Some two dozen girls still unaccounted for after summer camps swept away as Guadalupe River rises 26ft in 45 minutes

Rescuers searched on Saturday for 27 girls missing from a riverside summer camp in the US state of Texas, after torrential rains caused devastating flooding that killed at least 43 people – with more rain pounding the region.

“We have recovered 43 deceased individuals in Kerr county. Among these who are deceased we have 28 adults and 15 children,” said the Kerr country sheriff, Larry Leitha.

Reports indicate defense secretary unilaterally acted to halt shipment even as Pentagon suggested US arsenal is stocked

Pete Hegseth, the US defense secretary, unilaterally halted an agreed shipment of military aid to Ukraine due to baseless concerns that US stockpiles of weapons have run too low, it has been reported.

A batch of air defense missiles and other precision munitions were due to be sent to Ukraine to aid it in its ongoing war with Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor in 2022. The aid was promised by the US during Joe Biden’s administration last year.

Previously apolitical agency lauds Trump’s spending bill with false statements about federal taxes, experts say

An email sent by the US Social Security Administration (SSA) that claims Donald Trump’s major new spending bill has eliminated taxes on benefits for most recipients is misleading, critics have said.

The reconciliation bill – which the president called the “one big, beautiful bill” before signing it on Friday after Republicans in Congress passed it – includes provisions that will strip people of their health insurance, cut food assistance for the poor, kill off clean energy development and raise the national debt by trillions of dollars.