Category: World

Kroy “KJ” Jr., the 15-year-old son of “Real Housewives of Atlanta” alums Kim Zolciak and Kroy Biermann, has been arrested for serious sexual assault charges.

He was taken into custody Monday for aggravated sodomy (a forceful sex act involving the mouth or anus) and aggravated sexual battery, Page Six can confirm.

The teen is being held without bond and a hearing is scheduled for Sept. 1.

According to papers filed in Fulton County Juvenile Court and obtained by Page Six Friday, a female classmate accused KJ of assaulting her in the Life Time fitness center in Alpharetta, Georgia, on April 23.

The girl claimed to officials that, while in a co-ed sauna, KJ allegedly forced himself on her despite her saying no, with the boy allegedly attempting “multiple times to have sexual intercourse with her by trying to pull down her pants,” per the court docs.

Additionally, she accused KJ of forcing oral sex and digitally penetrating her vagina, per the court docs, and alleged that when she “finally managed to get away from him … he pulled up his pants and left.”

Per the court docs, KJ did not scan into the gym on the day in question but was visible in security camera footage.

The girl claims she did not tell anyone about the alleged assault, the docs also state, before going to school the next day, where she “ran into KJ’s girlfriend.”

The alleged victim — who was 15 at the time of the alleged assault and described herself as “KJ’s girlfriend’s best friend” — subsequently left school for a Starbucks, the court docs state, and contacted her family after experiencing a panic attack.

She was ultimately examined at the North Fulton hospital in Georgia. The April 24 examination, per the police report, showed no evidence of male DNA in her mouth or vagina.

Police have since launched an investigation. They made their first attempt to contact KJ’s father on May 14 — and spoke to Biermann, 40, four days later. The retired NFL player said that he would have a conversation with Zolciak about whether cops could speak to their son.

KJ’s lawyer, Jason Sheffield, claimed in a statement to Page Six Friday that his client is “100% innocent” and that he “tried to present evidence to the arresting officer, including a passed polygraph by a notable and respected sex offender polygrapher,” and claimed he has “evidence of other prior false allegations by the alleged victim.”

“Additionally, the officer’s report notes [that investigators] found no male DNA on or inside the areas the alleged victim claimed she was assaulted. The fact that he’s been arrested and is being held without bond is a tragedy,” Sheffield continued.

“He is not only presumed innocent, but is, in fact, innocent. I’m asking the public not to presume the truth of these allegations and to give the families on both sides their space and privacy,” his statement concluded.

Zolciak also slammed the “reckless” and “deeply troubling” allegations against her son in an exclusive statement to Page Six Friday.

“The allegations being made against my son are nothing short of reckless and deeply troubling. He categorically denies ever being involved with this woman or engaging in the conduct she has alleged,” the statement began.

“My son voluntarily took a polygraph examination regarding these allegations and passed,” Zolciak claimed. “Additionally, an examination was conducted, and no DNA belonging to my son was found. We are also aware that this individual has made similar allegations involving two other people, which raises serious concerns that deserve to be carefully examined.”

Zolciak continued that “false accusations” can have “devastating consequences” affecting both the person being accused and “genuine survivors” of sexual assault and abuse.

“Every legitimate allegation deserves to be taken seriously and investigated based on the facts and evidence. At the same time, no one should be publicly condemned based solely on an accusation,” she concluded the statement. “We remain confident that the facts and evidence will establish the truth, and we ask that people allow the proper process to take its course rather than spreading unproven allegations.”

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/08/21/celebrity-news/kim-zolciaks-15-year-old-son-kj-biermann-arrested-for-sodomy-and-sexual-battery/

Prince Harry and six other public figures face paying up to £34.5m to the publisher of the Daily Mail after a High Court judge imposed an exceptional order for legal costs over their failed privacy case.

The seven claimants, also including Sir Elton John and Liz Hurley, must pay an initial £9.54m by Friday of next week to Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL).

The judge ruled that the case was a rare one in which the claimants should have to pay far in excess of the costs that had been agreed before trial, criticising how they presented their claims as “unreasonable to a high degree”.

On 7 July, Judge Mr Justice Nicklin dismissed the claims of unlawful information-gathering, which ANL denied.

The Duke of Sussex and the other six claimants have until 2 October to attempt to launch an appeal.

Those other claimants are Sir Elton John and his husband David Furnish, former Liberal Democrat deputy leader Sir Simon Hughes, racial justice campaigner Baroness Lawrence, and actresses Sadie Frost and Liz Hurley,

They had insurance to cover up to £16.2m of Association Newspapers’ costs in the event of losing the case – but Friday’s ruling means the newspaper group could now try to recover up to the £34.5m that it said it had to spend to defend itself. This means the duke and others could face a bill of some £18m.

Justice Nicklin said: “I regard a claim for costs in excess of £34 million as, on its face, excessive and as giving rise to real concerns as to whether all of the costs now claimed by Associated were reasonably incurred and are reasonable in amount.”

But he added he had “decided not to impose a ceiling on Associated’s recoverable costs”, as it would “be too broad-brushed, would risk unfairness, and would be vulnerable to the charge that it was arbitrary”.

The judge also ruled that ANL’s costs should be determined on an indemnity basis, which is more favourable to the publisher in terms of the amount it can recover, aside from where orders had already been made.

He added it was “striking” that “not a single allegation of serious wrongdoing was voluntarily withdrawn” by the group of seven claimants.

He said: “That matters. Serious allegations of criminality or grave impropriety cannot properly be left hanging over individuals in that way.

“If a party no longer advances such an allegation, or no longer has a proper evidential basis for advancing it, the allegation should be withdrawn clearly and in terms.

“The claimants’ failure to do so was not ordinary forensic judgment. It was not a proper or disciplined way to deal with serious allegations. It was unreasonable to a high degree.”

In a statement released on Friday, the publisher called the ruling “a devastating critique of an attempt to destroy a newspaper and the reputations of its journalists, editors and executives”.

Friday’s decision comes just days after Prince Harry and Meghan announced their plan to return to the UK, with their children Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, enrolled to start school in September.

During the trial, dozens of people gave evidence including Prince Harry and the other claimants. The Duke of Sussex flew in from the US to attend court in person.

Many current and former Associated Newspapers journalists and executives gave evidence denying illegal activity.

Sir Simon Hughes told the BBC he was “disappointed” by the judgement.

“I am now taking the time necessary to consider both the substantive and the costs judgment and whether to pursue appeals against decisions in either judgment or both,” he added.

In a joint statement following the judge’s ruling last month, Prince Harry and Baroness Lawrence, who became a public figure after her son Stephen was murdered in 1993, said: “We came to court seeking justice and accountability. But we have received neither.”

“It is a complete and obvious whitewash, but sadly not altogether unexpected”, the pair added.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c04kwr9r1zlo

Hayden Panettiere was 16 when drugs first arrived in her life in Hollywood.

Ahead of a red carpet event for the hit series Heroes, she has said someone on her team handed her a pill to help amp up her energy. The hit sci-fi NBC series had catapulted the teen into a household name – and that brought with it intense pressure and exhaustion she says felt overwhelming.

“Within minutes, a wave of energy washed over me, like I’d just woken up from the most refreshing night’s sleep of my life,” Panettiere wrote about that pill in her memoir, which was released just months before her death.

She called it “the gateway drug that ushered me toward the good of pharmaceuticals and the downfall of addiction”.

The star’s sudden death at the age of 36 has placed a renewed focus on her struggles with mental health and substance abuse, and re-ignited a discussion about the pressures of Hollywood on child stars.

The coroner’s office in Greenville, South Carolina said crews treated a woman in “cardiac arrest” and her autopsy showed “no signs of trauma”.

No cause of death has been released, though additional tests are yet to be completed.

Audio from police dispatchers and crews who responded to the address said they were responding to a “cardiac arrest” and detailed their efforts to resuscitate the woman after a possible “overdose”. Panettiere’s ex boyfriend, Brian Hickerson – who has admitted to abusing her – and his brother Zack, were with Panettiere when emergency services came, according to a police report.

There is no suggestion of wrongdoing on their part, according to police.

It is not known if drugs or alcohol played a factor in her death, but the US Drug Enforcement Agency is joining an investigation into her death, according to US media reports.

Panettiere is one of many actors who has openly struggled with addiction after exposure to fame at an early age, which addiction experts told the BBC can put people at risk for mental health and substance abuse issues.

It can sometimes seem to the rest of the world that child actors have “everything” at their fingertips – like fame and money, said Lucas Trautman, the medical director of Oxford Treatment Center, an addiction treatment centre in Mississippi.

“But it’s important to remember that they were also exposed during a developmental time to many adult aspects of life that the rest of us weren’t – including traumatic experiences – and so that gives them unique risk factors for addiction,” Trautman said.

Panettiere’s death comes after she published a memoir where she discussed at length her issues with addiction, her postpartum depression and the loss of her 28-year-old brother.

Panettiere’s decision to publicly share her struggles is worthy of respect, said William Moyers, the vice-president of public affairs for Hazelden Betty Ford, the largest nonprofit addiction treatment provider in the US. But he said the constant public scrutiny she faced may not have allowed her room to address her mental health in private.

“Her entire life from the beginning was centred in the intense public spotlight, and this didn’t give Hayden much in the way of a respite,” said Moyers, who has been in recovery from an addiction since 1989.

Trautman – who has treated child stars – said they often have “adult access” to drugs and alcohol without adult protection.

“We aren’t equipped at a young age to be able to say no to it, to manage it, to correctly stay away from it altogether,” he said.

Other child stars have talked about being exposed to drugs at an early age, including Drew Barrymore, who went to rehab at 12, and Demi Lovato, a Disney Channel star.

“I got into a car accident and they prescribed me opiates. My mum didn’t think she would have to lock up the opiates from her 13-year-old daughter, but I was already drinking at that point,” the singer told podcast Call Her Daddy in 2022.

Actress Michelle Rodriguez, who once hosted the World Music Awards with Panettiere, said this week that the number of child actors who had passed away at a young age was strange.

“I just can’t stand how many young people are leaving us lately. It’s disheartening, and it’s making me think, ‘What’s going on?’ It’s not normal,” she told Variety.

Panettiere’s death comes just a year after the death of Michelle Trachtenberg and months after Daveigh Chase, two child stars who both struggled with drugs and alcohol.

In an essay she wrote after Panettiere’s death, former Disney star Christy Carlson Romano compared early fame to a traumatic brain disease.

“[W]e have almost no language for what happens when stress, scrutiny, rejection, adult pressure, and the collapse of privacy become the architecture of a childhood,” she wrote.

And when a child actor’s career changes or comes to an end, they are left without the dopamine of fame and money that came with their identity as an actor, cautioned Trautman.

“At the same time many of them self medicated… so their brain is still reliant on that, and it’s really really hard to stop using,” he said.

Many child stars also have professional relationships with their parents, which can blur boundaries and leave them vulnerable, Trautman said.

In her book and in the media, Panettiere has discussed the pressure her mother placed on her to excel as an actress from an early age. She appeared in her first commercial when she was just 11-months-old.

“You always want to think the best of your parents and see them in the brightest light,” the actress told the New York Times in May. “But there were a lot of things done with an approach that was not about my mental health or what was emotionally or mentally safe for me to do.”

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq56x3910jwo

Syria is weighing whether to join the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement between Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia, while Bangladesh has also expressed openness to joining a wider framework.

The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement between Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia could expand as Syria weighs whether to join the pact, while Bangladesh has said it is open to becoming part of a broader economic or defence framework involving the three countries.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani said Damascus was reviewing the possibility of joining the agreement but had not yet made a decision. Speaking during a state visit to Islamabad, al-Shaibani said Syria would decide on the issue later.

The agreement was signed by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in Mecca on August 7. The three countries formally committed to treating an armed attack against any one of them as an attack against all three.

Bangladesh has also expressed openness to joining the pact. Foreign Affairs Adviser Humayun Kabir said Dhaka maintains a positive approach towards the possibility of joining an economic or defence framework involving Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey, while taking into account Bangladesh’s own interests and changing global economic and trade dynamics.

A record-strength El Niño could intensify global warming and disrupt weather patterns, with India facing additional pressure on the monsoon and farm output

This year’s El Niño is on track to become the most powerful in over a century, with Pacific waters expected to heat up more than 3°C above normal — a level that would dwarf every El Niño event in the modern climate record and could push 2027 past 2024 as the hottest year ever recorded globally, Britain’s Met Office said on Friday.

In India, where El Niño is already depressing the monsoon, the implications stretch across two crop seasons, with the current one already facing uncertainty with the rains having stalled.

“We are expecting the biggest El Nino for over a century, peaking at something over three degrees — that is unheard of in modern climate records,” said Adam Scaife, head of long-range forecasting at the Met Office, telling the BBC that even a 2°C rise is considered a “really big event.” The 2015-16 El Niño — the current record-holder — peaked at a roughly 3°C anomaly.

El Niño forecast points to an unprecedented Pacific warming event

The Climate Brink dashboard, which aggregates forecast models using data from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, shows the event on course to peak at a 3.9°C anomaly this November — well above the 2015 benchmark. Pacific sea-surface temperatures are currently running about 2.6°C above the rolling 30-year average.

“We should be clear that this is an unprecedented event,” Scaife said in a Met Office blog, adding: “I have never seen an El Nino signal this intense in our forecasts.” If the forecast is accurate, 2026 “will far exceed our recent experience of El Nino and its worldwide climate influences,” said the physicist, who specialises in climate modelling. He cautioned: “These are not short-term weather forecasts. We’re talking about really long-term, persistent conditions here.”

2027 could overtake 2024 as the hottest year on record

El Niño is a naturally occurring climate pattern — a warming of sea-surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific that triggers cascading shifts in winds, atmospheric pressure and rainfall across the globe. Events typically occur every two to seven years, last nine to twelve months, and exert their strongest influence on global temperatures the year after onset — which is why 2027, not 2026, is the year most likely to set the record. Nick Dunstone, another Met Office scientist, said 2027 is “very likely to replace 2024 as the warmest year on record.” In 2024, global temperatures exceeded 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels — the limit set under international climate commitments.

India’s monsoon faces further pressure as El Niño strengthens

The Met Office said the event is already causing well below normal rainfall in India, and IMD projects the full season at 90% of the long-period average, its lowest in 11 years.

OP Sreejith, scientist and head of the climate monitoring and prediction group at IMD, said there is a high possibility 2027 beats 2024 as the warmest year on record globally. “For the Indian region, average temperature may not cross the 2024 record temperature. It will depend on the 2027 monsoon and ENSO conditions after the monsoon season then,” he said, adding India should still see strong heatwaves next year.

Impact could extend from this year’s Rabi crop into 2027

Raghu Murtugudde, emeritus professor at the University of Maryland and visiting professor at the Kotak School of Sustainability, IIT-Kanpur, said the impact on Indian agriculture could extend through both this year’s Rabi season and into 2027. “2023 and 2024 were fairly bad years too, due to El Nino. This year too, for India, the Rabi output may suffer and the government is already taking safeguards, like the action on edible oil and sugar. In 2027, for India, a lot will depend on how the monsoon performs, but spring next year may also bring a lot of heatwaves, which will again impact crops,” he said.

Source : https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/biggest-el-nino-in-over-a-century-to-dial-up-global-heat-india-braces-for-double-crop-hit-101787355622389.html

British commandos fast-roped from a helicopter on June 14 in the English Channel to intercept the sanctioned oil tanker Smyrtos, captained by Ajay Pant.

The Indian captain of an alleged Russian shadow fleet oil vessel seized by British commandos has been made a “scapegoat”, his wife told AFP, as her husband awaits trial.

Ajay Pant, 38, in custody in Britain, has been charged with sanctions offences carrying a maximum 10-year prison sentence, in a case that could set a legal precedent for merchant seafarers.

“My husband just became the scapegoat,” Ritu Pant, 36, told AFP in her first sit-down interview since her husband’s arrest in June. “He was at the wrong place at the wrong time.”

British commandos fast-roped from a helicopter on June 14 in the English Channel to intercept the sanctioned oil tanker Smyrtos, captained by Pant.

The tanker is allegedly part of Russia’s ghost fleet, a network of vessels with opaque ownership and insurance, used by Moscow to evade oil sanctions imposed after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

According to MarineTraffic, the Smyrtos sailed from the Russian port of Ust-Luga on June 5, passing through the Baltic Sea, with Egypt’s Port Said listed as its destination.

But as it crossed the Channel, commandos swooped.

Then-prime minister Keir Starmer hailed the mission — the first UK-led operation of its kind — as a “blow to Russia”.

Pant’s wife said he is the victim, and is struggling in custody after being denied bail.

“He was broken and he was just crying,” she said, struggling to hold back her own tears, recalling their first phone call after his arrest.

“He didn’t know what had happened to him… He just said, ‘I am in jail, please take me out’.”

‘Early Test’

The prosecution’s case is that Ajay Pant was the “master of the ship” and had “knowledge of the cargo”, which amounted to some 98,000 tonnes of oil.

In a court hearing, Pant’s lawyer said he was “simply following orders” as an employee of the vessel’s owner — an argument his wife reiterated.

“The master’s responsibility in any vessel is to just get the cargo safely to its destination,” she said.

Anwar Sadat, of the Indian Society of International Law, said the case raised “complex” legal questions.

Pant’s trial, scheduled to begin on December 15, could become a key test as European nations step up action against Russia’s shadow fleet.

It is believed to be the first case of a European country bringing sanctions-violation charges against the captain, rather than targeting the vessel or its owners.

“The case carries implications far beyond the fate of a single ship, its cargo or its master,” David Hammond, of Human Rights at Sea International, wrote in an analysis for Lloyd’s List Intelligence.

“It is likely to become an early test of how far Western governments are prepared to use criminal sanctions enforcement not only against shadow fleet operators, but also against the seafarers who work aboard their vessels.”

India’s foreign ministry said consular officials had visited Pant “to enquire about his wellbeing”.

Pant was the only sailor on board to have been charged, with most of the other 24 crew members since repatriated. The vessel remains anchored off England’s southern coast.

‘Stuck In The Middle’

The case has made seafarers fearful of being “stuck in the middle” of a tug-of-war between rival powers, said Steve Yandell, coordinator of the seafarers’ section of the International Transport Workers’ Federation.

“Seafarers will often not know that their ship might be carrying sanctioned oil, and that they’re potentially open to getting caught up in a geopolitical conflict,” he said.

With more than 320,000 seafarers, India makes up a major part of the global merchant shipping workforce.

“This was very alarming,” said Sanket Joshi, 40, a veteran Indian tanker captain.

It was “probably… the first time” a captain is arrested over “the commercial aspect” rather than safety issues, for example, he said.

For Pant’s family in the sleepy Himalayan foothill town of Ramnagar, his arrest has brought those fears sharply into focus.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/wife-of-indian-captain-ajay-pant-of-russian-ghost-fleet-arrested-in-uk-became-a-scapegoat-11938708?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

The MPs have urged the UN to help restore communications and essential supplies, end arbitrary arrests and ensure accountability for deaths and injuries.

More than 70 British parliamentarians have urged United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres to step up international engagement over the worsening situation in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), calling for an end to bloodshed, restoration of communications, humanitarian access and accountability over deaths and injuries.

In a letter dated August 21, Imran Hussain, Labour MP for Bradford East and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Kashmir, wrote to the UN Secretary-General along with fellow parliamentarians, expressing “deep concern” over what they described as a dangerous escalation in tensions in the region.

The parliamentarians cited reports of deaths and injuries, restrictions on communications, arbitrary arrests, disruption to essential supplies and curbs on peaceful civic and political expression. They also referred to concerns raised by British Kashmiris over the safety of relatives in the region.

MPs Seek Immediate Steps To Stop Violence

The letter calls on the UN and its relevant bodies to support efforts aimed at ending the violence and preventing further loss of life.

Among the measures sought by the parliamentarians are restoration and protection of access to communications and unrestricted movement of food, medicines and other essential supplies.

They have also called for an end to arbitrary arrests and for those detained to be guaranteed due process and access to legal representation.

The MPs further want independent human rights observers to be given appropriate access to the region, along with those capable of supporting peaceful mediation.

They have urged the immediate resumption of peaceful dialogue and sought “full and impartial accountability for deaths, injuries and any excessive use of force”.

Parliamentarians Cite Recent UN Intervention

The letter welcomes the recent attention given to developments in PoK by the United Nations.

It refers to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk’s call for calm, inclusive political dialogue, full internet access, respect for freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, as well as prompt and impartial investigations into deaths linked to the unrest.

The parliamentarians also noted a subsequent statement by the UN Secretary-General’s Deputy Spokesperson that those responsible must be held accountable where people had been harmed for participating in peaceful protests.

However, the MPs argued that such interventions were not enough on their own and that the situation now required sustained international engagement aimed at de-escalation, accountability and a peaceful way forward.

Appeal For Humanitarian Access, Political Dialogue

The parliamentarians have asked the UN to use its diplomatic mechanisms to help ease tensions and facilitate dialogue.

“Human rights can never be disputed or compromised. Lasting stability cannot be achieved through restrictions or confrontation,” the letter states.

It adds that any lasting settlement would require “meaningful dialogue in which the rights and legitimate concerns of the Kashmiri people are heard and respected”.

The MPs have also stressed that freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and political participation must be protected alongside any efforts to restore stability.

MPs Raise Wider Kashmir Issue

The letter goes beyond the immediate unrest in PoK and links the present crisis to the wider Kashmir dispute.

The parliamentarians referred to the UN’s longstanding involvement in Kashmir, including Security Council Resolution 47 and subsequent resolutions, and asked the Secretary-General to outline what further steps the Security Council and the wider UN system could take to encourage de-escalation and dialogue.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/more-than-70-british-mps-sound-alarm-over-pok-crisis-press-un-for-urgent-action-ws-l-10287208.html

Parents ‌of children abducted from Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state protested in Uba town on Thursday, demanding the federal government secure their release nearly 100 days after they were taken.
The children were seized from their ​classrooms on May 15 in Mussa, a community on the fringes of ​the Sambisa Forest, a long-time stronghold of Islamist militants.

The protest underscored ⁠families’ frustration as kidnappings persist despite years of military operations against Boko Haram and ​its Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) offshoot in northeastern Nigeria. While the insurgency has ​weakened since its peak, both groups continue to stage attacks on civilians, schools and security forces across Borno and neighbouring states.

The abduction was followed by another attack in nearby Lassa on June 29, where 36 ​students and a teacher also remain captive. Last month, authorities secured the release of ​schoolchildren abducted by gunmen from schools in southwest Oyo state after nearly two months in captivity.

‘WE WORRY EVERY ‌DAY’

A ⁠police spokesperson said the military is “on top of the situation” but declined further comment, directing enquiries to the military. A spokesperson for the military did not respond to requests for comment.
“We still have not seen them,” said Chinda Buba, whose child was ​among those abducted. “We do ​not know where ⁠our children are. We don’t know whether they are healthy or going through difficult conditions.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/families-protest-nigeria-over-children-abducted-nearly-100-days-ago-2026-08-21/

An 18-year-old man armed with a sword attacked students at ​a Swedish high school on Friday, killing one person and injuring three, and police shot and detained him as media reported the ‌attacker was a former student at the school.
The incident occurred on Friday afternoon at the Brinell high school in the central Swedish town of Fagersta, which has about 13,000 residents. The school had just reopened after summer recess, and for some students, it was their first day.

Police told a press conference that the suspect was an 18-year-old man whom they shot and took ​into custody on suspicion of murder.
Local police chief Tommy Alriksson said officers responded quickly to the school, which has 450 students ages 16 to ​20.
“The first patrol entered and let us know that the perpetrator was subdued with gunfire,” he said.
Public broadcaster SVT, ⁠citing unnamed sources, reported the attacker, wearing a helmet and carrying a sword, was a former student at the school with a previous conviction for ​assault.
The local health authority said two victims were teenage boys who were severely injured. A third injured person was released from hospital.

‘FIRST IT WAS JUST ​A REGULAR DAY’

“First it was just a regular day really. But then … I saw a guy all covered in blood, at least down his back anyway. Then I saw the police and they flooded in,” one Brinell student, Nellie, told Reuters alongside her mother Agnes Strandberg after a five-hour lockdown at the school.
Another student, Abdulrahem Salmo, said he ​had seen a victim with a bloody stab wound in the arm.
“Then people called the police and we just all ran from there because ​we were afraid,” he told SVT.
Several other schools and public buildings in Fagersta were also initially locked down.

Fagersta Mayor Asa-Marta Sjostrom said the small town was shaken.
“Our and ‌the school’s ⁠main focus right now is to take care of our students and our employees,” she told reporters. “We are working together … to create safety and provide support to those who need it.”

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson cancelled a speech he was due to hold on Saturday, news agency TT reported.
“Our thoughts are with all those affected,” he wrote in a post on social media platform X.
Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf said in the statement released by the ​royal household that he received news of ​the attack “with dismay and sadness.”
Social ⁠Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson, whose centre-left coalition leads opinion polls for next month’s parliamentary election, said: “All of Sweden stands together with Fagersta at this difficult time.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/several-people-injured-sword-attack-swedish-school-municipality-says-2026-08-21/

The United States and Iran exchanged defiant messages ahead ​of Monday’s scheduled announcement of new U.S. economic sanctions that could impact the Islamic Republic and Tehran’s most important trading partners including China.
As the ‌war neared six months old, the two sides were not exchanging fire but also not pursuing peace talks. All the while, oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have virtually halted as Tehran clings to its leverage by threatening to strike any unauthorized oil tankers that attempt to transit the narrow waterway.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will hold a press conference at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT) on Monday amid ​promises to reveal “the toughest sanctions in history” on Iran while also urging China to cooperate with Washington. China buys more than 80% of Iran’s shipped ​oil, according to 2025 data from analytics firm Kpler. Beijing urged diplomacy.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Saturday that the imminent U.S. announcement of ⁠new economic sanctions on Iran was an “assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent member state of the United Nations.”
“Such secondary sanctions find no foundation in ​international law,” he said in a post on X.

U.S. President Donald Trump, who has warned of economic consequences against any country that provides “any type of lifeline ​to Iran,” said on Friday that Washington was observing “what happens” in the conflict.
“They would love to make a deal, but they’re not ready to make the right deal, in my opinion,” Trump said of Iran.

HORMUZ TRAFFIC HALTED

While the U.S. has effectively blockaded Iranian vessels in their ports, the Strait of Hormuz remained bottled up with thousands of seafarers ​stranded on hundreds of vessels. Only four commodity ships sailed along the strait on Thursday, none of them large crude carriers or liquefied natural gas tankers, ​ship-tracking data showed.
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the U.S. military helped move a seven-day average of 8 million barrels a day of oil through the strait. That’s down from ‌more than ⁠20 million per day before the war or about one of every five barrels consumed worldwide.

