The American president says the militant group does not want Washington involved, as Riyadh has reportedly pressed him to order strikes
Yemen’s Houthis have asked the United States not to intervene in their escalating conflict with Saudi Arabia, US President Donald Trump has said, as Washington seeks to avoid opening another front in the Middle East.
The militant group, officially known as the Ansarallah movement, made major gains along Yemen’s Red Sea coast this week, pushing back Saudi-supported forces and seizing the strategic ports of Mocha and Dhubab, as well as Mayyun (Perim) Island at the entrance to the narrow Bab al-Mandeb Strait. The advance has tightened the group’s grip on one of the world’s most important shipping chokepoints while threatening another crucial route for Saudi oil exports.
“The Houthis called us, and they don’t want to fight with us,” Trump told reporters on Saturday during a visit to Ireland. “They don’t want us to go after them” and “would much prefer not having us involved,” he added.
Trump said the group was allowing most shipping to pass through the Red Sea, adding that “it’s just one country that they’re not too happy with, and we’ll get that straightened out.”
The group has denied contacting the US president in any fashion, with Hazem al-Asad, a senior member of Ansarallah’s political bureau, dismissing Trump’s “ridiculous statements” as “lies.”
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reportedly called Trump twice on Thursday and urged him to order US strikes against the Houthis to stop their advance. Trump declined the request, according to Axios, which cited US officials as saying Washington has no plans for direct military intervention for now.
The US is nevertheless providing Saudi Arabia with intelligence and targeting data, and roughly 200 American military personnel are providing non-combat support. CENTCOM chief Adm. Brad Cooper also traveled to the kingdom for urgent consultations.
Trump confirmed speaking with the Saudi crown prince but did not disclose details of their conversation. “He’s a good friend of mine,” Trump said. “I can just say everything’s going to work out fine and dandy.”
The Houthis have framed their campaign as a fight to drive Saudi-backed government forces out of Yemen and restore the country’s sovereignty.
“We do not target any country except the Saudi enemy,” Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a spokesman for the group, told RT on Thursday. “In fact, we are committed to protecting the freedom of maritime navigation in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Red Sea.”
Al-Bukhaiti also warned that Houthi forces are prepared for a broader confrontation if outside powers join Riyadh, saying Yemen was capable of fighting “up to three fronts” – against Saudi Arabia, Yemeni government troops and any foreign country that becomes involved.
The Houthis have launched missile and drone attacks on Saudi energy facilities in recent weeks, while Riyadh has blamed drones launched from Iraq for a separate attack that forced it to shut down its key East-West oil pipeline.
— المركز الإعلامي للقوات المسلحة اليمنية (@Yem_army_media) September 12, 2026
Fighting has intensified sharply in recent days, with government forces releasing multiple videos of their counterattacks, including what they called “precision airstrikes on Houthi military vehicles and militants inside the designated Mocha kill box.”
Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree said on Saturday that Saudi aircraft had carried out 129 strikes across seven Yemeni provinces over the previous 48 hours using F-15 and Typhoon jets, warning that the bombardment “will not go unanswered.”
Footage released by Iran-backed Houthi rebels reportedly shows damaged and targeted Saudi-backed military vehicles.
Broadcast by Al-Masirah TV, a Houthi-controlled satellite news network, the video depicted burnt vehicles, the positioning of Houthi combatants, and the Bab… pic.twitter.com/d7ZKtNAD1x
The Houthis have also released extensive combat footage of their rapid advance, showing attacks on Saudi-backed forces using conventional weapons, ballistic missiles and drones, as well as abandoned and destroyed vehicles and the bodies of killed troops.
The document calls for an “amplified voice” for the Global South” at the UN, and condemns unilateral coercive measures as illegal
The BRICS nations on Saturday called out “unilateral coercive measures,” condemned terrorism, and called for the peaceful resolution of global disputes through dialogue and diplomacy in their summit declaration.
The declaration adopted by the BRICS leaders at their 18th summit in New Delhi reaffirmed the bloc’s “opposition to unilateral coercive measures that are contrary to international law” and the UN charter, and called to eliminate them.
The leaders of emerging and developing countries pointed out that sanctions and secondary sanctions have “far-reaching negative implications” including for human rights and food security, and disproportionately affect the poor and vulnerable.
The BRICS leaders repeated their earlier calls to reform the UN and other global institutions to reflect the new global realities. The New Delhi declaration stressed that no single country or group of countries should have a monopoly over senior positions in the UN – which was formed in the aftermath of World War 2.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the same point while addressing the leaders, saying a “rapidly changing world can no longer be governed by outdated institutions.”
Importantly, China and Russia, the two BRICS members who are also permanent members of the Security Council, reiterated their support for “Brazil and India to play a greater role in the UN, including its Security Council.”
BRICS, which started as a five-member grouping two decades ago, has now expanded to 11 full members, raising its economic size and global influence.
The adoption of the 45-page declaration is itself seen as a success for Indian diplomacy, which was able to unite Iran and the United Arab Emirates – on different sides of the Middle East conflict – behind the document.
The presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping in New Delhi – after seven years – along with Russian President Vladimir Putin, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has added to the gathering’s gravitas amid rising global tensions and economic turbulence.
The BRICS leaders condemned all acts of terrorism as “criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation” – a point that host India has repeatedly made at various global fora. The declaration specifically condemned the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir in April last year, in which 26 civilians were killed. India clashed with nuclear-armed neighbor Pakistan with drones and missiles following that attack.
The BRICS countries also called out the unilateral blockade of Cuba, and expressed concern over deliberate attacks on civilian infrastructure and peaceful nuclear facilities in violation of resolutions by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
While the document does not mention the Ukraine conflict, it says ”nuclear safeguards, safety, and security must always be upheld, including in armed conflicts, to protect people and the environment from harm” – an obvious reference to the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, which has seen attacks by Ukrainian forces endangering its safety.
The BRICS nations opposed the forced displacement of the Palestinian people from “Occupied Palestinian Territory,” and any geographic or demographic changes in the Gaza Strip. They further called on Israel to withdraw its forces from all Lebanese territories.
Israeli insiders have described the targeting and profiling of Palestinians as “a video game” and “insanely fun”
A new documentary alleging that Israel relied on powerful AI tools to kill thousands in Gaza has sent shockwaves through the Venice Film Festival, with one of the film’s insiders describing planning airstrikes as “insanely fun.” The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has categorically rejected the film’s portrayal, insisting that the whistleblowers cannot be verified.
The 80-minute-long film NAZA, which premiered on Thursday, is built around testimony from 24 anonymized Israeli military and intelligence insiders. Its title alludes to an Israeli military shorthand for expected “collateral casualties” in an attack.
