Glee star Naya Rivera is believed to have drowned in a “tragic accident” while boating with her young son on a lake in California, police say. The 33-year-old was reported missing on Wednesday afternoon when her boat was seen drifting at Lake Piru, north-west of Los Angeles. Her son, 4, was found asleep on board. He told police they went swimming but his mother never returned. Search teams are hunting for her body but conditions are difficult.

Rivera is best known for playing cheerleader Santana Lopez in Glee, the hugely popular musical comedy TV series that ran on the Fox network from 2009 to 2015.(BBC)…[+]

Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden has laid out his rescue plan for the coronavirus-crippled US economy, while berating President Donald Trump as incompetent. Mr Biden said his $700bn (£560bn) plan would be the biggest investment in the US economy since World War Two. The “Build Back Better” agenda, he said, would spur a manufacturing and technology jobs boom.

The Trump campaign responded that the plan would inflict “catastrophe”. Mr Biden is all but guaranteed to face off with Mr Trump in this November’s presidential election. Speaking at a metalworks firm near his childhood hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, Mr Biden said the president’s failures had “come with a terrible human cost and a deep economic toll”. “Time and again, working families are paying the  price for this administration’s incompetence,” Mr Biden said.(BBC)…[+]

The US Supreme Court has ruled about half of Oklahoma belongs to Native Americans, in a landmark case that also quashed a child rape conviction. The justices decided 5-4 that an eastern chunk of the state, including its second-biggest city, Tulsa, should be recognised as part of a reservation. Jimcy McGirt, who was convicted in 1997 of raping a girl, brought the case. He cited the historical claim of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation to the land where the assault occurred. Thursday’s decision in McGirt v Oklahoma is seen as one of the most far-reaching cases for Native Americans before the highest US court in decades. The ruling means some tribe members found guilty in state courts for offences committed on the land at issue can now challenge their convictions.(BBC)…[+]

Syrian pro-government forces and their jihadist opponents flagrantly violated the laws of war during the battle for Idlib province, UN investigators say. Civilians endured “unfathomable suffering” when the Syrian military launched a campaign late last year to retake the area, according to a report. They were subjected to indiscriminate air strikes and ground shelling, as well as arrests, torture and pillaging.

Hundreds of civilians were killed before a ceasefire was agreed in March. Almost one million were displaced by the fighting and many were forced to live in dire conditions in overcrowded camps or open fields. Now, the investigators warn, “a perfect storm is in the making” as the war-torn country faces both the coronavirus pandemic and an economic crisis. More than 380,000 people have been killed and 13.2 million others – half of Syria’s pre-war population – have been displaced inside and outside the country since an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in 2011.(BBC)…[+]

Politicians and academics have criticised a decision to withdraw US visas from foreign students whose courses move fully online. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said people could face deportation unless they changed to an institution with in-person tuition.

A number of US universities are considering online teaching in the new academic year due to coronavirus. It is not clear how many people will be affected. The Student and Exchange Visitor Programme, which is operated by ICE, had introduced a temporary exemption to allow students whose courses had moved online for the spring and summer semesters to remain in the US. However, the exemption will not be extended into the new academic year. The decision affects students who are in the US on F-1 and M-1 visas, according to the ICE statement.(BBC)…[+]

Major US retailers Walmart and Target have dropped American football team Washington Redskins’ merchandise from their websites. Last week, the Washington DC-based team said it would be reviewing its name following demands from sponsors. It has faced years of pressure over a name seen as offensive to Native Americans.

The decision to review the name comes amid a fresh focus on racism, sparked by worldwide protests. Walmart said on Twitter that it would be “discontinuing the sale of items that reference the team’s name and logo“. Target told CNN in a statement that they were “in the process of removing the items from our assortment“.(BBC)…[+]

A case of a rare brain-eating amoeba has been confirmed in Florida, according to health officials in the US state. The Florida Department of Health (DOH) said one person in Hillsborough County had contracted Naegleria fowleri.

The microscopic, single-celled amoeba can cause an infection of the brain, and is usually fatal. Commonly found in warm freshwater, the amoeba enters the body through the nose. The DOH did not outline where the infection was contracted, or the patient’s condition. The amoeba cannot be passed from person to person. Infections are typically seen in southern US states. They are rare in Florida, where only 37 cases have been reported since 1962.(BBC)…[+]

A white woman in New York is facing a criminal charge for calling 911 on a black man after he asked her to leash her dog in Central Park. Amy Cooper, who was shown calling police in a viral video, is accused of filing a false report, punishable by up to one year in jail. Ms Cooper lost her job and dog after the incident, and publicly apologised.

Video of the exchange shows Ms Cooper claiming that the black man, who was bird watching, threatened her.

The incident occurred on 25 May, the same day that unarmed African-American man George Floyd died in police custody, triggering weeks of national and global anti-racism protests. “Today our office initiated a prosecution of Amy Cooper for falsely reporting an incident in the third degree,” said Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance on Monday. “We are strongly committed to holding perpetrators of this conduct accountable,” Mr Vance said. He also encouraged “anyone who has been the target of false reporting” to contact the district attorney’s office.(BBC)…[+]

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have spoken to young leaders about equal rights – with Harry saying the wrongs of the past need to be acknowledged. Prince Harry and Meghan dialled into the Queen’s Commonwealth Trust weekly video call, which focused on responding to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Harry, president of the QCT, told them: “There is no turning back now, everything is coming to a head.” His wife Meghan added that equality is a fundamental human right. The duchess, vice president of QCT, said on the call: “We’re going to have to be a little uncomfortable right now, because it’s only in pushing through that discomfort that we get to the other side of this and find the place where a high tide raises all ships. “Equality does not put anyone on the back foot, it puts us all on the same footing – which is a fundamental human right.”(BBC)…[+]

It is “crystal clear” that drunk people are unable to socially distance, the chair of the Police Federation said as pubs reopened on Saturday. Ministers had urged caution ahead of hospitality venues reopening in England after three months of lockdown. John Apter dealt with “naked men, happy drunks, angry drunks, fights and more angry drunks” on shift in Southampton. But police thanked the majority of people for acting responsibly as they enjoyed the night out.

• ‘It feels good to be free and have fun again’
• Lockdown locks go as hairdressers open

Streets were packed in London’s Soho district, with images showing revellers outside pubs into the early hours of Sunday. The Metropolitan Police said “a small number” of premises closed early following advice from officers due to crowding, but the force added that there were “no significant issues” in the capital.(BBC)…[+]