U.S. attacks have severely diminished Iran’s economy and devastated its navy and air force, but Tehran maintains enough missile and drone capability to impede oil tanker traffic and attack regional rivals.
Trump, meanwhile, has yet to achieve objectives he set at the start of the war such as dismantling Iran’s nuclear programme – the state of which remains uncertain given that U.N. inspectors have been shut out ​since 2025 – and creating conditions for ​Iranians to overthrow their clerical rulers.
Thousands ⁠have been killed, including 168 Iranian school children on the first day of the war. The U.S. has reported more than 750 military personnel wounded and 18 killed.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-iran-keep-up-hostile-rhetoric-ahead-new-sanctions-2026-08-22/

A U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon aircraft transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace on ​Friday, in a move the U.S. 7th Fleet said “demonstrates ‌the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific”.
The Chinese military tracked and monitored the patrol and reconnaissance aircraft throughout the transit, the ​state-backed Global Times newspaper reported, citing a military source, saying ​the “situation was under control”.

U.S. military ships or aircraft every ⁠few months pass through or above the waterway that separates ​democratically governed Taiwan from China — missions that anger Beijing.
Chinese President ​Xi Jinping is expected to visit the United States next month to meet President Donald Trump as Washington and Beijing look to stabilise ties marred by issues ​including Taiwan, trade disputes and technology curbs.
“By operating within the ​Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational ‌rights ⁠and freedoms of all nations,” the 7th Fleet said in a statement.
“The aircraft’s transit of the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. The United States ​military flies, sails, ​and operates ⁠anywhere international law allows.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/china/us-navy-aircraft-transited-taiwan-strait-it-says-2026-08-22/

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday allowed President Donald Trump’s administration to continue construction of his White House ballroom project for now, temporarily pausing a judicial order that ​would halt much of the development.
The court’s action, known as an administrative stay, gives the justices additional time to consider the administration’s formal request to ‌let it continue working on the $400 million ballroom while a lawsuit by a historic preservation group seeking to stop the project proceeds.

The stay was issued by Chief Justice John Roberts, who handles emergency cases arising in Washington, D.C.
In an August 14 filing to the Supreme Court, Justice Department lawyers echoed Trump’s contention that the project is a security necessity, citing assassination attempts against the president and other recent threats.
“This case involves an ​extraordinary and unlawful injunction that will halt the ongoing construction of the integrated military complex, including a totally secure ballroom space, at the East Wing of the White ​House, which is vitally required by national security,” they wrote.

Trump welcomed the court’s action on Friday.
“We are grateful for the Decision of the ⁠United States Supreme Court,” Trump wrote in a social media post. “The Military/Ballroom Complex being built on the hallowed grounds of the White House, which is so vital for National Security, will ​be THE GREATEST OF ITS KIND!”
The nonprofit National Trust for Historic Preservation sued last year after the administration tore down, opens new tab the White House East Wing and began building a 90,000-square-foot (8,360-square-meter) ballroom without ​seeking specific approval from Congress.
After the Supreme Court acted on Friday, a spokesperson for the National Trust for Historic Preservation said, “To be clear, this is not a final decision on the merits of the government’s stay application, and we await further action.”

The project combines the above-ground ballroom with an extensive underground complex. Trump has said the project includes bomb shelters, medical facilities, shielding from drones and missiles and other security features that ​are “all tied together as one big, expensive and very complex unit.”
On August 7, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in a 2-1 ruling upheld U.S. District ​Judge Richard Leon’s order directing the administration to halt above-ground construction. The order had been set to take effect on Friday.

‘A TEMPORARY TENANT’

“Each President is a temporary tenant, not the owner, of the White House,” ‌and cannot ⁠fundamentally reshape it without congressional approval, the D.C. Circuit’s ruling stated.
The district judge’s order did not permanently bar construction of a ballroom. It blocked above-ground efforts while allowing below-ground construction to continue, as well as work deemed “strictly necessary” for the safety and security of the White House. In its ruling, the D.C. Circuit said national security arguments “are not an automatic get-out-of-law-free card.”

The Justice Department said in its August 14 filing that the overall East Wing project — including both the underground facilities and the above-ground ballroom — is 65% complete.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/supreme-court-lets-trump-continue-work-white-house-ballroom-now-2026-08-21/

Delusional Prince Harry and Meghan Markle sought US political clout far beyond the dreams of any British royal since King George III, The Post has learned, with the Duchess of Sussex angling to take over the Senate seat held by Kamala Harris ahead of the 2020 presidential election.

Weeks before Democrat Joe Biden’s win over President Donald Trump, a source says, Markle requested a sit-down with California Gov. Gavin Newsom because she “wanted to be considered to be appointed” to the seat held by Harris, which she vacated just before becoming vice president on Jan. 20, 2021.

The source added that the discussion was publicly described as a welcome-to-California chat to head off potential inquiries.

It is unclear just how far Markle’s appeal got with Newsom, who appointed California Secretary of State Alex Padilla to replace Harris two days before her swearing-in as Biden’s second-in-command.

Padilla subsequently won election to a full six-year term in 2022.

A Sussex source firmly denied that Markle wanted to take over the Harris seat, while a rep for Newsom did not respond to a request for comment.

A memorandum from Newsom’s office that surfaced in February 2021 confirmed the governor had an “introductory meeting” with the royal couple on Oct. 19, 2020, though the specific topics discussed were not disclosed and the Democrat’s team characterized it as a social occasion.

It was not immediately clear whether Markle asked to meet with Newsom separately post-election.

Had the Duchess of Sussex been appointed to the world’s greatest deliberative body, the move likely would have been challenged on constitutional grounds. Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 of the founding document states that “no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust … shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.”

A British royal serving in the Senate, even a non-working one, would also have flown in the face of America’s republican tradition, as Alexander Hamilton — the founder of The Post — wrote in “The Federalist Papers” that “the importance of the prohibition of titles of nobility … [is] the corner-stone of republican government; for so long as they are excluded, there can never be serious danger that the government will be any other than that of the people.”

The ill-fated Senate maneuvering wasn’t the only time Harry and Meghan dipped their toes into US politics while trying to achieve the same prominence they enjoyed in the UK.

In late 2021, the couple requested an Oval Office meeting with Biden, as well as accommodations at nearby Blair House — a perk reserved for foreign leaders on state visits, multiple sources say.

White House staff quickly rejected the idea, with one source noting the spectacle of Harry and Meghan sitting down with the leader of the free world “would have caused a major diplomatic kerfuffle” with 10 Downing Street and the British Royal Family.

Another source, a former Biden aide, said the president and first lady Jill Biden — longstanding admirers of Queen Elizabeth II — “didn’t want to get into a family squabble” by hosting the rogue royals.

Had their pitch been successful, Harry and Meghan would have gained immeasurable prestige and stature at a time when they were struggling to find their identity following their January 2020 “Megxit” from royal duties.

To that end, the couple hired several consultants who had worked in the Barack Obama White House — including Harry’s current chief of staff Miranda Barbot — and acted as a bridge to the Biden administration, relaying the royal couple’s audacious request to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Then-White House press secretary Jen Psaki, Obama’s former communications director, was one of those conduits. In her 2024 memoir “Say More,” Psaki — currently a host on left-wing cable channel MS NOW — recalled that Meghan once sent a box of lemons to Psaki’s Virginia home so she could carry them past White House security and deliver them to Jill Biden’s East Wing office.

Source : https://nypost.com/2026/08/20/us-news/true-scale-of-meghan-and-harrys-us-political-plans-revealed-from-request-for-biden-oval-office-meeting-to-eyeing-senate-seat/

Morgan Stanley has picked Dallas for a major expansion of its banking empire outside New York City — accelerating Wall Street’s migration to Texas following the election of Mayor Zohran Mamdani, The Post has learned.

The financial giant plans to relocate up to 4,800 jobs to the state by 2031, passing over Alpharetta, Georgia, according to municipal filings reviewed by The Post. The firm will anchor a new $1.3 billion, 709,000-square-foot skyscraper in the fast-growing Texas metropolis known to financiers as “Y’all Street”.

The Wall Street behemoth led by CEO Ted Pick — which began exploring options outside the Big Apple earlier this year following the election of the Big Apple’s socialist mayor — had been weighing the new regional hub against Alpharetta, where it already has 3,000 employees.

But in June, the Dallas City Council approved incentives including an $18.5 million grant tied to specific hiring benchmarks and a 10-year, 90% property tax abatement — and Morgan Stanley has since plowed ahead with the project, public filings show.

The city’s 15-member Plan Commission quietly rubber-stamped final approval on Aug. 6 for the bank to mount 366.3-square-foot illuminated exterior signs on the Fountain Place tower downtown, following a preliminary sign committee vote in July, filings show. They clearly list the bank as a tenant.

Demolition crews also began clearing a former Gold’s Gym on McKinney Avenue last week to make way for the permanent skyscraper.

“This is the latest in what should be a wake-up call for City Hall,” said Steve Fulop, CEO of the pro-business Partnership for NYC.

“Apollo, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan have all highlighted Texas as a major hub in just the last few months, with thousands of jobs headed there,” Fulop added. “Texas is playing the long game and rolling out the red carpet for jobs, while New York keeps upgrading the tax calculator. The contrast is pretty clear.“

Morgan Stanley and City Hall did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson declined to comment.

Morgan Stanley will execute the move in two phases. The bank will first occupy 255,000 square feet at Fountain Place on 1445 Ross Ave. in downtown Dallas, where contractors will complete a $97 million interior renovation.

Workers will eventually move to the $1.3 billion skyscraper to be located at 2401 McKinney Ave.

The signage filings, submitted by Dallas land attorney Victoria Morris, propose installing illuminated, 366.3-square-foot attached signs featuring three-inch back-lit channel letters reading “Morgan Stanley.”

Construction in Dallas has begun even as state records lag. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation shows no new filings for the Fountain Place work or the Uptown tower.

Morgan Stanley has also published a slew of new job openings in the city on the professional networking platform LinkedIn.

Source : https://nypost.com/2026/08/20/business/morgan-stanley-picks-dallas-for-expansion-outside-nyc-wall-street-exodus-zohran-mamdani-election/

HAYDEN Panettiere’s on-off boyfriend Brian Hickerson has broken his silence on the actress’ sudden death from a suspected overdose.

The Nashville star died on Sunday afternoon at her South Carolina Airbnb, where she was staying with Brian and his brother Zach Hickerson.

An investigation is currently ongoing into what led to the 36-year-old’s death, and the Drug Enforcement Administration has joined the team.

Brian, 37, has spoken out for the first time since the incident through his attorney, Sloan Ellis, from the Ellis Hinton law firm.

“Hayden’s death remains under investigation, and it is important to allow that investigation to proceed,” Brian’s attorney told The U.S. Sun on Thursday.

“As has been publicly reported, police confirmed there were no signs of foul play.”

The statement concluded, “Out of respect for Hayden’s loved ones and the ongoing investigation, there will be no further comment at this time.”

Brian was spotted on Wednesday in Greenville, South Carolina, close to where Hayden died, wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a hoodie.

He’d been keeping a low profile since his brother discovered Hayden unconscious in a chair in the living room, where she was later declared dead, per a police report obtained by The U.S. Sun.

Police said that while Zach was very emotional upon the discovery, Brian apparently didn’t shed a tear until Hayden was officially declared dead.

Brian also told cops that the Remember the Titans star regularly took a “bag of medication.”

All eyes have since been on Brian’s family, as more questions surface about Hayden’s unexpected passing.

Hayden’s estranged mother, Lesley Vogel, slammed Brian in an interview with NBC News on Tuesday, saying, “This person in her life that we have been trying to get rid of for quite some time was with her at her death, and that was Brian Hickerson.”

It wasn’t a secret that Hayden and Brian had a tumultuous, years-long relationship since meeting in 2018.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/16871386/brian-hickerson-statement-hayden-panettiere-death/

South Korea’s annual military exercises with the US come to an abrupt end on Friday.

Ulchi Freedom Shield, which involves 18,000 South Korean troops and 11 other American ally nations, is being halted with only half of the scheduled programme complete – days after US President Donald Trump announced he had ordered the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” the drill.

This revelation by Trump, who called the exercise “inappropriate and hostile” towards North Korea and costly to the US, caught his allies by surprise.

Seoul’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun tried to paint the decision as one of mutual agreement, but admitted officials did not know of Trump’s intent to scale down the exercise in advance.

The move will also have rattled the likes of Taiwan and Japan, which have long relied on US security guarantees in the region.

Trump, who has also criticised Seoul for refusing to take part in action against Iran, has said he expects to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later this year.

And while South Korea has long been keen on Trump reaching out to Kim as a means of maintaining diplomacy, it would not have wanted it to come with demands for cash and military assistance in Iran.

The US-South Korea alliance

Seoul considers the annual exercises with the US core to the alliance and a demonstration of US commitment to defend it against Pyongyang.

Although it has traditionally been happy to scale down or suspend the exercises in order to lure North Korea to peace talks, Trump’s unilateral and sudden decision to pull his troops early has shaken South Korean confidence in the US as an ally, according to Jo Bee-yun, a Senior Research Fellow at the Atlantic Council.

There is a fear that Trump may go further and draw down the 27,000 US troops stationed in South Korea or even abandon the longstanding policy of denuclearising the North – all without consulting its ally.

The two Koreas are technically still at war since they did not sign a peace treaty after the Korean War. Reuniting with the South had always been a key, if increasingly unrealistic, part of the North’s ideology until Kim abandoned it in 2024.

Despite this, the threats against the South haven’t stopped. Days before the military exercise, North Korea launched ballistic missiles towards Japan and repeated a warning that it had the right to exercise its nuclear weapons should the country be threatened. More missiles were launched on Thursday.

A larger concern for South Korea this time is that the Trump administration no longer separates security and trade issues. Trump said he was unhappy with South Korea’s refusal to join him in his war in Iran but he also has been unhappy with it as a trading partner.

His administration has complained that the country’s $1bn (£734m) annual spending to host the US troops is not enough, that it is dragging its feet in investing the $350bn it has pledged, and that it is discriminating against US companies operating in the country.

Now that trade disputes are evolving into national security concerns, some have called for South Korea to reduce its reliance on the US.

Cheong Seong-chang, vice-president at the Sejong Institute think-tank and a proponent of South Korea developing its own nuclear weapons, says Seoul must maintain its alliance with the US but also “take steps to acquire its own nuclear deterrence”.

While the majority of its public supports a nuclear South Korea, the government has argued that acquiring the bomb is unnecessary and even harmful to the country’s network of alliances. Such thinking could shift if the US withdraws further from Asia.

Meanwhile, South Korea has been trying to make the best of Trump’s decision to end the drills early.

President Lee Jae Myung, who has sought to repair relations with the North, praised Trump in a post on X. “I believe [your social media post] was a bold decision that is the result of your deep consideration to achieve peace,” he wrote.

Lee pledged to increase his country’s defence spending and said he “fully agrees” with Trump’s view the country should be responsible for its security.

Since Trump’s first term, Seoul has seen his seemingly capricious approach to diplomacy as both a risk and an opportunity. With a mix of flattery and blind optimism, Seoul succeeded in setting up a first-ever meeting between a sitting US president and Kim Jong Un in 2018.

However, immediately after the meeting, Trump suddenly announced a suspension of joint military drills with South Korea.

He walked away from a second meeting in 2019 without an agreement when Kim refused to give up his entire nuclear facilities. Beyond the brief made-for-TV meeting at Panmunjom later the same year, the two leaders haven’t engaged in any substantial negotiation.

Kim Jong Un in a strong position

It was Seoul that bore the brunt of Pyongyang’s ire following these summits. North Korea demolished the South’s liaison office in its territory and later swore off all communication with them. It introduced a new law making sharing of South Korean films and TV shows punishable by death, and codified the right to use nuclear weapons in its constitution.

Meanwhile Trump has maintained that he enjoys a “great relationship” with Kim, telling reporters on Wednesday: “He likes me”.

But Kim’s powerful sister, Kim Yo Jong, said in a statement that she knew nothing about Trump’s claim her brother had contacted him recently, adding it “must be the only thing I am unaware of in our foreign policy”.

She also repeated the North’s position that it would never give up its nuclear weapons as they enhance the balance and stability of the region.

Kim Yo Jong also said the scaling down of the drills with South Korea “doesn’t merit (her country’s) interest nor comment”, nor change their “hostile and offensive nature,” she was quoted as saying in state media.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gj1vje8dxo

US VP’s remarks come after President Trump threatened “crushing economic measures” against Iran. The US president promised ‘Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale,’ but provided few details.

United States Vice President JD Vance said that economic pressure is Washington’s “most effective tool” against Iran but noted that it’s a “delicate dance.”

“The most effective tool that we have is the economic pressure we can apply to them. And this is a delicate dance, because we apply economic pressure to them, they’re going to try to apply economic pressure to us,” Vance said on the ‘Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show.’

“What has been true over the last couple of weeks is they have felt a lot more pressure than we have,” he added.

Vance acknowledged that oil prices remain elevated due to the Iran war, something consumers would notice at the pumps; however, he said that the Trump administration has been successful in keeping vessels moving in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.

“They are trying to close the Strait down, and if we can, you know, not even get it back to where it was before, but if we can get enough oil and gas out to give some Americans some, some ease at the pump, some ease on energy prices… Meanwhile, the Iranians are punished for shooting at commercial ships. That just applies a lot of economic pressure to them, and that changes their calculus for you know what kind of a deal they want to make,” the US Vice President said.

Applying that pressure, Vance said, is the best way to achieve the “final objective” — Iran not being able to rebuild its nuclear capacity.

Local reports indicate that insurgents completely surrounded the police facility, triggering an intense, prolonged gunfight with duty personnel before overrunning the post

Tensions have escalated sharply in Balochistan’s Pishin district following a high-stakes, targeted raid on the Saranan Police Station. Heavily armed militants stormed the complex, launching rocket-propelled grenades and detonating high explosives that caused extensive structural damage to the Saranan Bazaar installation. Local reports indicate that insurgents completely surrounded the police facility, triggering an intense, prolonged gunfight with duty personnel before overrunning the post.

Initial dispatches from the ground confirm multiple casualties as security personnel attempted to repel the assault. After disarming the remaining officers on site, the attackers seized weapons, official uniforms, and a police vehicle before making their escape along key transit routes.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/balochistan-escalation-insurgents-briefly-control-saranan-town-following-police-station-attack-exclusive-details-10285139.html

Sources close to the Pakistani establishment said Khan is out of jail after a “proper deal” and could be rehabilitated soon.

Pakistan’s jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan has been moved from jail to a hospital following an order by the country’s Supreme Court on medical grounds, fuelling speculation over a possible backchannel understanding with the country’s establishment and a gradual path towards his political rehabilitation.

Sources close to the Pakistani establishment told CNN-News18 on Thursday that Khan is effectively out of jail following a “proper deal” and could be rehabilitated soon.

His move from jail to a hospital is being seen as almost the same as being out of jail, the sources said, suggesting that the development could be part of a wider process aimed at bringing Khan back into the political system.

“This is a full process and rehabilitation will take place and he will reenforce the existing system,” the source said.

According to the sources, the Army and the establishment have realised that Khan remains a “major political force”. They believe there would be no harm in allowing him to come out and endorse the present system of governance.

Shehbaz Sharif’s party along with Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), would continue to be part of the political system, the source added.

‘Khan Must Soften Anti-Munir Stand’

Pakistan’s Field Marshal Asim Munir’s strategy, the sources said, is for everyone to work “together internally” as Pakistan focuses on its international role.

Sources close to Khan, meanwhile, said he will not leave Pakistan, adding that if he wanted to go abroad, he would have done so long ago.

“However, any meaningful relief beyond hospital treatment would require Khan and the PTI to drop their most aggressive statements against Munir,” it added.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/imran-khans-jail-relief-signals-possible-backchannel-understanding-with-establishment-sources-ws-l-10285135.html

UK, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Canada, and Norway have warned that the strategic expansion risks permanently destroying the viability of a two-state solution

A joint coalition of Western nations has issued a stern condemnation of the Israeli government’s decision to publish construction tenders for the contentious E1 West Bank settlement project.

In a unified statement, leaders from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, and Norway labelled the move “unacceptable”, warning that the strategic expansion risks permanently destroying the viability of a two-state solution.

Why the E1 Plan Sparks Global Alarm

The E1 corridor covers a strategic 12-square-kilometre area situated between East Jerusalem and the Israeli settlement of Ma’ale Adumim. International diplomats and human rights organisations have long identified the zone as a major flashpoint.

• Fragmenting the West Bank: Constructing settlements in E1 creates a continuous urban block connecting East Jerusalem to Ma’ale Adumim. This effectively severs the northern West Bank (Nablus and Ramallah) from the south (Bethlehem and Hebron), breaking the territorial contiguity essential for a future independent Palestinian state.
• Breach of International Law: The signatories reiterated that under established United Nations Security Council resolutions, all Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories are illegal.
• Timing and Escalation: The push comes during a period of heightened instability across the West Bank, marked by record levels of settler-related violence against civilians and severe economic curbs on Palestinian communities.

Direct Warning to Private Contractors

In an unusually direct commercial warning, the seven nations explicitly cautioned private corporations against participating in the bidding process.

Joint statement from the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway and Canada. pic.twitter.com/eoVzRYAwHV

— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) August 20, 2026

The joint statement urged businesses to stay away, highlighting the severe legal and reputational risks associated with bidding on the tenders. Participating firms risk becoming directly complicit in grave violations of international law and potential human rights abuses linked to territorial expansion.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/unacceptable-7-western-nations-unite-against-israels-e1-west-bank-settlement-push-10285142.html

A handful of billionaires and companies are driving corporate spending in U.S. midterm elections this year, and they aren’t the usual power brokers who have sat atop the political food chain in Washington in previous decades.
Crypto companies, artificial intelligence firms and online betting have emerged as the biggest industries shaping the 2026 midterm races, driving a record amount of business spending on congressional contests, according to campaign finance watchdogs and interviews with more than a dozen political ​strategists from both parties.

The new money surging into U.S. politics comes from a fresh class of billionaires hailing from industries that barely existed a generation ago, occupying territory traditionally held by Wall Street, along with the pharmaceutical, oil and media industries, strategists from both parties say.
As lawmakers across the country press for ‌more scrutiny and regulation of these industries, their founders are deploying their newfound wealth to win allies, shape rules and push back on those efforts.
U.S. companies have spent an unprecedented $517 million on the 2026 U.S. House and Senate races in the 15 months through the end of the first quarter, exceeding the record $461 million in corporate spending over two years for the 2024 elections, data compiled by corporate accountability nonprofit group Public Citizen shows.

And that’s before the blitz of campaign spending expected in the closing stretch of the November 3 elections, when Democrats hope to wrest control of both the House and Senate.
“The scale of corporate spending in this election cycle is unlike anything we’ve seen previously,” said Rick Claypool, research director at Public Citizen.
Critics argue the spending risks amplifying the influence of a small group of niche interests and allowing issues like crypto and AI regulation, data-center energy demands and online gambling oversight ​to crowd out more pocketbook issues like high gas prices and healthcare. Supporters say it gives emerging sectors a voice other corporate interests have long enjoyed.
“When corporate money can inundate the political discourse, there’s less room for talk about what people really care about,” Claypool said. “Instead, you have the situation that we have in Congress now where ​they are spending an inordinate amount of time discussing the niche regulatory policy problems related to crypto while people really just want cheaper groceries.”

Still, there are limits to what money can do. Polls show a majority of Americans feel there is too much money in politics and ⁠progressive Democratic Senate candidates like James Talarico in Texas and Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan have successfully built campaigns on the argument that wealthy donors and companies exert too much influence in Washington.

NO LIMITS

Together, crypto, tech and online gaming industry donations accounted for at least $294 million of the corporate spending on midterm races from January 1, 2025 through the first quarter, Public Citizen found.
In an ​approach pioneered by the crypto industry in the last election cycle, these industries have structured their campaign giving through a vast network of so-called super PACs, affiliate PACs — which get their money from the super PACs — and dark money nonprofits, which do not have to disclose who their donors are. Companies and founders often donate across those networks, as well as directly to specific candidates.
The groups can take unlimited sums but ​cannot give directly to or coordinate with candidates. Instead, they can pay for advertising, organize voter drives and sponsor campaign rallies.
Executives running those companies have directly spent millions more, such as the more than $90 million, SpaceX founder Elon Musk has already put toward the 2026 federal elections — with plans to spend far more by November. Google co-founder Sergey Brin also spent over $106 million in California fighting a proposed wealth tax among other state issues, federal and state filings show. Brin and Musk did not return requests for comment.
Meta, which operates Facebook and Instagram, has donated $65 million to four different super PACs to spend backing candidates from both parties on state races in California, Texas, Illinois and elsewhere. The company declined to comment for this article.
Counting all political spending, including donations from billionaires like Musk, labor groups and social causes, a record $11.6 billion is expected to be spent on political ads for the midterms, breaking ​the 2023-2024 cycle’s previous record of $11.2 billion, according to political advertising research firm AdImpact.

POLITICAL DISRUPTORS

Crypto companies Coinbase and Ripple, along with investor Andreessen Horowitz, spent heavily in 2024 through their Fairshake super PAC to help unseat longtime incumbent Democrat Sherrod Brown from his Senate seat in Ohio.
The crypto industry’s strategy was so effective that year that Public Citizen called its super PAC Fairshake a corporate Death Star that ​could “annihilate individual candidates.” Its playbook — which bucked tradition by refusing to align with solely one party — is being copied now by Big Tech, sports betting and other industries, Democratic and Republican strategists say.

Instead, the industry openly backed candidates that supported its policies — regardless of party — and spent millions to end the political careers of those who didn’t.
As then-chair of the Senate Banking Committee, Brown was one of the industry’s most ‌vocal critics in Congress, ⁠but strategists say he’s been quiet on crypto as he seeks a return to the Senate, even conciliatory. Campaign manager Patrick Eisenhauer said in a statement to Reuters that Brown “recognizes that cryptocurrency is part of America’s economy” and is keeping an open mind.
Fairshake started the year with a $193 million war chest, and has about $130 million left to spend, filings show. It was financed almost entirely by Coinbase and Ripple as well as California venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.
That firm’s co-founders Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen have each donated about $4 million of their personal funds so far this election cycle, most of which went to U.S. President Donald Trump’s MAGA Inc. super PAC, while their investment firm has given more than $81 million to mostly crypto and AI PACs, according to federal election records analyzed by Reuters. At least $23.8 million of that went to Fairshake. The firm and its co-founders declined to comment through a spokesman.
Ripple declined to comment. Coinbase did not respond to a request for comment.

