Israel to allow ‘basic amount of food’ into Gaza ending 10-week blockade

Israel has announced it will allow a limited amount of humanitarian aid into Gaza following a near three-month blockade – just hours after the country launched an “extensive” ground operation in the north and south of the territory.

Facing mounting pressure over an aid blockade it imposed in March and the risk of famine, Israel has stepped up its campaign in Gaza, where Palestinian health officials said hundreds have been killed in attacks in the past week.

Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a basic amount of food would be supplied to ensure a “famine crisis does not develop” after the military announced the latest offensive, part of Operation “Gideon’s Chariots”, on Sunday after a lack of progress in indirect talks with Hamas in Qatar.

“At the recommendation of the IDF (Israel Defence Forces), and out of the operational need to enable the expansion of intense fighting to defeat Hamas, Israel will allow a basic amount of food for the population to ensure that a hunger crisis does not develop in the Gaza Strip,” Mr Netanyahu’s office said.

Ahead of the ground operation, overnight airstrikes reportedly killed at least 130 Palestinians across the enclave, where global experts have warned of famine after Israel imposed a blockade on aid on 2 March.

It is not yet clear when the aid will enter Gaza, or how, but Mr Netanyahu said distribution would not be controlled by Hamas.

Confirming the development, Eri Kaneko, a spokesperson for UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said his agency has been approached by Israeli authorities to allow limited aid delivery, adding that discussions are ongoing about the logistics “given the conditions on the ground”.

Israel made its announcement after sources on both sides said there had been no progress in a new round of indirect talks between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Qatar.

Mr Netanyahu said the talks included discussions on a truce and hostage deal as well as a proposal to end the war in return for the exile of Hamas militants and the demilitarisation of the enclave – terms Hamas has previously rejected.

The Israeli military suggested in a later statement that it could still scale down operations to help reach a deal in Doha. Military chief Eyal Zamir told troops in Gaza that the army would provide the country’s leaders with the flexibility they need to reach a hostage deal, according to the statement.

The IDF has continued to escalate its attacks on Gaza in recent days, with at least 464 Palestinians killed between 11-17 May, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. One report over the weekend suggested Israel is looking to divide Gaza into three tightly controlled strips of land if no ceasefire is agreed, while another claimed the US is developing a plan to relocate a million Palestinians to war-torn Libya.

Israel had warned an expanded assault would go ahead if no hostage deal was agreed with Hamas by the conclusion of US president Donald Trump’s trip to the Middle East, which ended on Friday.

One of Israel’s overnight strikes hit a tent encampment housing displaced families in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, killing women and children, wounding dozens and setting several tents ablaze. Medical officials said a family in northern Gaza lost at least 20 of its members, and three journalists and their families are also among the dead.

Hamas described the strike as a “new brutal crime” and blamed the US administration for the escalation.

“We have at least 100 martyrs since overnight,” Gaza health ministry spokesperson Khalil Al-Deqran said, later updating that number to more than 130. “Complete families were wiped off the civil registration record by Israeli bombardment.”

Israel’s military said it had conducted a preliminary wave of strikes on more than 670 Hamas targets in Gaza over the past week, killing dozens of Hamas fighters.

“Troops have begun extensive ground operations throughout northern and southern Gaza as part of Operation ‘Gideon’s Chariots’,” the military wrote in a statement on Sunday. Local media also reported that tanks were heading towards Khan Younis and eastern Jabalia.

Israel had blocked the entry of medical, food and fuel supplies into Gaza since the start of March in an attempt to pressure Hamas into freeing Israeli hostages.

Hamas, for its part, says it will only free the hostages in return for an Israeli ceasefire.

“Israel’s position remains unchanged, they want to release the prisoners (hostages) without a commitment to end the war,” a Hamas official told Reuters, when asked about Qatar talks.

A senior Israeli official said there had been no progress in the talks so far.

Egyptian and Qatari mediators, backed by the United States, began a new round of indirect ceasefire talks between the two sides on Saturday, but there has been no breakthrough.

A Palestinian official close to the talks, which are taking place in the Qatari capital of Doha, said: “Hamas is flexible about the number of hostages it can free, but the problem has always been over Israel’s commitment to end the war.”

Israel’s declared goal in Gaza is the elimination of the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas, which attacked Israeli communities on 7 October 2023, killing around 1,200 people and seizing about 250 hostages.

The Israeli military campaign has devastated the enclave, pushing nearly all residents from their homes and killing more than 53,000 people, according to Gaza health authorities.

Conditions in Gaza continue to deteriorate as the war continues. The healthcare system is barely operational because of repeated Israeli bombardment and raids on hospitals. The blockade on aid supplies has compounded their difficulties while adding to widespread hunger, for which Israel blames Hamas.

