Trump meets with Japanese emperor and says he may sign China-TikTok deal this week

President Donald Trump has arrived in Japan to meet with the country’s emperor and new prime minister for the second leg of his diplomatic tour of Asia, on which he is hoping to advance a number of major trade agreements.

After leaving Malaysia, where Trump hailed another “historic” ceasefire by brokering peace between Cambodia and Thailand over a longstanding border dispute, his Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent trailed a “final deal on TikTok” with China is imminent, following months of lawmakers postponing a ban on the popular app unless its U.S. operations are sold to a domestic owner.

Trump and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping could seal the deal Thursday when they meet in South Korea.

There is also reportedly a framework in place for a larger trade deal between two superpowers, which, if agreed, would see the U.S. prevent triple-digit tariffs on Chinese imports from kicking in on November 1 and Beijing call off export restrictions on crucial rare earth minerals, according to Trump officials speaking at the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur.

One former Trump adviser also they believe his regional diplomatic adventures could include a surprise reunion with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

British journalist ‘abducted’ by ICE agents at San Francisco airport

Sami Hamdi, a British journalist and activist and outspoken critic of the Israeli war in Gaza, was arrested by U.S. immigration agents Sunday at San Francisco International Airport.

“Earlier this morning, ICE agents abducted British Muslim journalist and political commentator Sami Hamdi at San Francisco Airport, apparently in response to his vocal criticism of the Israeli government during his ongoing speaking tour,” the Council on American-Islamic Relations civil rights group wrote on X.

Hamdi had spoken at a gala for the group on Saturday in California and was heading to Florida for another event prior to his arrest.

“We can confirm that Mr. Hamdi has not been deported and remains in custody,” CAIR added. “Our attorneys and partners are working to address this injustice.”

The Department of Homeland Security confirmed Hamdi’s arrest.

“Under President Trump, those who support terrorism and undermine American national security will not be allowed to work or visit this country,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin wrote on X. “It’s commonsense.”

The official cited a report from the advocacy group RAIR about Hamdi in the post announcing the arrest.

RAIR, which the Southern Poverty Law Center has previously described as an anti-Muslim hate group, accused Hamdi of endorsing terrorism and operating alongside foreign terror networks through his various speaking engagements.

Far-right activist Laura Loomer, a self-described “proud Islamophobe” and influential outside advisor to the Trump administration, also took credit for the arrest.

“I demanded that federal authorities inside the Trump administration treat Hamdi as the major National security threat that he is and I reported Sami Hamdi to federal immigration authorities over his documented support for Islamic terrorism,” she wrote on X.

Hamdi, who founded the outlet The International Interest and appears as a commentator on various mainstream news networks, has been a vocal critic of the Israeli war effort in Gaza, joining the scores of international observers who have deemed it a genocide.

He also celebrated the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel as an important moment in the cause for Palestinian self-determination, and wrote in May post on X he stood against “racism, Islamophobia, anti-semitism, genocide, and war crimes.”

In August, the Trump administration vowed to review the status of all 55 million foreign nationals in the U.S. with a valid travel visa to root out “security threats” and anyone “supporting terrorists,” designations the White House has often applied to activists criticizing Israel.

The Trump administration has arrested and attempted to deport a variety of non-citizen critics of Israel, accusing them of supporting terrorism for actions ranging from leading student protests to writing op-eds critical of the U.S. ally.

Last month, a federal judge found that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem illegally chilled protected speech of pro-Palestinian students and faculty by threatening to revoke their visas and then arresting, detaining and deporting them — what the judge called a “full-throated assault on the First Amendment across the board under the cover of an unconstitutionally broad definition” of antisemitism.

How Lando Norris silenced Mexico boo-boys and flipped F1 title race momentum

Flying back across the Atlantic this morning, Lando Norris will be extremely satisfied with his fortnight’s work. How could he not be? If you’d offered him 43 out of 58 possible points before the two races in Austin and Mexico City, he’d have bitten your hand off. Add the cherry on top of a one-point championship lead, and the Briton would scarcely have believed the turn of events that has unfolded. And it turns out, the punters tend not to like a winner.