AI ENTERS THE RACE

AI barely registered in the 2024 elections, but has already made its presence felt this time around.
Political groups backed by AI companies OpenAI and Anthropic — which want different types of regulatory oversight — or ​their executives spent more than $23 million on two competing Democrats in a staunchly liberal New ​York City district in June alone, according to campaign finance records.
“It was basically two ⁠AI groups having it out with each other and the candidates were secondary,” said Brendan Glavin, director at nonpartisan campaign finance watchdog OpenSecrets.
AI super PAC Leading the Future has raised $140 million for the midterms, a person familiar with the group’s funding said, thanks in part to substantial donations from OpenAI co-founder and president Greg Brockman and his wife Anna, along with Andreessen Horowitz.
OpenAI and the Brockmans declined to comment. The company has previously said, it doesn’t finance or direct Leading the Future’s activities and that Brockman, his wife and other employees are free to donate in a personal capacity. The couple ​has also separately donated $25 million to MAGA Inc., filings show.
“We want to be explicit: No outside political group speaks for OpenAI or represents our company’s views,” the company said in June.
Anthropic has donated at least $40 million in this election cycle through a dark money nonprofit called Public First Action, ​which has raised $100 million so far, according to a ⁠spokesman who declined to disclose the other donors. About half of its funds go toward elections through two aligned PACs, he said.
The company, which referred questions for this article to the group, is also linked to a super PAC called Public First that has raised an additional $3.9 million, of which $1 million came from Anthropic co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei, federal filings show. Anthropic additionally runs a small traditional PAC called AnthroPAC that takes donations from employees and can directly give to campaigns.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/legal/legalindustry/new-kingmakers-crypto-ai-betting-firms-fuel-record-spending-2026-midterms-2026-08-20/

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has warned militant Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank not to steal property owned by Palestinian ​Americans, describing such behavior as “a violation of God’s law”.
Huckabee, a Baptist minister and longtime supporter of Israel’s settlements, told Reuters in an interview ‌that settlers found to have taken part in a siege of homes in the West Bank village of Qusra, including one belonging to Palestinian American Loui Ridi, could be punished with U.S. sanctions.

Israeli settlers began encircling homes in Qusra on August 9, in what rights groups said was an attempt to seize privately owned Palestinian land. The case has drawn international condemnation.
Israel’s military has deployed dozens ​of troops to the area and has since pushed the settlers back from the homes. But they remain nearby and residents including Ridi say ​they fear the settlers will encroach on their properties again once those troops pull back.
Asked what message U.S. President Donald ⁠Trump’s administration had for settlers considering taking homes or land in the West Bank owned by Palestinian Americans, Huckabee, who last week denounced the perpetrators as “Israeli ​terrorists”, referred to Jewish and Christian scripture.

“I think the message is bigger than just even the Trump administration. It’s a message of basic civility and civilized behavior,” Huckabee ​told Reuters in Jerusalem.
“You don’t take something that doesn’t belong to you.”

‘THOU SHALT NOT STEAL’, HUCKABEE TELLS SETTLERS

U.S. officials have estimated that tens of thousands of Palestinian Americans live in the West Bank, many of them in a cluster of villages between Ramallah and Nablus, where Qusra lies.

Ridi, speaking to Reuters from his home in Qusra on Thursday, said he was in ​contact with Huckabee’s staff at the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem but that he continued to be harassed by Israeli settlers near his property.
Citing the Ten Commandments, ​Huckabee said: “Thou shalt not steal” and that people should neither take nor “covet” – or “desire” – what belongs to others.
“If someone owns the land and they own their house, then having someone come ‌and take ⁠it over and scare the family away from it, that’s a violation, not just of man’s law. That’s a violation of God’s law,” said Huckabee, a Republican former governor of the U.S. state of Arkansas.

Huckabee is the first evangelical Christian to serve as U.S. ambassador to Israel. He has long supported Israeli settlements in the West Bank and refers to the territory by its biblical name, Judea and Samaria, a term used by the Israeli government but not adopted by the U.S. ​government.
Offering a defense of settlements in general, ​he said he believed violent settlers ⁠were a minority who do not represent the wider settlement community, who he said “just want to raise their families in Judea and Samaria peacefully and with a level of security.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-envoy-huckabee-tells-israeli-settlers-not-take-palestinian-americans-land-2026-08-20/

U.S. Senate Democrats asked the Department of Agriculture late on Wednesday ‌to explain what caused the agency to vastly overstate beef export sales last month and what role department staff losses played in the mistake.
Six senators, led by Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat from Minnesota and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, sent a ​letter to USDA Deputy Under Secretary Michelle Bekkering seeking details about USDA’s data procedures amid growing concerns ​among farmers, grain merchants and investors about market-moving data produced by the agency.

In July, the ⁠USDA reported a nearly 500% jump in weekly U.S. beef export sales before revising the figure down by 90% a ​week later, calling it “an isolated processing issue.”
The beef export sales error was the latest of a series of questionable USDA reports amid ​concerns about data quality after staffing losses during the Trump administration’s reshaping of the federal government.
Last summer, analysts voiced concerns about agency data integrity after the USDA delayed a report and excluded findings that pointed to tariffs as a reason for a forecasted increase in the agricultural trade ​deficit.

And early this year, industry economists and farmers raised questions about the accuracy of USDA reports after the agency issued ​massive unexpected revisions to U.S. corn acreage. These revisions prompted USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, which releases acreage estimates, to launch an ‌internal review.
Traders ⁠and analysts had cast doubt on the beef export data because it included sales to some countries that were several times larger than those countries had ever purchased from the United States. The data error came as consumers grappled with soaring beef prices and as meat packers have shuttered beef plants amid the smallest U.S. cattle herd in decades.
The ​lawmakers sought information about what ​caused the error and measures ⁠being taken to prevent reporting problems in the future, according to the letter dated August 19, which was reviewed by Reuters.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/senate-democrats-question-usda-about-data-errors-staff-losses-2026-08-20/

Sinan Can Demir wanted to spend the last week of July burnishing his resume. Instead, he engaged in a battle of wits with an artificial-intelligence agent unleashed by a British government lab.
It ​started after Demir, a computer science student at the University of Texas at Dallas, stumbled across an attempt to sabotage a piece of open-source software on the code-sharing site GitHub. When he posted ‌a warning to the program’s page, two other users chimed in to insist nothing was amiss, sharing detailed explanations for why Demir had gotten it wrong.

Demir stood his ground and the sabotage attempt was thwarted. The 24-year-old native of Turkey figured he had caught a wily hacker red-handed. So he said he was shocked when Britain’s AI Security Institute (AISI) got in touch to tell him that he had actually been tangling with an autonomous artificial-intelligence agent that had run amok.
“I actually thought it was a human because it was clearly lying to me,” Demir ​told Reuters in a recent interview. “I didn’t think that an AI could be capable of lying to real developers.”
The AISI first revealed the interaction, between Demir and the AI agent in a truncated and redacted form on ​August 4, when it said that safety testing meant to gauge the risk posed by various models had gone awry. Demir’s identity and the details of his interaction with the ⁠AI agent, which Reuters corroborated through archived GitHub messages, and contemporaneous emails, are reported here for the first time.

Five cybersecurity and AI safety experts said Demir’s story was particularly disturbing because the kind of hack he discovered, called a supply-chain attack, ​can have far-reaching consequences. They also said the AI agent’s attempt to publicly discredit Demir by creating a multi-person conversation around him showed that AI models were able to mount sophisticated efforts to trick and cajole humans.
“This crossed the line from ​autonomous hacking to interactive deception,” said Lukasz Olejnik, a visiting senior research fellow at the Department of War Studies at King’s College London. Security expert Maxie Reynolds said she was struck by how strategic the AI had been in trying to trick the student.
“This is the future of social-engineering attacks,” she said.
The AISI, a research organization within the British government, referred Reuters to its report, which identified the rogue agent as having been powered by Anthropic’s Mythos 5 model. AISI declined further comment. Anthropic referred Reuters to a post on X, in which it ​noted that the testing had occurred “under ‘deliberately permissive conditions’ that are not representative of any of our production models” but declined further comment. GitHub said in an email that the fake personas identified by Reuters were suspended in line with its ​policies on deceptive behavior and hacking.

JOB HUNT LED TO MALWARE DISCOVERY

Demir, a soft-spoken junior from the Turkish city of Konya, said he had been frustrated after being turned down for more than 20 internships over the summer. So he turned to GitHub to build ‌up his coding ⁠portfolio.

The Microsoft (MSFT.O), owned site is a hub for open-source software, so-called because its source code is freely downloadable and auditable by anyone. Developers use GitHub to comment on one another’s projects, flag bugs, suggest changes — known as pull requests, or PRs — and work collaboratively on software updates. Some in the technology industry see a coder’s GitHub activity as a proxy for a potential recruit’s productivity. So when Demir spotted a set of software projects that might need help, he figured he could pitch in while boosting his profile.
That’s when things got weird.

Demir discovered that a user named miraholt31 was trying to sneak a malicious update into one of the projects, a network scanning program called myNetwork. Demir took to the project’s message board to warn ​that the pull request was a trap.
“The PR contains ​a hidden malware dropper,” he said, according to the ⁠archived exchange.
The agent pushed back, falsely claiming — through its miraholt31 account — that the pull request was harmless. It also created a second account, masquerading as Lena Brandt, an engineer based in Germany, to agree that the update was clean and pressure myNetwork’s maintainer into accepting it.
Demir told Reuters that the counterarguments “made me second-guess whether I was wrongly accusing someone.” But after ​turning to Anthropic’s Claude chatbot to confirm his suspicions, he held firm. The creator of myNetwork eventually agreed with him, writing that they had rejected the update “for security reasons.”
Reuters ​was unable to reach the ⁠creator for comment.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/how-texas-student-blew-whistle-rogue-ai-hacking-attempt-2026-08-20/

Turkey, Egypt and Qatar, which have been trying to mediate an end ​to the Gaza conflict, condemned recent Israeli strikes in ‌the Palestinian enclave, urging Israel to meet its ceasefire obligations and avoid steps that could escalate tension.
Their joint statement followed Israeli strikes that have killed at ​least 16 Palestinians in Gaza since Tuesday, according to ​medics; Israel says it is targeting Hamas militants. U.S. envoy ⁠Jared Kushner wrapped up a regional visit on Monday without advancing President ​Donald Trump’s plan to end the war.

“The intensification of Israeli attacks ​undermines regional and international efforts at a critical juncture, as intensive efforts are under way to implement the Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict,” ​they said.
The international community and Trump’s Board of Peace, which is ​overseeing the ceasefire, must take the necessary steps to ensure compliance and prevent ‌further ⁠escalation, they added.
A proposed roadmap envisaged Hamas giving up its weapons in phases as Israeli forces withdrew from Gaza and halted military operations. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected that sequencing, insisting ​that Hamas must ​fully disarm before ⁠an Israeli withdrawal.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turkey-egypt-qatar-condemn-israeli-attacks-gaza-call-israel-comply-with-2026-08-20/

Artificial intelligence promised to disrupt India’s IT industry and it is delivering.
Outsourcing giants like Tata Consultancy Services (TCS.NS), Infosys (INFY.NS), Wipro (WIPR.NS), HCLTech (HCLT.NS), and Cognizant (CTSH.O), are rejigging business models, increasingly tying fees ​to performance outcomes instead of hours worked, as clients demand steep price cuts and more productivity.

Industry executives also say they are losing some work entirely as customers use AI to shift tasks ‌in-house, while all the uncertainty that the new technology has brought is resulting in shorter contracts.

And where once the big IT companies won contracts because they could point to their huge employee base, that has become less and less of an advantage as AI automates more and more tasks — levelling the playing field for smaller rivals which have jumped at opportunities to snatch business.
“It’s a desperate market for the service providers. The odds are very much in favour of clients,” said Jimit Arora, CEO of research and advisory firm Everest ​Group.
Software companies globally have been battered by worries that AI will render key parts of their business obsolete, but India’s IT industry — worth $315 billion in annual revenue — is the most obvious victim with its traditional ​reliance on billable hours.

The Nifty IT index (.NIFTYIT), has tumbled by a fifth this year, with its 10 constituents losing a combined $73 billion in market value.

CONTRACTS SHIFT TO MEASURABLE OUTCOMES

These ⁠days, pricing for contracts is more likely to be dictated by performance outcomes.
TCS Chief Executive K Krithivasan told Reuters that about 80% of the company’s contracts within its finance, human resources and other business services segment are now ​based on outcome performance measures.
That number represents a doubling since AI went mainstream in late 2023, said a person with knowledge of the matter, who was not authorised to speak to media and declined to be identified. TCS did ​not respond to a request for comment.
Other examples in the industry include an AI and automation deal Cognizant (CTSH.O), struck with Daimler Truck (DTGGe.DE), in February. It stipulated AI-related cost savings would be split between the vendor and the client, according to people familiar with the terms.

“With AI, the fundamentals are shifting,” Cognizant said in a statement to Reuters, though it declined to comment on specific contracts. “Clients now expect more value and measurable outcomes, and we are re-forging our model for that reality.”
Daimler Truck did not respond to a request for ​comment.
A separate multiyear cloud management deal forged in June 2025 was structured so HCLTech will not be paid by German utility E.ON (EONGn.DE), for the first year, with payments from the second year tied to efficiency gains and specific ​business outcomes, according to two people familiar with the agreement.
E.ON declined to comment, while HCLTech did not respond to a request for comment.

CLIENTS WANT MORE BANG FOR THEIR BUCK

As AI drives productivity gains, clients have become increasingly vocal about getting more for ‌less.
Persistent Systems (PERS.NS), CEO ⁠Sandeep Kalra told Reuters that the IT provider’s clients were demanding the same work for 25% to 30% less while expecting faster delivery and higher productivity.

But on the plus side, AI is helping Persistent win larger deals than it would have previously.
“The demarcation of a scale player only by revenue is not necessarily a big thing today,” he said.
IT executives and analysts alike say competition from mid-sized firms has become brutally fierce.
Many customers now want rapid development of pilot programmes and smaller firms are winning mandates by deploying senior leaders quickly and offering flexible pricing, says Phil Fersht, CEO and chief analyst at HFS Research.
“Many Tier 2 firms have been more agile and hungry in this phase,” he said.
Both ​Persistent and Coforge (COFO.NS), opens new tab, another mid-sized IT services provider, have ​seen revenue in dollar terms grow by double digits ⁠for at least eight quarters in a row. In April-June, revenue for Persistent surged 16%, while Coforge’s sales jumped by a third.
In contrast, TCS, Infosys, Wipro and HCLTech had subdued growth of 1% to 3%.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/india/ai-reshapes-indias-it-services-sector-contracts-clients-demand-more-less-2026-08-20/

Beauty queen Chidimma Adetshina, who is facing deportation from South Africa, has reiterated that she was born in the country and believes she has been “treated unfairly and targeted”.

South African officials want her detained as they pursue her deportation after she was declared a prohibited person in 2024.

Adetshina, 25, whose mother has Mozambican roots and her father is Nigerian, was stripped of her identity documents after questions around her citizenship were raised when she took part in the 2024 Miss South Africa contest. She then left the country.

She was arrested in June this year – and later released on warning – after being accused of re-entering South Africa unlawfully.

On Wednesday, the government’s legal case seeking her detention was postponed until next year.

Speaking after a hearing in Cape Town, Adetshina said “there has been an attempt” by the South African authorities to make an example of her with this case.

“I remind everyone that I was born in South Africa. I have applied through the proper legal channels to have my status and citizenship determined,” she said.

The pageant contestant added that “we should not allow xenophobia and misinformation to determine how people are going to be treated”, seemingly a shot to protesters who had gathered outside the court calling for her deportation.

The protest was led by anti-migrant group March and March, which has been at the forefront of calls for undocumented migrants to leave South Africa, and many chased after her car as she left the courthouse.

Adetshina, a law student at the time, left South Africa in 2024 and went on to win Miss Universe Nigeria after she was invited to participate by the organisers.

In court, South Africa’s home affairs department argued that she applied for a South African visa while she was in Nigeria and Nigerian passports for her and her son therefore implying that she was not a South African citizen, according to reports in the News24 site.

Officials then said she returned to South Africa illegally via a Mozambican border post.

Adetshina has previously argued that her home was in South Africa.

Her case was postponed to February 2027 to allow for the finalisation of her review challenging home affairs’ decision to deport her. She remains a free woman until this has been completed.

Adetshina was stripped of her South African identity and travel documents in 2024 following allegations that her mother, Anabela Rungo, had committed identity fraud to gain South African nationality.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj364xxr5ngo

Australia’s foreign minister has said she is “outraged” over an Israeli military decision not to launch a criminal investigation into the death of aid worker Zomi Frankcom, who was killed in an air strike in Gaza.

Frankcom was an Australian aid worker with World Central Kitchen (WCK) who was killed with six other colleagues in an Israeli attack in April 2024.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in a statement the decision “falls far short of the accountability we expect” and summoned the Israeli ambassador.

After meeting Wong, Ambassador Hillel Newman defended the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and its investigation, saying “there was no criminal intention” and therefore “no criminal responsibility”.

Three British nationals, a Palestinian, a Polish national and a dual US-Canadian citizen were also killed in the attack. The UK has yet to comment on the Israeli decision.

Speaking to reporters after meeting Newman, Wong said there were still many “unanswered questions”, including why if the first strike on the convoy was “a catastrophic error”, two further strikes followed, just minutes apart.

She also said the removal of two officers from their positions and the reprimanding of three after an initial probe was “insufficient accountability” for the death of seven people.

Drone audio from the attack had still not been handed over despite requests from the Australian government, she said.

In its statement on Wednesday, the IDF said the presence of an armed guard with the convoy had not been flagged with it before the convoy set off, and that he was falsely identified as a Hamas fighter. It also claimed the convoy had deviated from the route that had been coordinated with the military.

Notwithstanding “serious failures” in the process that led to the killings, “the decisions of the commanders did not raise reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct,” the IDF said.

In the same statement, the IDF also said it had also failed to find grounds for criminal investigation into the killing of four employees of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), who were killed in two separate attacks in November 2023 and February 2024.

In her earlier statement, Wong said the Australian government had learned of Israel’s decision late on Wednesday night, adding that the outcome was “especially insulting” as it occurred on World Humanitarian Day.

“This is despite Israel Defense Forces admissions that the IDF strikes on Zomi and her colleagues’ vehicles were the result of serious failures to follow IDF procedures, mistaken identification and errors in decision-making,” she said.

“This decision falls far short of the accountability we expect.”

Wong said the government would continue pressing Israel “for justice for Zomi and her colleagues”.

WCK said the decision was “inconsistent with the full truth” and that the military investigation “conflates different timelines and events” and “shifts the blame for the IDF’s illegal conduct”.

It demanded an independent investigation as “the IDF cannot credibly investigate its own conduct”.

“At the time of the lethal attacks, the IDF knew that our team in Gaza was unarmed and posing a threat to nobody,” it said in a statement. “It had full visual clarity on our clearly marked humanitarian vehicles during the extended, multiple airstrikes. It knew our team’s movements, identities and activities in advance.

“The military investigation conflates different timelines and events, muddies the story and shifts the blame for the IDF’s illegal conduct.”

Wong’s comments mark one of the strongest censures of the Israeli military by Australia since the war in Gaza began, reflecting broader international condemnation of the WCK attack.

Ambassador Newman said there was no intention to kill innocent civilians and that while he could “express deep sorrow and grief” for the families he would not apologise over the deaths as that would have “legal ramifications”.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp87g29r718o

RUSSIA has ramped up its thinly veiled threats towards Britain sparking fears Vladimir Putin could send the two nations spiralling towards a terrifying conflict.

The Kremlin’s volatile war of words has drastically escalated this week as Russia said the UK faces “consequences” for supplying drones used by Ukraine for devastating attacks.

Putin’s Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, lashed out at Andy Burnham after the PM made it clear the UK is 100 per cent behind Ukraine against Putin’s “illegal war”.

Lavrov later warned that UK interests “in any part of the oceans” would now be seen as under threat due to the UK’s supporting Kyiv.

He said in a chilling threat on Russian TV: “I feel sorry for Britain if it stays with Ukraine to the bitter end… this only means one thing.”

It came just a day after Russia’s embassy in London warned the UK would face “consequences” for sending their allies long- range Nyan jet drones.

Analysts believe the latest threat points toward potential strikes on British shipping to avenge June’s seizure of the sanctioned Russian “shadow fleet tanker” Smyrtos in Dorset.

The Kremlin has already accused Britain of “acting as an accomplice and co-perpetrator” of “bloody crimes committed by Ukrainian neo-Nazis”.

Simon Diggins, a retired colonel in the British Army turned security, defence and military analyst, says the Kremlin’s colourful language is cause for concern.

He told The Sun: “Britain tends to get this kind of really hyperbolic, aggressive and violent language threatening consequences.

“At every stage when we provided the Ukrainians with major weapon systems, they’ve threatened dire consequences.

“In the past they’ve talked about firing a missile which they call Satan, to drop nuclear weapons into the into the Irish Sea, creating tidal waves that would sweep across across Britain.

“This is normal from them and I don’t think that’s necessarily to be taken seriously directly, however, I think it does indicate how angry they are.”

Simon believes there is a real chance Russia will begin to ramp up aggressive tactics against the UK in the coming months.

Earlier this week, Russia was revealed to have deployed a warship armed with cruise and hypersonic missiles in the Baltic Sea.

The vessel is sat within striking distance of both the UK and its Nato allies.

The Admiral Kasatonov, a frigate with nuclear-capable Zircon hypersonic missiles, was seen last week off the coast of Fehmarn following Kremlin threats to attack British and EU vessels.

Robert Tollast, an expert on land warfare from RUSI, warned Russia could attack the UK by launching drone swarms from ghost ships off Britain’s coast.

He explained: “A lot of large energy and industrial infrastructure is located by the sea.

“So it’s not out of this world to imagine drones being launched by ship at these targets, perhaps hidden in shipping containers.”

Undersea cables providing vital communication links to the UK could also be at risk of Russian attack.

Simon continued: “We could expect a direct reaction, for example, an uptick in the use of their spy trawlers over our submarine cables

“Aggressive cyber operations being employed against us, information operations, subversion, and anything up to sabotage.

“We’ve also had assassinations on our soil and that is to be expected when you’re dealing with Russia because that’s part of their language, how they operate.”

Political analyst Vlad Vexler told The Sun: “Putin thinks of his war with Ukraine as a proxy war in which he’s essentially facing all of the West.

“And the UK is a bee in the bonnet for the regime.

“What they think is wrong with the West is maximally exemplified by the UK in the view of the Kremlin regime.”

Western governments have reportedly pledged over £280billion in military, financial, and humanitarian aid to Ukraine since Russia‘s invasion in 2022.

The US remains Kyiv’s most crucial ally but European nations such as Germany, France and Poland have also played a major role.

Britain prides itself as one of the leading donors to Ukraine as well – much to the Kremlin’s fury.

Just last month, Burnham announced a new £3billion military package to Kyiv which comes alongside dozens of new lethal and non-lethal weaponry and equipment.

Tanks, air defence systems, artillery, and long-range precision strike missiles are all allowed to be used by Ukraine in their fight against Russia.

The UK has also committed to training up Ukrainian fast jet pilots “for as long as it takes”, Burnham pledged.

This sustained support has only dragged Russian-UK relations lower and lower as they war continues to rage on with daily bombardments.

Vexler said this has created a “mythical ideological picture” about the evil West which has been exemplified by the UK due to its involvement.

Vexler, who was born in the Soviet Union before moving to the UK, was quick to add that the threats of a genuine major attack on the UK are “extraordinarily low probability events”.

Simon has also warned that Putin may not even be the biggest worry for the UK within the Kremlin.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16863009/russia-putin-drone-threats-uk/

Hayden Panettiere appeared to still be in the throes of addiction just three months ago as she desperately tried to reset her life, we’re told.

In May, the “Nashville” actress was visiting her hit show’s namesake town to promote her memoir, “This Is Me.”

Sources told Page Six that while there, she was allegedly seeking out whippets and booze with an insider claiming she attempted to have nitrous oxide delivered to her hotel, only to be denied.

Security at the hotel, located in downtown Nashville, allegedly “stopped a [delivery service] order to her hotel room, which was several industrial grade nitrous oxide cans that she was planning on huffing,” a source familiar with the situation told Page Six.

Another source confirmed the incident, explaining, “She had alcohol and whippits delivered. They wouldn’t allow it up to her room.”

Our source added Panettiere was only “there for a day,” and she “wasn’t happy” about them refusing her delivery.

Her rep and friend, Kasey Kitchen, slammed the incident as “false.”

“She was in Nashville for a short amount of time and slept for most of it. She also had private security with her,” the rep said.

On May 20, Kitchen and Panettiere appeared in a pre-taped interview on “Tamron Hall Show,” two days before her promo tour stop in Nashville.

Sources familiar with her conversation with Hall told Page Six, Panettiere “was focused on resetting her life.” Kitchen was by her side because the two had struck up a genuine friendship outside of her representing her as her publicist. “[Kitchen] was someone Hayden could trust,” a source said.

“It seemed that she really felt wronged by so many people, and — with that — she was focused on resetting her life,” the insider said.

Panettiere addressed her addiction with Hall, revealing the first time an adult handed her “happy pills” at 16, moments before she walked a red carpet. She also explained what led her to enter a treatment facility in 2020.

“When I got to the point of looking in the mirror and seeing my eyes had turned yellow, and that I didn’t recognize my body anymore and I went into that doctor’s office and got a blood test, and he told me ‘If you don’t stop, you’re going to be looking at a liver transplant,’” Panettiere explained.

Hall replied: “So, you’re 30 years old, and the doctor’s telling you, ‘You’re 30 years old, Hayden. You will not live to see 35.’”

Panettiere clarified, “Yeah, [the doctor said], ‘If you do not stop immediately.’ And, I was like, ‘I can’t do that to me,’ and if I can’t do it for myself, I’m going to do it for my child.”

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/08/19/celebrity-news/hayden-panettiere-still-in-throes-of-addiction-just-three-months-ago-got-whippets-and-booze-delivered-to-hotel-sources/?_gl=1*cfe1xa*_gcl_au*MTA2NDczMTkzNS4xNzg3MTA3MTIx*_ga*MTg2NjYyMzM1MC4xNzczODEwMTg2*_ga_0DZ7LHF5PZ*czE3ODcxOTU0NDgkbzIzMCRnMSR0MTc4NzE5NTQ1NiRqNTIkbDAkaDA

Before the war broke out in the Middle East, China, India, Turkey, Germany, South Korea, and Japan were among Iran’s largest trading partners.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened “tremendous” punishment on any country that helps or does business with Iran, an economic pressure campaign that comes as the war in the Middle East nears its sixth month.

Calling it the “most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country”, he also listed several activities that he said need to stop immediately.

“No one has given the Islamic Republic of Iran a greater opportunity to make a Deal than me. TRAGICALLY, for them, they have failed to take it. Therefore, today, I am announcing the MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY! This will be Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale,” he said in a Truth Social post.

“Today, I am also announcing that ANY country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran will itself face TREMENDOUS Economic Consequences. Oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries, front companies – It all needs to stop NOW,” Trump said without specifying what punishment countries would face.

He didn’t name any country but said “they know who they are”.

Before the war broke out in February, China, India, Turkey, Germany, South Korea, and Japan were among Iran’s largest trading partners.

“This will be an ECONOMIC D-DAY, and we need all of our Allies to stand with the United States of America to isolate, and defeat, the Iran threat. These maniacs are on the ropes, and these HISTORIC MEASURES will cripple them and their ability to project terror worldwide. IRAN WILL NEVER HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON,” Trump said.

The US Treasury has for months been carrying out ‘Operation Economic Fury’, aiming to cut off Tehran’s funding with targeted sanctions.

