The world in brief

Kamala Harris introduced Tim Walz as her running-mate at a big campaign rally in Philadelphia. Mr Walz, the governor of Minnesota, went after Donald Trump and J.D. Vance and said he would defend personal freedoms, such as abortion rights. Mr Walz is more progressive than other figures that were on Ms Harris’s vice-presidential short-list, having overseen gun restrictions and marijuana legalisation in his home state. He is expected to accompany Ms Harris on a tour of battleground states this week.

Hamas named Yahya Sinwar, the group’s top man in Gaza and an architect of the October 7th attack, its overall leader. The appointment comes after Ismail Haniyeh, who held the post since 2017, was assassinated in Iran on July 31st. Meanwhile Israel’s army said it has killed 45 Palestinian fighters in Gaza since Monday. Medics reported that non-combatants, including a journalist, were also killed.