Mexico City this past weekend was Norris’s best weekend in Formula One, if not his most popular. The 25-year-old, having not tasted victory since Hungary before the summer break, has been criticised for crumbling at the back end of qualifying this season. Yet amid scorching temperatures at a circuit located 2,240 metres above sea level, Norris executed a near-perfect lap.

At one of the calendar’s shortest tracks, Norris sealed pole with a gap of 0.262 seconds to second-placed Charles Leclerc. In F1 terms, that’s considerable. As for the margin of 0.588 seconds over his McLaren teammate and title rival Oscar Piastri? Positively mammoth.

Armed with a rapid car in clean air, once Norris negotiated the lengthy run to turn one at the start, his sailing off into the sunset was inevitable. But the boos directed his way from the vociferous fans in the famous Foro Sol stadium section, on the podium and in his post-race interview, were not something many would have predicted. No build-up, no motive, no clue.

“I can’t stop laughing when I get booed,” Norris said, treating the bewildering jeers with the derision they deserve. “Who knows? I just concentrate on doing my thing. If they want to continue, they can.”

A local journalist noted that it could be McLaren’s arguable favouritism towards the Brit over his Australian rival that triggered the unprompted chorus, with perhaps the pair being told to swap positions in Monza last month most present in the memory bank.

“Sure, if they want to think that, they can do whatever they want,” Norris responded. “For us as a team, we tried to do things fairly. Same with last year in Budapest – I let Oscar win the race he deserved to win.

“If they want to have the three points back, they can. Oscar deserved the win in Budapest; I deserved the win [swap] in Monza.”

No matter. Norris did his talking on track, on a weekend that saw no let-up in the baffling collapse of Piastri’s form and confidence. A gap that stood at 22 heading into this North American double header has flipped by 23 points in Norris’s favour. For the first time in 189 days, dating back to race five in Saudi Arabia, Norris is top of the standings.

It is another twist in an F1 title race that has been puzzling to understand and predict. Before this weekend, it was all steam ahead with the Max Verstappen comeback train. Having won three of the last four races, the Dutchman had narrowed the deficit to 40 points and appeared to hold all the momentum. But, suddenly bogged down by a lack of speed in qualifying, Verstappen was always playing catch-up on Sunday this time around.

Naturally, he recovered well, finishing in third – two places higher than his grid position – and, if not for a late virtual safety car, he could have snatched second from Leclerc. His two-place improvement from qualifying was a feat matched by Piastri, who ended up in fifth. Post-race, the Australian gave some rare detail regarding his current issues.

“It was pretty obvious there were some things I needed to change dramatically with the way I’m driving,” he said. “I’ve just had to drive very differently. That’s been strange to get my head around.

“These last couple of weekends, the car and tyres have required a different way of driving. Given how the pace has differentiated, clearly Lando has found it easier to dial into that, and I haven’t. It’s more about adding some tools to the toolbox.”

Fascinatingly, the detail is cryptically un-detailed. After qualifying, Piastri admitted he was flummoxed by his lap time and could point to no clear explanation. This McLaren car hasn’t received an upgrade in months, which in part explains why Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari have all closed in on the team in recent races.

Yet the papaya-laden machinery is still the consistent No 1; the fact that it’s Norris who has unlocked the speed should be a cause for concern for Piastri and his manager, ex-F1 driver Mark Webber.

Yet Mexico has set a clear platform and basis for the remaining four races in camp Norris. His dial-in was slow and steady across the practice sessions, peaking when it mattered most in Q3. And, on the whole, if he can conclude lap one of the grand prix in the lead, it will take some twists and turns to stop him.

“My best performance across a whole weekend,” Norris said. “The last few have been decent, but there is still a long way to go, so I have to try and keep doing what I am doing.”

Up next, a rest. Brazil in a fortnight – and the usual chaos and carnage at Interlagos – could well provide another turning point. A passionate crowd will greet the drivers there, too, likely in support of Verstappen, who won so sensationally last year. Yet if Norris can keep this momentum, launching a streak of Lando 2.0, his first world title may well be looming into view.

Devastating category 5 Hurricane Melissa set to hit Jamaica with 160mph winds forecast

Jamaica is bracing for what could be the most intense storm in its history as Hurricane Melissa rapidly approaches with powerful Category 5 winds.