The war in the Middle East broke out when the US and Israeli forces conducted joint strikes on Iran on February 28, killing a swath of the country’s leadership, including the then 86-year-old Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. In response, the Iranian forces attacked American and Israeli assets in the Middle East.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/us-iran-war-trump-warns-irans-allies-will-face-tremendous-economic-costs-if-they-help-11933517?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

Prime Minister Netanyahu emphasized Israel’s stance against Turkish forces near its borders, asserting that such deployments threaten its security

Israel on Wednesday told the Trump administration that its recent strike on a Syrian airbase was intended to prevent a Turkish military buildup at the site, according to US and Israeli officials quoted by Axios. The unusual attack has heightened tensions between three countries that are all partners of the United States, as the Trump administration seeks to prevent further escalation in the region.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the strike, asserting that Turkey — a NATO ally of the US that is one of Israel’s top regional adversaries — was intent on deploying forces there. “We will not tolerate a Turkish military buildup that is going down south and threatens us. We clarified that in general,” Netanyahu said in a video released by his Likud party. “Then we saw that there is a Turkish intention to deploy in an air base south of its line, close to Aleppo, and we conveyed a message.”

The strike has also put the US in a difficult position. President Donald Trump has described his approach to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government as a foreign policy achievement and has close ties with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Israel remains a close US ally, although relations between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have become more strained in recent months.

The attack took place early on Tuesday morning. At least eight bombs hit the runways and several hangars at the Abu al-Duhur airbase in northern Syria, about 45 miles (72km) from the Turkish border, according to US and Israeli officials.

The strike damaged runways that had recently been rebuilt. No casualties were reported. Israel initially did not acknowledge responsibility for the attack. An Israeli military censor also imposed a gag order on reports confirming that the Israel Defense Forces had carried out the strike.

US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, who is also the US envoy for Syria, later confirmed Israel was responsible in a post on X. Barrack said the Trump administration was “deeply concerned” about the attack and described it as “an unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability”.

The Syrian and Turkish governments also condemned the strike.

About 20 hours after the attack, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office claimed responsibility. It said Syria “was on the verge of breaching” an agreement with Israel to maintain the security status quo “by permitting Turkish troops to deploy at an airbase near Aleppo”.

“Israel repeatedly warned Syria that such a deployment would pose a threat to Israel’s security. Syria chose to ignore these warnings. Israel will not tolerate threats to its security, and would welcome a return to the status quo,” the statement said.

A source familiar with the matter told Axios that the Syrian government had been aware of Israel’s concerns about the airbase. It had sent messages to Israeli officials explaining why the runway was being rebuilt and stressing that it did not have hostile intentions, the source said.

A Turkish official rejected Israel’s justification. “There was no Turkish presence at the airbase. Israel is inventing pretexts to bomb neighboring countries and destabilize the region,” the official said.

Israeli officials informed the White House about the planned attack in advance, according to US and Israeli officials. The notification came about three hours before Trump spoke by phone with President Erdoğan. It is not clear whether the airbase was discussed during that conversation.

Source : https://www.timesnownews.com/world/middle-east/trump-netanyahu-rift-israel-syria-strikes-turkey-nato-latest-updates-article-155798476

The United Arab Emirates’ decision to suspend all financial and economic transactions with Iran ​until further notice, citing a military escalation by Tehran with a missile threat, has refocused the spotlight on fraught ties between the major ‌Gulf Arab oil producer and Iran.
The UAE, a close U.S. ally and regional power, was the Gulf state most heavily hit by Tehran during the early stages of the Middle East war. However, the last reported attack on UAE soil was the May 4 strike on Fujairah port, a key oil export ​hub.

The move by the UAE to sever commercial ties came after its defence ministry said that it had detected two ballistic missiles launched ​from Iran, an incident that marked the first time in months that residents received telephone alerts ⁠warning of possible threats.
In a statement, the ministry said the missiles targeted “maritime traffic” based on its assessments. Both missiles fell into ​the sea, it said.
The UAE also sent a phone alert on Tuesday to residents stating that the situation was safe and people should ​resume normal activities after the earlier warning.
Iran’s foreign ministry rejected the statement by the UAE that its missiles targeted maritime traffic, describing it as “baseless.”

UAE SAYS IT IS COMMITTED TO DIALOGUE

Dubai, the UAE’s main commercial hub, is one of Tehran’s most critical economic lifelines.
UAE official Afra Al Hameli, Director ​of the Strategic Communications Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the UAE was committed to dialogue and cooperation to ​advance peace, stability, and prosperity in the region.
Al Hameli said that in light of regional escalations that undermine regional and international peace and security, all ‌trade, ⁠commercial exchanges, and financial transactions with Iran have been halted.
Anwar Gargash, diplomatic advisor to the UAE president, said in a post on X that rumours about the “provision of financial facilities to Iran” are “false and part of desperate media campaigns”.
The UAE was drawn into the wider war in the region which began in February with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran. Tehran’s attacks on UAE soil stopped in May, while ​they persisted in neighbouring Kuwait and ​Bahrain. Attacks at sea on ⁠its vessels did not stop.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/uaes-financial-embargo-iran-after-missile-threat-puts-rivalry-back-spotlight-2026-08-19/

Gylfi Geirsson and Sigurbjorn Svavarsson cut British fishing trawl wires and dodged Royal Navy frigates on board small Icelandic ​coastguard vessels 50 years ago, using guerrilla-like tactics to keep foreign fleets out of their waters.
Iceland won the series of confrontations known as the Cod Wars, and control of those ‌waters became the foundation of the volcanic island’s economy.

Half a century later, the fear of losing control is at the heart of an August 29 referendum on whether to reopen membership talks with the European Union.

For many, the vote boils down to a trade-off: whether lower interest rates and a seat at Europe’s table are worth ceding some control over the fisheries and self-determination that defined Iceland’s independence since it broke away from Denmark eight decades ago.

CONCERNS OVER TRUMP AND COST OF LIVING

Public debate ahead of ​the vote is deeply rooted in fishing rights but now also focusing on the cost of living and President Donald Trump’s threats to acquire neighbouring Greenland, which has raised questions over Iceland’s own defences.
“The ​situation as I find it today is that it’s the fear that we might lose control of what we fought for,” said Svavarsson, who served as ⁠a first mate on the coastguard vessel Aegir in 1976 at the height of the Cod Wars and will likely vote against restarting talks.

Iceland had applied to join the EU in 2009, in the wake ​of a banking collapse the previous year, and spent four years negotiating before a new eurosceptic government shelved the process in 2013.

POLLING EVENLY SPLIT

“I will definitely say yes,” said Geirsson, a radio operator during the confrontations ​with Britain who went on to spend 42 years in the coastguard, later representing Iceland in international fisheries negotiations.
“We cannot be like an isolated island out in the middle of nowhere. We have to have cooperation with neighbouring countries,” he said, adding he would at least like to see what deal could be reached before deciding.
But if Iceland were to lose control of its fishing grounds after negotiating a deal with the EU, he would vote against joining.
“I would feel that what ​I did as a young man was for nothing,” he said.

The ballot is not a vote on membership and any accession treaty would require a second referendum.
A Gallup poll this month found voters split on ​restarting talks: 46% said they would vote yes and 46% no, with 8% undecided. Polls show a majority against actually joining the bloc.

FISHING AS IDENTITY

Fisheries remain central to Iceland’s economy and identity alike, alongside aluminium and tourism. Much of ‌the cod eaten ⁠in British fish and chip shops today comes from Icelandic waters, a legacy of the very dispute that Geirsson and Svavarsson fought.
“The fishery becomes a symbol of Iceland’s sovereignty, as it is the foundation to Iceland’s economic independence,” said Eirikur Bergmann, professor of politics at Bifrost University.
Heidrun Marteinsdottir, head of industry association Fisheries Iceland, said the sector processed its catch entirely in Iceland rather than exporting it raw — a system she warned joining the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy could unravel. “We have 100% of the profit in Iceland and we want to keep it that way,” she said.

No foreign minister, Bergmann said, could ever sign a treaty ceding control: “That person ​would be expelled from the country.”
For others, the stakes ​have little to do with fish at ⁠all. “We used to be a colony for Denmark,” said Floki, a 27-year-old designer in Reykjavik, who declined to give his last name. “I think it revolves around mostly keeping control of our own choices and decisions as a country.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/fish-ships-sovereignty-iceland-weighs-its-european-future-2026-08-19/

The head of Israel’s spy agency held a phone call with Syria’s foreign minister last week during which ‌they discussed Turkey’s military presence in Syria, three people familiar with the matter said, just days before Israel bombed a Syrian airbase.
The August 14 call between Mossad spy agency chief Roman Gofman and Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani is one of the highest-level contacts yet between Israel and the Damascus administration led by President Ahmed ​al-Sharaa.

The Israeli prime minister’s office, which handles queries regarding Mossad, did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did ​a spokesperson for Shaibani.
After Israel attacked the Abu al-Duhur airbase on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said ⁠that Damascus was on the verge of permitting Turkish troops to deploy there, and had ignored Israel’s repeated warnings that such a deployment would ​pose a threat to Israel’s security.
The sources said the issue of Turkish military support for Syria dominated Gofman’s call with Shaibani four days earlier.
The ​call centred on “Israeli inquiries about what (Turkey) was doing in terms of increasing their military presence, as well as the sale of weapons, provision of drones and other issues”, one of the sources said. A second source, a senior official, said Gofman used the call to ask about Turkey’s provision of arms to Syria’s army.

The Pakistani government challenged on ‌Wednesday a Supreme Court order to move jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan to a private hospital, a petition filed with the court showed.
The move could dash the hopes of Khan’s party and family, who have been calling for him to be given access to healthcare and visitation rights, and also spark ​public discontent over the treatment of the hugely popular cricketer-turned-politician.

Khan, 73, has been in jail in the garrison city of ​Rawalpindi since August 2023, convicted in a string of cases that he says were politically driven after ⁠he fell out with the country’s powerful military and was removed from office the previous year.
The Supreme Court order, seen by Reuters, had ​on Tuesday directed the government to move Khan to the private Shifa International Hospital in the capital Islamabad within two days. It also ​specified that he be given access to his personal physician.
“This order is not within four walls of the law,” Pakistan’s Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said in a video-recorded statement issued on Tuesday night.

In its petition, the government said moving a convicted felon to a private hospital based “on a report which ​does not disclose any condition requiring immediate medical treatment will severely disturb the whole criminal justice system.”
“If the interim order is not ​recalled it will open a flood gate of prisoners seeking similar relief, which under the prevalent law cannot be granted,” it added.
Khan’s sons have repeatedly ‌expressed ⁠concern regarding his deteriorating health, while his lawyers have said he has lost significant vision in his right eye while in prison.
His Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has welcomed the order, saying it should be implemented “immediately, fully, and without delay”.

ALL THAT MATTERED

The court order also directed the authorities to ensure a telephone call twice a week between Khan and his two sons, who live in London.

His younger son, Kasim, said his ​health was “all that mattered”.
“We hope ​the government adheres to the ⁠court orders…allows calls and issues our visas to Pakistan simply so we can come and see him,” he said in a statement shared with Reuters.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/pakistan-government-challenge-imran-khan-hospital-move-says-law-minister-2026-08-19/

Seven people, including five Americans and Ecuador’s intelligence ​head, were killed on Wednesday when the tourist ‌helicopter they were flying in crashed in Kenya’s Samburu county.
The aircraft was flying to the Loisaba Conservancy, a wildlife reserve and ​safari destination in northern Kenya, when it crashed, ​according to a preliminary report from Archers Post ⁠police station seen by Reuters.

All seven people – six ​passengers and one pilot – were killed, authorities said.

A State Department ​spokesperson said five Americans were among the dead, while Ecuador’s presidential office confirmed intelligence head Michele Sensi-Contugi and his wife Stephany ​Hollihan – who held U.S. citizenship – were also killed.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/helicopter-believed-be-carrying-tourists-crashes-kenya-local-media-report-2026-08-19/

GREENVILLE, SC — Hayden Panettiere had a “bag of medication” she was taking around the time of her death, according to her boyfriend, who cops said did not appear upset even as EMS workers fought to save her life.

Brian Hickerson, whose brother, Zach, was also at the Greenville, South Carolina, Airbnb where the 36-year-old died Sunday, broke down only after his on-again, off-again girlfriend was pronounced dead, according to police documents.

Cops arrived at the scene Sunday afternoon around 1:50 p.m. to find “multiple EMS and firemen performing CPR” on the “Heroes” actress, who appeared to be “unresponsive” and “did not seem to have any obvious physical reasons to be unresponsive.”

The reporting officer noted that Zach was “very emotional” as EMS “were working on Hayden,” ultimately declaring the “Nashville” star dead at 2:32 p.m. It was only then that his brother, 37, became “emotional.”

Brian showed officers a “bag of medication” the troubled actress was currently on, which — though the list is redacted in the Greenville City Police Department report — appears to include nine different drugs.

Narcan — an emergency medication used to reverse an opioid overdose — was also reportedly found inside the Airbnb.

An autopsy was performed on Panettiere’s body Monday, but South Carolina coroners said it could take up to 12 weeks for the full toxicology results to be released.

Panettiere and Brian had reconnected only about two weeks before her shocking death.

The pair — who have had a documented tumultuous relationship since 2018 — were in Los Angeles for roughly a week before they flew to South Carolina, where the brothers are from, a source told Page Six.

“He was supposed to leave, but somehow, they ended up on a flight to South Carolina, where he is from,” the insider said.

As for the nature of the pair’s relationship, our informant noted that “things did not appear to be romantic” and cited Panettiere’s own comments to podcaster Jay Shetty just three months ago.

Still, “Brian would always find a way to work his way back into Hayden’s life as ‘a friend,’” the source said.

The “Nashville” star’s inner circle was “always concerned” about her relationship with Hickerson, whom the informant branded “bad news” and “a real jerk.”

Reps for Hickerson and Panettiere did not respond to Page Six’s requests for comment.

However, not everyone in Panettiere’s life knew that Hickerson was back in hers, as a separate source said, “If Brian was back in her life then it was something she was hiding because she wasn’t speaking about it with many of her friends.”

“If you’ve gone through some dark times with people and spoken about it [publicly] then there can be shame if you get back together with that same person,” they added. “So maybe that was why she hadn’t mentioned it to us.”

Panettiere and Hickerson’s rocky relationship has been marked by multiple allegations of domestic violence, several arrests and even criminal pleas.

Hickerson was first arrested in May 2019 in Hollywood and charged with felony domestic violence. He pleaded not guilty, and the case was dismissed four months later. Panettiere later described the incident as the beginning of a pattern of physical abuse.

LA prosecutors then alleged that Hickerson injured the “Remember the Titans” star during separate incidents in December 2019 and January 2020, claiming he used a garage floor and stairs in a manner capable of causing injury.

Hickerson was arrested again on Valentine’s Day 2020 in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, after allegedly punching Panettiere in the face. The case was followed by additional allegations that he attempted to interfere with or intimidate a witness in the proceedings. He pleaded no contest to all charges. Panettiere has since described the Wyoming incident as a wake-up call.

Then in July 2020, LA prosecutors filed an eight-count case against Hickerson, including multiple felony counts of corporal injury, assault with a deadly weapon, battery and dissuading a witness. He initially pleaded not guilty, but in April 2021, he pleaded no contest to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or cohabitant, while the remaining charges were dismissed.

Hickerson was sentenced to 45 days in jail, four years of probation, domestic violence classes, restitution and a five-year protective order.

On Aug. 13, the judge overseeing the case denied Hickerson’s motions to expunge and reduce the charges to misdemeanors.

The duo’s last public sighting was as recently as March, when paparazzi caught them at an LA airport together. At the time, Panettiere was using crutches to walk, insisting she was dealing with pinched nerves in her lower back.

The “Bring It On: All or Nothing” star detailed the increasingly abusive nature of her relationship with Hickerson in her memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” which she released in May in tandem with a press tour for the book.

Source : https://nypost.com/2026/08/18/us-news/hayden-panettiere-was-on-bag-of-medication-at-time-of-death-as-cops-reveal-boyfriends-strange-reaction-to-her-overdose/

ZZ Top drummer Frank Beard’s health was ailing for more than a year before his death on Monday.

As far back as March 2005, the rock band announced on Instagram that Beard was temporarily stepping away from their Elevation tour to “attend a health issue requiring his focus in the near term.”

“He is looking forward to a speedy recovery,” the band noted at the time.

Beard eventually returned to the tour in September of that year, and his last performance with ZZ Top was in November 2025.

He was noticeably absent for the band’s The Big One! tour, which started in March, and fans on Reddit noted in May that he hadn’t appeared onstage.

ZZ Top later made headlines when they abruptly canceled their show on Aug. 5 just hours before they were scheduled to perform at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, citing “unforeseen personnel matters.”

Frontman Billy Gibbons shared in a statement at the time, saying that “Insurmountable obstacles require canceling our Hollywood Bowl performance.”

Though the band did not mention Beard’s health at the time, People confirmed less than a week later that the musician was going on leave due to illness and that drummer Michael Monahan would be taking his place.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/08/18/celebrity-news/zz-top-drummer-frank-beard-was-dealing-with-health-issue-that-kept-him-off-stage-for-nearly-a-year-before-death/?_gl=1*mz41nm*_gcl_au*MTA2NDczMTkzNS4xNzg3MTA3MTIx*_ga*MTg2NjYyMzM1MC4xNzczODEwMTg2*_ga_0DZ7LHF5PZ*czE3ODcxMDYzMDIkbzIyNyRnMSR0MTc4NzEwNzEyNCRqNDkkbDAkaDA

THE White House has blasted a US senator as a “lightweight loser” after he claimed Donald Trump would rather build a ballroom and fly around than serve as president.

Natalie Harp, one of Trump’s aides who has earned the nickname the “human printer” came under fire in Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff’s comment, causing the White House to rush to her defense.

Ossoff, a Democrat who has served in the Senate since 2021, alleged Trump would prefer to “build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace” rather than serve as commander-in-chief.

Trump has faced intense backlash and legal roadblocks over his plan to build a new ballroom reportedly expected to cost millions of dollars.

Ossoff’s remark came in a rally speech on Sunday in Atlanta soon after it became public that Harp was one of the few people who were secretly taken off Air Force One with the president when leaving Turkey.

Trump confirmed on Wednesday that he switched planes after leaving the NATO summit in Turkey after his security team was reportedly briefed on two possibly dangerous threats.

Officials swiftly snuck Trump off the plane and into a catering truck before putting him on a military jet on July 8.

Several journalists and members of the Trump administration including Secretary of State Marco Rubio remained on the Air Force One flight while some were also whisked away with the president, like Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.

Harp, an executive assistant who regularly travels with Trump, was also one of the people taken off the flight.

The 35-year-old has been called the “human printer” because she is known to carry around a wireless printer to give Trump physical copies of news reports on the go.

After Ossoff blasted Trump for traveling around with Harp on a “defenseless” plane, Trump dismissed the senator as “Pee-wee Herman,” a fictional childish character portrayed by comedian Paul Reubens.

Trump said in the Oval Office he “would much rather do other things” than travel with his aide and work on the ballroom, adding, “We are building a great facility here.”

“Natalie Harp is one of the most loyal and hardest working aides on President Trump’s team,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said in a statement to Politico.

“Jon Ossoff is a cringeworthy, feminine theatre kid cosplaying as Barack Obama,” Ingle wrote on X on Monday.

“Nobody gives a s**t what this lightweight loser says.”

White House communications director Steven Cheung also joined in on blasting Ossoff, writing on X, “Jon Jackoff has to be the biggest cuck loser in politics.”

“Instead of denigrating hard working people serving their country, Jon should look deep into his soul and ask himself why he’s a miserable person who hates this country. It’s because he’s a radical, extremist Dumocrat” Cheung wrote.

Harp has had eyes on her in recent weeks after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced she would be leaving her role at the end of August to spend more time with her family.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16859694/white-house-slams-jon-ossoff-trump-natalie-harp-claim/

AN “apocalyptic” war is looming over Europe as Russia lines its borders with new drone bases capable of striking Nato and Kremlin warships stalk the seas, experts warn.

Desperate Vladimir Putin is rapidly expanding Russia’s drone network and developing new warfare tactics as he prepares to take on the West.

Professor Mark Galeotti, a modern Russia expert at defence think tank RUSI, said: “A war between Russia and Nato would be apocalyptic.

“Russia would launch comprehensive campaigns and drones would be a serious part of that.”

Dozens of drone launch sites have emerged along Russia’s border with Ukraine and Belarus – placing Nato allies well within reach of Vladimir Putin’s war machine.

Images showed enough storage at one base for more than 1,000 drones to be kept on site at one time.

The bases have been used to fire Moscow’s long-range suicide drones at Ukraine, but experts warn they could be turned on Europe.

Missiles launched from the secret sites – identified by The Telegraph – could reach Nato territory with “the greatest of ease”, European affairs expert, Professor Anthony Glees said.

He told The Sun: “Russia is creating a massive arc of menace which stretches across Europe.

“This capability is a real and present danger to NATO.”

Moscow has started to deploy a high-speed jet variant of its Iranian Shahed drone model – capable of reaching targets almost 620 miles away.

Named Geran-4 and Geran-5, the UAV’s can evade air defence systems while carrying a 90kg payload, according to Ukrainian government documents leaked online.

Glees estimates Turkey, Romania, eastern Poland and the Baltic Republics, Lativa, Lithuania and Estonia are all under threat.

“Every singe NATO member within the Russian arc of menace is Putin’s cross-hairs”, he said.

Putin is becoming increasingly desperate as he faces a string of worrying crises on his doorstep with national support beginning to wane, and the Kremlin’s cash dwindling.

As his war with Ukraine stalls to an embarrassing stalemate, the tyrant is being pushed closer towards a last-ditch attack on Nato in a bid to save face.

Glees said: “Russia is not winning the war against Ukraine, and by not winning it, it is losing. Putin is desperate.

“Threatening NATO, planning incursions into NATO territory, would be the last desperate throw of the dice.”

According to Prof Glees, an attack on Lithuania, via the Kaliningrad enclave or Estonia and Latvia, via the Russian mainland are Russia’s “big targets”.

A new US intelligence report even revealed this week that US officials fear Putin is plotting a small-scale land incursion to test the alliance.

The despot could probe Nato’s defences with a possible attack at any point between autumn this year and 2029, the report said.

But Nato members believe Putin is already conducting covert attacks against the alliance, including Russian drones breaching its territory.

Western fighter jets were scrambled 250 per cent more in July compared with a year ago amid escalating tensions with Russia.

Prof Galeotti said: “Ukraine are currently the world’s best drone operators. But Russia is second.

“Nato haven’t got serious enough about its anti drone defences.

“We’ve been able to shoot down cheap, stray drones but that’s very different to a serious campaign of strikes.

“We cannot underestimate the lessons Russia is learning from its war in Ukraine.

“Whenever this war ends Moscow will begin rebuilding its army based on these lessons.

“Nato is very unlikely to go through this kind of extraordinary redevelopment.”

While Russia bolsters its drone stock, Putin is also escalating tensions with Nato at sea.

On Monday a Russian frigate with nuclear-capable hypersonic missiles was spotted in the Baltic sea off the German island of Fehmarnin, a popular destination for tourists.

The island lies close to the Danish straits, the main passageway linking the Baltic Sea to the North Sea and the Atlantic, and a chokepoint through which Russian ships transit toward open water.

Capable of long-range strikes as well as anti-submarine warfare, Admiral Kasatonov is the second vessel sent by the Kremlin to the enter the area.

It comes just weeks after the destroyer Admiral Levchenko was also spotted in the region.

And just days earlier Putin threatened European states – including Britain – after action against his shadow fleet oil tankers.

“It’s nothing but piracy and robbery,” he said after the UK government defended the seizure of sanctioned tanker the Smyrtos.

“If this is done, we will be forced to respond in kind … [Russia can retaliate] in any area where we see it as necessary and appropriate.”

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chair of the Russian national security council, has also threatened attacks on European ships.

Referring to NATO countries that supported Ukraine, he said Russia has the “right to attack any merchant ship belonging to an enemy state” if there is “sufficient suspicion” that it is transporting enemy cargo.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16859365/putin-drone-bases-nato-warship-missiles-stalks-island/

Lindsay Clancy was “begging for help” before killing her three children, her former mother-in-law testified on Tuesday, echoing others who have told a court that Clancy’s mental health deteriorated after the birth of her youngest son.

“She had insomnia. She was losing her appetite,” the mother-in-law, Susan Clancy, said at the murder trial. “She was very anxious and sad.”

Lawyers for Clancy, who does not dispute carrying out the killings but has pleaded not guilty to murder charges, say she was experiencing postpartum psychosis at the time.

Prosecutors, meanwhile, alleged she made a calculated decision to intentionally kill her children – Cora, five, Dawson, three, and Callan, who was eight months.

When asked by a defence attorney if Lindsay Clancy had been “interested at all times in trying to get better and see doctors”, Susan Clancy answered: “Very much so.”

“She was begging for help,” she said of a woman she described as a “very nurturing, very loving” mother.

Following three weeks of testimony from dozens of witnesses, prosecutors rested their case on Monday. The defence then began presenting their arguments with personal anecdotes from family members.

Clancy has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

“She always wanted to be a mother, have many children, and I felt it was the best thing that ever happened to her,” Paula Musgrove, Clancy’s mother, testified on Monday.

Then, Clancy supposedly began having problems sleeping and sent a text message that she was “really sick”.

A month before the killings, Musgrove said, her daughter came to her and Clancy’s then-husband, Patrick Clancy.

“She told us she had thoughts of harming the children,” Musgrove said.

Musgrove also testified that Lindsay Clancy, a nurse, “would say to me, ‘This isn’t me, I’ve never been like this before.’ And I would agree, because she wasn’t”.

Prosecutors have said that in January 2023, Clancy intentionally strangled the three children with fitness bands in their Massachusetts home before jumping out of a second-floor window. Clancy, now 36, was paralysed by the jump and has attended the trial in a wheelchair.

The defence have said Clancy experienced hallucinations and delusions after giving birth to Callan and she was undergoing medical treatment for psychiatric problems. She checked herself into a psychiatric hospital for a few days just before the deaths.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62emm4yp8go

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said London will continue “to support Ukraine 100%”, after Moscow warned of “consequences” following confirmation that British-made drones were used in recent Ukrainian strikes in Russia.

“We are not fair-weather friends, we will be there in Ukraine’s hour of need and that won’t change,” he said.

The Russian embassy in the UK earlier accused Britain of “deliberately opting for an escalation of the Ukraine crisis”, saying “the deeper its involvement in the conflict… the higher the price it will pay”.

Kyiv has stepped up long-range attacks on Moscow and other Russian regions, targeting oil refineries and warehouses of the largest online retailer Wildberries.

Asked on Tuesday about the Russian threat, Burnham maintained that the UK was “providing support so that Ukraine can defend itself and that’s been the British position all the way through this conflict, by previous prime ministers – it remains the case with me”.

This is not the first time that Russia has warned the UK over its role in providing Ukraine with drone technology and Storm Shadow missiles.

The Russian embassy said “London’s actions will inevitably carry consequences for which it will have to answer”, but did not elaborate on the type of threat Moscow was considering.

