The Legislative Council has passed a bill to tighten controls on smoking and try to reduce the number of smokers in the city. Secretary for Heath Lo Chung-mau called it a milestone in tobacco control. Wendy Wong has more.

Lawmakers have approved a bill to legalise basketball betting in Hong Kong as the government pledged stronger efforts to tackle illegal gambling. The regulatory regime, which was put forward to the legislature as amendments to the Betting Duty Ordinance, received the support of 77 legislators. Two others voted against and two abstained. Frank Yung has the details.

New People's Party lawmaker Adrian Ho has welcomed the legislature's approval for basketball betting, noting the sport's global popularity. He said it will help deter illegal gambling, and expressed the hope that revenue generated by the Jockey Club will be directed towards sports development in Hong Kong. Ho spoke to Hailey Yip:

Two elderly people of the same family who recently travelled to Guangzhou are the latest imported cases of chikungunya fever here in Hong Kong. That raised the year's total to 16. Wendy Wong tells us more.

Close to 1,000 tertiary students have fallen prey to scams in the first half of this year, police said, with the victims swindled out of nearly HK$110 million in total. In a joint anti-scam effort, the force is teaming up with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority to combat fraud and promote vigilance on campus. Natasha Ho reports:

Lawmaker Lo Wai-kwok has come out in support of the government's decision not to carry out reclamation work for the Kau Yi Chau project during its current term. He also backs the move to focus on developing the Northern Metropolis instead. Raymond Yeung reports.

The East Kowloon Cultural Centre will be in full operation starting November. It's located in Ngau Tau Kok and features five main facilities, including a lab that encourages the application of different technologies in art production. Assistant director of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department Betty Au told Natasha Ho why the centre is unique.

Life expectancy in China has risen, according to the nation's top health official. The National Health Commission also announced that children are growing taller, and that China has risen to second place in producing new medications. Hailey Yip reports.

Investigators in the United States say they've found the weapon they believe was used to kill the influential conservative influencer Charlie Kirk. They've also released images of a person of interest, as a manhunt continues for the suspect. Kirk, an author, podcast host and close ally of the US president, was killed on Wednesday by a single gunshot as he gave a talk at a university in Utah. Jamie Clarke reports:

British defence minister John Healey says the UK and its allies will help strengthen air defences over Poland. This comes after drones were shot down over Polish airspace during a Russian air attack on Ukraine. Moscow has denied responsibility for the incident, with a senior Russian diplomat saying the drones had come from the direction of Ukraine. After a meeting with representatives from France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Ukraine, Healey pledged Nato's support:

Nepal's "Gen Z" protesters have backed the country's first female chief justice to temporarily lead the troubled nation. Two days ago, deadly demonstrations forced the prime minister to quit his post, triggering Nepal's worst unrest in years. KP Sharma Oli's resignation came a day after 19 protesters were killed in violence. As Jamie Clarke reports, Nepal's health ministry says that the death toll has since risen to 34, with more 1,300 people injured:

Israeli strikes killed 34 people across the Gaza Strip on Thursday. That's according to medics and local health authorities. Those killed include 22 in Gaza City, and 12 in the central and southern parts of the territory. Israel has ordered the hundreds of thousands of people living in Gaza City to leave as it intensifies its all-out war on Hamas. But with little safety, space and food in the rest of Gaza, people face dire choices – as Jamie Clarke reports:

Business news - inflation in the United States worsened last month, rising to 2.9 percent from 2.7 percent the month before. The data were released ahead of a decision by the US Federal Reserve on interest rates, as Todd Harding reports.

Oman has pledged to help Chinese investors seeking to invest in the Middle East. The offer was made at the Belt and Road Summit here in Hong Kong by the Oman Investment Authority, or OIA, as Elvis Yu reports.

Cathay Pacific says it sees enormous potential to strengthen air connections with countries under the Belt and Road Initiative. In an interview with RTHK on the sidelines of the Belt and Road Summit in Wan Chai, the airline's chief executive, Ronald Lam, noted that passenger numbers to those destinations have been good since their launch, with demand rising. Lam said 30 of Cathay's 100 global destinations are in Belt and Road countries and 20 on the mainland. He added that there's room for growth in emerging markets, compared with mature economies. Lam spoke to Chloe Feng.