“Hospitals are overwhelmed with the growing number of casualties, many are children, several cases of amputations and the hospitals, which have been hit repeatedly by the occupation, are struggling with shortages of medical supplies,” Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Khalil al-Deqran said.

The Palestinian Civil Emergency Service said 75 per cent of its ambulances could not run because of fuel shortages. It warned that within 72 hours, all vehicles may stop.

The latest offensive comes after NBC reported the Trump administration was in talks with Libya about relocating large numbers of Palestinians. White House sources told NBC News that the idea had been discussed with Libya’s leadership and is under serious consideration. In exchange, the Trump administration would release to Libya billions of dollars of funds the US froze more than a decade ago.

A map leaked by diplomats to The Times also reportedly shows Israeli plans for three tightly controlled strips of civilian land in southern, central and northern Gaza, separated by four exclusively military zones.

Under the plans, titled “Stage Three: the complete takeover of Gaza”, Palestinians would be forbidden to move between the strips without permission, potentially separating people from their land and homes, foreign firms briefed on the plans and tasked with distributing humanitarian aid told the outlet.

According to The Times, roads and infrastructure are already being built on the remains of people’s homes, with the clearing of land needed for the new and expanded military zones expected to take at least three weeks.

In Israel, Mr Netanyahu continues to face criticism for his approach to the conflict. Einav Zangauker, the mother of Hamas hostage Matan Zangauker, said the Israeli prime minister was refusing to end the war in exchange for the hostages because of his political interests.

“The Israeli government still insists on only partial deals. They are deliberately tormenting us. Bring our children back already! All 58 of them,” Ms Zangauker wrote in a social media post.

And tens of thousands of protesters marched through The Hague on Sunday, demanding a tougher stance from the Dutch government against Israel’s war in Gaza.

The demonstration, organised by Oxfam Novib, followed a march in London on Saturday that was attended by tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters marking the anniversary of the 1948 Nakba.

Centrist mayor wins Romanian presidential race over Trump-inspired nationalist

Centrist Bucharest mayor Nicusor Dan won Romania’s presidential election on Sunday in a shock upset over a nationalist rival who had pledged to put the country on a path inspired by US president Donald Trump’s politics.

Official results from nearly all voting stations showed Mr Dan garnering about 54 per cent of ballots cast by voters in the EU and NATO member country of about 19 million people, while Trump supporter George Simion was at 46 per cent.

Mr Dan, a soft-spoken mathematician, made a last-minute dash to the top in recent days after weeks of trailing Mr Simion, a eurosceptic wanting to end military aid for Ukraine in its war with Russia. The election drew the highest percentage of voter turnout in a Romanian election in 25 years.

Mr Simion was the top vote-getter in the first round of the election two weeks ago with 41 per cent of ballots cast.

Mr Dan, 55, had campaigned on a pledge to fight rampant corruption, to maintain support for Ukraine – where Romania has played an important logistic role – and to keep the country firmly within the European mainstream.

On Sunday evening in the capital Bucharest, Mr Dan supporters chanted “Russia, don’t forget, Romania isn’t yours”. Staunchly pro-EU and NATO, Mr Dan said in the run-up to the election that Romania’s support for Ukraine was crucial for its own security against a growing Russian threat.

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskiy congratulated Mr Dan on his “historic victory”, writing on social media: “For Ukraine – as a neighbour and friend – it is important to have Romania as a reliable partner.”

The voting in Romania took place on the same day as the first round of a Polish election in which a liberal frontrunner, Rafal Trzaskowski edged ahead of Karol Nawrocki, the candidate backed by the opposition nationalist Law and Justice party.

Both elections are being closely watched across Europe amid concern that popular anger with mainstream elites over migration and cost of living pressures could bolster support for Trump and erode unity on the continent over how to deal with Russia.

In Romania, however, the election showed backlash against politicians taking inspiration from right-wing populist Trump’s Make America Great Again movement, according to Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at consultancy Eurasia Group.

“This is a really strong result for the pro-European candidate,” Mr Rahman said.

“It’s another example of the positive Trump effect on European election cycles where concerns about the political and policy direction moving in a MAGA-like way have mobilised voters.”

Mr Dan acknowledged that he faces a tough challenge in finding a prime minister to negotiate a majority in parliament to reduce Romania’s budget deficit – the largest in the EU – as well as to reassure investors and try to avoid a credit rating downgrade.

“There will be a difficult period ahead, necessary for economic rebalancing to lay the foundations of a healthy society. Please have hope and patience,” Mr Dan told supporters after exit polls were published showing him ahead.

Mr Dan later said talks could take a few weeks.

The election took place nearly six months after the initial ballot was cancelled because of alleged Russian interference – denied by Moscow – in favour of far-right frontrunner Calin Georgescu, who was banned from standing again.

