The world in brief

President Joe Biden closed the first day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago with a speech seen as a symbolic handover to Kamala Harris. “Democracy must be preserved,” he told the crowd, while recounting the achievements of his administration. Earlier, Ms Harris praised the president’s “lifetime of service” during an unexpected appearance on stage. Hillary Clinton, the party’s presidential candidate in 2016, also spoke at the convention on Monday, describing Mr Biden as “democracy’s champion”.

Antony Blinken, America’s secretary of state, said that Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, accepted a “bridging proposal” that would lead to a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages. Mr Blinken called on Hamas to do the same. Earlier Hamas said that the proposal was too close to Israel’s position. Mr Blinken, who is in Tel Aviv, described this week’s talks between Israel and Hamas as “probably the best” and “maybe the last” chance to agree on a deal.