The film, which was made by two Israeli Oscar-winning filmmakers, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, received a roughly 25-minute standing ovation – the longest on record at the event. The footage also showed a full audience, with some viewers holding Palestinian flags.
In the film, Israeli insiders claim that the IDF used an AI system known as ‘Lavender’ to identify people for assassination. The filmmakers’ sources also alleged that the tool operated based on thousands of hacked phones, with even a single phrase, “daddy’s home,” picked up on a child’s phone being enough to launch an attack.
Other sources told the tale of brazen disregard for humanitarian laws, and a “general atmosphere” of “hatred” towards Palestinians. In one of the most chilling revelations, an insider claimed that at one point a strike on a single Hamas member was approved despite an expected toll of 500 civilians.
“It was done on a mass scale, like a factory”, one source said, with others describing the profiling and targeting as “a video game” and “insanely fun.”
“We are letting the soldiers and the officers speak about what they did,” Abraham told AFP, saying the filmmakers wanted to document in detail “how the systems of killing in Gaza looked” and operated.
On Friday, the IDF vehemently rejected the allegations, arguing that the identities of the whistleblowers “cannot be verified,” and that it is impossible to establish whether they served in the military at all.
It also stressed that allegations pertained to “national and military strategy that are clearly beyond the knowledge of junior-level soldiers.” The IDF added that targeting decisions are made “by human personnel only,” and that its operations are only directed at “terrorist organizations.”
The IDF has itself acknowledged using AI for military purposes, including a system known as ‘The Gospel’, to rapidly produce targeting recommendations.
In April 2024, several media outlets reported, citing Israeli intelligence sources, that Lavender had at one stage marked about 37,000 people as suspected terrorists, with the personnel sometimes spending only seconds reviewing machine-generated recommendations. Some sources quoted by The Guardian also alleged that “during the early weeks of the war they were permitted to kill 15 or 20 civilians during airstrikes on low-ranking militants.” The IDF has rejected the allegations.
Riyadh says UAVs launched from Iraq struck the East-West route used to bypass the Strait of Hormuz
Saudi Arabia has been forced to shut down its strategic East-West oil pipeline after drone attacks damaged pumping facilities along the route, dealing another blow to the kingdom’s ability to export oil amid the US-Iran war.
The Saudi Energy Ministry said on Friday that the pipeline was hit at several locations in the Riyadh and Medina regions the day before, causing “some injuries” and prompting the authorities to halt operations as a “precautionary measure.” Emergency teams are assessing the damage, and Riyadh has not said when pumping will resume.
Two US officials cited by CNN said preliminary analysis indicated that at least two pumping stations along the pipeline were struck by drones. Satellite imagery reportedly shows extensive fire damage at one facility and a smaller fire at another.
CNN reports that pumping stations on Saudi Arabia’s key east-west pipeline were hit on Thursday, with one severely damaged.
The pipeline currently carries 7+ million barrels of crude oil per day bypassing Hormuz. pic.twitter.com/t5fnZMGcgM
The East-West pipeline carries oil from Saudi Arabia’s oil-producing Eastern Province across the kingdom to the Red Sea port of Yanbu, allowing exports to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. It can transport up to 7 million barrels per day, with around 5 million bpd available for export after supplying Western refineries.
🇸🇦 The scale of the suspected attack on Saudi Arabia’s East–West oil pipeline is visible from space.
Satellite imagery shows a dense smoke plume stretching more than 100 km across the desert, while fire-monitoring data detected several intense heat anomalies along the pipeline… pic.twitter.com/eHFiCCMC3m
The route has become particularly important since fighting between the US and Iran severely disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Saudi Arabia reportedly rerouted around 5 million barrels per day that would otherwise have been loaded at Persian Gulf terminals through the pipeline to the Red Sea.
🔥Satellite imagery shows further damage at Aramco's Jazan oil facility in southern Saudi Arabia on Sep 9. Fire damage is visible, with two storage tanks destroyed and two more damaged.
The pipeline shutdown comes as Iranian-aligned Houthi forces in Yemen have pushed back Saudi-backed government forces and seized the Red Sea port of Mocha and Mayun Island at the entrance to another strategic waterway, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
The Houthis have also directly targeted Saudi energy infrastructure. Satellite imagery from September 9 appears to show significant damage at Saudi Aramco’s Jazan facilities in the south of the kingdom, including at least four oil storage tanks destroyed and signs of fire damage at a processing area. The attacks followed a major Houthi missile and drone barrage against energy sites in Jazan, Abha, and other southern cities, which the Saudi authorities say forced operations at some facilities to be halted.
Riyadh said the latest attack on the pipeline did not come from Yemen or Iran, but from Iraqi territory. Saudi Arabia reserved the right to defend its territory and critical infrastructure, but said it would hold off on retaliation at the request of Iraq’s prime minister, giving Baghdad an opportunity to investigate and prevent further attacks.
Baghdad subsequently said it traced the drones to the southern province of Maysan, dismissed the chief of its Maysan Operations Command, and opened a separate inquiry into the command’s failure to prevent the strike.
The developments leave Riyadh squeezed between disruptions at both ends of its export network: Iran has challenged shipping through Hormuz in the east, while the Houthi advance threatens Red Sea traffic in the west. Saudi oil production already plunged to 6.238 million barrels per day in August, its lowest level since 1990, according to Bloomberg.
Oil prices remain above $100 a barrel following the renewed escalation. Brent settled at around $104.61 on Friday, ending the week nearly 9% higher.
Grzegorz Braun attacked a monument to UPA fighters responsible for massacring Poles during WWII
A Polish MEP has taken an axe to a memorial honoring Nazi-linked Ukrainian nationalist paramilitaries responsible for massacring Polish civilians during World War II.
In a video posted on X on Thursday, Grzegorz Braun can be seen repeatedly striking a stone obelisk in Bialystok, near Poland’s border with Ukraine, which commemorates members of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).
The UPA was the armed wing of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), a WWII-era ultranationalist movement led by Stepan Bandera which collaborated with Nazi Germany. UPA fighters massacred tens of thousands of ethnic Polish civilians in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia, now largely in western Ukraine.
”The UPA monument in the Dolhobyczow municipality in Hrubieszow County is to be dismantled,” he wrote. “The obelisk offending the memory of the victims of the Ukrainian genocide against Poles should be removed... immediately after documenting the crime of Banderism,” Braun added.
Pomnik UPA w gminie Dołhobyczów w powiecie hrubieszowskim do likwidacji❗️
Obelisk obrażający pamięć ofiar ukraińskiego Ludobójstwa na Polakach powinien zostać usunięty profesjonalnymi narzędziami natychmiast po udokumentowaniu przestępstwa banderyzmu!#StopBanderyzacjiPolski… pic.twitter.com/8Q4QZ2z5vJ
According to Braun, local Poles feared Ukrainian retaliation if they removed the memorial. He said one proposal to dismantle it was met with the response: “We’re afraid they’ll set us on fire.”