Romania looked poised to swing towards Russia had Mr Georgescu won, and Mr Simion built a campaign to benefit from his support, signalling he would nominate him as prime minister if he emerged victorious.

Speaking after voting ended, Mr Simion said his election was “clear”.

“I won!!! I am the new president of Romania and I am giving back the power to the Romanians!” Mr Simion said on Facebook.

A crowd of Mr Dan’s supporters celebrated his victory outside his campaign headquarters in downtown Bucharest.

“These elections are really important for the European future,” said Ilinca Sipoteanu, 19. “This is very good for democracy and for the younger generations … and also for our parents and grandparents that fought the system in 1989.” Romania’s communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was overthrown in 1989.

The president of Romania has considerable powers, including being in charge of the defence council that decides on military aid. The president will also have oversight of foreign policy, with the power to veto EU votes that require unanimity.

Political analysts had said victory for Mr Simion would have risked isolating Romania abroad, eroding private investment and destabilising NATO’s eastern flank.

It also would have meant that Hungary’s fiercely anti-immigrant leader Viktor Orban, a long-time Trump ally, and Slovakia’s Robert Fico – who both oppose military aid for Ukraine – would gain a new ally in the European Council in decisions on aid for Ukraine, energy, sanctions against Russia or the EU’s budget.

In the first round of Poland’s presidential election, admirers of Mr Trump’s politics won about 45 per cent of votes cast, according to exit polls, including Mr Nawrocki’s result combined with that of far-right candidate Slawomir Mentzen.

The Who fires drummer Zak Starkey, again

The Who have fired longtime drummer Zak Starkey again, two weeks after he was reinstated ahead of the band’s farewell tour announcement.

The news was made public first by guitarist Pete Townshend, who shared it with his followers on social media, and then confirmed by Starkey, who made his feelings about the decision clear.

The musician, who is the son of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr, said he had been asked to claim that this time, he was quitting of his own accord.

“This would be a lie,” he wrote. “I love The Who and would never have quit.”

Townshend had said, in text written over a photo: “After many years of great work on drums from Zak the time has come for a change. A poignant time. Zak has lots of new projects in hand and I wish him the best.”

He also revealed that Starkey would be replaced by Scott Devours, who has worked with frontman Roger Daltrey’s solo band.

“Please welcome him,” Townshend wrote.

In response, Starkey wrote text over Townshend’s image, commenting that quitting The Who “would [have] let down the countless amazing people who stood up for me (thank you all a million times over and more) through the weeks of mayhem” as he was first fired from the band then reinstated.

“To clarify ‘other projects’… yes I do have other projects and always have,” he continued, referencing his work with artists including Johnny Marr and The Lightning Seeds.

“None of this has ever interfered with The Who and was never a problem for them,” he concluded. “The lie is or would have been that I quit The Who – I didn’t. I love The Who and everyone in it.”

Starkey was fired from the band in April over a dispute about his performance at the Royal Albert Hall the previous month.

A report on the band’s gig in the Metro suggested that Daltrey had complained onstage about Starkey’s performance, apparently telling the audience he was struggling to sing their final track, “The Song is Over”.

“To sing that song I do need to hear the key, and I can’t,” he said. “All I’ve got is drums going boom, boom, boom. I can’t sing to that. I’m sorry guys.”

Starkey was reinstated three days later, having called his bandmate “Toger Daktrey” and joking that he was bringing “formal charges of overplaying” against him.

He first joined The Who full-time during their 1996 Quadrophenia tour, having been introduced to the drums by the band’s former drummer, Keith Moon, a family friend who gave Starkey a drum kit for his eighth birthday.

The band are due to kick off the North America leg of their farewell tour, UK and Europe dates for which have yet to be announced, in August.

A number of Starkey’s friends and fans posted messages of support on his latest Instagram post, including Sean Ono Lennon, the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, who joked: “WIthout Zak it’s like, ‘The Who who?’”

Brazilian drummer João Barone of the band Os Paralamas do Successo said: “Simply unbelievable, what a wrong move, couldn’t be a worse choice, it’s a matter they just ‘Can’t Explain’…”

The news comes after another rock drummer was fired over the weekend, as the Foo Fighters dropped Josh Freese two years after he was brought on to fill in for the late Taylor Hawkins.

Freese said that he had never been let go from a band in his 40 years of playing professionally, so while he was not angry, he was “a bit shocked and disappointed”.

“I enjoyed the past two years with them, both on and off stage, and I support whatever they feel is best for the band,” he said.