The hurricane is expected to gather speed and batter the Caribbean country with up to 76 centimetres (30 inches) of rain when it makes landfall on Tuesday.

“Catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding and numerous landslides are likely,” the US National Hurricane Centre in Miami has warned.

At least four people have already died, including three in Haiti and one in the Dominican Republic. One person remains missing.

Maximum sustained winds are expected to reach 150 mph (240km/h) in Jamaica.

“Many of these communities will not survive this flooding,” local government minister, Desmond McKenzie, said at a press conference on Monday. “Kingston is low, extremely low. No community in Kingston is immune from flooding.”

Dana Morris Dixon, Jamaica’s information minister, said that the force of the storm was unprecedented.

“We’ve heard the rainfall numbers. They’re numbers we’ve never heard before,” he said.

Do you have a ‘normal’ amount of friends? Here’s how to work it out

I thought it would be easy. I thought I could do it with barely a thought. But when I sit down and try to list 150 friends – people with whom I have a reciprocal and ongoing relationship – I start struggling at around 134.

It’s a little embarrassing. I’m a normal(ish), outgoing woman in her thirties; if anything, I’m probably more sociable than your average bear, one of those desperately sad keenos that loves to join a committee or a club or even just a Whatsapp group. And yet here I am, scrolling through my phone in a desperate bid to mop up the people I’ve somehow missed.

I must stress that I didn’t pluck this number – 150 – out of thin air. It is known as “Dunbar’s Number”, named after the academic who first came up with it: Robin Dunbar. While his official title is Emeritus professor of evolutionary psychology at the University of Oxford, a better one might simply be “the friendship don”. He’s been studying the ins and outs of human relationships – or, as he calls it, “the behavioural, cognitive and neuroendocrinological mechanisms that underpin social bonding in primates (in general) and humans (in particular)” – for more than 50 years.

Dunbar first proposed that humans’ natural social circles were capped at around 150 after studying the brains of monkeys and apes. He was testing a general theory about brain size and group size. Chimps naturally congregate in troops of around 50, for example; “When I plugged human brain size into this equation, it predicted a group size of about 150,” he tells me.

Like any good researcher, Dunbar went off and looked for real-world evidence that backed up this curiously round number – and found a surprisingly large amount of it throughout human history. He found it in hunter gatherer societies, the kind we evolved in before settling in bigger communities. He found it in historical datasets, like the Doomsday Book. He found it in Italian Grazing Association documents, and in Amish and Hutterite church plants, and in fishing communities’ census data. In more recent history, he found it seemed to apply to friendships: it was in people’s Christmas card lists in the Nineties (back when everyone actually sent Christmas cards), and in their annual call logs (a large dataset of phone records counted the number of contacts with whom a person had exchanged at least one phone call each way over the course of a year).

The results have even replicated on social media. Looking at their biggest sample so far, a Facebook data set of 61 million users in the US, Dunbar and his team found that the average number of Facebook friends listed per person was, rather extraordinarily, 149. Even Dunbar was surprised. “You don’t often get predictions that close to reality,” he says wryly.

This latest finding somewhat debunks the idea that, because we have more access to – and means through which to communicate with – more people than ever before in human history, we have expanded our networks in any meaningful way. “You’d think that social media might cut through the key constraint, which is simply access,” says Dunbar. “You might wonder whether the digital world is able to expand our circle to unlimited numbers. But the answer is, it doesn’t.”

It’s gratifying to hear this. One of the main reasons I started looking into the number of friendships we’re capable of realistically having simultaneously is that I found myself feeling increasingly guilty about my inability to grow friendships with new people while also maintaining deep bonds with old friends. The internet and social media have exacerbated this perceived inadequacy. Because at any given moment I could message that university course mate on Facebook, DM my old colleague on Insta or WhatsApp that lovely woman I met on holiday, it feels like I’m failing every time I don’t. In the old days, I’d have inevitably lost the lovely woman’s address and moved on with my life. Now, it’s yet another stick to beat myself with.

