The Observer Daily: Brute force

The best of The Observer, from across our newsroom View in browser Brute force The best of The Observer, from across our newsroom Ada Barumé and Xavier Greenwood • Tuesday 17 June 2025 Dear friend, The British police have a poor reputation when it comes to dealing with violence against women and girls. In the wake of Sarah Everard's murder, there was a renewed effort to root out officers facing accusations of violence. But four and a half years later, those on the inside paint a picture of an organisation that is both unwilling and ill-equipped to deal with the scale of the problem. Forces in England and Wales say improvements are in the works, both in terms of awareness and concrete policy, but how can it hope to regain the public's trust when it can't protect its own? This week's Observer Slow Newscast, reported by Eve Livingston, is the story of three women with one shared experience: being a police officer whose own institution couldn't help them escape abuse by their partners. Click here to listen → "The enemy of nonsense" – George Orwell Also in The Observer Here come the disruptors If you believe the Mitchell and Webb sketch, football is the same as it ever was. An ever more frequent collection of thumping victories, thrillers, narrow wins, and borefests. But like many other sports, it's being reinvented for the digital age. Rory Smith and Andrew Butler have spent some time in the starry and internet-friendly world of the Baller League, which to some people is a circus, and to others is the future of football. It's not an outlier. Whether it is The Hundred in cricket or Unrivaled in women's basketball, people are trying to break the traditional mould of sport. Is it working? Read the full piece here → Schrödinger's bomb by Fred Harter Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israel's attack on Iran was necessary to prevent a "nuclear holocaust". But how close is Iran, really, to building a bomb? As Tehran threatens to pull out of the international nuclear non-proliferation treaty, and Tel Aviv sets its targets on an enrichment facility buried deep under a mountain, Fred Harter explains what we do – and don't – know about Iran's nuclear programme.   This piece forms part of The Sensemaker, our other daily newsletter. It features calm and clear analysis on what's driving the news across tech, geopolitics, finance and culture. In today's edition, we look at AI-generated influencers, Spain's tourism fightback, and the London housing market. To get the full Sensemaker sent to your inbox every morning, sign up here. How Trump's raids unleashed a firestorm by Andrew Gumbel It started with seizures of immigrants in factories and troops on the streets – and ended with nannies taken from parks and a tide of resistance that has surprised activists. It already feels like a long time ago, but maybe that's what Trump wants: for one outrage to take up the baton of attention from the last one. From inside the communities at the heart of it, Andrew Gumbel looks at the lasting effects of what was a dizzying week in Los Angeles. Click here to read more → Around the UK in 19 local dishes by Tony Naylor British cuisine is not bland and soulless, nor is it fairly represented by the repetitive mix of Aperol Spritzes and smash burgers you see on Instagram. "Dig a little," writes Tony Naylor, "and a different Britain emerges. One where highly specific regional foods, new fads and old dishes alike, persist and thrive in surprising ways." For this month's Observer Food Monthly, Tony takes us on a wild and wonderful tour of UK food traditions. Whether you want chocolate toothpaste, plum bread or a smack barm pie wet, there is a place in Britain for you. Click here to take the full tour → Listen The News Meeting What Netanyahu wants Trump to do about Iran In this special episode, Jess Winch is joined by Jerusalem-based reporter Noga Tarnopolsky, along with The Observer's Chloe Hadjimatheou and Stephen Armstrong Click here to listen → Thanks for reading. We'll be back tomorrow.   Ada Barumé and Xavier Greenwood   My Account To manage your newsletters, track tickets and more, go to the 'My account' page on the Observer website: Manage my newsletters Follow Follow The Observer on social media on your preferred platform:   The Observer     The Observer Food Monthly The Observer Magazine The Observer New Review   Listen Listen for free in the Tortoise app or wherever you get your podcasts: Want to change how you receive these emails? Update email preferences Copyright © 2025 Tortoise Media. All rights reserved. Did this email get caught in your spam filter? Add editor@newsroom.tortoisemedia.com to your address book to never miss an email again. No longer want to receive this newsletter? Unsubscribe here.