Lewis Hamilton spares Ferrari blushes in Imola but key to revival is obvious

Quite the difference a day makes. The tone emanating from Ferrari on Saturday was one of total desolation; Lewis Hamilton declared himself “gutted and devastated” after qualifying a mere 12th on the grid, with his teammate just one place ahead. However, come Sunday night, it was difficult to wipe the smile off Hamilton’s face in the Imola media pen.

Of course, if you’d told most of the 242,000 fans – the vast majority decked in red – present earlier in the weekend that fourth and sixth would be the finishing positions for Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, celebrations would have been scant. Hamilton’s first Ferrari race in Italy, in an upgraded car, was meant to mark a season-defining turning point. As such, no silver bullet has been found.

But it has made the road to rejuvenation all the more obvious. Blindingly, in fact. Hamilton’s stellar drive from 12th to fourth – albeit with the benefit of two well-timed safety car interludes – resulted in joyous scenes on the Rivazza hill afterwards. It was the Scuderia’s best result of the season so far.

For Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur, under immense pressure in the Italian media overnight, there was some respite. With pressure mounting, there was some space to breathe. Operation damage limitation had been fulfilled.

“We were able to react today and straighten out, at least in part, a weekend that could have been decidedly negative,” Vasseur said. “Our race pace was strong from start to finish. We had a good strategy and the pit stops were well executed.

“Of course, there is some frustration because if we had qualified better, we could have finished higher up the order. It’s been three or four races now where we have seen this difference between qualifying and race-pace.

“We must work on that.”

For Hamilton, this is not a new narrative. His torrid record over one-lap last year resulted in his worst-performing qualifying campaign in 18 F1 campaigns. Over 24 grands prix, Mercedes teammate George Russell beat Hamilton 19-5 on a Saturday. This year, Leclerc leads the way 6-1.

It means, at least in the last few years, that the seven-time world champion is accustomed to unruffled recovery drives. As he acknowledged post-race, it brings out the best in him. But titles are not won from the midfield.

“I’ve always loved when you’re fighting from further back and coming through, that’s how I started off as a kid,” he said. Arguably, Hamilton’s best-ever victory came at Interlagos in 2021, where he rose from dead last to top spot.

“That’s always such a better feeling than starting first and finishing first. An absolutely mega race and so many positives to take from it.”

But while Hamilton saved Ferrari’s blushes with his 63-lap amelioration, Leclerc was left reeling, having lost out in the safety car period. Involved in a skirmish late on with Williams’s Alex Albon, Leclerc was forced to give up two places in the closing laps. Asked for his chances of defending his crown in Monaco next week, the Monegasque’s response was unequivocal: “No.”

And no wonder. Ferrari have secured just one top-three qualifying finish, Leclerc in Bahrain, and just one podium, Leclerc in Saudi Arabia, so far this season. They are the fourth-quickest team. And ignoring his sprint race pole and win in China, Hamilton has not qualified higher than fifth, with an overall average of 8.7. No wonder a podium has been out of reach.

“We have just got to unlock the potential in qualifying,” the 40-year-old said, with the gap to championship leader Oscar Piastri now 93 points. “If we had qualified better, we would have been fighting for a podium.

“I’ve got some ideas that I’m going to try and apply next week [in Monaco]. People been a little bit reluctant to do it, because we’ve had lots of other things to focus on, but I’m hoping next week we can find something to unlock some more performance.

“Our car is generally good at high speed, okay in medium and not as strong as others in low. Obviously, the next race [in Monaco] is all low, so we’ll see how we get on.”

Yet as F1 heads to its traditional crown jewel race around the tight twists of Monte-Carlo – with the added roll-of-a-dice element this year of a mandatory two pit-stops – the most telling statistic of Ferrari’s two-decade-long demise emerged post-race.

With Max Verstappen’s terrific victory, Red Bull now lead the way for the most wins this century. With their 124th triumph, in their 400th race, the energy drinks outfit are now out on their own, beyond the numbers of Michael Schumacher and the rest.

That is some record for Red Bull boss Christian Horner, in an understandably gleeful mood as the sun went down on Sunday. It is also indicative of the long-lasting issues at Ferrari, stretching back before the tenure of Vasseur, and the scale of the challenge Hamilton and Leclerc are looking to overcome this season and next. The prancing horse weight of history is heavy.

Sarah Silverman shares shocking revelation about her brother’s death

Sarah Silverman has shared an extraordinary and shocking revelation her father made to her before he died, about the circumstances surrounding the death of her brother, Jeffrey, when he was three months old.

The US comedian, 54, is preparing to release a new special, PostMortem, about the deaths of her parents Beth Ann Halpin (1941 – 2015) and Donald Silverman (1937 – 2023).

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Silverman spoke about her late parents and the themes behind the show, before the journalist told her that he’d been unable to talk about his own father after he was killed in a plane crash.