The memorial stands over a burial site containing 41 UPA members killed in a clash with Soviet forces in February 1946. According to Polish records, a Ukrainian memorial was erected there without authorization in the 1990s. The stone monument honoring the UPA fighters was added later and has also faced questions over its legal status.
The site has repeatedly been vandalized. Unidentified people damaged inscriptions on the obelisk earlier this month, while the Ukrainian Embassy expressed “deep outrage” after another attack in July.
The OUN and UPA massacres remain a major source of tension between Poland and Ukraine. Warsaw recognizes the killings of predominantly Polish civilians in Volhynia, Eastern Galicia, and neighboring regions in 1943-1945 as genocide and estimates that up to 100,000 Poles were killed.
The dispute has intensified amid Kiev’s continued honoring of WWII-era Ukrainian nationalists. Vladimir Zelensky took part in the May reburial of OUN leader Andrey Melnik as part of efforts to establish a “Pantheon of outstanding Ukrainians” and later granted a Ukrainian military unit the honorary title “Heroes of the UPA.”
Polish President Karol Nawrocki responded by stripping Zelensky of the Order of the White Eagle, Poland’s highest state honor. Warsaw has also warned it will not support Ukraine’s EU membership bid unless Kiev changes its approach.
Polish MEP Ewa Zajaczkowska-Hernik has meanwhile called for an end to free weapons deliveries to Ukraine, arguing that Warsaw has provided some $4.6 billion in military aid only to be repaid with a “Banderite pantheon of heroes.”
”Let’s stop being suckers for Ukraine!” she wrote on X.
Russian President Vladimir Putin weighed in last month, arguing that the neo-Nazi nature of the Ukrainian government has become so visible that even Poland’s strongly anti-Russian authorities can no longer ignore it. Warsaw, he said, faces an “obvious demand” from its population to confront the issue.
Public attitudes toward Ukrainians in Poland have also deteriorated. A July CBOS poll found 52% of Poles opposed accepting Ukrainian migrants, against 42% in favor – the first time opponents had outnumbered supporters since tracking began after the 2014 Western-backed coup in Kiev. Support has fallen from 94% in 2022 to 42% this year.
An August IBRiS survey separately found that 67% of Poles support deporting unemployed Ukrainian men of military age.
Twenty-five years later, the wars, failed states, empowered autocrats, and fears unleashed after 9/11 continue to shape millions of lives
On the morning of September 11, 2001, Americans watched in horror as hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 people were killed. Less than a month later, the US went to war in Afghanistan. Two years after that, it invaded Iraq.
What began as an attack by Al-Qaeda would come to reshape US foreign policy, the Middle East, and the way Islam was discussed around the world.
A quarter of a century later, September 11 still casts a long shadow over American public life. Al-Qaeda’s responsibility for the attacks has long been established, but the edges of the story remain blurred. Documents remained classified for years and only emerged piece by piece; lawsuits dragged on; questions lingered over who might have known more, who might have helped, and how far the web surrounding the hijackers actually extended. In the gaps between what was proven, what remained secret, and what was merely suspected, conspiracy theories flourished – but so did genuine political and legal questions that America has never quite managed to put to rest.
Nowhere has that shadow fallen more heavily than on Saudi Arabia; 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi citizens, and for decades, victims’ families, lawyers, and advocacy groups have pressed for greater disclosure about possible links between people associated with Saudi institutions and some of the attackers. The result is a peculiar political afterlife of 9/11. Even as Washington and Riyadh have remained strategic partners, questions surrounding the attacks have repeatedly resurfaced whenever the relationship with the kingdom comes under scrutiny.
Under former President Joe Biden, the issue returned to public attention when his administration ordered a new review and declassification of government records related to 9/11, following sustained pressure from victims’ families. The Saudi question also became entangled with a broader political reassessment of Washington’s relationship with Riyadh following the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
In that sense, September 11 left behind more than a settled account of a terrorist attack. It left a long political shadow – one that continued to affect how Americans view particular Arab states, their governments, and eventually, the Muslim world.
The architecture of suspicion
The more immediate consequence of September 11, however, was broader than the hunt for those responsible. The attacks changed the conceptual framework through which the US understood Islam itself.
After 9/11, the country needed explanations: Why did it happen, what produced Islamist violence, and how could another attack be prevented? The American system responded in a characteristically American way: It went looking for expertise. Government agencies poured money into universities, professional associations, and think tanks, demanding explanations – and quickly.
But there was an almost paradoxical mismatch between the question and some of the intellectual tools available to answer it. Many of the scholars being asked to make sense of Islam, political Islam, and jihadist violence built their expertise studying religion in a different context: Christianity in the US, including Christian fundamentalism and its relationship with political extremism.
To Grigory Lukyanov, a research fellow at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences and deputy dean at Russia’s State Academic University for the Humanities, the episode illustrates something larger about the American response to 9/11: Confronted with an unfamiliar threat and under enormous pressure to produce answers quickly, institutions reached for intellectual tools they already possessed.
“You needed ideas, you needed solutions, you needed an understanding of how to solve the problem,” Lukyanov said. “Money was given to scholars of religion, quick results were demanded, and existing analytical frameworks were transferred onto Islam.”
Islam increasingly became something to be categorized in security terms.
A movement classified as ‘moderate’ might be treated as a potential partner; one categorized as ‘radical’ could become a target of surveillance, sanctions, or counterterrorism operations, but the consequences quickly moved beyond policy and into everyday life. In September 2001, 28% of Americans said they had become more suspicious of people of Middle Eastern descent; in March 2002, 25% of Americans said Islam was more likely than other religions to encourage violence (now, 25 years later, it’s 51%).
For Lukyanov, the resulting distortions were almost built into the speed and structure of the response. “It is difficult to search for alternatives in counterfactual history,” he said. “The attack had happened. What could the United States do – simply not conduct a War on Terror? Retreat into something like the Monroe Doctrine, recoil from what had happened and accept defeat? That was almost impossible to imagine.”
The US of 2001 was at the height of its post-Cold War power, the Russian expert said. The Soviet Union disappeared a decade earlier; China had not yet emerged as a peer economic competitor; Washington possessed unmatched military, financial, and political reach. September 11 was therefore interpreted not only as a terrorist atrocity, but as a challenge to American global leadership.
“Not responding was impossible,” Lukyanov said. “The question is that the response was built on the experience, analytical frameworks, decision-making patterns and limitations that American political elites had at that moment.”