The latest phase of the war has directly affected Russia’s domestic fuel supplies and dented the Russian economy.

The UK has been one of Ukraine’s biggest international supporters since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. The Ministry of Defence said the UK was “committed to providing the equipment Ukraine needs to defend itself against [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s illegal invasion”.

Two British companies are known to have built drones supplied to Kyiv. A military source confirmed to the BBC that UK drones had been used in recent attacks on Russia that reportedly caused more than £35bn in economic damage.

The Kremlin has regularly singled out the UK – along with the US – for its role in arming and backing Kyiv politically and financially since the start of the war.

It was London – then under Boris Johnson’s leadership – that supplied Ukraine with very effective anti-tank weapons that helped to stop Moscow’s advance on Kyiv in the first few weeks of the war.

The UK has since provided more modern weaponry and has also been actively training Ukrainian soldiers. In July, Burnham showed that Britain’s support would continue by making his first international visit as prime minister to Kyiv.

On Russia’s state TV channels, the anti-UK rhetoric has intensified in recent weeks, with invited experts and lawmakers regularly calling for strikes against the UK.

Russia currently controls approximately a fifth of Ukrainian territory but its forces have had very little success on the front line for months.

Nevertheless, casualties have continued to mount.

UN officials say last month’s civilian death toll of 437 people in Ukraine was the highest since May 2022. In Russia, a foreign ministry spokesman told the Tass news agency on Tuesday that in the past week 69 people including three children had been killed.

In the latest Russian attacks on Ukraine, 17 people were killed, including 10 in the village of Pechenihy in north-eastern Ukraine early on Tuesday.

Private homes, a cafe and post office were hit, as two missiles claimed the lives of 10 villagers. Elsewhere, three Ukrainians died in Sumy, two in Zaporizhzhia and two in Kherson.

Moscow’s warning to the UK comes after a wave of Ukrainian strikes on Russia. Five people were killed in a residential area of Rostov region in the south of the country at the weekend.

Hundreds of drones have been launched by Ukrainian forces towards the Moscow region in the past two days alone. Regional governor Andrey Vorobyov said on Tuesday that a 10-year-old girl was hurt and a Wildberries warehouse was damaged.

As well as deploying imported drones, Ukraine has been able to use home-grown drone and missile technology in recent weeks, including its FP-5 Flamingo cruise missile.

In a separate development on Tuesday, the UN nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, said it had been informed that “a drone exploded at a bus stop used by staff” travelling to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in the Russian-occupied southern Ukraine.

The IAEA said it had been told by the Moscow-installed plant director that one person was killed and another three seriously injured. It did not say who carried out the attack.

“No nuclear safety or security damage was reported,” the watchdog added.

Monday night saw heavy Ukrainian strikes, with Russian officials reporting that some 620 drones had been flown towards the region surrounding Moscow. Russian air defences destroyed more than 180 of them, but several people were wounded, the officials added.

On Saturday night, Ukraine fired some 822 drones towards Russia, with 600 aiming for Moscow, according to its regional governor, who said the Russian capital had suffered “one of the most massive drone attacks in recent memory”. Seven deaths were reported across Russia.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy5dz0kkn0wo

After confirming India’s upcoming friendly against Brazil, the AIFF are also in the final stage of discussions with the Cape Verdean Football Federation.

India are set to face Cape Verde in the upcoming FIFA international window, which will take place from September 21 to October 6. This will be the latest addition to the men’s national team’s schedule for the upcoming window. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has already confirmed the friendly against Brazil, which will take place on October 3 in Kolkata.

According to sources close to the Cape Verdean Football Federation, talks with the AIFF are in their final phase, but some formalities still need to be ironed out.

“There are some formalities left, and we are in the last stage of talks”, the source said.

Trump has been insisting on passing the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, which seeks stricter citizenship requirements to vote in US elections.

India has reacted to US President Donald Trump’s nod to the Indian electoral system, noting that its “credibility and robustness” are well established globally. Trump has cited India’s voter card system to press for domestic citizenship verification, claiming the move would curb electoral fraud.

Responding to Trump’s comment, Foreign Minister spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “I have no specific comments on these remarks. I can say, however, that the credibility and robustness of India’s election machinery is a well-established fact globally.”

Trump’s Remark

In a social media post, Trump said that over 646 million people participated in the recent general elections in India, yet fewer than 1 per cent voted by postal ballot. Making a strong case for stricter electoral laws in the US, he recalled Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar questioning the lack of voter identification in American polls.

Trump said India’s chief election commissioner had spoken with officials from his administration earlier this month and asked how US elections can be held without a valid photo identification card.

The US president made these remarks to drum up support for the SAVE America Act, which would require Americans to show proof of citizenship to register to vote, impose a nationwide voter identification requirement, and severely limit voting by mail.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/credibility-well-established-centre-after-trumps-praise-for-indian-polls-11928632?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

Scientists from the US space agency determined the crater was 60-feet-wide (18 meters), and less than 10 feet deep, based on the length of its shadow.

NASA on Tuesday released new images of the crater caused by a SpaceX rocket slamming into the Moon earlier this month.

The photographs were captured by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) between August 11 and 12, and show the impact formed by a SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage striking the Moon’s surface on August 5.

Scientists from the US space agency determined the crater was 60-feet-wide (18 meters), and less than 10 feet deep, based on the length of its shadow.

The Falcon 9 launched in January 2025 carrying Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost 1 lunar lander, a private mission that made a soft landing on the Moon.

These weren’t the first images of the crash site. The Korean space agency published pictures on August 6 that were taken a day earlier by Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO), also known as Danuri.

The LRO, in service since 2009, circles the Moon from pole to pole every two hours while the Moon rotates underneath it.

A NASA statement said it was challenging to capture the image. To photograph a specific spot on the Moon, the spacecraft must wait until that location turns into view, which took six days in this case — and the spacecraft had to be tilted just right so that its camera pointed to the crater while it passed 60 miles overhead.

Timing was the other challenge, NASA said: “If the camera snapped even 10 seconds too early or too late, the target would drift off-center by 10 miles.”

The images they captured from different viewing angles brought out different features, including brighter and darker streaks fanning out around the crater.

NASA explained the darker streaks “are made of surface dust and rocks altered over a long time by solar wind, galactic cosmic rays, and micrometeorite impacts” that was thrown up by the collision from 1.5 feet below the surface.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/nasa-releases-images-of-moon-crater-carved-by-crashed-spacex-rocket-11928678?pfrom=home-ndtv_topstories

Iran rejected UAE’s “baseless” claim of missile threats, urging regional countries to avoid unsubstantiated accusations and preserve good neighborliness.

Iran on Wednesday rejected the United Arab Emirates’ allegation that it had launched two ballistic missiles towards the Gulf state’s territorial waters, calling the claim “baseless” and urging regional countries to avoid unsubstantiated accusations.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei “completely rejected” the UAE’s allegation and said such claims were contrary to the “principle of good neighbourliness” and could undermine efforts to build trust and prevent further insecurity in the region.

“We call on all regional parties to avoid baseless accusations against Iran,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on its official Telegram channel.

Baghaei also expressed concern over such accusations against Iran, saying they hindered regional efforts to strengthen trust and stability.

“Accusing the Islamic Republic of Iran contradicts the principle of good neighborliness and hinders efforts to build trust among the countries of the region,” he added.

UAE Says Missiles Targeted Gulf Shipping

The UAE had earlier accused Iran of launching two ballistic missiles towards the country, in an incident that marked the first missile threat detected by its defence ministry in months.

The UAE Ministry of Defence said its air defence systems detected two missiles launched from Iran. One fell outside the country’s territorial waters, while the other fell within them.

A later assessment by the ministry said the missiles were targeting maritime navigation and fell into the sea.

The accusation came against a backdrop of heightened tensions in the Gulf, with Iran warning that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until it reaches a peace agreement with the United States.

The UAE subsequently announced a major economic response, suspending all trade, commercial exchanges and financial transactions with Iran until further notice.

UAE Foreign Ministry communications director Afra Al Hameli said the decision followed regional escalations that were undermining regional and international peace and security.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/avoid-baseless-accusations-iran-rejects-uae-claim-of-missile-attack-on-maritime-navigation-ws-l-10280843.html

Disney (DIS.N), and its ABC unit sued the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday to block an early ​review of licenses for eight ABC stations, arguing that the Trump administration is trying to punish the network over its broadcast content.
President Donald Trump ‌has repeatedly urged broadcasters to drop comedy or news programs he dislikes or which have been critical of him or his administration, and has pressed the FCC on numerous occasions to revoke ABC’s licenses.

Disney said in a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Washington that the FCC was seeking to coerce and retaliate against “a network that refuses to bow to the administration’s demands,” calling the agency’s actions ​an “extraordinary assault on free speech.”
Trump has waged an aggressive series of attacks on the news media and the latest move follows a two-year-long battle between Trump ​and Disney. Last month, Trump again called for ABC stations to lose their licenses because the network refused to air a ⁠prime-time speech on elections.
The court case will pose a key test of the free speech rights of media outlets.

Disney and ABC asked the court to quickly issue a temporary ​restraining order halting the license renewal proceedings and preventing the FCC from scheduling a hearing. The company said the public comment period ended earlier this month and the FCC ​could act at any time.
The lawsuit alleges that the administration is violating the company’s First Amendment free speech rights, saying that the FCC “is using its regulatory power to retaliate against (Disney and ABC) for programming and editorial decisions the administration dislikes.”
The FCC said the move stemmed from a year-long investigation into whether Disney’s diversity policies amounted to unlawful discrimination, an allegation the company denies.
U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan ​issued an order on Tuesday directing the company and the FCC to propose a schedule for considering the request for a temporary restraining order and told the agency ​to notify her if it moves to start the process of revoking the ABC licenses.

The White House did not immediately comment.
FCC Chair Brendan Carr ordered the reviews in April, even though the ‌stations’ license renewals ⁠were not scheduled to be considered before October 2028. The FCC had not ordered an early review in more than 50 years before April.
“Disney seems to be a little nervous about what the record’s showing,” Carr said in a Reuters interview, adding that he has made no final decisions on whether to begin the process of revoking Disney’s ABC licenses.
“We haven’t made a decision about when we’re making a decision,” Carr added, saying the agency will “follow the facts and the law and keep moving forward.”
Carr has repeatedly said ​he wants to enforce the FCC’s public ​interest obligation for broadcasters that use the ⁠public airwaves, which he says the FCC has failed to properly deploy for decades.
Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez said on Tuesday that “for months, the FCC has waged a campaign of censorship and control against Disney’s ABC stations, using the threat of broadcast license ​revocations to punish a company for speech this administration doesn’t like.”
The reviews were ordered a day after Trump urged ABC to ​fire late-night host Jimmy ⁠Kimmel.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/disney-abc-sue-us-regulator-over-threats-broadcast-licenses-2026-08-18/

The Trump administration took a step ‌toward rescinding a decades-old rule that protects undeveloped forests on Tuesday in a move it says will help manage wildfire risk, but which environmental groups oppose, saying it would do the opposite.
President Donald Trump has ​rolled back environmental regulations and taken land out of conservation for purposes such as ​energy extraction.

The proposed rule filed by the U.S. Forest Service would rescind ⁠the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, which bans logging, roads and mining in undeveloped forests, ​and move authority to local national forest managers, according to a press release from the ​Department of Agriculture.

The U.S. is suffering one of its worst years for wildfires, with 7.3 million acres (3 million hectares) burned in around 49,000 fires through August 17, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
Agriculture Secretary ​Brooke Rollins said in the release that rescinding the rule would improve forest health and ​reduce wildfire risk.
“Today, we filed a proposal to restore authority to local forest managers who know the ‌land ⁠best, removing the barriers that have kept them from doing the work the land demands,” she said.
Environmental groups argue that rescinding the rule would increase wildfire risk by exposing more forest land to human activity. A 2025 analysis by the Wilderness Society found that wildfire density ​is lowest in wilderness ​and protected forest ⁠areas, and highest in the areas near roads.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/trump-administration-moves-rescind-rule-that-protects-millions-forest-acres-2026-08-18/

U.S. ​President Donald Trump said on Tuesday no talks were taking place with Iran and insisted the Strait of Hormuz was open, contradicting Iran’s assertion that the critical waterway remained shut to ‌shipping.
The receding prospects of a deal to end the nearly six-month conflict drove up oil prices again on Tuesday, while stock markets sagged and borrowing costs for major economies including the U.S. hit multi-decade highs, amid concerns about the long-term inflationary and fiscal impact of the crisis.

A temporary ceasefire agreement expired on Monday and a senior Iranian official told Reuters that his country was moving to a “fully offensive” military posture due to the diplomatic stalemate, though there were no reports of fresh strikes by either side on Tuesday.
“There are no talks or conversations ​going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
“The Naval Blockade remains in full force and effect. The Hormuz Strait is open and operating. All water ​mines have been removed or detonated,” he added.
On Monday, Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and special envoy, had struck an upbeat tone, saying talks with Iran were still under way ⁠and were “probably more robust” than they had ever been.

The nearly six-month conflict, which began with joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, has settled into a standoff, with Iran continuing to threaten shipping in the strait and Washington saying ​it could renew attacks if talks do not yield a long-term settlement.
Among the top U.S. goals are preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, but experts say that will be difficult without removing the enriched uranium believed to be ​buried at sites struck by the U.S. military previously.

SHIPPING DISRUPTED

Despite Trump’s assertions that the situation in the Gulf was improving, countries continued to report attempts to disrupt shipping.
The United Arab Emirates’ Defense Ministry said that it detected two ballistic missiles launched from Iran, the first such incident reported since a May 4 strike on the Fujairah port.

It later reported that the missiles were targeting “maritime traffic” based on its assessments, according to a statement posted on X. It said both missiles fell into the sea.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei rejected ​the comments and said the UAE’s “accusations” were “baseless.”
The UAE Foreign Ministry said it had suspended all trade activities, exchanges and financial transactions with Iran until further notice, citing regional escalation that it said undermined regional and international peace ​and security.
Direct cargo shipping between the UAE and Iran had only resumed in late June via Dubai’s Jebel Ali Port. The UAE had suspended direct shipping in early March, just days after the war began.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said it ‌received a report ⁠on Tuesday that a vessel was struck by an unknown projectile while sailing out through the Strait of Hormuz, causing engine room damage and a crew casualty.

The Omani Coast Guard was assisting the remaining crew, according to the report. There was no immediate comment from Tehran.
Preliminary shipping data on Tuesday showed ship crossings via the Strait of Hormuz were still in single digits on Monday.
Top Iranian negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said in comments published by state media that the strait would remain shut until the U.S. met the conditions of an interim deal signed with Iran in June.
These conditions include the U.S. ending its blockade of Iranian ports, lifting oil sanctions, releasing Tehran’s frozen assets, and ending threats and military operations on all ​fronts, Qalibaf told parliament.
A memorandum of understanding signed on June 17 ​had set a 60-day time frame for a broader ⁠deal on Iran’s nuclear programme and U.S. sanctions. That period elapsed on Monday and Trump said he had no plans to extend it.
The agreement, which declared the “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts,” had quickly unravelled over a dispute about control of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which a fifth of global ​oil and liquefied natural gas flowed before the war.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trump-says-no-talks-planned-with-iran-tehran-says-strait-hormuz-still-shut-2026-08-18/

South Korea and the United States will cut short annual joint military drills to five days from 11 and scale back some ‌field training, the allies said on Wednesday, after President Donald Trump ordered a substantial reduction in U.S. participation.
The change in the drills comes as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visits South Korea on Wednesday and Thursday for regional security talks expected to cover developments on the Korean peninsula.

The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, which began on August 17, will now run through August 21, South ​Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff and a Pentagon official said, instead of the original end date of August 27.
South Korean Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back said the ​allies were moving to cancel the drills’ second phase, media said, adding that it had been expected to involve counterattack ⁠operations after an initial defensive phase.
At the suggestion of the United States, the countries agreed on partial adjustments to the duration and scope of the drills, the ​JCS said. Some combined field manoeuvre training would also be scaled back, although details were still being discussed.

A U.S. Department of Defense official said the department had substantially ​reduced the exercise and associated live-training events, with some cancelled or switched to simulations.
The changes would preserve essential readiness and training aims, with no degradation to U.S. training objectives, the official added.
The changes follow Trump’s order on Sunday to “substantially reduce” the U.S. role in the drills, citing his “very good relationship” with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Trump’s objectives in the order appeared to ​be to pressure Seoul over the pace of its promised U.S. investments under a trade deal, shift attention from U.S. challenges in Iran and reopen diplomacy ​with Pyongyang, one analyst said.
“Trump is trying to catch three birds with one stone here,” said Ellen Kim, senior fellow at the Korea Economic Institute of America.

NORTH KOREA DENOUNCES DRILLS

North Korea again ‌denounced the ⁠drills on Wednesday, saying it would continue exercising its right to self-defence against what it called military threats from Washington and Seoul, the official news agency KCNA said.
In a commentary, it called the United States and South Korea “warmongers” raising tension on the Korean peninsula, but stopped short of mentioning Trump, his order or the scaling back.
North Korea’s decision to issue the commentary, rather than a statement by a senior official or a military show of force, may signal an effort to leave room ​for diplomacy, said Hong Min, a researcher ​at the Korea Institute for National ⁠Unification.
Trump has pushed aides to arrange an in-person meeting with Kim as soon as this autumn, the Wall Street Journal said, citing U.S. officials.
He has discussed holding talks during a possible November trip to Asia for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit ​in the Chinese technology hub of Shenzhen, the paper added.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/north-korea-denounces-us-south-korea-joint-military-drills-kcna-says-2026-08-18/

Meta Platforms (META.O), rejected accusations by U.S. states that it intentionally sought to addict children to its Facebook and Instagram platforms in pursuit of profit, at the start of a trial that could reshape ​some of the most popular apps on the planet.
A bipartisan group of 29 U.S. states is suing Meta, seeking potentially tens or hundreds of billions of dollars in penalties and changes to ‌how Meta does business.

Four lead states — California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey — accused Meta of designing Facebook and Instagram to hook young users, fueling anxiety, depression and even suicide, and misleading consumers about the platforms’ safety. All 29 states accused Meta of violating federal law by improperly collecting and using children’s personal data.
Experts have called the trial in the Oakland, California, federal court, which began with opening statements on Tuesday, the biggest legal test yet of social media’s effects on young users.
Meta and other social media companies including ​Snap (SNAP.N), TikTok parent ByteDance and YouTube parent Alphabet (GOOGL.O), face thousands of lawsuits by states, municipalities, school districts and individuals over whether their products harm young users.

Megan O’Neill, a deputy attorney general for California, told the ​eight-person jury that Meta’s business model was to “hook the users, hold them for as long as they can, harvest their data, and then hide the truth from the ⁠public.”
“It worked especially well for kids,” O’Neill added. “Meta needed kids, and it needed to reassure the people who cared about those kids that the kids are safe.”
Meta’s lawyer Paul Schmidt said there was “no dispute” that some social media ​users face struggles, but that research showed no clear link between adolescents’ social media use and a lack of well-being.
He also said Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s co-founder and CEO, shared the company’s desire to improve its services, and not make ​them dangerous.
“They don’t believe they’re going to do well if people don’t like their service,” Schmidt said.

JUDGE COULD ORDER CHANGES TO FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM

Jurors are expected to issue an advisory verdict, but U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will determine Meta’s liability.
If she finds Meta liable, Rogers could impose civil penalties and order changes to Facebook and Instagram.
Meta has said penalties could be as high as $1.4 trillion, close to the Menlo Park, California-based company’s market value.
Attorneys general said at a hearing last week the amount could be closer to $200 ​billion, or about three years of after-tax profit for Meta.
California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey also want Meta to overhaul Facebook and Instagram, including by eliminating likes and the infinite scroll that encourages views of new posts, setting ​time limits for younger users, and enforcing restrictions to keep children under 13 offline.
After opening arguments concluded, former Meta safety engineer Arturo Bejar began testifying as the states’ first witness.
Bejar has long said Meta knew its child safety tools did not ‌work, and has ⁠testified against the company in four trials.

Meta sought to block his testimony, allegedly for deleting Signal messages with former employees, but Rogers rejected what she considered a long-shot bid to eliminate a key witness.
Bejar told jurors that “move fast and break things” was a mantra at Meta, which took a “don’t ask, don’t tell” approach to monitoring whether children under 13 were online.
“Many products were shipped into the world,” such as Reels short-form videos, “and safety was not a consideration in how it was initially deployed,” Bejar said.
Zuckerberg and Instagram chief Adam Mosseri are also expected to testify. The trial is scheduled to last six weeks.
Meta shares traded lower most of Tuesday and closed down 4.4% at $543.67.

CRITICS PROTEST OUTSIDE

O’Neill said the ​states were not trying to put Meta out of ​business, saying social media “has some benefits for some people.”
But ⁠she said Meta exploited children by researching how their brains work and react to online stimuli, and tracking their interactions on its apps.
She said an internal email sent to Mosseri said “teen time spent” was the goal, and said Meta employees viewed Instagram as a “drug” and themselves as “pushers.”
“Meta found the younger a kid is when they start using ​the app, the better,” O’Neill said.
Schmidt acknowledged that employees might use “loose” language in private, but said Meta’s products were not addictive, and that jurors would hear what the employee ​who called Instagram a drug ⁠did to make it safer.
Some critics of Meta spoke outside the courthouse as the trial began.
Among them was Mary Rodee, who said her 15-year-old son Riley Basford died by suicide in 2021 after being victimized by a predator on Facebook.
“They call it spontaneous suicide,” she said. “I call it what it was, the predictable outcome of a system that protects corporations instead of children.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/us/meta-faces-29-state-trial-that-could-reshape-instagram-facebook-2026-08-18/

An Israeli airstrike killed at least six ​Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, health officials said, a day after Donald Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner ended a trip to ‌the region that failed to push forward the U.S. president’s plan to end the war in Gaza.
Israel’s military said it had carried out an airstrike on Hamas commanders and several other militants. It said one of those targeted had taken part in the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack on Israel that triggered the war.

Gaza medics said that as well as ​the six dead, 14 others were wounded when the Israeli plane fired two missiles at a small cafe inside the fishing harbour ​in western Gaza City.
The seaport has turned into a large displacement camp for Palestinian families during the war that ⁠began in October 2023.
Blood stained the ground that was strewn with debris and people’s shoes after the airstrike.
The Israeli military had initially said the strike ​targeted the Hamas commanders, who it said had planned to carry out attacks against Israeli troops in Gaza before later saying several other militants were ​also killed. It did not release evidence.

KUSHNER MEETINGS

Hamas accused Israel of trying to sabotage Trump’s plan to end the war, which both Israel and Hamas agreed to last year, but said the Palestinian militant group was committed to the agreement. It said a child was among those killed in the strike.
Hamas did not say whether any of its ​commanders or any other militants had been killed in the strike. The militant group rarely acknowledges casualties amongst its own ranks.
Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, left Jerusalem ​on Monday without a breakthrough after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A day earlier, he met mediators and Hamas leaders in Egypt over ways to enhance the implementation ‌of Trump’s new ⁠roadmap for Gaza, with Hamas and Israel staying firm on their main demands.
After the meetings, an official from Trump’s so-called Board of Peace, which put forward the roadmap, said Israel retained its “full right of self defence” and that there would be no “redeployment” by the Israeli military until Hamas was disarmed.

Russia has accused the UK of “deliberately opting for an escalation of the Ukraine crisis” following confirmation that British-made drones had been used in strikes on targets in Russia.

“In doing so, the United Kingdom is acting as an accomplice and co-perpetrator of the bloody crimes and terrorist attacks,” the Russian Embassy to the UK wrote in a statement.

“London’s actions will inevitably carry consequences for which it will have to answer,” it said, adding that the deeper its involvement in the conflict, “the higher the price it will pay”.

In response, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) told BBC News that Britain stood “shoulder to shoulder” with Ukraine.

“Russia should be in no doubt about the resolve of this Government to stand against Russian aggression, in Ukraine and against the UK and our allies,” said the spokesperson in a statement.

The UK, they added, was “committed to providing the equipment Ukraine needs to defend itself against [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s illegal invasion”.

Built by two separate British companies, the drones in question have been used inside Russia in widespread and successful targeting of military and industrial targets, including refineries and warehouses of the online retailer Wildberries.

Ukraine has repeatedly targeted the company, known as Russia’s version of Amazon, and says that seven out of 10 of the largest Wildberries logistics centres have been “disabled”.

A military source confirmed to the BBC that UK drones had been used in the attacks, which are said to have caused more than £35bn in economic damage.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and currently controls approximately a fifth of Ukrainian territory.

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said drones using UK components and configurations were used to attack Russian territory, including a fuel depot in the Kamensky District of the Rostov Region.

Moscow’s warning to the UK comes after a wave of Ukrainian strikes on Russia.

In the latest attacks overnight, Russian officials said some 620 drones had been flown towards the region surrounding Moscow. Russian air defences destroyed more than 180 of the drones but several people were left wounded, the officials said.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy5dz0kkn0wo

Hayden Panettiere suffered from ‘really severe” health issues in the months leading up to her tragic death, according to an insider.

“I know she suffered earlier this year with her back,” the “Nashville” star’s hairdresser and good friend, Erick Orellana, exclusively told Page Six.

Orellana described Panettiere’s pain as “really severe ” — so much so, the actress experienced mobility issues.

“At one point, it was even hard for her to move her legs,” Orellana said.

Panettiere was photographed in March with her boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, at LAX airport using crutches to get around.

However, Panettiere’s pal did note that it seemed like the “Heroes” alum was “starting to be on the mend.”

A second source told Page Six that Panettiere had other struggles aside from her back pain.

“Earlier this year, she did seem a little tired at times. But she was a night owl, and… she has a lot on her plate,” the source said.

The insider claimed that Panettiere “suffered from anxiety at times” and would “occasionally take medication for that.”

“And every so often that could impact her speech,” the source said.

Hayden’s father, Skip Panettiere, confirmed the heartbreaking news of her death in a statement on Sunday.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” he said. “She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her — and to the millions who watched her onscreen. We ask for privacy as our family takes time to process this unimaginable loss.”

Paramedics responded to a 911 call of an “unidentified female” going into cardiac arrest at an Airbnb rental inside the Judson Mill Lofts apartment complex in Greenville, South Carolina on Sunday afternoon.

The 911 dispatch call exclusively obtained by Page Six revealed that authorities reported an “overdose” and that “CPR [was] in progress.”

Medics attempted to resuscitate Panettiere with advanced cardiac life support and chest compressions, but she was pronounced dead at 2:32 p.m. She was 36.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/08/17/celebrity-news/hayden-panettiere-suffered-from-health-issues-leading-up-to-death-hard-for-her-to-move-her-legs/

Hamas had pledged to hand over its weapons to a new Palestinian governing body, an arrangement that brought scepticism from Netanyahu but which Trump hailed as a breakthrough.

US President Donald Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner said Monday that progress towards disarming Hamas and moving forward with a Gaza peace plan could begin within a month, after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“We could be seeing progress… in as little as 30 days, hopefully starting to take some of the weapons out, and hopefully, you know, filling in some of the tunnels as well,” Kushner told Fox News while in Tel Aviv.