He wondered if Silverman’s parents had ever been able to talk about Jeffrey’s death, prompting her to explain she was going to tell him “a big bomb”.

While she was writing her 2010 memoir, The Bedwetter – which was later turned into a 2022 musical – she said she was struck by the fact that, while her parents had different accounts of “every issue of their marriage”, they had the same one when describing how Jeffrey died.

In her memoir, Silverman said her brother had been left in the care of her grandparents, Max and Rose, while Donald and Beth Ann went on holiday. Max told his son that he had been checking on Jeffrey in the night, as he had been crying a lot and Rose was hard of hearing.

When her grandfather got up to check on Jeffrey in the morning, he apparently found the baby had suffocated after slipping through a narrow space between the mattress and the bottom rail of the crib.

“The story was that something happened with the crib, and Jeffrey’s little body slid and he got suffocated,” Silverman told Rolling Stone. “But if you look back, there was never a lawsuit with the crib company or anything.”

In 2022, the year before he died, her father came to see a Manhattan production of The Bedwetter five nights in a row. The show included a scene about Silverman as a child making a joke about Jeffrey’s death to her grandmother and no one laughing.

Donald Silverman came backstage after the fifth show and told his daughter a different story about her brother, who died before she was born, claiming that it was in fact his own violent father who had been responsible.

“My dad says, ‘I always felt that he was crying or something, and my dad shook him,’” she recalled. “‘He shook him in a rage and killed him.’”

Her manager apparently gasped at this revelation, and the room went quiet for a moment.

“As soon as he said it, it was like, ‘Of course, that’s what happened,’” Silverman continued. “[Donald’s] mother always stood by her husband. She watched him beat the s*** out of her son. I couldn’t ask my mom, because she was dead.”

Silverman had earlier spoken of her father’s “heartbreaking” childhood, when he was subject to daily beatings by his own father: “He had a younger brother who wasn’t touched. His father made the kids call him Mr Silverman.”

She suggested this kind of bombshell-dropping was par for the course from her dad: “We were playing poker once, and he just dropped in that one of the priests at his school fondled him. I was like ‘Dad!’ He was always dropping bombs.”

The Independent has contacted Silverman’s representatives for additional comment.

Donald Silverman died shortly after his second wife of more than 40 years, Janice, passed away.

“My best pal, Schleppy – my dad, died last night,” the stand-up comedian, 52, wrote in an Instagram post after his death in 2023.

“All the sisters, and grandkids surrounded him with love and singing and very dark f***ed up jokes this final week. But ultimately, he wanted to be with his love, Janice, who we lost last Monday.”

“He always said he was the richest man in the world because of his family, and he was,” Silverman added.

In another recent interview with The Guardian, Silverman said touring PostMortem across the US had been “a nice way of keeping [her parents] alive”, but it would be “time to put it to bed” after PostMortem’s UK run, which concluded last month.

Her previous comedy specials have included Netflix’s A Speck of Dust (2017) and HBO’s Someone You Love (2023).

PostMortem will be available to stream on Netflix from Tuesday 20 May.

From secluded bays to family-friendly shores, discover the Costa Dorada’s beaches

Whether you prefer your sunbathing broken up by a spot of snorkelling, experiencing local culture, or simply blissfully uninterrupted – the Costa Dorada (locally known as Costa Daurada) has the perfect beach for you. With 50 miles of coastline, and 26 Blue Flag beaches, it doesn’t matter if you’re after calm waters, family-friendly facilities or adventurous water sports – there’s a sunspot that caters for every traveller.

What’s more, with Jet2holidays flying to the Costa Dorada from 12 UK airports and a range of two to five-star accommodation, it’s easy to get your beach break sorted. Jet2holidays is always giving you more, to help make planning and booking as smooth as possible. That goes for the PayPal Pay in 3 interest-free payments** option, 22kg baggage and 10kg hand luggage, and return transfers† that are included. Look out for Free Child Places***, and infants under two go free‡.

Here we pick out just some of the region’s gorgeous shores to delve into…

In one of the most picturesque and lively parts of Costa Dorada sits this almost two-and-a-half mile stretch of beach, lined with palms as well as the famous pine trees that give the area its name. It’s fab for everything from gentle strolls and paddles to more active games of volleyball, sand football and tennis. Other activities on offer include everything from shoreside Zumba classes to yoga, meditation and mindfulness sessions. The slow slope of sand into sparkling waters makes it ideal for families with young children, while for the real water babies, the exhilarating Aquopolis waterpark is only a short walk from the beach. With plenty of bars, restaurants, toilets and shower facilities lining the pretty promenade, there’s no reason not to stay all day.

With over five miles of Blue Flag beaches, all with gentle waters, Cambrils makes an excellent family-friendly break. Great for water sports such as kayaking, paddleboarding and sailing – especially at the pristine Platja del Cavet Beach, where the Escola Nàutica water sports centre offers windsurfing lessons.