America’s road to endless war
If the securitization of Islam was one consequence of September 11, the most visible was measured in soldiers, bases, and wars. Yet here as well, 9/11 was less a beginning than an acceleration.
The US was hardly a newcomer to the Middle East in 2001. Its involvement expanded dramatically after the Cold War and the 1990-91 Gulf War. The US had troops and military facilities across the region, protected the Gulf monarchies, enforced no-fly zones over Iraq, supported Israel, and remained indispensable to Arab-Israeli diplomacy. By the end of the 1990s, American primacy in the region was difficult to contest.
“The United States began sinking into the Middle Eastern swamp long before September 11,” Lukyanov said. “There were essentially no other external players, and almost no major conflict or problem in the region could be resolved without the participation of Washington.”
September 11 was therefore not the moment America entered the Middle East. It was, in Lukyanov’s words, a crescendo – the moment an already extensive political and military commitment became something larger and far more difficult to control.
Less than a month after the attacks, the US invaded Afghanistan to destroy Al-Qaeda and remove the Taliban government that had sheltered it. The initial campaign was remarkably swift. By December, the Taliban regime had collapsed. What followed was not. The US would remain in Afghanistan for nearly 20 years, its longest war, losing more than 2,400 service members as it tried to build a new political order. It ended in August 2021, with the Taliban sweeping back into Kabul.
Five years later, Taliban fighters patrol the capital in American-supplied Humvees, carrying American weapons and wearing American tactical gear. Around $7 billion worth of US-funded military equipment remained in Afghanistan after the collapse of the forces the US spent two decades building.
Destroying one enemy, creating another
Then came Iraq.
Unlike Afghanistan, the 2003 invasion was not presented as war against the organization that carried out the September 11 attacks. The administration of George W. Bush argued that Saddam Hussein’s regime possessed weapons of mass destruction (which were never found) and presented Iraq as part of a broader post-9/11 security threat. But by then, the invasion had already removed the Iraqi state’s leadership, dissolved much of its coercive apparatus, and opened a political vacuum at the center of the Arab world.
One consequence of the US invasion of Iraq can still be felt today, Lukyanov argues, pointing to the ongoing exchange of strikes between Iran and US forces across the region.
“It was the American invasion of Iraq, prompted by the 9/11 policies, that created the conditions for a geopolitical conflict in that country, escalating the geopolitical standoff between the United States and Iran,” Lukyanov adds. “It was precisely because of this that the United States significantly increased its support for Israel and its policies.”
Hussein’s fall destroyed a regime that brutally dominated Iraq for decades, but it also removed one of the principal Arab counterweights to Iran. Iraq’s long-suppressed Shia majority acquired unprecedented political power, while many Sunnis who occupied privileged positions under the old order suddenly found themselves marginalized.
The dismantling of the Iraqi Army and Baathist state structures left hundreds of thousands of armed and militarily trained men without a place in that order. Insurgency spread and sectarian violence followed. A new generation of jihadists that came into that landscape, now known as ISIS, built itself amid the occupation and the Sunni insurgency. By 2014, ISIS seized Mosul and proclaimed a caliphate across large parts of Iraq and Syria.
The friends America abandoned
The War on Terror did not only transform America’s enemies, it also transformed its friendships.
Across the Arab world, authoritarian governments quickly discovered the political value of becoming indispensable to America’s new struggle. Tunisia, Sudan, Yemen, Egypt, Jordan, and several Gulf monarchies expanded counterterrorism cooperation with the US, while governments increasingly presented domestic repression as part of the same fight against extremism. The distinction between jihadists and non-violent Islamist opponents could become dangerously elastic. Organizations that threatened the regime politically could be folded into a much broader security problem.
For aging authoritarian systems, the new order offered an opportunity. Lukyanov argues that some regimes came to believe that cooperation against a common enemy would buy them a kind of political absolution. “The War on Terror gave them the illusion that, by acting against a common enemy together with the United States, they would receive forgiveness for everything that had happened in the past.”
Few countries tested that proposition as dramatically as Libya.
Muammar Gaddafi spent decades as an adversary of Washington. But he was also an enemy of the jihadists seeking to overthrow him. After 9/11, this suddenly gave Tripoli and Washington something to talk about. Libya shared intelligence on Al-Qaeda and other Islamist militants with Western services; in 2003, Gaddafi renounced terrorism and agreed to dismantle his weapons-of-mass-destruction programs. Sanctions were progressively lifted, diplomatic relations restored, and in 2006, the US removed Libya from its list of state sponsors of terrorism.
For a time, the bargain appeared to work. A ruler once treated as an international pariah reinvented himself as a counterterrorism partner. Washington, meanwhile, gained intelligence cooperation and the dismantling of Libya’s unconventional weapons programs without another war.
But there was a catch. Cooperation abroad did not require meaningful liberalization at home. Libya remained brutally authoritarian even as relations with Washington improved; elsewhere, the counterterrorism imperative similarly gave security states additional room to operate. In Egypt, emergency laws allowed thousands to be detained without fair trials, while Washington tolerated serious abuses by governments it relied upon for counterterrorism cooperation.
Then, a decade after September 11, the bargain began to come apart when uprisings began in Tunisia in late 2010, and Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali fled. In Egypt, Hosni Mubarak resigned after nearly 30 years in power. And in Libya, the reversal was even more extraordinary: Gaddafi – the former enemy who dismantled his weapons programs, shared intelligence on jihadists, and rebuilt relations with the West – faced an uprising of his own. NATO intervened against his forces, and in October 2011, Gaddafi was killed.
The political vacuum produced another irony, Lukyanov said. For decades, some Arab governments portrayed Islamism as one of the principal dangers from which their rule protected both their own societies and the West. Once several of these governments fell, however, Islamist movements proved to be among the best-organized political forces left standing. Ennahda won Tunisia’s first post-revolutionary election; in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood emerged as the dominant electoral force and its candidate, Mohamed Morsi, won the presidency. “In the end, in both Egypt and Tunisia, for example, movements that had provided Al-Qaeda with a social and political support base came to power,” Lukyanov said.
In the places where revolutions did not produce functioning political systems, the circle became darker still. Libya descended into fragmentation and civil war; Yemen collapsed into a regional conflict; Syria became the battlefield in which local rebellion, state repression, regional competition, and transnational jihadism converged. Groups linked to Al-Qaeda, and eventually ISIS, found new territory in the wreckage.
When the War on Terror came home
Six days after the attacks, Bush visited a Washington mosque and declared that “Islam is peace,” seeking to draw a line between the perpetrators and millions of ordinary Muslims. On the ground, however, the backlash was already well underway.
