The Papers: 'Iran war back on' and 'Count Binface exclusive'

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. 'Iran war back on' and 'Count Binface exclusive'Published9 minutes agoImage caption, US President Donald Trump's remarks at the Nato summit in Turkey lead Metro, with the top headline declaring "Iran war back on after new air strikes". The US president is quoted calling Iran's leaders "scum" as he promised to hit the Iranian "regime hard", the paper reports. Image caption, The future Clacton by-election makes the front of many of Thursday's papers.

The Daily Star's "fave politician" Count Binface has told the paper he will eat Reform UK leader Nigel Farage "for breakkie". The serial election candidate, who dresses as a bin, has said he will run against Farage in the Clacton by-election after Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats all said they would not field candidates. Image caption, Count Binface has emerged as the main challenger to Farage, the Daily Mirror reports, under the headline "Bin him off".

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Image caption, The Daily Express also headlines on the Clacton by-election, quoting Farage who has said "the future of our democracy depends on who wins". The Reform leader described the rival parties as "running scared" from the race because they were worried he would win, the paper reports. Image caption, Count Binface joining the Clacton by-election is "deadly serious", the Daily Mail reports, with Farage describing the fight as a "real election".

Image caption, The Guardian leads on an investigation into more financial transactions concerning Reform UK senior figures, alleging "transactions worth millions" were reported to the National Crime Agency. Image caption, The i Paper leads on Scotland Yard investigating an alleged political donation made to Reform UK's Robert Jenrick when he was standing for the Conservative Party leadership. The "investigation centres on a claim that £37,500 came from foreign donor", according to the paper.

Jenrick denies any electoral law was broken. Image caption, Andy Burnham, who is widely expected to be the next Labour leader later this month, has vowed to rebuild the UK's "hard power" by directing billions of pounds in defence spending into British companies rather than American or European ones, according to the Times. Image caption, Tesco could sell its European operations "in a move that would bring down the curtain on a three-decade attempt" to build a global empire for the UK's biggest supermarket, the Financial Times reports.

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The sale would also spell the end of a dream to establish "a new supermarket chain from scratch in the US", according to the paper. Image caption, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood will change the law so the "Pakistan-born ringleader of the Rochdale grooming gang can be deported", the Times reports. Shabir Ahmed was released from prison last week "after serving 14 years of a 22-year sentence for 30 child rape offences", the paper reports.

Mahmood is expected to explain on Monday how the government will amend the laws, according to the paper.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.