We saved £6,000 on holidays by swapping homes with strangers

The main home-swap listings platforms vet their members and invite them to review one another.

But the Association of British Insurers advises hosts to check that their home and contents insurance provides the cover they need before hosting guests.

It also says it is worth checking your travel insurance before staying in someone else's home to check it covers accidental damage.

Petra Novak, who uses the home swap site Kindred, says the platform's own damage protection policy has covered her on the few occasions something was damaged in her


Motherhood not all warm and fuzzy: Bollywood actor's play spotlights messier side

So, the play is the story of Kalki and the actors on stage, but it is also the story of a majority of Indian women for whom childcare is primarily their responsibility, all the heavy-lifting they are expected to do and how the endless hours they devote to rearing the young is taken for granted.

In a scene that a majority of mothers would see their lives reflected in shows a young couple discuss how their day went when the man returns from work. He's weary, but at least has


How an app in South Korea will let victims track their stalkers

A newly launched government app will now allow victims in South Korea to electronically track the location of their stalkers in real time.

Officials say they hope the app will help ensure stronger protection for stalking victims, but some experts question whether it will actually improve safety.

Yuri Jung's name was changed and her voice adjusted to protect her identity.


Palestinians mourn Gaza World Cup screenings organiser killed in Israeli strike

The initiative aimed to offer families, particularly children, a brief escape from the realities of war.

Egypt's matches attracted large crowds, reflecting the long-standing popularity of the team among many Palestinians in Gaza who have long shared cultural, emotional and political ties with their neighbours.

Videos of children and families gathering around giant screens among destroyed buildings spread widely online, offering rare scenes of celebration amid the conflict.

Al-Wahidi was killed only hours before one of those screenings, Egypt's last 16 match


Ukrainian agent accused of murdering Monaco bomb suspect changes story

In his revised version, he claimed that the two men had driven in his BMW to pick up Berezovska on the highway to Kyiv because she "needed to be hidden" in connection with "a criminal matter".

He doesn't clarify what that was.

On the way, Reut says Zhykovych produced a modified Makarov pistol from his rucksack and loaded it. When he protested, he says Zhykovych claimed it was just a precaution "in case she panics".

After collecting Berezovska he says he was directed to drive


What's next for Iran after the funeral of their late supreme leader?

After a week of mass funeral processions, rallies and mourning ceremonies in Iran, the assassinated former supreme leader has been buried .

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed at the start of the US-Israeli war, but his funeral was delayed because of the ongoing conflict that saw senior iranian figured targeted and killed.

He was succeeded as supreme leader by his son Mojtaba, who has not been seen in public since he was reportedly wounded in the same attack.

The BBC's chief international correspondent, Lyse Doucet, looks at how


Greek F-16 fighter jet crash-lands at busy Zakynthos airport

A Hellenic Air Force F-16 fighter jet has crash-landed at Zakynthos airport, closing one of Greece's busiest summer holiday terminals.

The aircraft - which was on a training flight - landed at about 13:45 local time (10:45 GMT) on Thursday after developing a technical fault, the air force said.

It added that the pilot was "in good health" and that the cause of the incident was being investigated.

Greek media reported that the aircraft had received


Ex-Olympian pleads not guilty to Reflecting Pool vandalism charges

Former US Olympian David 'Davey' Hearn has pleaded not guilty to vandalising the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool at a court appearance in Washington DC.

Hearn is accused of causing $1,000 (£750) of damages to the pool. He faces a felony charge of destruction of property.

President Donald Trump has blamed vandals for damage to newly applied coating on the bottom of the pool. Hearn was detained last month after touching some of the material, and told BBC News at the time it had


Ukraine strikes Russian ships near Crimea, escalating attacks on fuel supplies

The "Military Informant" Telegram channel complained that the defenseless manner in which the tankers had travelled had become in effect a shooting gallery for Ukrainian drone operators, with no cover from a Black Sea Fleet, which could nowadays barely defend itself.

Mikhail Zvinchuk, author of the Telegram channel "Rybar" pointed out that the Black Sea Fleet had "now shut itself in at Novorossiysk".

These strikes will come as painful blow given declining oil refining capacity and fuel shortages, in Crimea especially.

In late June, Vladimir Putin


Big drop in oil, gas and cargo ships crossing Strait of Hormuz after new strikes

Throughout its negotiations with the US, Iran has insisted it has the right to control movement through the strait and introduce fees for ships to pass.

The US and its Gulf allies, as well as governments in Europe and Asia, oppose this and say passage through the strait must return to being free and open as it was before the conflict began.

After the deal to end the war, the Iranian government set out a system of lanes through the north of the waterway close to the Iranian coast, which it said all