and other schools across the Philippines conducted active-shooter preparedness drills.

Although firearm ownership is subject to strict regulation in the Philippines, authorities have long faced challenges from an illegal market for guns.

The investigation is expected to focus on the circumstances that allowed the weapon onto the school campus, the motive behind the attack and the events leading up to the shooting.

Thousands of people displaced by a powerful earthquake in eastern Indonesia spent another night away from their homes on Monday, as they waited for emergency assistance and feared returning to buildings damaged by the disaster.

The magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck early on Saturday and killed 54 people, while more than 100 others were injured. Rescue officials said there had been no reports of missing people.

The number of people unable to return home had risen to 12,800 by Monday morning, according to Berton Suar Pelita Panjaitan, a spokesperson for Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB). Those displaced were spread across several communities on Flores Island.

Many residents were preparing to spend a third night outdoors because more than 1,600 aftershocks had been recorded following the main earthquake, according to Indonesia’s geological agency, BMKG.

In the town of Mbay, in Nagekeo Regency near the earthquake’s epicentre, residents were seen sleeping in makeshift shelters constructed from tarpaulins and poles.

One resident, 32-year-old Junaidin, said many homes had become unsafe because of collapsed sections and extensive cracks.

“Our houses are no longer liveable, because many have collapsed and are full of cracks, so we can’t go inside anymore,” Junaidin said outside a makeshift tent where about 30 people were sleeping.

“We only go back home to get water, clothes, pillows, and then we… spend the nights here.”

The disaster has also revived painful memories for residents who experienced another magnitude 7.7 earthquake on Flores in 1992. That earthquake triggered a tsunami and killed about 2,500 people.

Junaidin expressed frustration over what he described as delays in receiving government assistance, particularly as Indonesia marked Independence Day with celebrations in the capital, Jakarta.

“As for help from the government, there hasn’t been any — no tents, no medicine, no food, no drinking water, nothing,” he said.

“Please open your eyes, government. We are your people, we are part of you. So please look after us.”

The Indonesian authorities subsequently began increasing the delivery of emergency supplies to affected communities.

The Indonesian Air Force said it was transporting 13 tonnes of relief materials using two Hercules aircraft and a Boeing aircraft. Helicopters were also being deployed to deliver supplies directly to survivors in isolated areas, according to the state news agency Antara.

The emergency supplies include food, clothing, clean water and medical equipment, while military personnel have been deployed to assist with distribution from key supply centres.

For residents who fled their homes with little or nothing, however, assistance remains urgently needed.

“We fled with nothing. Just the clothes on our backs. We’re victims; we’re going through a disaster,” said 31-year-old Siti Saudah Daso, a mother of three from Mbay.

“They said they would give us something, but there’s no proof. So honestly, we’re a bit upset, disappointed.”

Rescue teams were continuing to search affected areas for anyone who might still require assistance.

Search-and-rescue official Fathur Rahman said teams were conducting both ground and aerial operations.

“We conduct land and air operations from helicopters. There haven’t been any reports on missing persons, but we are still scouring the area just to be sure.”

The earthquake was relatively shallow, with its epicentre located just off the northern coast of Flores, according to geological authorities.

Although the affected communities have few high-rise buildings, the earthquake caused extensive damage to homes and public infrastructure.

BNPB spokesperson Berton said at least 914 houses had been severely damaged, while hundreds of others suffered less serious damage.

Several public buildings were also affected, including schools, healthcare facilities and government offices.

The disruption to education has raised particular concerns for children in the affected communities. Save the Children said more than 8,000 children faced “safety risks and disruptions to their education” as a result of the earthquake.

Indonesia is particularly vulnerable to earthquakes because it lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, a vast zone of intense seismic activity extending from Japan through Southeast Asia and around the Pacific basin.

The country has experienced some of the world’s most devastating earthquakes and tsunamis.

In 2004, a magnitude 9.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra and triggered a massive tsunami that killed about 220,000 people across the region, including approximately 170,000 in Indonesia.

That disaster remains one of the deadliest natural catastrophes ever recorded, underscoring the scale of the risks faced by communities living along Indonesia’s seismically active islands.

Two people have died and hundreds of residents and visitors were evacuated after two wildfires broke out almost simultaneously on the Greek island of Salamina, near Athens, on Sunday.

Around 200 firefighters were deployed to prevent the two fires from joining together and creating a much larger blaze, as strong winds made firefighting efforts more difficult.

The first fire was reported at about 14:40 local time (11:40 GMT) near the island’s southern coast. It spread quickly through the area, with another fire breaking out around 20 minutes later in the eastern part of Salamina. Authorities have not yet established what caused either blaze.

The first fire began in a forested residential area in Peristeria, in the southern part of the island. Fire official Vasilios Vathrakoyannis said firefighters responding to the incident discovered two bodies at the scene.

The local mayor told Greek media that the victims were believed to have been a couple.

By Sunday evening, one of the fires had been brought under control and evacuation operations had been completed, according to Greek media reports. About 500 people were evacuated from the island by sea as authorities worked to keep the flames from spreading.

The second fire, which started in the eastern town of Selinia, was later reported to have “no active front”, although firefighters continued monitoring scattered areas of fire.

Authorities kept two coast guard vessels and a fire department vessel in the area to provide surveillance and emergency assistance.

At least 10 other people suffered burns or experienced “symptoms of smoke inhalation”, according to Greek Health Minister Adonis Georgiades. Five of those affected were taken to local medical facilities for treatment.

Firefighting operations involved 50 fire engines, water tankers, construction machinery and several aircraft. The scale of the deployment reflected concerns that strong winds could push the flames across the island and cause the two separate fires to merge.

Salamina Deputy Mayor Thodoris Zannis said earlier that firefighters were working to prevent the fires from crossing a mountain on the island and joining together to form a single, potentially more dangerous blaze.

Several patrol boats and private vessels were also sent to the area to assist with evacuation and emergency operations.

Salamina is located just west of Athens and has a population of around 37,000 people, many of whom are elderly, making evacuation and emergency response particularly important during a major wildfire.

The fires on Salamina were part of a wider series of wildfires affecting parts of Europe over the weekend.

In Belgium, firefighters were battling a wildfire for a third consecutive day in Hautes Fagnes, the country’s largest nature reserve. The fire has been described as the largest in Belgium’s recent history and reportedly more than doubled in size within 24 hours.

Croatia’s coastline was also affected by a major wildfire that killed at least one person and injured dozens of others. Around 1,200 residents and tourists were evacuated, with Croatia’s fire chief, Slavko Tucakovic, describing it as “one of the worst” fires in the country’s history.

The latest fires come amid growing concerns over extreme heat and wildfire conditions across Europe. The EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service has reported that western Europe experienced its hottest June-to-July period on record, adding to concerns about the increasingly difficult conditions faced by firefighters during the summer wildfire season.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham exchanged messages with an individual who was pretending to be Susie Wiles, US President Donald Trump’s chief of staff, in a security incident that has reportedly been referred to the appropriate authorities.

The incident was first reported by Politico, which said Burnham communicated with the person claiming to be Wiles before becoming suspicious that the contact was not genuine.

Sources said only a few messages were exchanged and that “No messages of significance” were involved.

A UK government spokesperson declined to provide further details, saying: “We do not comment on national security matters.”

It is understood that the communication took place entirely through text messages and that Burnham did not have a conversation or call with the person impersonating Wiles.

Sources said the messages were “quickly reported to the appropriate authorities” after officials became concerned that the contact was suspicious.

The latest incident comes against the background of an earlier security breach involving Wiles.

The BBC previously reported that the FBI investigated the hacking of Wiles’ phone in May last year. Wiles said her personal phone had been compromised after one or more impersonators obtained access to her contacts and used them to contact senior US officials.

Although the incident involved Wiles’ personal phone rather than an official government device, the people targeted included US senators, governors and prominent business executives.

Wiles, one of Trump’s closest political allies, was also previously targeted by a cyber-espionage group linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in 2024.

The latest impersonation incident highlights the potential security risks created when attackers use the identities and contact information of senior government officials to establish apparently legitimate communication with political leaders.

According to Politico, Burnham exchanged the messages with the person posing as Wiles before becoming suspicious about the authenticity of the contact.

The limited nature of the exchange means there is currently no indication that sensitive information was disclosed.

However, the fact that the communication involved a senior UK political figure and someone impersonating a senior White House official makes the incident significant from a security perspective.

Officials are understood to have acted after the messages were considered suspicious, with the matter being passed to the relevant authorities.

The Burnham incident is not the first time a senior British politician has been targeted by someone pretending to be a foreign leader or official.

In 2024, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office confirmed that then-Foreign Secretary David Cameron had been targeted in a hoax communication involving someone impersonating former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

Cameron also exchanged several text messages with the impersonator.

The Foreign Office subsequently made details of the incident public because of concerns that the communication could be “manipulated”.

Cameron had previously dealt with Poroshenko on several occasions while serving as prime minister, including during international summits, which may have helped make the impersonation appear credible.

Other UK government ministers have faced similar attempts.

In 2022, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and then-Home Secretary Priti Patel were targeted by an individual impersonating Denys Shmyhal, who was Ukraine’s prime minister.

The communications were conducted through Microsoft Teams, with Wallace blaming Russian “dirty tricks” for the attempted deception.

A Ministry of Defence source described the video call as “fairly sophisticated”, noting that it had come through another government department, which increased its apparent credibility.

The incidents demonstrate how impersonation attacks can exploit existing political relationships and trusted communication channels rather than relying solely on traditional hacking techniques.

The Burnham episode underscores the growing security challenge facing politicians and senior government officials, particularly as political communication increasingly takes place through personal phones and messaging platforms.