For something more laidback, head to Platja de la Llosa for a series of smaller, but equally beautiful, beaches and coves. Then why not potter around the picturesque, cobbled alleyways of the old town to sample delicious local dishes? While you’re in the area, take the opportunity to visit neighbouring Platja de la Pixerota in Mont-roig on the southern border of Cambrils, to enjoy breathtaking views out to the Gulf of Sant Jordi and learn about the fascinating Spanish Civil War bunkers situated in the middle of the beach.

As the tourist capital of the Costa Dorada and the epicentre of amusement and entertainment, Salou’s beaches are home to good times for kids and adults alike. And being so close to PortAventura World (one of Europe’s largest theme parks) means double the fun, when so many of Jet2holidays’ Experience More hotels include park entry, meaning staying and playing is on the cards. Don’t miss the stunning Llevant Beach, dotted with colourful sunloungers and umbrellas, where the sea is filled with kayaks and jet skis. In between sunbathing and water sports, you can also enjoy wandering along its pretty promenade of shops, restaurants and bars. For something a little more secluded, take the coastal path to the sand dunes, pine trees and shallow crystalline waters of Platja Llarga, which is great for snorkelling.

This charming beach town is as much a magnet to those looking for lazy beach days as it is for history lovers. A medieval castle forms the backdrop to a swathe of fine golden sand at Platja d’Altafulla, and it’s a stone’s throw from the famous Roman ruins at Tarragona. You can even borrow a book from the Bibliomar beach library, which also organises workshops and storytelling, or join a yoga or Pilates class on the sands.

Walk down to neighbouring Tamarit Beach, which has its own castle dating back to the 11th century, as well as some friendly beach bars for a cheeky cocktail. Also in the area is family-friendly Coma-ruga Beach in El Vendrell. Its clear waters, palm-lined promenade of restaurants, bars and shops, and natural thermal springs, make for a balanced beach break.

The soft, sloping sands make Platja La Paella a super-safe option for families with children who love spending all day in the sea. As for water sports, there’s a designated area for surfers, and a bespoke exit and entry point for jet skis. The nearby marina offers scuba diving, snorkelling, water skiing and boat trips. For those who prefer being on terra firma, there are kids’ playgrounds, and a sports zone with four volleyball courts and three beach football pitches, often hosting championships. In summer, sports camps and gymnastics sessions are held here.

One of the most unique beaches in the Costa Dorada, the sugar-like sands and translucent waters of l’Arenal are split into two parts. There’s the northern section with its promenade and the Base Nautica water sports resort, which offers dinghy sailing, windsurfing and kayaking. Then there’s the southern part, which can only be accessed via a listed Blue Trail footpath. Here you can enjoy magnificent dunes, marshlands and white pine woodlands around a more tranquil shore.

With Jet2holidays, you can book your trip to the Costa Dorada with lots of package perks thrown in to make getting away even easier. From a low £60 per person deposit* to PayPal Pay in 3 interest-free payments**, 22kg baggage and 10kg hand luggage per person to return transfers†, it’s all included. Families can make the most of Free Child Places*** while infants under two go free‡. And with flights included and the choice of two to five-star hotels, Jet2holidays is always giving you more. For more Costa Dorada travel inspiration, and to find and book your ultimate holiday, visit Jet2holidays. Plus, right now, myJet2 members can save £100 per person§ in The Big Jet2 Price Drop (correct at original publish date).

*On bookings made ten weeks or more before departure. Full payment required by balance due date. **Spread the cost over three interest-free payments. Available when booked online, for holidays under £2,000, departing within ten weeks. ***One free child place per two paying passengers. Subject to availability. T&Cs apply, please see www.jet2holidays.com/promotions#FCP2025 for further details. †Unless otherwise stated. ‡Applicable for all infants under the age of two years on the date of return. Infants are not entitled to a flight seat (they must be seated with a parent or guardian) or a 22kg baggage allowance. §£100 per person off holidays for myJet2 members departing until 15 November 2026. myJet2 members will need to be logged into their account at the time of booking for the discount to automatically apply. Book online, via our app, through our call centre or with your travel agent. Please note the discount is not applied to children travelling on a free child place. Terms and conditions apply, please see www.jet2holidays.com/promotions#100APRIL2025 for details.

Warning to sellers as house asking prices hit record high

Asking prices for homes in Britain have reached a record high for the second consecutive month, with sellers seeking nearly £380,000 on average in May, according to property website Rightmove.

The average asking price for a newly listed home rose by £2,335, or 0.6 per cent, in May, pushing the typical price tag to a new peak of £379,517.