The comments came as Kushner and Netanyahu agreed that an American general would verify Hamas’s disarmament, an Israeli official said, as the premier insisted there would be no Israeli pullout from Gaza until then.

The understanding marks a new attempt by President Donald Trump’s administration to satisfy Israel after Netanyahu, facing a tough re-election fight, publicly rejected the latest part of a US plan aimed at ending the devastating Gaza war.

Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and a longtime family friend of Netanyahu, met the Israeli leader in Jerusalem a day after holding rare direct talks in Egypt with Hamas, which has publicly committed itself to the plan.

The two sides “agreed that no redeployment or reconstruction would take place in the Gaza Strip before Hamas is disarmed throughout Gaza”, a senior Israeli official told AFP.

“It was also agreed that the first step toward the demilitarisation of the Strip would be to require Hamas to hand over its weapons for decommissioning under the supervision of an American general,” the official said.

A roadmap agreed by Hamas on July 30 said that the decommissioning of weapons would be supervised by the International Stabilization Force, the nascent unit that aims to deploy to Gaza if the situation calms. It is led by US Major General Jasper Jeffers.

Hamas had pledged to hand over its weapons to a new Palestinian governing body, an arrangement that brought scepticism from Netanyahu but which Trump hailed as a breakthrough.

An official with Trump’s “Board of Peace” implementing the deal said that “every weapon collected will be fully decommissioned so it cannot be used again” and said that Israel “retains its full right of self-defence”.

“If Hamas resorts to terror, violence or attempts to rearm, Israel will retain the right to act accordingly,” the official said.

Other Board of Peace members joining Kushner in the talks included former British prime minister Tony Blair.

Kushner in the talks in Egypt had demanded that Hamas prove it is giving up its weapons and that the group — whose unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack against Israel launched the Gaza war — renounce any future role in governing the Palestinian territory, according to sources in the negotiation.

A Hamas official said the group, represented by its new leader Khalil al-Hayya, told Kushner it was committed to the Gaza plan and wanted pressure on Netanyahu.

Hardline rhetoric

Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister whose job is on the line in October 27 elections, has increasingly been willing to defy Trump, whose support he once highlighted in his campaign.

The prime minister has also made clear his unhappiness with Trump’s decision to halt the US-Israeli war on Iran launched in late February and instead pursue a settlement with Tehran’s clerical leaders.

In an interview that generated wide attention in the Arab world, Itamar Ben Gvir, the far-right national security minister in Netanyahu’s cabinet, said that Israel should kill 30 to 40 people every night in Gaza.

“Not only those who endanger you right now. These are people who shouldn’t be alive,” he told a podcast of a former Gaza hostage. “I’m paying them a compliment by calling them humans.”

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/trump-envoy-jared-kushner-says-hamas-disarmament-could-begin-within-30-days-11923345

A strange bulge beneath Donald Trump’s suit has sent social media into a frenzy, spawning diaper jokes, wild theories and renewed speculation about the US president’s health

American politics has seen its share of strange debates. Tariffs, indictments, deportations, wars, elections, presidential naps—the usual Washington menu.

But this week, the internet has decided to focus on something considerably lower. Donald Trump’s backside.

A video of the US President walking away from a stage at an event in New York has sent social media into a spiral after viewers noticed an oddly shaped bulge beneath the back of his suit jacket. The footage was posted by outgoing White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who had shared it as a clip of what she described as a spontaneous moment involving Trump and the family of a 12-year-old boy killed by a stray bullet in the Bronx.

In a beautiful impromptu moment, President Trump exits the stage in the middle of his speech to embrace Migdalia Martinez and retired NYPD Sergeant Jesus Freytes, whose 12-year-old son Jacob was tragically killed by a stray bullet in the Bronx. 💔 pic.twitter.com/u7Ffnh7bZO

— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) August 14, 2026

The internet, however, had other plans.

People zoomed in. Then zoomed in some more. And then, as happens on the internet, began producing theories faster than anyone could possibly verify them.

Was it something tucked under his jacket? Was the suit simply sitting awkwardly? Was it a medical device? An adult diaper? A mysterious contraption? Or, because no viral Trump story is complete without an absurd theory, a Brazilian butt lift?

Nobody knows.

The Great Trump Rear-End Mystery

The video itself does not establish what is causing the bulge.

BuzzFeed, after examining the footage, noted that it was unclear why Trump’s jacket appeared to protrude around his backside. It suggested several mundane possibilities, including the fabric being caught on something or the blazer simply fitting awkwardly.

That did not stop the internet from conducting its own forensic investigation.

The real Diaper Don.#Trump https://t.co/syXy9B2Fm0 pic.twitter.com/3gu7vwg4Oz

— Rusty Marrone (@Rustman_08) August 16, 2026

Journalist Aaron Rupar asked on X: “Seriously, what is going on with Trump’s rear end here?” He wondered whether there was some sort of contraption underneath the suit. Then came George Conway, the conservative lawyer and longtime Trump critic, with the beautifully economical response: “It depends.” The joke was a reference to Depend, the adult-incontinence brand.

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova was less subtle, suggesting it looked like a large diaper. And just like that, the internet had found its latest presidential investigation.

From Presidential Policy To Presidential Pants

The episode is particularly Trumpian because the president’s actual message at the event has almost completely disappeared from the online conversation. Instead, the frame people are discussing is the one shot from behind.

The internet quickly divided into three camps: those seriously theorising about the mysterious shape, those simply making jokes and those pleading with everyone to stop looking at Trump’s rear end.

Trump walking around with a mystery bulge in the back of his pants like he shoplifted a Thanksgiving turkey and forgot where he put it. 😭🦃 pic.twitter.com/5pA8vUs4dX

— Esta (@TheOnlyEsta2) August 15, 2026

The third group may have had the least chance of success. The jokes have ranged from diaper references to speculation about cosmetic surgery. One social media user even suggested the president had undergone a Brazilian butt lift. The Independent reported that the clip had triggered a wave of mockery over Trump’s health and possible incontinence.

A lot of left wing people are replying to Aaron here to say that Donald Trump simply has a great ass. He’s wearing a diaper in this video. You can do the math for yourself about what makes them do this https://t.co/kam7ucQNzL

— ostensibly (@CentristMadness) August 16, 2026

What the hell is that? pic.twitter.com/GCY87OYKlA

— Molly Ploofkins (@Mollyploofkins) August 16, 2026

At this point, the internet has effectively turned a badly behaved suit jacket into a national-security-level mystery.

So, Is Trump Wearing A Diaper?

There is no evidence proving it. The viral footage does not show what is underneath Trump’s clothing, and neither the White House nor Trump’s medical team has confirmed that he was wearing an adult diaper.

The Daily Beast reported that Trump’s biographer had also said there was no basis for the longstanding claim that he wears adult diapers.

So, why does everyone care about it so much?

Because Trump has become unusually good at turning his physical presence into political content. His health has been under increasing scrutiny during his second term, with public attention focusing on bruising on his hands, swelling around his ankles, a neck rash and moments when he has appeared tired or fallen asleep at public events. The White House has offered explanations for several of those issues, including aspirin use and chronic venous insufficiency.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/diaper-don-is-back-trumps-rear-goes-viral-after-bizarre-white-house-clip-ws-l-10278785.html

Ben-Gvir, one of the most hardline members of Netanyahu’s coalition, made the remarks in a podcast over the weekend.

Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called for Israeli forces to kill “30 to 40″ people in Gaza every night, saying Palestinians in the territory were “not even humans”.

Ben-Gvir, one of the most hardline members of Netanyahu’s coalition, made the remarks in a podcast with former Gaza hostage Rom Braslavski, published over the weekend.

‘Kill 30 or 40 every night’

“I think targeted eliminations should be carried out in Gaza every night — take out 30, 40,” Ben-Gvir said.

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir:

I think targeted eliminations should be carried out in Gaza every night — take out 30, 40. Not only those who endanger you at that particular moment.

There are people there who shouldn’t be alive. They shouldn’t live.

I’m… pic.twitter.com/IAT9LEJSb3

— Clash Report (@clashreport) August 15, 2026

He said the killings should not be limited to people who posed an immediate threat.

“Not only those who endanger you right now. These are people who shouldn’t be alive. I’m paying them a compliment by calling them humans,” the Israeli minister said.

During the podcast, Ben-Gvir also said he wanted Israel to establish settlements throughout Gaza and encourage Palestinians to leave the territory.

“I see all of Gaza as ours,” he said, adding that he wanted to see “as much emigration as possible” of Palestinians and Israeli settlements across the territory.

“Settlements not just in Gush Katif but throughout Gaza, encouraging as much emigration as possible, sending them to their countries. And for the terrorists, no emigration, nothing, just to kill them one by one,” Ben-Gvir added.

Talks over Gaza future

Ben-Gvir’s comments came as US Middle East envoy Jared Kushner held an hours-long meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, days after Netanyahu publicly rejected the latest part of a US plan aimed at ending the devastating Gaza war. Under the proposal, Hamas would disarm while Israel would begin a phased withdrawal from much of the Gaza Strip.

According to an Israeli official familiar with the meeting, Netanyahu and Kushner agreed that an American general would oversee the verification of Hamas’s disarmament, while Netanyahu insisted there would be no Israeli withdrawal from Gaza until the process was completed.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/israeli-minister-says-gazans-not-even-humans-calls-for-killings-30-40-every-night-ws-l-10278616.html

President Donald Trump’s approval rating fell to the lowest level of his presidency, ‌with an overwhelming majority of Americans concerned the U.S. war with Iran will last a long time, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll that concluded on Monday.
Just 33% of respondents in the four-day survey said they approved of Trump’s performance in the White House, while 64% disapproved. Trump’s approval rating, down from 35% in a poll that closed earlier this month and ​lower than at any point in his current term, has now tied the lowest level of his prior term reached in December 2017.

After ​returning to the White House in 2025 with just under half the country approving of his presidency, Trump’s popularity ⁠this year took a hit after he ordered strikes on Iran alongside U.S. ally Israel. The ensuing conflict paralyzed a fifth of the global oil trade, ​triggering a surge in the price of gasoline that is weighing on U.S. households – and on Trump’s Republican allies defending congressional majorities in November midterm elections.
Trump, who ​campaigned on promises to keep inflation in check and avoid long-lasting wars, initially pledged the conflict with Iran would take a few weeks. But Iran has proved resilient and has kept the oil trade through the Strait of Hormuz largely bottled up even as the conflict has cooled.

Some 80% of Americans – including 87% of Democrats and 71% of Republicans – ​think U.S. involvement in Iran “will go on for an extended period of time,” the Reuters/Ipsos poll found. Just 16% said the conflict would likely end ​in a few weeks.

TRUMP JUSTIFIES HIGH GAS PRICES

Trump told a political rally in Garden City, New York, on Friday that paying “a tiny little bit more for your gasoline” is worth ‌the cost ⁠of ensuring “a very evil country” could not have a nuclear weapon, one of his stated rationales for the war.
Throughout the conflict, the president has alternated between threats of escalation and assertions that a peace deal is imminent. Only one in five Americans – and just half of Republicans – think the war has been worth it, the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll found.
Concerns about the war and gasoline prices have Republicans nervous about their hopes of defending their slim majority in the ​U.S. House of Representatives in the ​November 3 elections, and Democrats increasingly ⁠see the U.S. Senate also within their grasp.

Reuters/Ipsos polling this month has shown voters prefer Democrats over Republicans as better stewards of the economy for the first time in about a decade. The latest poll showed 38% of voters think ​Democrats will handle the economy better, compared to 35% who prefer the Republican approach. Democrats are also seen ​as better equipped to ⁠manage the cost of living.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-approval-falls-33-lowest-his-presidency-reutersipsos-poll-finds-2026-08-17/

Thousands attended a vigil ​in central London on Monday for Jason Arday, a former University of Cambridge sociology professor who ‌was found dead on Friday after weeks of intense scrutiny over accusations of plagiarism and other claims.
Arday, once hailed as Cambridge’s youngest Black professor, resigned on August 5 after a former researcher accused him of plagiarism in his PhD thesis. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham ​described his death as “a tragedy on so many levels.”

Arday denied the allegation but acknowledged making mistakes.
The plagiarism ​allegations drew huge media interest, leading to questions about other elements of his life, including ⁠claims he made about his career, personal life and medical conditions.
His family said on Friday that he had ​been the victim of misinformation and harassment.
Campaign group Stand up to Racism organised Monday’s vigil to honour Arday. People ​carried flowers and placards — some reading “Rest In Power Professor Jason Arday” — as they gathered in Trafalgar Square, a historic centre for protest in the British capital.

ARDAY BECAME FOCAL POINT

Before his death, Arday had become a focal point for often polarising commentary about the state ​of British society, including on race, academic rigour, police interference and media intrusion.

Cambridge University pledged on Wednesday to investigate ​the circumstances of his appointment and his academic work.
Critics have argued the university was so keen to hire a Black academic ‌that it ⁠failed to check Arday’s credentials sufficiently and did not respond appropriately when the plagiarism claims emerged.
On Monday, university Chancellor Chris Smith defended the university’s approach.
“I do believe it is possible to hold to two principles at the same time: to believe in the importance of academic integrity, and where criticisms of plagiarism arise, about any academic, whoever ​they are, ensure that they ​are rigorously investigated,” he ⁠told the BBC.
“And also to refuse to join in a racist feeding frenzy over a particular academic.”
Britain’s Metropolitan Police apologised to a journalist for investigating a complaint against the ​journalist after he contacted Arday for comment on the plagiarism accusations a year before ​the story was ⁠made public.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/rest-power-thousands-gather-london-vigil-honouring-academic-arday-2026-08-17/

President Donald Trump said on Monday that Iran would not make ‌the deal he thinks is needed to end a war with the U.S.and should surrender as talks between the countries remained stalled.
“They’re not going to make the kind of a deal that I feel is necessary. Look, we’re in there for one reason: Iran ​cannot have a nuclear weapon,” he told reporters in the Oval Office.

Asked whether the U.S. ​was seeking to extend an interim deal with Iran, Trump said “no.”

The interim deal agreed to ⁠in June declared an “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts”, but quickly unraveled, with ​Trump saying it was “over” on July 7 and Iran’s foreign ministry declaring it “suspended” a week later.
Under that memorandum ​of understanding, Iran and the U.S. committed to negotiating a final deal — covering broader issues such as the fate of Iran’s nuclear programme — in a maximum of 60 days, extendable by mutual consent. Monday marks 60 days since the MOU was ​signed.
Hours before, Trump told a Fox News reporter during a phone interview that Iran “should put up the ​white flag of surrender.”

Separately, Oman and Iran have been in talks to try to reach an agreement to restore commercial ‌shipping ⁠in the Strait of Hormuz, which carried 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies before the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran began in late February.
“If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them,” Trump told Fox.
When asked later in the Oval Office if he was out of patience ​with Oman, Trump told ​reporters: “No, I don’t think ⁠they behaved very well, but we’d handle them very easily, just like we do other things.”
The dispute over control of the Strait of Hormuz has driven up ​fuel prices and put pressure on Trump to end a war that is ​unpopular at ⁠home ahead of the November midterm elections that will decide control of the U.S. Congress.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trump-says-iran-should-surrender-threatens-bomb-oman-2026-08-17/

A day after he ordered ​the United States to scale back military exercises with South Korea and called North Korea “unthreatening and respectful,” U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ‌had responded to his outreach.
Trump’s relationship with Kim has received less White House emphasis than it did in his first term, when the two men met and exchanged letters, but the U.S. president has repeatedly signaled interest in reviving direct diplomacy with the North Korean leader.

Asked by a reporter in the Oval Office why Kim had not responded to his efforts to reengage, Trump responded, “he has.” He did not provide further details.
White House officials and North ​Korea’s mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond when asked to comment.
Trump on Sunday instructed the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” joint military exercises with ​long-term Asian ally South Korea, citing the cost of the drills and Seoul’s refusal to take part in actions against Iran. North Korea denounces such ⁠drills as preparations for war.
Kim and Trump’s relationship was a dominant theme during Trump’s first term. They held summits in 2018 and 2019 before negotiations broke down over Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons ​arsenal. North Korea is under heavy international sanctions over those weapons, as well as its ballistic missiles.

Last year, Kim’s powerful sister, Kim Yo Jong, conceded that the personal relationship between her brother and ​Trump was “not bad,” but if Washington intended to use a personal relationship as a way to end Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program, the effort would only be the subject of “mockery.”
Since Trump and Kim last met in 2019, North Korea has significantly strengthened ties with Russia while maintaining close relations with China. North Korean troops have fought alongside Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, and Kyiv said last week that North Korean-made missiles were used ​in a Russian ballistic missile attack on a steel plant in Zaporizhzhia.
Trump’s administration has repeatedly criticized North Korea’s military support for Russia in Ukraine, but on Monday the president said “Kim Jong ​Un has always treated me with great respect.”

“I understand him. He understands me,” he said.
On Tuesday in Pyongyang, while making no mention of Trump, North Korea’s state news agency quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey ‌Lavrov as saying ⁠in a message to North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui that North Korea and Russia are working to establish a “new and righteous world order.”

NORTH KOREA “UNTHREATENING AND RESPECTFUL”

On Sunday, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that drills were “not only costly … but send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile, to a Country that, as long as Donald J. Trump has been President, has been unthreatening and respectful.”
Analysts say that despite North Korea’s coolness to Trump’s overtures and the much stronger position Kim is in since their last summit, another meeting between the two was possible.
Victor ​Cha, head of the Korea program at Washington’s ​Center for Strategic and International Studies think ⁠tank, doubted North Korea would respond immediately, however.

“I think they’re going to bide their time and wait a little bit,” he said.
Cha said part of Trump’s motivation for raising North Korea again appeared to be to shift headlines away from his struggles with the Iran war, although ​he was clearly interested in seeing Kim again.
Andrew Yeo at Washington’s Brookings Institution said a meeting would be in Kim’s interest.
“Some say ​that there’s no reason why ⁠Kim Jong Un would want to meet Trump because he has Russia and China now in his pocket. But on the flip side, I feel like he has nothing to lose by meeting Trump because he has Russia and China in his pocket,” he said.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/china/trump-says-north-koreas-kim-has-responded-his-overtures-2026-08-17/

Rebuffing President Donald Trump for a second time, the U.S. Supreme Court declined on Monday to hear his ‌appeal of a $5 million verdict in favor of E. Jean Carroll after a jury found him liable for sexually abusing and defaming the former magazine columnist.
The justices rejected Trump’s request to reconsider their previous decision in June denying his appeal of the 2023 jury verdict stemming from allegations that he raped her ​in the 1990s in a Manhattan department store’s dressing room. Trump’s lawyers contend that the trial was unfair.

The court’s order ​was unsigned and came with no explanation. The Supreme Court rarely grants requests for reconsideration.
The justices ⁠also are weighing the Republican president’s appeal of a separate $83.3 million jury verdict for defaming Carroll in 2019 during his first term ​as president, when he denied the claims and asserted that she lied about the accusations. Trump’s lawyers in that appeal argue that ​presidential immunity shields him from Carroll’s claims and that lower courts wrongly decided that he had forfeited that defense.
Trump has been battling Carroll, a former advice columnist for Elle magazine, ever since she published an excerpt from her memoir in 2019 in which she alleged that Trump had raped her around ​1996 in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room in Manhattan.

Trump denied Carroll’s claims and asserted that she lied both in ​2019 and again in 2022, while he was out of office.
The case that led to the $5 million verdict concerned Trump’s statements in 2022 when he ‌called ⁠Carroll’s claim a “hoax” and a “con job” in a post on social media. Jurors in that case decided in 2023 that Trump had sexually abused Carroll and defamed her, but did not find that Trump raped Carroll, as she had claimed.
“We are pleased that the United States Supreme Court has declined again to hear this case,” Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, said in a statement.
“As a result, the jury’s ​unanimous verdict that Donald Trump sexually ​assaulted and then defamed E. ⁠Jean Carroll is now final and cannot be challenged in any court,” Kaplan said.
Following the Supreme Court’s denial in June of Trump’s appeal in the case, Carroll collected nearly $5.63 million from Trump. The payout ​represented the original $5 million civil verdict, plus interest.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/us-supreme-court-again-rebuffs-trump-5-million-e-jean-carroll-case-2026-08-17/

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva launched his final reelection campaign on Sunday from a storied stadium where he stood on a table to address some 60,000 striking metalworkers in 1979 without a sound system.
The homecoming in the “May 1” ​stadium in Sao Bernardo do Campo, a once-thriving factory city on Sao Paulo’s industrial outskirts, is a tribute to the labor movement that eventually propelled Lula from factory worker to Brazil’s first working-class president.

“I thank the ‌working men and women of this country who, at one point, believed that someone like them could do more for them than someone different from them,” Lula told a crowd of around 20,000 supporters, many wearing the red associated with his Workers Party (PT), on Sunday.
Five decades later, however, Lula is grappling with how to rally a new generation of digital app-based gig workers with little connection to the unions and factory floors that once formed the backbone of PT.
“There has been a substantial change in the world of work,” Lula said after his government suffered losses in major city ​elections in 2024. “We need to adapt our message to the world of work that is not limited to formal, registered employment.”

Ahead of October’s vote, the PT is trying to do that by backing a shorter work week and ​proposing new protections for app-based workers, including regulations covering pay, working conditions, social security benefits and platform algorithms.
Resistance from companies has mostly sunk efforts so far, and millions of mostly young, ⁠male app workers seem skeptical of government intervention — a constituency Lula’s main right-wing rival, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, stands ready to court.

THE GIG ECONOMY

At the heart of Lula’s dilemma is a surge in jobs outside Brazil’s system of formal employment, which provides workers ​with a raft of labor rights and social-security benefits.
The share of workers who held formal jobs fell to 38.2% in December from 46.7% at the end of 2010, even as unemployment ended 2025 at a record-low 5.1%.

“What kind of future do you ​want if you do not invest in jobs?” Lula asked his supporters on Sunday. “We have created 10.1 million formal jobs over the past three and a half years. That is what it means to think about the future.”
Darlan Almeida, 27, had a formal job but now makes more delivering for apps on his motorcycle in Sao Bernardo do Campo, where his Lula-supporting father worked in a factory. Almeida, however, identifies as apolitical and says the government’s efforts misunderstand what workers like him need.
“They don’t know what we need or how we work. They should spend a day with ​us on the streets,” Almeida said.
Almeida is one of the 2.1 million Brazilians working through digital platforms, a workforce that grew 170% between 2015 and 2025, according to a central bank estimate using survey data from Brazil’s statistics agency.
Uber driver Eduardo Marini, ​51, complains of his working conditions but says the job’s flexibility outweighs the benefits of formal employment and he fears government regulation could limit his autonomy.
Opportunities on digital platforms and fears of government meddling have pushed workers to right-wing politicians who favor lighter regulation, said Oswaldo ‌Amaral, a public ⁠opinion researcher at the University of Campinas.

“The prevailing perception is that the state only gets in the way and collects taxes,” Amaral said.
Marini said he is on the right, as do 40% of platform workers, according to a 2023 survey paid for by Uber and Brazilian partner iFood. Another 40% of workers said they were centrist, while just 20% identified with the left.

IDENTITY CRISIS

Lula sought to regulate app-based work in 2024, but the efforts faltered as major tech companies pushed back and worker distrust mounted. His government is trying again this year, but a new bill has stalled in Congress.
The challenges reflect a party rooted in labor organizing struggling to keep pace with workers increasingly detached from unions and traditional employment structures.
Brazil’s unionization rate has nearly halved over the past ​decade, falling to 8.9% in 2024 from 15.7% in 2014, ​according to the latest official data.
Marco Teixeira, a political ⁠science professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation, said the Workers Party lacks a clear message for app-based workers without an identifiable boss.
The party’s president, Edinho Silva, has welcomed some soul-searching. He said unions and left-wing groups need to better understand informal workers and their working conditions.
“They aren’t talking to them, they aren’t organizing them, and they aren’t present in their daily lives,” Silva said.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-lula-launches-reelection-bid-aims-win-back-workers-his-workers-party-2026-08-16/

Residents of villages in eastern Indonesia hit by a deadly earthquake that killed at least ‌54 people were awaiting aid on Monday as rescuers prepared to comb through collapsed buildings in search of people trapped beneath the rubble.
Thousands have been evacuated following the country’s deadliest disaster since a 2022 quake killed hundreds in West Java, with many sheltering in tents outdoors and afraid to return to their homes ​due to fears of aftershocks.

The tremor has cast a grim shadow over Indonesia’s Independence Day celebrations and residents of East ​Nusa Tenggara have been jolted by nearly 1,600 aftershocks in the province as of Monday, local media cited the ⁠geophysics agency chief as saying. The agency reported a 5.6 quake in the region on Monday morning.
The quake also caused landslides and blocked ​roads across Indonesia’s southernmost province, including the regions of Sikka and Manggarai. The official death toll was at 54 as of Monday, the disaster mitigation ​agency, known as BNPB, said.
In the parking lot of a damaged health centre littered with tents and hospital beds in a village close to the quake-affected Ende region, Firmus Woge, a 64-year-old farmer, was being treated for his asthma, aggravated by the quake-induced panic.

He had difficulty breathing overnight “but it’s getting worse again after this ​morning’s quake,” he said, gasping for breath.
In nearby tents, Emilianus Oro, a 56-year-old farmer from Ranukolo village, said about 70 mostly female residents ​lacked clean water, leading children to contract diarrhoea. He said one older person had a stroke and residents have not received aid.
Elsewhere, Veronika Nggambi, 22, ‌was tending ⁠to her baby with her mother, swaddled in a brown blanket, in the back of a pickup truck as her house was no longer inhabitable.
“I can only eat rice with nothing else,” she said. “We need aid as soon as possible. We are just salt farmers.”

The search will continue on Monday, authorities said.
Fathur Rahman, chief at the rescue office in Maumere, Sikka’s capital, told Reuters on Monday the search ​will focus on aerial monitoring ​for anyone missing using a helicopter and ⁠an extrication device.

There were no reports of people missing and no challenges hampering the search, added Fathur.
Authorities readied planes to deliver aid such as food and tents, BNPB chief Suharyanto said late on Sunday. The ​quake damaged around 500 homes, he said.
Indonesia will also build an emergency field hospital in several areas, ​said Benjamin Paulus ⁠Octavianus, the country’s deputy health minister.
Neurosurgeons and orthopaedic surgeons are needed to treat head trauma and broken bones, Benjamin said.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/search-indonesia-quake-victims-underway-independence-day-2026-08-17/

Donald Trump’s envoys met with Egyptian, Qatari and Turkish mediators in Cairo on Sunday, ​a diplomatic source said, aiming to advance the U.S. president’s Gaza peace plan, even as Israel pressed on with airstrikes in the enclave.
Hamas ‌officials were present at some of the meetings that mediators held with Trump’s envoy and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and Trump’s Board of Peace envoy for Gaza, Nickolay Mladenov, the diplomat said.