An attacker does not necessarily need to gain direct access to a government system to cause concern. By impersonating a trusted official, obtaining access to a contact list or exploiting an existing relationship, they can attempt to create a credible channel of communication with influential decision-makers.

In Burnham’s case, officials say the exchange was limited and that the messages contained nothing significant. Nevertheless, the incident has been reported to the relevant authorities, while Downing Street has declined to discuss the details because of the national-security implications.

Six people were killed and four others injured after Ukrainian missile strikes hit Russia’s Belgorod region overnight, according to the region’s acting governor, Alexander Shuvaev.

A 14-year-old child was among those injured, Shuvaev said in a Telegram post on Monday. The reported strikes came amid a sharp escalation in long-range attacks between Russia and Ukraine, with both sides continuing to target locations away from the front lines.

Ukrainian officials, meanwhile, said Russian drone strikes killed two people in Ukraine’s Sumy region, which borders Russia and has frequently come under attack.

The latest exchange followed what Russian officials described as the “largest-scale” Ukrainian attack of the year. At least seven people were reportedly killed in that attack. Russian strikes on Ukraine also killed at least seven people and injured more than 39 others on Saturday night.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and currently controls roughly a fifth of Ukrainian territory.

In Belgorod, the latest strikes reportedly caused a building to catch fire and damaged a vehicle in the village of Koloskovo, in the Valuysky district near the Ukrainian border. Shuvaev said the injured teenager was taken to hospital, while two other injured people received medical attention.

A separate Ukrainian drone strike in Russia’s southern Astrakhan region also killed a woman, according to regional Governor Igor Babushkin. He said the attack targeted an industrial facility, although the facility itself was not damaged.

The violence also continued on the Ukrainian side of the border. In the Black Sea port city of Odesa, a Russian overnight attack damaged a civilian vessel and injured four people, according to regional governor Oleh Kiper.

Moscow has increasingly targeted Ukraine’s ports and coastline, while Kyiv has stepped up its long-range drone campaign against targets deep inside Russia.

Ukraine has significantly increased its use of drones against Russian territory in recent weeks.

During Saturday night’s attacks, Ukraine launched about 822 drones towards Russia, according to Russian officials, who said approximately 600 were directed towards the Moscow region. The Moscow regional governor described the assault as “one of the most massive drone attacks in recent memory”.

The attacks caused deaths and damage in several parts of Russia.

Five people were killed in the southwestern Rostov region, according to its governor. In Belgorod, officials reported that a woman was killed in an attack on a civilian bus, while an 83-year-old man was killed in a drone strike in the Moscow region.

A warehouse belonging to Russian online retailer Wildberries was also hit.

Ukraine has repeatedly targeted the company since July, accusing it of supporting Russia’s military logistics. Ukraine’s defence ministry said the latest strike meant that seven of the company’s 10 largest logistics centres had been “disabled”.

While Ukraine has expanded its attacks on Russian territory, Russia has also intensified its missile and drone strikes across Ukraine.

Ukrainian energy company Naftogaz said on Monday that Russian forces had attacked its facilities 13 times during the previous week.

During Saturday night’s Russian attacks, a man and a woman were killed after a private home in the Zaporizhzhia region was hit by a guided aerial bomb, according to Ukrainian officials. Five other people were reportedly killed in attacks elsewhere in the country.

Russia said its strikes on Kyiv were aimed at a FirePoint facility involved in producing components for Ukrainian Flamingo missiles and a factory manufacturing drone components.

The Russian attacks also damaged a book market in Kyiv’s Pochayna district, where burnt books were seen scattered across the ground.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said 13 regions of Ukraine had come under attack during the week.

According to Zelensky, Russia launched more than 1,550 attack drones, nearly 1,560 guided aerial bombs and 62 missiles during the period.

The figures underline the scale of the aerial campaign being conducted by both countries as the war enters another increasingly intense phase.

The United Nations recently reported that civilian casualties in Ukraine rose sharply in July, with at least 437 civilians killed and 2,610 injured. The UN said the figures represented the highest monthly civilian death toll in Ukraine since May 2022.

Russia and Ukraine continue to accuse each other of attacking civilian areas, while both governments deny deliberately targeting civilians.

The latest strikes demonstrate how the conflict has increasingly expanded beyond traditional front-line fighting. Long-range drones and missiles are now regularly being used to hit military, industrial, energy and logistics targets deep inside both countries, while civilian areas are also suffering damage and casualties.

The escalation comes as Ukraine seeks to impose greater costs on Russia’s military and economic infrastructure, while Moscow continues its campaign of missile and drone attacks against Ukrainian cities and critical infrastructure.

Recent attacks have also raised concerns beyond the two countries. A major Ukrainian strike on Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiysk earlier in August damaged naval assets and disrupted grain terminals, with fears over possible effects on global wheat supplies.

The latest exchange therefore points to an increasingly dangerous phase of the Russia-Ukraine war, with both sides expanding the range and intensity of their attacks while diplomatic efforts to end the conflict remain unresolved.