This follows another record high set in April, continuing a five-year trend of escalating asking prices during the month of May.

However, Rightmove notes that the pace of price growth has moderated compared to the surge witnessed earlier in the year, likely influenced by the conclusion of the stamp duty holiday.

After a busier-than-usual March, new buyer demand slowed in April to 4 per cent below the same month in 2024.

Stamp duty discounts became less generous for some home buyers from April.

However, demand in the year to date is still ahead of last year, and there are early signs of a bounceback in May, Rightmove said.

It suggested that some new buyers may have been holding out for May’s Bank of England base rate decision.

The volume of sales being agreed in the past month is 5 per cent higher than at this time last year, indicating that buyers are being tempted by a widened choice, the website added.

The number of new properties coming onto the market for sale is ahead of this time last year.

Mortgage rates will be crucial in determining the level of buyer activity for the rest of the year, Rightmove said.

Mortgage rates have been trickling downwards, and there is hope that the recent Bank of England base rate cut may spur on further reductions from lenders, the website added.

Colleen Babcock, a property expert at Rightmove, said: “Despite April’s dip in new buyer demand, there are early signs of a bounceback in May.

“Mortgage interest rates are lower than they were at this time last year, and the recent (Bank of England base rate) cut also gives us some optimism for further mortgage rate drops that will enable more to buy.

“While we’re not expecting drastic reductions, any lowering of rates will be a boost to buyer sentiment and affordability.

“With a high number of sellers and a small dip in buyer demand, it’s worth reminding people out there thinking of coming to market that they need to work hard to attract buyer attention.”

David Gardner, managing director at DDM Residential in Lincolnshire, said: “We’re seeing strong agreed sales across northern Lincolnshire, currently tracking notably higher than May 2024.

“This uptick is driven by improved stock availability and more favourable mortgage rates. However, the market remains competitive.”

Polly Ogden Duffy, managing director at property firm John D Wood & Co, said: “In London, some discretionary sellers and buyers are pausing as the impact of political and economic headwinds take time to settle.”

She added: “Pricing strategy is critical right now. With an increased supply of homes for sale buyers can be more selective, and overpricing – unless your property is truly exceptional – is a fast track to stagnation.”

Andrew Groocock, chief operating officer of the estate agency business at Knight Frank, said: “Buyers are able to take their time at the moment because they have so much to choose from.

“That sort of competition means sellers need to get the asking price right when the property is first launched.

“Even after a reduction, the risk is that a property has already become stale in the minds of buyers, which means it can then take longer to sell or the chances of it falling through are higher.”

Sisters battle over mum’s home as youngest claims she needs it for dog

An alternative therapist is locked in a court fight after her “sensitive” younger sister told her she can’t have her inheritance as she needs their mum’s £420,000 house for her and her emotional support dogs to live in.

Agnes Duggan died in August 2018, aged 78, leaving her home to be split equally in her will between her three daughters, Sharon, Ann and Brenda Duggan.

The house in Crawley, Sussex, where she had lived with youngest daughter Sharon, 49, caring for her in her final years, made up almost all the value of her estate.

But now Sharon is blocking alternative therapist Brenda, 55, and oldest sister Ann, 60, from getting their share of their mum’s estate, claiming she needs to stay in the house for life with her therapeutic pets, as she is too “noise sensitive” to live in a flat.

She says that her needs and those of her two rescue dogs – which she told Central London County Court “help with her mental and emotional well-being” – outweigh the rights of her sisters to get the inheritance they are due and that they should only get a “small lump sum” each, which she could raise with a mortgage.

Sharon is now suing her two sisters under the 1975 Inheritance Act, claiming “reasonable provision” above her one-third share of her mum’s money on the basis that her special sensitivity and medical ailments mean she should get the whole house for life.

But Brenda, who formerly ran a bioresonance therapy company and a business providing gluten-free altar bread to food-intolerant Catholics, is fighting her claim, insisting Sharon and her pets will be fine in a one-bed flat.

Former NHS medical secretary Sharon, representing herself in court, told Judge Alan Johns KC that she should have the right to stay put in the family home in Lyndhurst Close, Southgate, Crawley, where she moved in 2014 and cared for her mum in her last dementia-plagued years.

Sharon, who lives on benefits, told the court she is “dyslexic and suffers from a variety of health issues, including chronic fatigue syndrome, migraine, fibromyalgia, depression, anxiety, insomnia, PTSD, and adjustment disorder (and) also has long Covid.”

Her sister, Brenda, has suggested she could relocate to a flat using her stake from the inheritance, but in court Sharon rejected this as totally unsuitable due to intrusive noise, her history of fragile mental health and the effect on her two dogs.

In her written arguments, Sharon told the judge: “The claimant avers that psychologically she could not cope with living in a flat again.