Anti-Muslim hate crimes surged from just 28 in 2000 to 481 in 2001 – a more than seventeen-fold increase. Another 49 assaults and 104 incidents targeting places of worship were reported in the first week after 9/11 alone. In Chicago alone, the number of reported anti-Muslim or anti-Arab hate crimes jumped from four in all of 2000 to 51 in just the three months from September to November 2001.
The effect was measurable within Muslim communities themselves; 57% of Muslim Americans said they had experienced some form of bias or discrimination since the attacks, and 48% said their lives had changed for the worse. Yet the response was not uniformly hostile; 79% also said they had experienced an act of kindness or support from friends or colleagues of other faiths.
The consequences went beyond the immediate backlash. The security architecture built in the aftermath of 9/11 also expanded the reach and militarization of law enforcement. By 2020, nearly 65% of the roughly 18,000 US law enforcement agencies had received military equipment through the Pentagon’s 1033 program, such as weapons, ammunition, and tactical armored vehicles.
“If we return to the question of how Islam and the Islamic world have changed, Islam as a teaching has not changed,” Lukyanov stresses. “Nor have the borders of Muslim states changed. What has changed, however, is the position of Muslim communities in Western countries and in countries outside Muslim-majority regions.”
A quarter of a century later, the legacy of 9/11 extends far beyond the attacks themselves. Not only the US, but the world around it changed: Wars reshaped the Middle East politics (though did not change the region’s borders), new extremist movements emerged, regional rivalries deepened, and Muslim communities in the West faced greater suspicion and scrutiny. In that sense, perhaps the most consequential story of 9/11 for the Muslim world is not what happened on that day, but what followed in response.
More than 300 homes were also destroyed as flames spread through a densely populated neighborhood in Bukavu, the authorities say
At least 26 students have been killed after a fire swept through two schools and hundreds of homes in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) city of Bukavu, the authorities say.
The blaze began in a house in the densely populated Cimpunda neighborhood on Thursday morning before spreading to the adjoining Furaha and Ujamaa schools, according to local officials. Several children reportedly suffocated after becoming trapped, while others were caught in a violent stampede as they tried to escape.
A statement from the South Kivu provincial authorities, cited by AP, put the toll at 19 girls and seven boys and warned that it could rise.
More than 300 homes were reportedly destroyed. The closely packed wooden buildings in the neighborhood contributed to the rapid spread of the flames, while narrow exits caused a crush at the schools, Cimpunda administrator Moise Lubala told AP.
The Congo River Alliance/March 23 Movement (AFC/M23) rebel coalition, which controls Bukavu, earlier reported 24 deaths and 29 injuries. It said 21 patients were in intensive care and that an investigation is ongoing to determine the cause of the fire. DR Congo government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said Kinshasa is following the incident with “deep concern.”
“While the city remains under illegal occupation, we express our solidarity with the students, teachers, parents, and families affected,” he wrote on X.
The Congolese Education Ministry said students and teachers in areas under occupation remain part of the national education system and “at the heart of the nation’s responsibility and solidarity.” It ordered an assessment of the damage and measures to support victims and continue classes. The ministry said the fire was the latest in a series that have damaged schools in Bukavu. The exact cause remains unknown.
Thursday’s disaster came less than a week after a fire at a wedding party in the capital, Kinshasa, killed at least 22 people. More than 700 homes burned in separate fires across Bukavu during the week ending September 6, according to UN-operated broadcaster Radio Okapi.
The AFC/M23 has controlled Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu Province, since February 2025, when its advance forced Congolese and allied Burundian troops to withdraw. The coalition seized Goma, the capital of neighboring North Kivu, a month earlier during clashes with government forces. Kinshasa and several Western governments accuse Rwanda of supporting the rebels, which Kigali denies. The rebels have since established parallel administrations across large areas of eastern DR Congo, where armed groups compete for control of the region’s mineral wealth.
Berlin-based performer Oleg Vinnik has claimed he was told to pay $750,000 to have his name removed from the database
A Ukrainian singer blacklisted by the notorious Mirotvorets site that doxes “enemies” of the country has claimed he was told to pay $750,000 to have his name removed.
The database, which claims it is a private research project but has tacit backing from the Ukrainian state, has published data on over 180,000 people, and marks the profiles of deceased individuals with a “liquidated” stamp.
Several high-profile individuals, mostly opponents of Kiev’s slump into ethno-nationalism, were murdered shortly after they were listed on the database.
Russian-speaking Ukrainian pop star Anastasia Kamenskih, who claimed she had developed psychosomatic issues from trying to sing in Ukrainian, was listed this week.
This drew attention to recent remarks by Berlin-based singer Oleg Vinnik, who suggested Mirotvorets may also operate as a racket.
Designated an enemy of Ukraine in 2019, Vinnik said that three years later he was offered the opportunity to have his record expunged, for a fee.
“I won’t say who said it, but they said $750,000 is needed to be off Mirotvorets,” he recalled. “Roll this up and stick it deep, I say!”
What is Mirotvorets?
Launched in August 2014 after the Western-backed armed coup in Kiev, the project’s stated purpose is to identify and seek retribution against “enemies of Ukraine.”
Among the 180,000+ names listed on the site are Western journalists who reported from Donbass and Crimea, children as young as three, and Ukrainian author Oles Buzina, whose 2015 murder, days after he was listed, remains unsolved. Most recently, Polish MEP Ewa Zajaczkowska-Hernik and the country’s presidential chief of staff were added after criticizing the Ukrainian government for venerating Nazi collaborators.
Vinnik was targeted after taking part in a pro-peace campaign that Mirotvorets’ anonymous administrators denounced as Russian-orchestrated propaganda.
Pop star Kamenskih ran afoul of Mirotvorets admins when she publicly mocked Kiev’s language policies.
She is one half of the duo ‘Potap and Nastya’, one of Ukraine’s biggest acts a decade ago that stopped performing together in 2017 for personal reasons. Aleksey Potapenko and Kamenskih are now seeking a revival while working from properties they reportedly own in Barcelona, Dubai, and Miami.
In August, the singers posted a video on Instagram in which they appeared to suffer a fit after being pressured to sing in Ukrainian.
Kamenskih has insisted she was born “in Russian-speaking Kiev, where everyone spoke Russian,” and would not be forced to switch to another language. In an interview last week, she also said she experienced problems when she tried to perform in Ukrainian and chose to sing in Russian on the advice of her psychotherapist.
Her Mirotvorets profile appeared soon afterward, accusing her of participating in “humanitarian aggression against Ukraine.”
Piyush Goyal says 40 projects across areas such as advanced manufacturing, railways, and emerging technology are now live
The India-Russia priority investment tracking mechanism is actively monitoring 40 projects across advanced manufacturing, energy, mining, railways, and emerging technology as the two countries pursue a $50 billion investment target, Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday.