A senior Israeli official said Kushner and Mladenov were scheduled to meet on Monday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who on August 9 said Trump’s latest roadmap for Gaza peace was ‘unacceptable’.

GAZA MEDICS SAY STRIKES WOUNDED SEVERAL PEOPLE

The official said ​Israel was concerned about Washington’s demand to end targeted assassinations of Hamas militants in Gaza as the group rebuilds its forces.
Trump’s peace plan ​calls for the immediate cessation of military operations in Gaza. It foresees Hamas disarming as Israeli troops withdraw from the ⁠enclave and as Gaza is rebuilt under a new civilian Palestinian administration.
Israel has resumed airstrikes in the past few days after scaling back its attacks in the enclave ​earlier this month.

The Israeli military said on Sunday that its aircraft struck two Islamic Jihad and Hamas militants in Khan Younis and Nuseirat. At least five ​Palestinians were wounded in the strike which hit a tent encampment, medics in the enclave said.
One of those wounded in the strike on Khan Younis in southern Gaza died from their wounds, medics at Nasser Hospital said later.
A separate airstrike, which the Israeli military said targeted another militant, hit an apartment in the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, wounding several people, medics ​said.
Earlier, Hamas leader Khalil Al-Hayya met with Egypt’s intelligence chief Hassan Rashad in Cairo. Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesperson in Gaza, said Al-Hayya would brief ​mediators on what he said were Israel’s ceasefire violations.

MUSLIM POWERS CONDEMN ISRAELI REJECTION OF PLAN

Trump announced last month that there had been a breakthrough in his plan to end ‌the war.

Hamas ⁠said it had agreed to the plan to avoid a resumption of the conflict, but added that implementation of the deal would depend on Israel first meeting its own commitments, including withdrawing its forces and halting attacks.
Five Arab countries and Turkey, Pakistan and Indonesia condemned Israel’s rejection of the plan, saying in a joint statement on Sunday that it threatens Trump’s efforts to end the war in Gaza.
A spokesperson for Netanyahu did not immediately respond to a request for ​comment on the joint statement.
Netanyahu’s Likud ​party, which has been struggling in ⁠the polls ahead of an October 27 national election, said in a post on X that the Arab countries want to topple Netanyahu so that his political rivals will “give them everything that they want”.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trumps-envoys-middle-east-push-gaza-peace-plan-2026-08-16/

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday instructed the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” ​joint military exercises with long-term Asian ally South Korea, citing the cost of the drills and Seoul’s refusal to take part in actions against Iran.
Hours before exercises were scheduled to begin, Trump ‌said on his Truth Social site he was “not happy” that the U.S. had agreed to participate and highlighted his “very good relationship” with Kim Jong Un, the leader of nuclear-armed and heavily sanctioned North Korea.

“These exercises are not only costly… but send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile, to a Country that, as long as Donald J. Trump has been President, has been unthreatening and respectful,” Trump wrote.
The annual Ulchi Freedom Shield joint military exercises are scheduled to run until August 27, with about 18,000 South Korean military personnel participating.
South Korea’s Joint ​Chiefs of Staff told Reuters the drills started on Monday as scheduled.
South Korea’s presidential Blue House said it was reviewing Trump’s post and “hopes that the friendly relationship between the U.S. and North Korean leaders will ​lead to meaningful dialogue between the two countries, opening discussions aimed at advancing peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula,” it said.

The allies would continue coordinating on their combined ⁠defense posture and military exercises, it said.
Responding to Trump’s claim that President Lee Jae Myung had refused to join U.S. efforts to denuclearise Iran, it said Seoul was discussing potential military contributions, while considering its defense readiness on ​the Korean Peninsula and domestic legal procedures.
A Pentagon spokesperson referred questions on the matter to the White House, which did not immediately respond to a request for details.

UP-AND-DOWN RELATIONSHIP

Trump has long sought to end or curtail military exercises with South Korea ​while clashing with Seoul over sharing the costs of stationing 28,500 U.S. troops in South Korea and their role in securing the broader region.
North Korea, still technically at war with the South, routinely denounces the U.S.-South Korean exercises as preparations for an invasion. Pyongyang last week fired a ballistic missile from its eastern coast towards the Sea of Japan, days after a similar North Korean short-range ballistic missile launch.

“This decision may be part of a larger effort to create a diplomatic opportunity with Pyongyang, as Trump has consistently wanted since coming back to ​office, although the haphazard nature of this move is unlikely to make much of an impression in Pyongyang,” Jenny Town, head of the Stimson Center think tank’s 38 North program, said in an email.
The relationship between Trump and Kim ​has been a roller coaster for years.
Trump once mocked the North Korean leader as “little rocket man” and threatened Pyongyang with “fire and fury,” while Kim boasted that he would “tame the mentally deranged U.S. dotard with fire.”
Yet they also took part in three summits, with Trump ‌declaring, “we fell ⁠in love” after exchanging letters with Kim. None of these efforts led to changes in North Korea’s nuclear weapons or ballistic missile development.

Even as Trump on Sunday spoke warmly of North Korea, he pointed to South Korea’s stance on the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran.
“While somewhat unrelated (?), I recently asked the President of South Korea if they would like to join us in the Denuclearization of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and they said, ‘No thanks!'” Trump wrote.

EXERCISES SHIFT TO SIMULATIONS

It’s unclear how the drills could be cut back, but in recent years, they have shifted away from live-fire exercises to computer-simulated missile and cyberattacks.
Victor Cha, head of the Korea program at Washington’s Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Trump may be ​seeking greater influence over North Korea as Pyongyang has been ​heavily engaged in support of Russia in Ukraine.
“The ⁠other way to look at this is that Trump wants to engage Kim as a way to impede the Russia-NK ties,” said Cha.
U.S. military officials have said North Korean troops, who have fought alongside Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, have gained experience from the conflict, while Ukraine said last week that North Korean-made missiles were used in a Russian ballistic ​missile attack on a steel plant in Zaporizhzhia.
A high-ranking U.S. Northern Command official, Lieutenant General Joseph Jarrard, last week warned that North Korea had successfully tested intercontinental ​ballistic missiles with “enough boost to deliver ⁠a nuclear payload anywhere in North America.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/china/trump-instructs-pentagon-reduce-military-exercises-with-south-korea-2026-08-16/

Over 995 aftershocks have been recorded, some damaging infrastructure and forcing thousands into temporary shelters.

A magnitude 5.9 earthquake has struck Indonesia’s earthquake-hit Flores region, days after a powerful 7.7-magnitude quake killed at least 53 people and caused widespread damage. The latest tremor was recorded on Monday by Germany’s GFZ Research Centre for Geosciences. It struck at a depth of about 10km.

There were no immediate reports of further casualties or damage from the latest earthquake. The tremor comes after the 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck East Nusa Tenggara province on Saturday morning. The US Geological Survey said its epicentre was about 68km north-west of Ende.

The earthquake triggered a tsunami warning, prompting coastal residents to move to higher ground. The warning was later lifted after authorities found no significant changes in sea levels.

WHEN 22-year-old Michele walked out of her mother’s home carrying a suitcase and her passport in September 2015, her family simply thought she had gone off travelling again.

The young woman from Germany had already ventured right across the world chasing her dream of becoming a model.

These trips had taken her from Europe all the way to China and South America, yet she returned home safely.

But this time it was not to be, and young Michele vanished without a trace.

There were no calls, no messages and no words of comfort to her increasingly anxious family.

For more than an agonising decade, there appeared to be precious little to offer any explanation of where Michele had gone, or why she had suddenly disappeared.

Yet buried among the millions of pages of files relating to notorious sex predator Jeffrey Epstein was an extraordinary secret that has cast her final weeks in a dark and disturbing new light.

Model scout Daniel Siad, apparently still in contact with Michele shortly before she disappeared, had previously sent photographs of her to Epstein. He had even discussed getting her a plane ticket and made a creepy, ominous promise to the convicted sex offender: “You will love her.”

There is no evidence Michele ever met Epstein, nor that Siad was involved in her disappearance.

But her father Vlado also remembers overhearing his daughter on the telephone with the model scout shortly before she vanished. And he says Siad was giving her a real telling-off.

Though the full details of what was being discussed have never emerged, Vlado clearly remembers his daughter’s reaction afterwards: Michele was frightened.

Eleven years later, bringing together what is now known about her final weeks reveals a disturbing background that her family could never have known about when she first failed to come home.

Michele’s model dream had taken her thousands of miles from Germany to Dubai, where in 2012, while working as a waitress, she told her mother that a Swedish man had approached her in a restaurant.

He introduced himself as a model scout and said he was always looking for “pretty girls”.

The man was Siad, a Swedish national with Algerian roots who would remain in Michele’s orbit for several years.

For a young woman desperately hoping to break into modelling, his approach appeared to offer the golden opportunity she had dreamed of.

Michele soon went on to tell her parents about exciting photoshoots, modelling work and travels that took her to China, Britain and South America, with adventurous trips abroad becoming an increasingly normal part of her life.

At first there seemed no immediate reason for her family to be alarmed by Siad. Michele’s mother Annett even met him herself and later remembered him as “open and friendly”, adding: “He actually made a serious impression.”

But beneath this shiny, respectable image was another relationship far darker Michele’s family apparently knew nothing about.

Siad had been in contact with Epstein for years.

According to German investigative magazine Der Spiegel, their communications stretched back to at least 2009.

When German broadcaster ZDF later searched the huge collection of documents released by the US Justice Department, it found a staggering 1,840 references to Daniel Siad among emails, messages and telephone records.

Some of Siad’s own words offer an extraordinary glimpse of how he operated.

In one disturbing 2014 email, he compared himself to a “fisherman”, writing that sometimes he made a good “catch” and sometimes there was “no fish”.

In the same unedifying message, he referred to five Scandinavian girls aged between 16 and 17 and mentioned a 15-year-old French girl whose parents, he said, were delighted she was becoming a model.

ZDF separately reported messages in which Siad described a 26-year-old woman as looking 18 and discussed other women by nationality.

When challenged, Siad later insisted he had simply been doing his professional job as a model scout and did not know women were being abused.

Then, in 2014, Michele’s photographs entered the Epstein correspondence.

According to the German investigation, Siad sent Epstein pictures of the then 21-year-old and apparently asked whether he wanted to send a plane ticket for her.

Siad described Michele as somebody he knew very well and a “great person”, before adding: “You will love her.”

There is no direct evidence that Michele ever met Epstein. The disclosed files do not establish that the proposed meeting took place, and there is no evidence Michele even knew Siad had sent Epstein her pictures.

But Siad apparently remained in her life.

Shortly before Michele disappeared, Vlado remembers hearing her speaking to him on the telephone. He could hear the model scout from some distance away and remembers him scolding his daughter.

Precisely what Siad was saying has never been publicly established. Nor is it known what any apparent disagreement was about, and there is no evidence linking the call to Michele’s subsequent disappearance.

What Vlado does remember is that his daughter was frightened.

Then, in early September 2015, Michele packed a suitcase, took her passport and left her mother’s home without telling her family where she was going.

At first there was little reason to panic. Michele was an experienced traveller who had gone off on trips before, normally returning after a week or two, so her family initially assumed this journey would be no different.

But a week passed, then another, and Michele did not return.

There were no telephone calls to reassure her family, no messages to friends and, according to subsequent German reporting, researchers could find no later social-media posts or other digital signs of life.

By October 2015, her family was sufficiently worried to report her missing.

Police checked whether Michele had surfaced in another German state or a neighbouring country, but found nothing.

Yet they faced a fundamental obstacle: Michele was 22, travelled regularly and appeared to have left voluntarily. There was nothing to show she had been abducted, attacked or become the victim of another crime.

A police spokesman later told ZDF and Der Spiegel that an active search had not been possible because there were no indications of a crime. Even in spring 2026, police were still saying there were no plans for a public appeal.

A Der Spiegel journalist who later investigated Michele’s disappearance admitted being baffled by the response.

“For me, that was difficult to understand at first, just as it was for the family,” the reporter said.

More than a decade after Michele vanished, journalists from ZDF’s Die Spur, Der Spiegel and paper trail media uncovered the Epstein connection while digging through the vast collection of documents.

Their investigation took them, Der Spiegel said, “deep into Epstein’s network”, while the journalists spent hours with Michele’s relatives, who showed them childhood photographs and talked about the daughter and sister they had not seen for more than ten years.

The discovery brought the case back under scrutiny, but it was not enough for German prosecutors to open a criminal investigation.

After examining the new information, the responsible prosecutor’s office announced in July 2026 that it had found “no concrete indications of a criminal offence”.

“We have therefore currently refrained from initiating an investigation,” a spokeswoman said, explaining that “the mere possibility of a crime” was not sufficient.

Michele therefore remains officially a missing person. Her details are still entered in the German police system for Personenfahndung (person tracing), while the Bundeskriminalamt (Federal Criminal Police Office) has confirmed that the case is known to it in its central and international co-ordination role.

Her mother Annett believes something terrible happened to her daughter.

“I think she is no longer alive. That something was done to her,” she said when the Epstein connection emerged.

After prosecutors decided not to open a criminal investigation, she added: “I am very disappointed that the authorities are not responding. After all, we have been living with worry and uncertainty for eleven years.”

Above all, the idea that Michele simply decided to disappear forever does not fit the daughter Annett remembers.

“Michele was a family person. She would always come back. She loved us,” she said, insisting her daughter would make contact if she could.

And there was still one man who might have been able to provide another piece of the puzzle: Daniel Siad himself.

On July 20, 2026, however, Siad was found dead at his home in Colombes, north-west of Paris, aged 69.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16848983/epstein-model-michele-daniel-siad-germany/

Iranian Army chief Amir Hatami announced the $30,000 bounty to capture soldiers, saying that the plan had been drawn up after a “large number of requests” to participate, according to a report.

$30,000. That’s how much Iran’s military is offering to the country’s citizens. For women, the reward doubles to $60,000. But there’s a catch – capture or kill US soldiers.

Iranian Army chief Amir Hatami announced the $30,000 bounty to capture soldiers, saying that the plan had been drawn up after a “large number of requests” to participate, according to an AFP report quoting IRNA state news agency.

“Anyone who kills or captures and hands over an invading American military personnel will receive a reward equivalent to $30,000 or 5 billion tomans from the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army,” Hatami said, without providing details of when or where the killing or capturing of the US soldiers would take place.

Since the beginning of the US-Iran war in the Middle East, there has been no known deployment of American forces on ground except for the time when an airman from the country was down.

“Courageous Iranian women who carry out such an action will receive double the reward,” Hatami said, speaking of the bounty.

According to another report by The Jerusalem Post, this is not everything the awardee will receive.

Hatami reportedly said that the weapon used to kill a US soldier will be purchased at double the price, and the person will receive a new weapon. “The individual’s weapon will also be kept in a planned museum,” he added, as per the report.

He declared that the US’ claims about their military power had been exposed during its war with Iran. Hatami backed his country’s call for the US to withdraw from the Middle East, saying “they no longer have permission to enter the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman or the Strait of Hormuz”.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/us-iran-war-kill-a-us-soldier-get-30-000-iran-announces-bounty-double-pay-for-women-11917992?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

Under the pact, an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be regarded as an attack against all three.

US President Donald Trump has welcomed the recently signed Mecca Joint Defence Agreement between Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan, describing the pact as a major step towards greater regional security and self-reliance.

In a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, Trump said he was “very happy” to see Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan had “recently, and finally” signed the agreement.

“It shows how the Middle East is coming together, and how Countries will finally be able to defend themselves in a more meaningful way,” Trump wrote, calling the pact a “BIG, BOLD, IMPORTANT FIRST STEP.”

Mecca Joint Defence Agreement

The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement was signed in Mecca on August 7 by Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The agreement establishes a framework for collective defence and expanded military and security cooperation.

Under the pact, an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be regarded as an attack against all three. The agreement also envisages closer military coordination, joint exercises and cooperation in areas including defence technology and military industries.

The agreement comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East and growing concerns over regional security. The three countries have described the pact as defensive in nature and said it is not aimed at forming a military or sectarian bloc.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/big-bold-important-first-step-trump-welcomes-saudi-turkiye-pakistan-defence-pact-ws-l-10276785.html

Just three days after a 14-year-old opened fire at his school, killing eight people before shooting himself, another incident in the same province illustrated even more starkly Thailand’s troubled relationship with guns.

Chalong Riewrang, a 71-year-old former politician, went into the local administration office to discuss a large sum of money he says he was owed by the administration chief, Thongchai Yenprasert, a man he called his friend.

The conversation ended abruptly with Chalong pulling out a gun and firing four shots through the window of Thongchai’s car, hitting him and his driver. Thongchai later died from his wounds.

Chalong then left the scene, and phoned a startled journalist he knew who was in the middle of a live broadcast on YouTube, to tell her what had happened.

After the police intercepted him and took him to the station, he was allowed to speak to reporters, casually smoking a cigarette and seemingly unperturbed by what he had done.

He explained that he had “not intended to shoot his friend”, but opened fire when the driver also pulled a gun. The police did find two guns in the car, but said they were not in a state where they could have been fired.

This was not the only gun fatality in Thailand on that day. In Prachinburi, east of Bangkok, a police sergeant shot his wife in the head while arguing with her as she was driving their car to pick up their young son. The car crashed and the sergeant then shot himself in the head. His wife died in hospital.

There were probably other gun deaths that day which were not reported by the media.

The Thai police do not keep their own tally, but in recent years the number of gun deaths every year is estimated to range between 2,000 and 3,000. In Britain, which has a similar population, the number is less than 50.

Guns are sometimes used in robberies, and for a relatively modest fee you can hire a hitman in Thailand to kill someone for you. But the typical gun death occurs during domestic disputes, financial disagreements, or in bar brawls fuelled by alcohol.

Thailand has more than 10 million civilian-owned guns in circulation – 4 million of those unlicensed. So that means minor altercations over trivial issues can suddenly turn lethal.

“It’s very unfortunate that Thailand has a very high tolerance for violence,” says Boonwara Sumano at the Thailand Development Research Institute.

“Guns are seen as a status symbol, and there are so many ways that civilians can get them. Also, showing strength, wielding power, is seen as the right thing to do in Thai society. So, when you have a norm that promotes the possession of weapons to show your strength, and access to those weapons, this is the result.”

At first sight Thailand appears to have quite strict gun regulations. Anyone wishing to buy a gun must first apply for a purchase permit, then, once they have bought it, apply for a second possession permit. If they wish to carry the gun outside their homes they then need a third permit. Imported guns – most of them – are very expensive.

But there are huge loopholes. The possession permits are valid for the lifetime of the holder. There is no requirement for mental health screening. And there are no checks on how safely guns are stored. For instance, the boy who carried out the latest school shooting was able to get hold of his grandfather’s legally owned gun and large quantities of ammunition.

There is also a government scheme under which police officers and other officials can buy guns at steeply discounted prices.

Around 200,000 guns have been imported every year, mostly from the US, under the scheme, which started in 2009.

They can then be resold after five years, which has become a lucrative business.

The scheme has been investigated several times over alleged corruption. Together with weapons made locally by unlicensed gunmakers it is believed to be the source of many black market guns in Thailand.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has ordered immediate measures to tighten gun control, suspending the discount purchase scheme and the issuing of all purchase licences.

He is talking about limiting the validity of possession permits, and a possible amnesty to encourage those with unlicensed guns to hand them in.

He has asked parliament to work on a new law, and vowed severe penalties for those who break the rules.

But we have been here before.

After the massacre of children and teachers by a former police officer at a nursery in 2022, and then after a shooting by another 14-year-old boy at Bangkok’s most popular shopping mall in 2023, Anutin, then the interior minister, ordered similar measures.

The discount scheme was also suspended back then, but almost immediately reinstated. The carrying of firearms by anyone not on official duty was banned after another school shooting in February this year.

The problem is not just regulation. The sheer number of guns in circulation, endemic corruption, lax enforcement of laws in all walks of life, the glorification of guns and a decades-long military culture are all contributing factors.

In the most recent asset declarations by government ministers more than a dozen owned guns: the justice minister owns 10, the minister for the environment and natural resources said he had 12, and one female MP has declared ownership of 48 guns.

Boonwara Sumano also highlights the pervasive influence of the military in Thailand, even when it is not actually running the country, which it has done for most of its modern history.

“If you notice every Children’s Day in Thailand, instead of taking children to a museum or park, many families take their children to an army or air force base to see the weapons, take photos holding guns, this kind of thing.

“It’s in the culture. You see big men in the military looking so powerful, they kind of make you want to become one of them,” she told the BBC.

Thailand is an outlier in this region.

Compared to Thailand’s 10 million, Indonesia has only 82,000 civilian-owned guns, with a population four times larger. In Malaysia the number is 107,000, and deaths from gunshots are rare.

The Philippines is the only other country with a similar gun-culture and comparable levels of gun crime.

Gun enthusiasts in Thailand now worry that the government will react to public anxiety over the latest attacks by making even responsible gun ownership much harder.

Yod, a 53-year-old businessman, told the BBC he viewed his collection of more than 70 guns more as luxurious toys – he said he had never fired most of them.

“Most of the gun crimes in this country are carried out by illegal weapons. New measures to control legally owned guns are not the right solution. There are blank guns and spare parts which can be assembled as real guns being imported legally into the country. Why hasn’t that been chased up?”

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cevml4701emo

Two people died and and hundreds were evacuated after two fires broke out “almost simultaneously” on a Greek island near Athens on Sunday afternoon, officials said.

About 200 firefighters were deployed to keep the twin fires from converging on the island of Salamina, which was under a high wildfire risk on Sunday.

The first blaze was reported at 14:40 local time (11:40 GMT) near the island’s south coast and spread rapidly due to high winds, followed by a separate fire some 20 minutes later in the east. Their cause is not yet known.

One of the fires had been brought under control and evacuations completed by Sunday evening, Greek media report, with 500 people having left the island by sea.

The first blaze broke out in a forested residential area in Peristeria, a southern city on the island, fire official Vasilios Vathrakoyannis said in a statement.

Firefighters attending the blaze found two bodies at the scene, he said. The city’s mayor told Greek media they were believed to have been a couple.

Officials continued to battle scattered blazes there late on Sunday, while the second fire which began in the eastern town of Selinia was said to have “no active front”.

Two coast guard vessels and a fire department vessel will remain in the area for surveillance and assistance.

At least 10 other people suffered burns or showed “symptoms of smoke inhalation”, five of whom had been taken for treatment locally, Greek Health Minister Adonis Georgiades said on X.

A number of aircraft and 50 fire engines, assisted by water tankers and construction machinery, were deployed to try and tackle the two fires.

Salamina Deputy Mayor Thodoris Zannis earlier said this was to keep the fires from burning over a mountain on the island and meeting to form a single blaze.

Five patrol boats and several other private vessels were sent to the area for assistance.

Salamina sits just west of Athens and has some 37,000 residents, many of them elderly.

Firefighters across Europe have been facing a series of wildfires this weekend, including officers in Belgium spending a third day beating back flames in the country’s largest nature reserve, Hautes Fagnes.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87nnwlpe5no

The head of a major lefty video agency who shot digital video ads for Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s successful campaign made an outrageous false claim about the unhinged attacker who terrorized Jewish New Yorkers during Shabbat services at a Manhattan synagogue, The Post has learned.

“Apparently this guy was an orthodox jew who was lashing out at jews. I wouldn’t call that an ‘antisemitic attack,’” Debbie Saslaw claimed on X, linking to a Post story on the arrest with a headline calling it an “antisemitic attack.”

As it turns out, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office charged the accused attacker, Larry Montes with two counts of assault as a hate crime, two counts of aggravated harassment and one count of criminal mischief as a hate crime for his Friday night rampage at the Central Synagogue on the Upper East Side.

The firm Saslaw co-founded, Melted Solids, prominently features its work for the Mamdani campaign.

The agency has also worked on the campaigns of Vermont Sen. and presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, House Democratic nominees Brad Lander and Claire Valdez and former Congressman Jamaal Bowman, among others.

Saslaw, who was a “senior producer” for the campaign, said she is no longer associated with Mamdani or his campaign.

Montes, a Bronx resident, allegedly admitted to cops that his actions were religiously motivated, and called those worshiping inside the synagogue “swine” and “fake Jews,” Assistant District Attorney Ali Fazal said in court Saturday night.

The 46-year-old assailant “intentionally struck a 63-year-old worshipper’s face, causing her to sustain the laceration on her lip and fall to the ground,” Fazal said.

Prosecutors said Montes then “grabbed and threw two religious candles and candle holders, causing them to break,” valued at around $10,000 each.

“In addition to having animus towards Jewish individuals, the defendant admitted to having racial animus towards black people,” the ADA said during Montes’ arraignment.

“Before exiting the building, the defendant turned his attention away from the worshippers onto the security guard… a 65-year-old African American man,” the ADA added.

He also allegedly yelled “f–k the Jews,” sources said.

Saslaw deleted her statement from X, but not before someone screengrabbed it — and she later acknowledged it was a hate crime.

“Sadly it’s a hate crime and i was obviously panicked when i heard early reports but saw nothing on twitter for 4 hours or so,” Saslaw said in a reply on her X account.

Someone responding to her post said he thought Montes might be a “Jews for Jesus” adherent.

Source : https://nypost.com/2026/08/16/us-news/ex-mamdani-campaign-staffer-makes-outrageous-claim-about-hateful-nyc-synagogue-attack-where-attacker-yelled-f-k-the-jews/

Hayden Panettiere, the actress who shot to fame as the indestructible cheerleader Claire Bennet on NBC’s “Heroes” before starring as country singer Juliette Barnes on “Nashville,” has died.

She was 36.

Panettiere’s father confirmed her death to ABC News on Sunday.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” Skip Panettiere said in a statement.

“She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her — and to the millions who watched her onscreen,” the statement continued.

No cause of death or details about the circumstances surrounding her death were immediately provided. The Post has reached out to Panettiere’s rep.

Panettiere’s shocking death came just three months after she published her deeply candid memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” in which the former child star opened up about her harrowing battles with alcohol and opioid addiction, postpartum depression, domestic abuse and the pressures of growing up in Hollywood.

The Palisades, NY, native had been working since she was a baby, appearing in commercials at just 11 months old before landing roles on the soaps “One Life to Live” and “Guiding Light.” She was homeschooled after middle school to balance her education with her grueling acting schedule.

She became one of the youngest actors to be nominated for a Grammy Award for voicing Princess Dot in the 1998 movie “A Bug’s Life” at 9 years old.

She later appeared in movies including “Remember the Titans” at 10 years old, before becoming a household name as Claire Bennet on “Heroes,” which premiered in 2006.

She also starred in several coming-of-age films and teen rom-coms in the early 2000s, including Disney’s “Ice Princess,” “Racing Stripes,” and “Bring It On: All or Nothing,” and “I Love You, Beth Cooper.”

Her performance as troubled country star Juliette Barnes on “Nashville” earned Panettiere two Golden Globe nominations for best supporting actress in 2013 and 2014, respectively.

But as her career flourished, Panettiere was privately battling addiction — a struggle she would later detail publicly.