“She is anxious that neighbours may cause disturbances and impact upon her ability to sleep and exacerbate her insomnia, of which she has previous experience, even having sound proofing installed in her apartment, which did little to mitigate noise.

“The claimant now has two rescue dogs, which help with her mental and emotional well-being, but which makes finding suitable alternative accommodation difficult.

“If the claimant received a lump sum, it would not likely be enough to buy a one to two bedroom house in the local area and she would need to move far away from her support network, which she relies on greatly for her health issues.

“The claimant maintains that moving from the property would affect her mental health greatly and that having to move into rented or temporary accommodation would further affect her health negatively. Moving out of the area would also adversely impact the claimant.”

Alex Findley, barrister for Brenda, challenged Sharon’s claim, suggesting there is no medical evidence to show she cannot live in a flat.

But Sharon replied: “I have two dogs to consider and I am hyper-vigilant and sound sensitive. A flat would not be suitable due to the noise levels.

“I would be better off living in a car, I couldn’t cope with it.”

Sharon says she gave up a career and her position on the property ladder to move in and help out her mum and claims before her death Agnes had promised that she would inherit her home, although she never got round to changing her will.

She argued: “The claimant sacrificed her career and employment prospects, and by extension her ability to purchase a property, by giving up work in the latter half of 2014 to care for the deceased, such that it could be asserted that she had a moral claim to be maintained by the deceased through the provision of accommodation.

“The deceased recognised her sacrifice and possible moral claim against her estate.”

As well as helping her mother out with her daily needs, she also says she spent £30,000 of her own money on hefty vet bills for her mum’s beloved Jack Russell/Chihuahua cross, Lady, who Sharon had pledged to care for after she died.

And in her written arguments to the court, she explained: “Lady survived the deceased and was treated successfully for liver cancer but died in 2022.

“The claimant had promised the deceased she would look after Lady after her death. Lady was part of her mother’s estate and the claimant avers she spent over £30,000 on vets’ bills.”

However, lawyers for her sister, Brenda, suggest Sharon’s figures for Lady’s care are a “gross exaggeration”, with much of the expenditure going on “homeopathic and herbal remedies and not emergency medical treatment”.

Mr Findlay, for mum-of-four Brenda, insisted that Agnes had always been clear that her estate should be equally split three ways and said Sharon’s case that she is unfit for future work is “an extremely pessimistic claim which is not adequately supported by medical evidence”.

“Likewise, there is no evidence from a suitably qualified expert in mental health to support her assertion that her cognitive and mental difficulties are such that she cannot work,” he added.

There was evidence that Sharon had received nearly £160,000 from various sources over the past ten years, although she now claims to be penniless, despite living rent-free, said the barrister.

“Sharon claims to have an income of £1559.44 per month, no other savings or assets, and outgoings of around £1,500 per month,” he said.

“Evidence of credit card spending does not support Sharon’s case to be in deep financial need. She has regular expenditure on going out to restaurants and cafes, online shopping, through Paypal and Amazon Marketplace, dog grooming, and there is significant monthly expenditure on online courses relating to spiritualism and alternative medicine over the last few years

“Further, it appears that she has simultaneous subscriptions to Sky, Netflix, and Amazon Prime.

“While she is perfectly entitled to purchase these things with her own money, the significant amount of spending which is discretionary and apparently non-essential does not reflect someone in necessitous circumstances.

“Sharon claims that she needs the property. This is a substantial three-bedroomed home; it is obviously not needed for her maintenance.

“She claims that she cannot move because she cannot live in a flat due to her sensitivity to noise. There is inadequate evidence for this and it is to be noted that, although Sharon may prefer living in a house, it seems she lived in a flat on her own for many years.

“A suitable one bedroom property locally should cost less than £150,000. She should therefore be easily in a position to purchase a property for herself with a small mortgage and her share of the estate.

“Sharon certainly does not need the court to displace the deceased’s wishes and take from the inheritance of her sisters to achieve this.”

The barrister highlighted Brenda’s own predicament – including coping with four children, suffering from multiple sclerosis and being currently jobless.

“While she does own her own home, it is not valuable, and she is not wealthy,” he said.

“The claimant appears to believe that Brenda is hiding significant wealth and makes a number of other allegations, but there is no evidence to support the claims Sharon makes about Brenda.

“Ann is also near retirement age and has dependent children. While her financial disclosure has been limited, there is no reason to believe she is sufficiently wealthy that she can forego her inheritance from her mother without some hardship.”

Brenda, who is an executor and beneficiary under Agnes’ will, is opposing the 1975 Act claim, while her fellow executor and beneficiary, Ann, has adopted a “neutral position” in the case.

Judge Alan Johns KC is expected to reserve his ruling in the case.