Speaking at the plenary session of the Russia-India trade and investment fair, INNOPROM. India, being held in New Delhi, Goyal said the two countries are fast-tracking a new bilateral investment treaty to give investors the legal certainty they need for making investment decisions.
He said local currency settlement mechanisms are being strengthened to speed up trade transactions.
Addressing the session, Russian Minister of Industry and Trade Anton Alikhanov said a major effort is being made to sell Russian civilian planes to India and organize their local production, especially the SJ-100 regional jet. This includes creating maintenance facilities and training Indian specialists.
❗️ 🇮🇳 Trade Minister Goyal Delivers Five Specific Asks at #INNOPROM - to Turn India–Russia Ties into $100BN in Trade
Russian plane maker UAC on Thursday reached agreements with three Indian domestic airlines to sell up to 105 Il-114-300 regional jets. Separate plans are being firmed up for their local production.
Alikhanov also said special attention is being paid to developing technical cooperation, with railways a priority. He said an initiative for the joint production of Vande Bharat trains is being implemented, including production modernizing, establishing an engineering center, and training Indian specialists. The models are indigenously developed, semi-high-speed train sets operated by Indian Railways.
Goyal asked Alikhanov to help open the door wider for Indian investment in pharma, IT, AI, services, engineering, and railways to achieve the bilateral $50 billion investment target.
The Indian minister also said New Delhi and Moscow are “investing in the physical backbone of this relationship,” citing the International North-South Transport Corridor and the Chennai-Vladivostok Maritime Corridor. The latter has seen a jump in traffic recently from Indian imports of coal and oil from Russia.
The trade fair will end on Friday, when the BRICS summit gets underway in New Delhi. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will be in the Indian capital to attend the summit, is expected to visit the fair along with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Thousands attended the funeral despite a lack of state involvement and threats from the EU to revoke Belgrade’s membership bid
Thousands of people gathered in Belgrade on Monday to pay their respects to former Bosnian Serb military commander Ratko Mladic before his burial, which took place without formal state or military honors.
Supporters carrying Serbian flags and photographs of Mladic gathered outside the Church of St. Luke, where his coffin was displayed ahead of the funeral service. He was later buried beside his daughter at a nearby cemetery.
Mladic commanded Bosnian Serb forces during the 1992-1995 war that broke up Yugoslavia. In 2017, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) convicted him of genocide for targeting Bosnian Muslims, Croats and other groups.
Mladic died in The Hague on August 27 at the age of 84 while serving a life sentence.
His remains were returned to Serbia last week on a government plane. Serbian soldiers carried the coffin from the aircraft, which was then escorted through Belgrade. A separate commemoration was held on Saturday at the House of the Serbian Army.
Despite the convictions, Mladic has remained a respected figure among some Serbs, who view him as a wartime defender of the Bosnian Serb population. Many also share longstanding complaints that international courts have treated crimes against Serbs differently from those committed by Serb forces during the Yugoslav wars.
Public tributes to Mladic have also spread to football stadiums. The normally fierce rivalry between Crvena Zvezda (Red Star) and Partizan Belgrade was set aside at the Serbian capital’s derby over the weekend as both sets of fans chanted Mladic’s name, before a giant tifo bearing his image was unveiled. Crvena Zvezda fans also chanted in Mladic’s honor during a Europa League match last month, prompting UEFA to fine the club €90,000 ($105,000). Bosnia’s FK Borac Banjaluka was also fined €39,500 over similar chants and other fan offenses.
Justice Minister Nenad Vujic had initially suggested that Mladic would receive state honors, however, the final funeral arrangements included no artillery salute, ceremonial military presence, or attendance by senior Serbian officials.
The commemorations have nevertheless prompted strong criticism from Brussels. EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos canceled a planned visit to Serbia, saying the “glorification” surrounding Mladic’s death was “incompatible with the values on which the EU path is built.” She also warned that Belgrade’s handling of the funeral could affect Serbia’s membership bid.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic rejected the criticism, arguing that Brussels had failed to identify any concrete act of “glorification” by the Serbian authorities, and called Kos’ statement “stupid, as usual.”
“I suppose we should ban people from showing up, ban the funeral,” he said.
Vucic had earlier said Serbia would help Mladic’s family arrange a “dignified” burial and criticized The Hague for refusing repeated Serbian requests to allow the former general to return home as his health deteriorated.
The president did not attend Monday’s funeral, citing a previously scheduled visit by Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
The US cast the only opposing vote, arguing that the measure “mocks” the work and purpose of the UN
The UN General Assembly has adopted a nonbinding resolution promoting world maps that show Africa at its true relative size, following longstanding objections that the 16th-century Mercator projection makes the continent appear disproportionately small.
The “Correct the Map” resolution, sponsored by Togo on behalf of the African Group, passed on Friday by 164 votes. The US voted against it, while Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, Serbia, and Ukraine abstained.
The measure encourages governments, schools, publishers, international institutions, and digital platforms to use Equal Earth or other equal-area projections when comparing the size of countries and continents. It neither bans Mercator nor establishes a single official UN map. The resolution also states that it does not affect international borders or territorial claims.
Togolese Foreign Minister Robert Dussey said correcting the map would restore an accurate understanding of the continent’s true dimensions. “A more faithful representation can help better cover Africa’s real wealth and potential, particularly in global economy and commercial dynamics,” Dussey told reporters.
Created by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569, the old projection preserves angles and was designed for maritime navigation. However, it increasingly enlarges landmasses closer to the poles. Greenland consequently appears comparable in size to Africa, although the continent is about 14 times larger.
Equal Earth, introduced in 2018, preserves relative land area but, like every flat representation of a spherical planet, still distorts some shapes, distances, or directions. France backed the resolution but said it would use another equal-area projection, Eckert IV.
The vote followed the launch of the Correct the Map campaign by Africa No Filter and Speak Up Africa in April 2025. The initiative described Mercator’s continued dominance as “cartographic colonialism,” arguing that making Africa appear smaller influences education, identity, and perceptions of the continent’s global importance. Those wider social effects remain an argument advanced by campaigners rather than a feature of the projection itself.
Washington said the resolution “mocks the work and purpose” of the UN and promotes an “ideological agenda.” Ukraine objected to maps on the Equal Earth website depicting Crimea as politically separate from the rest of the country.
African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf welcomed the resolution and urged international institutions, schools, publishers and digital platforms to progressively adopt maps that accurately reflect land areas. “Africa must be represented as it truly is: in its true dimensions and in its rightful place in the world,” he said.
Russia also backed the measure, saying the widespread use of Mercator maps had entrenched a misleading perception of Africa’s size. Deputy Permanent Representative Maria Zabolotskaya said the resolution sought to “correct a long-entrenched disproportion” associated with the “heavy historical legacy of colonialism,” under which Africa’s “place and significance were diminished.”