She said her drinking began to spiral after she moved to Tennessee to film “Nashville” in 2012 and worsened following the 2014 birth of her daughter, Kaya, when she also battled postpartum depression. Kaya lives with her father, former pro boxer Wladimir Klitschko, in his native Ukraine after Panettiere relinquished custody during her struggles with addiction and postpartum depression.

An old neck injury later led her to take prescription opioids, Panettiere said, and her tolerance quickly grew into a dependency.

She first checked herself into rehab in 2015, saying she felt as though she was “drowning.”

Panettiere later returned to drinking, which she said became a crutch for dealing with anxiety and life in the public eye.

By the time she turned 30, the abuse had taken a frightening physical toll.

“My face was swollen. I had jaundice. My eyes were yellow. I had to go to a liver specialist,” Panettiere told Women’s Health.

“I was holding on to weight that wasn’t normally there. My hair was thin and coming out in clumps.”

In her memoir, the mom of one revealed that a doctor had warned her that if she continued drinking, she could be dead within five years.

She eventually underwent an eight-month stint in treatment, describing severe withdrawal symptoms that included shaking, insomnia, headaches and an episode of auditory hallucinations.

After treatment, Panettiere described sobriety as bringing her a newfound sense of calm, happiness and clarity.

The star had also spoken publicly about the domestic abuse she suffered at the hands of her former boyfriend Brian Hickerson.

Hickerson pleaded no contest in 2021 to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend and was sentenced to 45 days in county jail and four years of formal probation.

Source : https://nypost.com/2026/08/16/us-news/actress-hayden-panettiere-dead-at-36-report/

INCREDIBLE unseen footage of Michael Jackson has been unearthed, offering an intimate window into the King of Pop’s world just months before his life fell apart.

In one clip, the superstar tours his childhood home in Gary, Indiana, pointing to where he and his brothers used to sleep in bunk beds and joking: “Take all the dirty pictures out!”

The extensive footage was captured between 2000 and 2003 by Jackson’s close friend and producer Marc Schaffel, who was filming a three-part reality series with the star.

It sees Jackson reminisce about his career, prank his inner circle by dousing himself in expensive perfume, and receive a starstruck phone call from a young Beyoncé.

Schaffel told The Sun on Sunday: “The material was originally shot to be a reality show I was making about Michael. It is the last material from Michael in the later part of his life.

“My long personal friendship with Michael had made filming this series possible. He fully trusted me. I own and have shot and paid for the footage and production.

“The first episode is entitled ‘Going back to Indiana’. This show is a 24 hour window into the life of the world’s most famous person on a pilgrimage back to his hometown, for the first time since his childhood.”

Schaffel’s fly-on-the-wall series was ultimately shelved when Jackson’s Neverland Ranch was raided in November 2003, leading to his arrest on child molestation charges.

Following the raid, the TV network Schaffel was working with lost interest in the series, leaving Schaffel with a mountain of unused footage.

Though Jackson was acquitted two years later in 2005 – after which he fled the US for Bahrain – the documentary remained unreleased.

Now Schaffel wants his film to see a wider audience, capitalising on Jackson’s posthumous renaissance following the massive success of the biopic Michael, which grossed over $1 billion (£740m) and spawned a sequel currently in production.

Schaffel said: “This footage is a perfect real-life account of his life.”

“I’ve made a rough sample cut from the footage but I’m open to collaborating on how to put the material together.”

The footage captures a rare, sentimental moment as Jackson tours the modest house where the Jackson 5 phenomenon was born, pointing out the small rooms where the bunk beds were kept and the living room where he and his brothers rehearsed every day.

He tells the camera crew: “In the living room that’s where we rehearsed every day. Just move the furniture.”

The home shows extraordinary clutter on view – which producer Marc Schaffel explains was because an older relative was living there at the time and had been given little notice before the camera crew arrived.

In another clip, filmed in the back of a luxury limousine, Jackson displays his trademark eccentric humor.

Testing out different fragrances with his team, Jackson – whose nickname for cologne was “smells” – asks for his favorite fragrance.

After his cousin, who was acting as his assistant on the trip, hands over the bottle to instigate the prank, Jackson repeatedly spritzes his own crotch.

Jackson jokes with his crew: “It’s burning…Take me to the hospital. Imagine how it feels down there?”

Schaffel said of the strange scene: “Michael being the consummate prankster with the people closest to him would love to overdo the cologne and perfume he liked.

“In this case he liked this very expensive perfume at the time and when getting ready to go out in public would put it on.

“His cousin brought out the perfumes and started overspraying as a prank, but unfortunately, all of us in the limo with him, it was so strong we couldn’t breathe.”

Separately, Jackson reminisces about his past while flicking through a photo album.

He recalled: “Every country we went to we would dress in their attire. I wanted to do it in India the most and I couldn’t.

“I would get all the little Indian children dressed in their attire. I wanted to wear one of those young, Richie hats… the turban.”

“We didn’t get to do anything,” he grumbled.

In another video from 2001, recorded during production for the charity single What More Can I Give, a 19-year-old Beyoncé Knowles is seen breathlessly speaking to Jackson over the phone from the recording studio.

The star-studded 9/11 benefit anthem brought together icons including Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Usher, and Justin Timberlake – but its release was ultimately scrapped amid growing disputes between Jackson and his record label, Sony Music.

Shaking with excitement, a young Beyoncé whispers: “I’m going to pass out.”

She tells Jackson: “I’m very honoured. Thank you very much for giving me this opportunity.”

The future megastar confesses that when she first heard her first line of the track she “literally screamed” – and Jackson warmly wraps up the call by telling her he loves her.

Having settled out-of-court following child abuse allegations in 1993 and 1994, Jackson spent the early 2000s attempting a major artistic comeback.

However, behind the scenes, the legal and public net was rapidly tightening around the superstar once again.

By late 2002 and early 2003, Jackson allowed journalist Martin Bashir behind closed doors for the infamous documentary Living with Michael Jackson, which aired in February 2003.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/16848050/michael-jackson-spraying-crotch-perfume-joking-dirty-pictures/

HOTELS have been evacuated after a 5.0-magnitude earthquake rocked Spain overnight, leaving a trail of destruction behind.

A state of emergency has been declared in the southern city of Granada after buildings collapsed and rocks crushed cars – sending terrified locals and tourists running from their homes and rented accommodation.

Panic broke out as the horror tremor struck, and was then followed by 12 others.

Jaw-dropping footage on social media showed chaos unfolding at around 1am local time, including tourists rushing to the street clutching suitcases.

Homes and cars were heavily damaged – with some roads seen split in half by cracks caused by the powerful jolt.

Andalusian ‌emergency services have rescued a ‌number of people from damaged buildings.

The temblor was felt across Andalusia and as far as Madrid, with locals reporting shakes in Malaga, Sevilla, Cordoba, Jaen and Almeria.

Antonio Sanz Cabello, vice-president of the Andalusian government, said that authorities had declared an emergency.

“If you are in Granada, you have felt the earthquake, you are okay, and your home shows no damage, stay calm and avoid entering and exiting buildings unnecessarily,” he wrote on X.

“On the street, stay away from facades, cornices, balconies, walls, and other elements that could fall.”

Regional authorities reported that emergency services received around 200 calls, but no casualties have been reported so far.

Callers reported falling objects, shaking furniture and rattling doors and windows.

The earthquake caused structural damage across the area, with residents reporting cracks in structures, collapses – including entire walls – and damage to several buildings.

One witness said: “We really felt the shaking, it was so strong that it woke us up.”

The local said she saw “quite a lot of places with damaged door fronts” and that pals had shared photos of items that had fallen from shelves.

Another Granada local told The Olive Press: “I could see water sloshing around in my swimming pool, like waves in the sea.

“Everything was shaking. It was quite strong and quite long. It seemed to go on for about 10 seconds.

“It was scary, really. It makes you feel powerless.”

Some hotels were also evacuated amid fears over the stability of buildings, but people were later allowed to return.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16846262/earthquake-hits-spain-cars-crushed-buildings-damaged/

Moroccan authorities have intercepted dozens of migrants seeking to cross into the Spanish North African exclave of Ceuta, reports say.

More than 100 people were blocked trying to make their way to the border on the outskirts of the town of Fnideq, according to Moroccan security sources cited by Spanish media and news agency Reuters.

It comes a fortnight after roughly 78,000 migrants arrived in the exclave by sea in a matter of hours – 100 of whom died, according to the city’s mayor, who also said the vast majority of arrivals had returned to Morocco.

Security had been stepped up in the area after the influx and amid suggestions on social media of a second mass crossing attempt this weekend.

The security sources said 111 people had been detained in or around Fnideq – known in Spanish as Castillejos – about 3km (1.8 miles) from the border, the majority of whom were from sub-Saharan Africa.

Moroccan police – including some in riot gear – reportedly used tear gas to disperse groups of migrants gathered on nearby hills.

Earlier this week, Morocco’s government said it was monitoring “the circulation of social media posts and messages of unknown origin” calling for a mass crossing on Saturday, and warned that it would prosecute organisers and participants.

Security at the breakwater entrance was “10 times stronger than the previous day”, Spanish newspaper El País reported.

Morocco had dispatched army officers, navy speedboats and drones to the border on Saturday, it said.

Meanwhile, Madrid deployed more than 1,500 security officers to patrol the area.

Spain has also installed a metal fence and a floating barrier following last month’s influx.

The crisis had calmed since breaking out in late July, but it has sparked tensions between EU nations that share open borders as well as criticism of the Spanish government.

Italy suspended the 29-member Schengen arrangement of free movement with Spain and introduced border checks on arrivals from Spain.

Italy was backed by Finland and Denmark, while the Czech Republic called for Spain’s membership to be temporarily suspended.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg44x2ey1ro

Iran has called for the release of three pilots it said were captured by Qatar after two of its fighter jets were hit by air defences during a military operation at the start of the US-Iran war.

In a letter to the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Iran’s Brig Gen Mohammad Bagherzadeh claimed the pilots – Javad Salehi, Abdul Majid Dashtian and Imran Behroshian – had been held captive for six months.

He said the body of a fourth pilot, Majid Kazemi, had been returned after he was killed in the same operation on 2 March 2026 – the third day of the war.

Qatar “categorically denied” Iran’s claims and said it was “surprised by these misleading statements”.

Bagherzadeh said the three pilots had been captured by Qatar after they ejected from their jets during a combat mission targeting a Qatari military base.

In the letter to ICRC chief Mirjana Spoljaric, published by Iranian media, he accused Qatar of violating “the inalienable rights of these prisoners, contrary to all international laws and regulations”.

The letter also claimed the three pilots had not been allowed to meet or contact their families.

Qatar’s foreign affairs spokesperson Majed Mohammed Al Ansari said contact had been made with the pilots “after they violated Qatari airspace”, but that it had not received a response.

“The necessary measures were taken to defend our territory in accordance with international law,” he added in a statement on X.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj4kk8kz271o

Joshua Báez, the star prospect whom St. Louis called up Friday, made history during his MLB debut Saturday, launching home runs in his first three at-bats in the Cardinals’ 8-4 win over the Cubs on Saturday afternoon at Wrigley Field.

Báez became the first player in league history to hit three homers during his debut, according to MLB’s Sarah Langs, and he provided the boost the Cardinals expected when they brought up the outfielder — ranked as the organization’s No. 3 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline — for the regular season’s stretch run.

“It’s just unreal,” the 23-year-old Báez said. “To not only get a hit, but three home runs? It’s crazy.”

His afternoon started by taking the first pitch he ever saw in the majors — a four-seam fastball from Chicago starter Matthew Boyd — 449 feet to center field.

Then, in his second at-bat, Báez waited, getting to a full count to lead off the fourth frame before sending a 77 mph changeup over the left-field fence.

That second homer already put him in the conversation for a historical debut, as he became the ninth player in MLB history to collect two homers in his debut, according to Langs.

But Báez, the Cardinals’ second-round pick in 2021 out of Dexter School in Massachusetts, kept going and took his third homer off Boyd opposite field — just tucking the homer over the fence at Wrigley Field to drive in Alec Burleson and extend St. Louis’ lead to 6-3.

“There was a calmness and a smile, like, ‘I’m here,’” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “It’s rare for me to pick my head up to enjoy parts of it. He didn’t exactly give us an option but to actually take a step back and enjoy the heck out of what was going on there.”

With a chance at a fourth homer in the eighth, Báez lined out to left field.

Báez, just 23 years old, led Triple-A with 34 homers across 103 games with Memphis before getting called up, and he became the second player in MLB history to hit his first three homers in the same game — joining the Tigers’ Seby Zavala in July 2021.

Source : https://nypost.com/2026/08/15/sports/cardinals-joshua-baez-makes-mlb-history-with-three-homers-in-debut/

Nations like Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Bahrain are reconsidering the value of hosting US military bases, driven by a perceived diminishing trust in Washington’s effectiveness

Frustration with Washington is growing among US allies in the Persian Gulf, with governments increasingly concerned that President Donald Trump is struggling to manage the diplomacy needed to end the conflict with Iran, officials say. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain are increasingly united in their frustration with the Trump administration, according to three Gulf officials and a former US diplomat who spoke to The Washington Post.

Some governments have begun discussing whether it remains useful to host large US military installations, although analysts say the changes are unlikely to significantly reshape the region in the short term.

One Gulf official said the anger towards Washington was at its highest level since the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran in February. “Trump started this war,” the official said, “and we are paying the price.”

The Gulf states remain heavily dependent on the US for security and military equipment. Qatar and Bahrain host major US military bases. But the conflict has prompted some countries to consider whether they should diversify their security partnerships.

A mutual defence agreement signed by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan last week was “a signal to the US,” a senior European official told The Post.

The agreement showed that the three powerful Sunni Muslim states “are trying to diversify their security and defense partnerships,” the official said. “In their mind, the US is not enough.”

However, a White House official said Trump “has extraordinary relationships with all of our Gulf partners”. “The United States has been in regular contact with all of our regional allies since before Operation Epic Fury,” the official said. “Iran is more isolated than ever before as a result of its terrorist actions.”

Iran on Saturday claimed that three of its fighter jet pilots were captured by Qatar during their attacks in March this year when they were targeting a US base.

Iran has accused Qatar of capturing three of its military pilots during the early days of the US-Israeli war with Iran, a claim Qatar has publicly denied.

Gen Seyed Mohammad Bagherzadeh, commander of Iran’s armed forces’ missing persons search committee, made the allegation in a letter to the International Committee of the Red Cross, which was published by Iranian media.

He said the three men were flying Su-24 fighter jets on 2 March, days after the war began, when their aircraft were hit by “enemy defenses” and the pilots ejected. According to Gen Bagherzadeh, the pilots survived but were subsequently captured by Qatari authorities.

Majed al-Ansari, a spokesman for the Qatari foreign ministry, said Doha had not detained any Iranian pilots. “We categorically deny the claims circulating regarding the detention of Iranian pilots & are surprised by these misleading statements at this particular time, amid the ongoing diplomatic efforts & initiatives aimed at de-escalating tensions in the region,” al-Ansari wrote on social media on Saturday evening.

Iranian officials emphasise that mapping shipping routes does not mean the narrow waterway will immediately reopen to unrestricted global traffic

Iran and Oman have reached a crucial agreement establishing designated shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, marking the first major breakthrough in restoring order to the world’s most vital maritime oil passage.

While technical talks remain ongoing and a joint formal statement is pending, the two coastal states have mapped out defined entry and exit corridors aimed at protecting national sovereignty while allowing safe commercial transit.

The Breakthrough Map

Under the negotiated framework, Iran will oversee inbound commercial traffic while Oman manages outbound vessels, establishing dedicated shipping lanes designed to prevent collisions and security incidents. Negotiated independently by Tehran and Muscat, the arrangement seeks to resolve months of maritime disruption without compromising the territorial rights of either nation.

The technical teams are currently fine-tuning operational protocols, communication channels, and environmental safeguards before issuing an official joint declaration.

Reopening Depends on US Actions

Despite the structural progress, Iranian officials emphasise that mapping shipping routes does not mean the narrow waterway will immediately reopen to unrestricted global traffic. Tehran maintains that restoring full commercial navigation remains contingent on broader geopolitical conditions, specifically demanding an end to US naval blockades, military threats, and economic sanctions.

Until these external conditions are met, the newly designated corridors will operate under strict monitoring.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/iran-and-oman-strike-landmark-deal-to-secure-strait-of-hormuz-but-full-reopening-still-hinges-on-us-actions-10275676.html

Although Cami Clark does not officially work for Anthropic, she operates as an influential shadow adviser for them and is also spotted sitting in the front row when Dario Amodei talks at big events, such as Davos.

Cami Clark, the wife and key adviser of Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, attempted to secure investments from disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein for what she called a “revolutionary porn company” that catered to women, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal and emails in the Epstein files.

Clark was introduced to Epstein in March 2011 by literary agent John Brockman. Epstein was already convicted in 2008 as a sex offender and of soliciting prostitution.

Brockman suggested that they connect for dinner. The emails in the Epstein files showed Brockman telling Epstein that he “should connect for dinner” with Clark and her business partner Michell Capocefalo.

“A Little NSFW”

“We would love to have dinner with you this evening,” Cami then replied to the email that introduced her. The next day, she sent an email with the company’s funding requirements and said, “It was FANTASTIC meeting you last night!”

A few days later she sent the script and treatment of the first few films of her company and said that he “might enjoy” the content with “the ladies”.

“In an email, she wrote, “Jeffrey! We thought you and the ladies might enjoy the script/treatment for our first 4 films, American Girl in Paris. A little nsfw… C”

A year later in March, she asked Epstein if he would be interested in investing in her and a colleague’s businesses. However, there is no indication that the funding was ever provided. In fact, in another separate email, Epstein had responded, “Can’t do TV sex.”

In July 2012, she had also invited Epstein to a house-warming party, but emails do not indicate that the two met again in person.

Who Is Cami Clark?

Clark has been described as a “sounding board and strategic adviser” for Amodei and his company, and the report raises questions about her influence over both of them.

Although she does not officially work for the company, she operates as an influential shadow adviser for them and is also spotted sitting in the front row when her husband talks at big events, such as Davos. She also chats with investors at important gatherings such as the Allen & Co. conference in Sun Valley.

Even at his recent visit to India, at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi this year, which allowed each executive to bring along an additional person, Amodei brought his wife. Most of the executives brought colleagues with them.

Clark was born in Nevada, United States, in 1979. After dating the former Google chief Eric Schmidt for three years in 2014, she married Amodei in 2022.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/anthropic-ceos-wife-asked-epstein-to-invest-in-her-luxury-porn-company-report-11915346?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

Spain cricket team secured their 21st consecutive international win, breaking Australia’s record and boosting their T20 World Cup 2028 qualification hopes.

Spain aren’t just good at football, which is evident from their recent FIFA World Cup 2026 triumph, but seem to be on a roll in cricket too. While the country is still a few years away from being considered a cricketing powerhouse, their incredible run on the 22-yard strip is making heads turn. The European nation secured its 21st consecutive victory on Friday, beating Finland by 8 wickets to boost their T20 World Cup 2028 qualification hopes. In the process, Spain’s incredible victorious run in international cricket helped them break a world record held by Australia.

Spain took on Finland in the Europe Sub-regional Qualifier C match, securing a whopping 132-run victory. Ranked 28th by ICC in T20 cricket, Spain haven’t suffered a single defeat in T20 internationals over the last three years. This incredible run began with their win over Isle of Man.

Over the course of this period, Spain have beaten Jersey, Croatia, Czech Republic, Greece and Finland. With their 21st victory, Spain have bettered the record once set by the Ricky Ponting-led Australian team.

Under Ponting, Australia went unbeaten in 17 ODIs, including a victory over India in the ODI World Cup final in 2003. The Aussies then won three successive Test matches against the West Indies, taking their overall tally of consecutive wins in international cricket to 20.

Most consecutive wins in International Cricket:

🇪🇸 21* – Spain (2023 – 2026)
🇦🇺 20 – Australia (2003)
🇺🇬 17 – Uganda (2024 – 2025)
🇦🇺 16 – Australia (2000 – 2001)
🇦🇺 16 – Australia (2006 – 2007)
🇵🇰 14 – Pakistan (1990)
🇵🇰 14 – Pakistan (2011 – 2012)
🇯🇵 14 – Japan (2024 – 2025)… pic.twitter.com/Z0uiwpk9bQ

— CricketGully (@thecricketgully) August 15, 2026

Source : https://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/spain-break-australias-all-time-record-go-unbeaten-in-21-games-11915837 

As Anthropic prepares for what could be one of the biggest IPOs on record, Wall Street is looking further into the future than it commonly does to put a price on ​the AI company, valuing it based on how much revenue it could generate two years from now.
Anthropic is projecting 2028 revenue of roughly $190 billion to $200 billion, according to ‌two people familiar with the company’s financials, a figure that has not previously been reported. The projection dwarfs the $47 billion revenue “run rate,” reflecting the firm’s current pace of business, that the company publicized as recently as May, and shows the scale of growth investors are being asked to underwrite.

Bankers and investors are using enterprise value-to-revenue multiples based on forecasts, four sources said.
Using revenue multiples is common for high-growth software companies that have yet to establish a mature profit profile.
But looking ​two years ahead is less typical, reflecting the speed at which Anthropic’s business is expanding and the challenges of setting benchmarks for a company still spending heavily to build out its ​AI infrastructure, the people said.
The pace of spending on AI investment has been responsible for pullbacks in many of the most popular tech stocks in ⁠recent months, including some of the firms viewed as comparable to Anthropic.

There have been precedents among some of the fastest-growing companies that hit the market recently. Backers of Cerebras Systems (CBRS.O), cited 2028 revenue expectations in ​the runup to the firm’s IPO this year, and SpaceX (SPCX.O), projections extended as far as 2029 before the company went public at a record valuation in June, the people said.
The approach reflects the difficulty of valuing ​an AI company whose margins are still being pressured by enormous spending on computing power, model training and hiring. Investors are betting that as Anthropic grows, revenue will rise faster than the costs required to support that growth, allowing margins to expand.
Anthropic did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

SEARCHING FOR COMPS

Cloud infrastructure company Cloudflare (NET.N), enterprise software company Palantir (PLTR.O), and Elon Musk’s SpaceX are among the public companies being considered as reference points for Anthropic’s valuation ahead of ​the company’s analyst day, the people said.

Public-market comparables are a crucial part of the IPO valuation process, giving investors a benchmark for how companies seen as having similar growth profiles and business models ​are valued. The peer group can also help determine which revenue or earnings multiples should be applied to a company’s financial forecasts.
Palantir is valued at 53 times this year’s expected revenue, making it one of Wall Street’s priciest ‌stocks. SpaceX ⁠and Cloudflare both trade at 41.6 times expected 2026 revenue, LSEG data show.
Each of the companies offers a different lens on Anthropic. Palantir has become a reference point for investors valuing businesses with rapid growth and exposure to AI. Cloudflare provides a comparison with a high-growth software and infrastructure company, while SpaceX offers an example of a company valued in part on expectations for its future scale rather than its current financial profile.

LOOKING PAST CURRENT EARNINGS

Established companies are typically valued more heavily on earnings, or EBITDA, which gives investors a sense of the economics of the business.
For Anthropic, however, current EBITDA does not fully capture ​the economics investors expect the company to achieve ​at scale. Anthropic is spending enormous amounts on ⁠GPUs and other computing capacity, model training, inference and hiring. Those expenses are necessary to support its rapid expansion but could become a smaller percentage of revenue as the business grows.
The company’s financial trajectory already shows how quickly that equation is changing. Anthropic’s revenue run rate was about $9 billion at the end ​of 2025, according to the company, before rising to more than $47 billion by May. Anthropic has projected revenue of at least $10.9 billion for the ​second quarter of 2026, more ⁠than double the previous quarter, on track for its first quarterly operating profit of $559 million.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/anthropic-ipo-valuation-hinges-190-200-billion-2028-revenue-forecast-sources-say-2026-08-15/

The Taliban marked five years in power on Saturday, seeking to portray their government as ​in control even as aid and rights groups warned of escalating crises.
Outside the former U.S. embassy in Kabul, armoured Taliban vehicles took part in a parade, ‌displaying flags and banners, and celebrating what the government described as “victory day” from Western domination.

Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban’s interior minister, said in a video address that their return to power was the result of “morale, courage” and “divine assistance.”

But he also made a rare acknowledgement of “issues and problems that may still exist.”
International organisations and the U.N. say the Taliban have struggled to address the natural and humanitarian crises Afghanistan has faced over the past ​five years, in part because Afghan women are under severe restrictions.
The Taliban have also faced a string of assassinations of key regional officials in the country’s northeast in ​recent weeks.
In late July, the Taliban’s information director in Badakhshan province was killed in an attack later claimed by Islamic State. The mayor of ⁠the province’s capital also died in an attack on Thursday, local media reported.

Taliban officials did not immediately confirm the reports.

DIPLOMATIC INROADS

When the Taliban returned to power in 2021 amid the withdrawal ​of the U.S. and its allies, they promised to govern more liberally than they had in the late 1990s and early 2000s — a period marked by public executions, the sheltering of Osama ​bin Laden and the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas.
But those assurances quickly faltered, human rights groups say. The Taliban have imposed sweeping restrictions on women and girls since 2021, barring 2.5 million of them from secondary schools and universities, according to UNESCO, and limiting their freedom of movement.
Half of Afghan women now leave their homes only once or twice a month, according to data released by U.N. Women on Wednesday.
The Taliban say they respect ​women’s rights in accordance with Islamic sharia law.

Five years on, their government remains internationally unrecognised, with Russia the only country to have formally recognised it.

Relations between the Taliban and Pakistan — ​initially their most important partner — are tense, as Islamabad accuses Kabul of supporting Pakistani insurgents.
Many former embassies in Kabul have remained empty since the Taliban’s return to power, including the U.S. embassy that was the ‌backdrop of ⁠Taliban celebrations on Saturday.
But the Taliban have made quiet diplomatic inroads, analysts say, as some countries weigh the limits of their influence in Afghanistan and the need to engage with the government.
The Taliban are increasingly pushing for arrangements with European nations that have been seeking ways to deport more Afghans. The government in Kabul is also using its geographical location at the crossroads of South and Central Asia and the Middle East to strike economic deals.
Zia Ahmad Takal, a deputy spokesman for the Taliban’s foreign ministry, told Reuters that ceremonies marking the government’s fifth anniversary were ​expected to be held in the capitals ​of Pakistan, China, Uzbekistan, Iran, Turkey and ⁠Malaysia.
“My hope for the future of Afghanistan is that we will move toward development, God willing,” Najibullah Ghorzang, a 28-year-old shop owner who attended Saturday’s ceremonies in Kabul, said.
“We defeated a great empire, and we will defeat them again,” he said of the U.S. and its allies.

EXISTENTIAL ​WORRIES

The International Rescue Committee warned on Friday that Afghanistan’s humanitarian needs had reached a record level, driven by droughts, the fallout from ​deadly earthquakes and the deportation ⁠of Afghans from neighbouring Iran and Pakistan.
While foreign aid budgets have shrunk, the number of Afghans in need of humanitarian assistance has risen by 3.5 million people since 2021, it said.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/china/taliban-mark-five-years-power-aid-groups-warn-crisis-2026-08-15/