Then there’s the fact that, ever since I moved from London to a much smaller town, I’ve felt the pressure to befriend everybody I meet. Within this much-reduced community, it’s bizarrely hard to accept that some people will remain mere acquaintances instead of BFFs. Maybe it’s because there are fewer potential pals – it gives the illusion that I could catch ’em all, Pokémon style, if I only tried hard enough.

But, of course, I can’t. Dunbar hypothesises that we initially evolved into certain group sizes for protection against predators – lions, and tigers, and bears, oh my! – and then protection against other humans. There were other benefits in terms of having a big enough community to help with harvesting crops and taking care of children. But there’s something else interesting, too, that he’s observed with other mammals: group sizes are often tied to optimal numbers for information sharing around networks. “It’s essentially about knowing who’s who, and what they’re doing, and who they’re friends with, and building up a picture.”

The size of your personal network might vary depending on whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert – as one might imagine, the former tend to have fewer but closer friends, the latter to have more friendships that aren’t as deep – but try to go too far above 150 and “you weaken the quality of the friendships because you spread your capital too thinly,” warns Dunbar. “Our social capital is fixed because, ultimately, it’s about time investment, and time investment creates emotional capital.” Ie: we have a finite amount of physical time to spend communicating with others, whether IRL or online, and it is this time that builds a bond. “You can carve the cake in different ways; the thing you want to be careful about is not over-carving it,” he adds. “If you overdo it, and carve too thin, you will pay a penalty.”

Though a huge body of research has proven the massive health benefits of friendships (in longevity medicine it’s up there alongside diet, exercise and sleep), quality tends to beat quantity. There’s a Goldilocks-style “just right” sweet spot when it comes to our social networks; Dunbar cites a study that looked at the link between friendships and the risk of developing depression. The results suggested that having either too few or too many friends meant someone was “very likely to suffer depression in the future”. But if they had about five really close friends, the risk was vastly reduced.

This is the same conclusion that Dunbar came to: not all friends are created equal. To make it into the overall 150, a person has to be someone you try to contact, and vice versa, at least once a year. They’re someone you wouldn’t feel strange about having over to your home; they might make it into the invite list for a big, one-off event, like your wedding. But within that, there are various layers of closeness.

Picture concentric rings on a dartboard spreading out from you, the bull’s eye. Most of us will have around five ride-or-die, “shoulder to cry on” mates (which could include certain family members or a significant other). These are the people whose doorsteps you could show up at, weeping, at 3am. This group is instinctively easy to pinpoint on my own personal friendship “map” – and, sure enough, it numbers precisely five.

There is very little turnover in this core group, with someone only moving out of it around once a decade, according to the data. Communication is key – these are people you’d be in contact with once a week, minimum. Otherwise, “they will start to drift out of that circle,” says Dunbar.

Next up is a layer of 15, which includes the tight five plus an extra 10 who are, in Dunbar’s words, “your major social friends, the people you see regularly, including family members”. These are people you’d see at least once a month; about 60 per cent of your time and attention for socialising go to these 15 individuals. It takes a little bit more thought, but this group, too, is fairly straightforward to identify on my list.

Then there’s the “weekend backyard barbecue party group”, as Dunbar has previously described it, a cohort of 50 that includes the original 15. I actually get to about 57 here (finally, my overactive social life pays off), and then plough on with trying to list my overall 150. After some dedicated effort and WhatsApp hunting I tap out at 153. In practice, Dunbar’s number appears to be astonishingly accurate.

Not all academics agree, of course. One 2021 study by Stockholm University researchers posited that 150 was an underestimation, and that no cut off can be accurately calculated. Dunbar himself has identified a horseshoe shape in the data according to age – the younger and older we are on the graph, the fewer total friends we’re likely to have. But the idea of a magic number remains beguiling, and the evidence for it compelling.

While we’ll likely never be conscious of any kind of “one in, one out” policy going on when it comes to our circle, reflecting on the way that friendships evolve proves enlightening. There’s an almost symbiotic process going on in the carefully balanced ecosystem of our social lives; as some relationships wane, others naturally wax to take their place, and vice versa. It takes time for people to move outwards through the layers and the decay usually occurs directly in line with frequency of contact. According to Dunbar, the data suggests that it takes a full two to three years for someone to slip from your inner 15 to outside your 150.