For centuries, the Mercator projection has distorted the true size of continents, making Africa appear far smaller than it is. In reality, Africa is about 14 times larger than Greenland.
Three soldiers were killed when explosive-laden UAVs struck a military compound in an attack blamed on the ELN
Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella has vowed to step up operations against armed groups after a drone swarm attack on a military compound killed three soldiers and injured four others.
The assault comes as Colombia is grappling with what has been described as its worst wave of violence in a decade. In August, an explosion outside a police station in Cucuta injured 11 officers and killed a police dog. Earlier this week, a car bomb outside another police station in the northeast killed one civilian and injured 11 others.
The latest attack occurred on Friday night at the El Trapiche military post in Ocana, in the northeastern department of Norte de Santander, according to Colombian authorities.
At least 20 UAVs were used in the assault, AFP reported. Explosives dropped from the drones struck barracks and other parts of the base before a firefight broke out. Two soldiers died at the scene and a third passed away after receiving medical attention. A Colombian Air Force helicopter was also hit by shrapnel.
#ATENCIÓN | Un helicóptero de la FAC habría sido impactado tras el ataque con drones por parte del ELN, contra el Ejército, en la base militar de Ocaña Norte, Santander.
The Colombian military “categorically” condemned what it called a “terrorist action” and attributed the attack to the National Liberation Army (ELN), the country's last major active leftist guerrilla organization.
“To the ELN I say with absolute clarity: for every police officer or soldier you kill, I will bring down on you the full weight and legitimate force of the State,” De la Espriella wrote on social media.
IMPACTANTE Primeras imágenes de los heridos del Batallón Santander tras el ataque con drones. Soldados colombianos heridos. Familias en zozobra. Un ataque cobarde. Los narcoterroristas que hicieron esto lo van a pagar. Y lo van a pagar caro. pic.twitter.com/eCydsYuDDl
“We will put an end to that cancer of narco-terrorism that for decades has bled Catatumbo and Colombia dry,” he added.
Founded in 1964 with the hopes of overthrowing the national government and establishing a Cuban-style socialist state, the ELN later turned to the narcotics trade. It has fought FARC dissidents for control of Catatumbo, a major coca-growing region and drug-trafficking corridor along the Venezuelan border.
De la Espriella, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, took office last month after campaigning on a tough-on-crime platform and has intensified military operations against armed groups.
His government has also pursued closer cooperation with Washington through the US-led “Shield of the Americas” anti-cartel alliance, which includes Argentina, Ecuador, and El Salvador. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to meet De la Espriella in Barranquilla next week.
China wrapped up its preparations for the next phase of 2027 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifying with an 84-77 loss to New Zealand in the Shunde District of Foshan, south China's Guangdong Province, on Monday.
The home team struggled on the boards against the Tall Blacks, who won the rebounding battle 47-32, including 18 of the offensive end. China coach Guo Shiqiang pointed to the disparity in rebounding as one of the decisive factors in the defeat.
Liao Sanning led the hosts with 17 points, while Jiao Boqiao contributed 14 and Hu Jinqiu added 13. New Zealand was paced by veteran guard Corey Webster with 17 points, while James Moors posted a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds.
The visitors arrived with an inexperienced 11-man squad, as they also gear up for the second round of World Cup Qualifying. Jordan Ngatai was the only member of the group to have taken the court in the first three qualifying windows.
Ngatai said the squad had only been finalized five days before the game, training together only four or five times. He praised the younger players for their display and estimated that three members of the group could earn places in New Zealand's squad for the upcoming qualifiers.
China had difficulty slowing down 37-year-old Webster, who boasts extensive international experience and was New Zealand's leading scorer at both the 2014 and 2019 editions of the FIBA World Cup.
Hu explained that the intensity maintained by New Zealand throughout the game provided China with valuable lessons before returning to competitive action.
Monday's defeat left China with a 1-2 record from its three warmup games. Guo's men opened the series with an 83-78 victory over Uruguay, before losing the second meeting against the South American side 91-72.
China will now turn its attention to the second round of the Asian Qualifying and take a 3-3 record into Group F. The squad will visit Qatar on August 27, before hosting Lebanon on August 31.
The results from the opening round carry over into the next stage, with China grouped alongside Lebanon, Japan, Qatar, the Republic of Korea and Saudi Arabia. Each team will play six more qualifiers across three windows, as the battle for places at the 2027 FIBA World Cup.
Five years after taking control, the Taliban is marking "Victory Day" in Kabul, pointing to restored security and nationwide calm as major achievements. Yet behind the official celebrations, Afghanistan continues to grapple with deep international isolation, more than 2.6 million girls barred from secondary education, and nearly 22 million people in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. While local residents acknowledge that widespread conflict has ended, everyday survival remains an uphill battle. The challenge now is turning political control into lasting economic stability and a better quality of life for ordinary Afghans. #cgtn #afghanistan
The USS Benfold is the latest US Navy vessel to leave its crew deprived of basic necessities
A US Navy destroyer spent four days without power in the South China Sea last month, depriving its crew of hot meals, flushing toilets, and air conditioning, CNN has reported. The report comes as US sailors in the Persian Gulf are facing similar conditions.
The USS Benfold, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, suffered an “engineering casualty involving its generators” while on an exercise in the South China Sea last month, a Navy spokesman told CNN on Monday.
The Benfold lost the ability to maneuver on its own, and lost galley services, toilets, air conditioning, and drinking water, the spokesman said. At the time of the incident, temperatures in the South China Sea averaged between 32 and 37 degrees Celsius.
Another US warship, the guided missile cruiser USS Robert Smalls, provided hot meals to sailors aboard the Benfold, before it was towed to the Philippines for repairs. The Benfold has since returned to duty.
The Benfold usually sails as part of the USS George Washington’s carrier strike group. At the time of the breakdown, the group was conducting a so-called ‘freedom of navigation’ exercise in the region – in which US warships sail through China’s exclusive economic zone in a show of defiance against Beijing’s maritime claims.
The USS George Washington has since been ordered to redeploy to the Persian Gulf to relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln, whose crew have been at sea for almost nine months. Conditions on board the Abraham Lincoln have deteriorated, with toilets reportedly out of order, food running short, and multiple sailors attempting suicide.
A photo circulating on social media last week suggested that frustrated sailors were writing anti-Israel messages on the wings of the Lincoln’s aircraft, including “be a good goy and do what Israel tells you to,” and “Bibi’s cucks.”
