Greeks call snap elections, it’s getting hot in here and three-day weekends

Greece will hold snap elections after prime minister Alexis Tsipras resigned and asked the Greek people to pass judgment on a new €86bn bailout deal, which requires the country to implement harsh austerity and reform measures.

In a televised address, Mr Tsipras said he would trigger the sixth general election in eight years, a move that will plunge the country into short-term political uncertainty but may allow Mr Tsipras to capitalise on his enduring popularity in the hope of yielding a more stable government that is not constrained by critics of the rescue terms. (FT)

In the news

Emerging market turmoil spreads The US stock market slid by the most since February 2014 on Thursday, wiping out all of this year’s gains to trade at a six-month low, as the deepening emerging markets turmoil triggered by the commodity slide and China’s devaluation rattled global bourses. (FT)

Full metal defence As the Ukraine conflict exposes gaps in conventional deterrence, Nato’s eastern European members are displaying”concrete interest” in buying German heavy weaponry. “Ukraine has given defence a political shove,” said one company that supplies parts for the Munich-built Leopard tank. (FT)

Restoring ties Britain and Iran will take an important step towards re-establishing full diplomatic relations this weekend with the reopening of the British embassy in Tehran after a four-year gap. The move represents a significant milestone in Tehran’s return to the world diplomatic stage following the nuclear deal last month. (FT)

It’s getting hot in here July was the hottest month on earth since records began in 1880, averaging 16.6C. Scientists said that global climate change and the impact of El Nino are behind the record temperatures, and will cause 2015 to be the hottest year on record. (BBC)

Dementia levels stabilising Contrary to predictions that the number of dementia cases would soar, the proportion of people living with the condition in the UK has fallen, according to a new University of Cambridge study. Improvements in health and education might be behind the drop, scientists said. (BBC)

It’s a big day for

The Korean peninsula, where tensions are high after militaries on both sides of the North-South border exchanged fire late on Thursday. (FT)

Women in the armed services In a hugely symbolic milestone for females in the military, two women will graduate for the first time from the Ranger training school – the most demanding training programme in the US army. (WaPo)

Food for thought

Philanderer, critic, journalist, spy A trove of newly declassified documents have revealed Cedric Belfrage – one of wartime Britain’s most prominent personalities – as a Soviet spy. The official papers characterise the prolific author as a “sixth man” to stand alongside the notorious Cambridge Five spy ring that infiltrated British intelligence at the behest of the Soviet Union. (FT)

The history of life on earth, in eight minutes Astrophysicist – and nerd king – Neil deGrasse Tyson takes you on a video tour of the genesis of the universe. The story begins 13.7bn years ago, when the entirety of the cosmos was contained in a volume less than one-trillionth the size of a point of a pin. (Slate)

The taxman cometh UK authorities are vowing a crackdown on tax dodgers to prove the system does not favour the rich and famous. (FT)

Three-day weekends Employees of the Japanese clothing chain Uniqlo will shortly be given an option the rest of us can only dream about: a three-day weekend in exchange for a 10-hour workday. The company is hoping the move will help it retain full-time talent. (Bloomberg)

Sky pool Londoners may soon have the chance to swim through the sky, with the development of a suspended pool that links one apartment block to another. Designed by aquarium architects, the pool will be 25m long and completely transparent, so swimmers cantake in the sights while enjoying a dip. (Quartz)

Video of the day

Germany says EU must share migrants FT’s Jeevan Vasager reports from Berlin, which expects Germany to receive a record 800,000 asylum seekers this year, more than the entire EU in 2014, laying bare the scale of the continent’s biggest refugee crisis in 60 years. (FT)

This article is published in collaboration with The Financial Times. Publication does not imply endorsement of views by the World Economic Forum. 

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Author: FirstFT is the Financial Times’ editors curated free daily email of the top global stories from the FT and the best of the rest of the web.

Image: A European Union flag (L) flutters next to a Greek flag on the facade of the Bank of Greece headquarters in Athens April 14, 2015. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis.