Thirty-nine people taken near Magamin Diddi village in Maradun municipality, north-west Zamfara state, police say

Armed bandits in north-west Nigeria abducted dozens of villagers whom they invited to a meeting about potential peace negotiations, authorities and residents said on Monday, highlighting the region’s worsening security.

According to local police, 39 people were seized on Sunday during a meeting in the forest near Magamin Diddi village in the Maradun municipality of north-west Zamfara state. But some residents and officials believe the number of those abducted could be as high as 50.

Fire in Bermondsey sends huge plumes rising high over the city and disrupts train travel in the area

Fifteen fire engines and about 100 firefighters have been called to tackle a major fire at a recycling centre in south London.

Fire control officers were first called just after 5.30pm on Monday to the centre on Landmann Way in Bermondsey.

This live blog is now closed. For the latest, read more of our coverage on the Middle East conflict here.

Iranian media is reporting that there were no immediate casualties following apparent Israeli strikes on the Karun petrochemical plant in Mahshahr, a city in Iran’s southwestern Khuzestan province.

According to the Fars news agency, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they responded to what they described as an American-Israeli strike on the Iranian petrochemical site by launching a missile attack on a similar plant in the northern Israeli city of Haifa.