But the main thing to remember is that some kind of ebb and flow throughout our lifetimes is completely natural. As much as modern technology might conspire to make us feel like we’re constantly failing, friendships have seasons and are often situational. The person you buddy up with on a night out because you’re the last two propping up the bar is unlikely to become a life-long chum; the school-gate parents you gravitate towards when your child is small might not stand the test of time once offspring fly the nest. We can’t be friends with everyone. A stranger might be a friend you just haven’t met yet – but it’s OK if they stay a stranger, too.

Enriching escapes: find your perfect luxury break

Two US Navy aircraft go down 30 minutes apart in South China Sea

Two U.S. Navy aircraft have gone down in the South China Sea in separate incidents within 30 minutes of each other, according to the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

U.S. President Donald Trump described the back-to-back crashes as “very unusual” and suggested a possible fuel issue while speaking to reporters on board Air Force One on Monday, during his flight from Malaysia to Japan. “They think it might be bad fuel. We’re gonna find out. Nothing to hide, sir,” Trump said in response to a reporter’s question.

The two aircraft were conducting routine operations over disputed waters, which China claims to own. Five crew members were involved, all of whom have been safely rescued. Both aircraft were deployed from the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz.

The U.S. Navy MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter went down in the waters of the South China Sea at around 2:45 p.m. local time Sunday. All three crew members were recovered safely.

Just 30 minutes later, at 3:15 p.m., a $60m F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet also crashed while conducting routine operations from the USS Nimitz. Two crew members ejected from the plane and were later recovered.

The Sea Hawk is assigned to the “Battle Cats” in Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 73. The Super Hornet was part of the “Fighting Redcocks” of Strike Fighter Squadron 22.

China’s foreign ministry said Beijing would be willing to assist in any rescue and recovery operations.

Spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a press conference on Monday that China “will provide necessary aid from a humanitarian perspective if the U.S. asks”.

He also took the opportunity to criticise U.S. operations in the region, accusing Washington of carrying out regular displays of military force in the South China Sea, increasing the risk to maritime activity, and undermining regional peace.

“All personnel involved are safe and in stable condition,” the Pacific Fleet, the world’s largest fleet command, said in a statement. They added that an investigation had been launched into both incidents.

This is the fourth F/A-18 that the navy has lost this year.

At the time of the incident, the USS Nimitz was returning to its home port in Naval Base Kitsap in Washington State after being deployed to the Middle East for most of the summer as part of the U.S. response to attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on commercial shipping. The carrier was on its final deployment before being decommissioned.

First commissioned in 1975, the Nimitz is the U.S. Navy’s oldest serving aircraft carrier, and is slated for retirement in 2026.

Nimitz-class aircraft carriers are the biggest ships in the navy, measuring almost 1,100ft from bow to stern. They can operate continuously for 20 years without refuelling, thanks to their onboard nuclear power plants.

The incidents occurred amid Trump’s tour of Asia, during which he is expected to meet a host of Asian leaders, including President Xi Jinping of China.

China has been ramping up efforts to bolster its territorial claims in the South China Sea amid ongoing disputes over numerous islands and waterways with other Southeast Asian nations. Beijing has been asserting its ownership over almost all of the strategic waterway.

U.S. forces maintain a presence in the region to support regional allies and push back on Chinese sovereignty claims.

Man arrested over racially aggravated rape in Walsall

A man has been arrested after a woman was raped in Walsall in what police are treating as a racially-motivated attack.

West Midlands Police said they arrested a 32-year-old man before 7am on Monday in the Perry Barr area. He is now being questioned over the rape of a woman in her twenties who was attacked in the Park Hall area of Walsall on Saturday night.

The force said they were continuing to support the woman involved, who was updated of the arrest and is receiving full support from specially trained officers.

Det Supt Ronan Tyrer, from our Public Protection Unit, said: “This is a significant development in our investigation, and I’d like to thank everyone who has come forward with information following our appeal last night.

“Our investigation will progress today, and, as always our priority is the woman who was the subject of this attack.

“She has been updated this morning and will continue to receive full support from specially trained officers.”

Police are continuing their appeal for anyone with information to get in touch via 101, quoting log 4027 relating to 25 October.