US servicemen’s morale is completely depleted in war against Iran, writing anti-Israel messages on a dust flap:
"Be a good goy and do what Israel tells you to"
"Operation Epstein Fury"
"Peace deal #64 incoming... ALL THIS FOR THE HOLY LAND"
The Pentagon already rotated one aircraft carrier – the USS Gerald R. Ford – out of the Persian Gulf after it suffered repeated malfunctions, including a fire in its laundry room and the overflow of raw excrement from its toilets. The Ford, which is the only vessel in its class and the most advanced aircraft carrier in the US Navy’s fleet, is now undergoing repairs at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Virginia, and is expected to be out of commission for around a year.
Evgeniia Chikunova won the 200m breaststroke as Russian athletes continue to compete under neutral status
Russian swimmer Evgeniia Chikunova has taken the gold at the European Aquatics Championships in Paris despite continuing restrictions on Russian athletes.
The 21-year-old won the 200-meter breaststroke on Friday in 2 minutes 19.32 seconds, setting a new championship record. Chikunova has held the world record in the event since April of 2023, when she broke the previous mark at the Russian National Championships in Kazan.
Chikunova is competing in France as a neutral athlete under European Aquatics rules, which still prevent Russian swimmers from representing their country at the championships.
Russia was banned from some international events starting in the mid-2010s, and the trend sharply accelerated following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022.
Evgeniia Chikunova has an emotional reaction to her win in the 200m Breaststroke Final 💙
Since the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision last month to provisionally lift the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee and withdraw its recommendations restricting Russian athletes’ participation, various sporting bodies have lifted their bans on athletes from the country.
Athletes have already been allowed to return to international competition with the national Russian flag and anthem in rhythmic gymnastics, boxing, synchronized swimming, wrestling, table tennis, fencing, archery, and other disciplines.
In April, World Aquatics moved to restore full participation rights for Russian and Belarusian swimmers, including the use of national flags and anthems. However, European Aquatics has delayed implementing the change until September 1, meaning Russian competitors in Paris remain neutral.
Moscow has repeatedly accused Western countries of politicizing sport, insisting that competitors should be judged solely on sporting merit.
Chikunova’s victory was one of five medals won by Russian swimmers on Friday, including gold in the mixed 4x100m freestyle relay. By the end of the day, Russian athletes had collected 26 medals, including nine golds, at the Paris event.
The PM has made the announcement following recent youth protests against examination irregularities
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an overture to win over India’s youth on Saturday, as he led 80th Independence Day celebrations of the world’s largest democracy.
Addressing the nation after hoisting the national flag at the historic Red Fort in Delhi, he noted that the “biggest beneficiaries” of India’s development will be the youth.
Modi announced that his government would set up free online coaching networks for various competitive examinations, leveraging India’s robust digital public infrastructure and freeing families from the heavy financial burden they incur from sending their children to private coaching institutes.
The government will also train 11 million young people in artificial intelligence skills to prepare them for the new jobs that are opening up.
India, the world’s most populous nation with 1.4 billion people, also has the world’s largest youth population, with the average age around 29.
#WATCH | Delhi: From the ramparts of the Red Fort, Prime Minister Narendra Modi says, "The race for coaching classes has become a massive burden for our middle-class families. Every parent feels that if they don't send their child to a coaching class, they aren't considered a… pic.twitter.com/Qq74edZTl2
The country recently saw widespread youth protests over the leaks of the questions for a national medical entrance test, ultimately forcing the then federal education minister to resign. The fiasco, and the police violence against the protesting students in the national capital and other cities, stoked anger in the country, especially among the middle class.
Modi earlier announced a panel of experts to suggest reforms in the conduct of competitive exams, and pushed through a law mandating stricter punishment for those who tamper with exam integrity.
The prime minister’s online coaching initiative would be a blow to the country’s thriving private coaching networks, some of which have been blamed for the exam scams in recent years. The industry is valued at up to $15 billion.
India achieved independence from British rule on August 15, 1947 through largely non-violent means. Most of Britain’s other colonial possessions and those of other European powers would follow suit in the coming decades.
Police say an unknown number of people could remain trapped at the site near Rustenburg
At least 14 suspected illegal miners have been killed and eight others injured after the walls of an excavation collapsed at a dumping site in South Africa’s North West province, the authorities have said.
The suspected ‘zama zamas’ – a local term for illegal miners – were digging for platinum-group metals at Nkaneng, near the mining city of Rustenburg, when walls of heaped earth gave way on Monday night, the South African Police Service (SAPS) said in a statement. Police said a company had been granted a permit to extract the metals at the site.
“[The] authorities are continuing to assess the situation amid concerns that an unknown number of illegal miners may still be trapped underground,” North West provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Arthur Adams said. According to the commissioner, most of the dead are believed to be Basotho nationals from neighboring Lesotho.
SAPS said three of the injured were arrested on suspicion of illegal mining after being discharged from hospital, while five remained under police guard as they received treatment.
The site lies in the heart of South Africa’s platinum belt, about 130 km northwest of Johannesburg.
Mikateko Mahlaule, chairman of the parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Mineral and Petroleum Resources, called the deaths a “painful reminder” of the hazards surrounding illegal mining and demanded stronger action against the industry. He also urged the authorities to expand lawful opportunities for small-scale and artisanal miners while enforcing health, safety, and environmental rules.
#sapsNW [NORTH WEST SAPS CONFIRMS 14 DEATHS OF ILLEGAL MINERS]
The Provincial Commissioner of the South African Police Service (#SAPS) in the North West, Lieutenant General Arthur Adams, has confirmed the deaths of 14 illegal miners at the Nkaneng dumping site in Bojanala… pic.twitter.com/jvAvzgxDiZ
Illegal miners in South Africa are commonly called zama zamas, a Zulu expression loosely translated as ‘chance takers’. Tens of thousands are believed to work in abandoned commercial mines or makeshift excavations, often without safety equipment and sometimes underground for weeks. The authorities have linked parts of the illicit industry to criminal syndicates, gang violence, undocumented migration and illegal firearms.
South Africa launched operation Vala Umgodi (Close the Hole) in December 2023 to target illegal mining networks. The campaign is led by SAPS, with 2,200 South African National Defense Force personnel deployed in March 2026 to support operations across five provinces, including North West. As of June 2025, police said the operation had led to more than 27,000 arrests.
The latest Nkaneng deaths follow several mass-casualty incidents linked to illicit mining. In 2023, at least 31 suspected illegal miners died in a methane explosion at a disused mine in Free State province. At least 87 miners also died during a months-long standoff at an abandoned gold mine near Stilfontein in late 2024 and early 2025.
Police restricted supplies to force the miners to surface, prompting fierce criticism of the authorities. A court-ordered operation eventually recovered 78 bodies and brought 246 survivors above ground.
The state oil company has declared its highest emergency level following a series of strikes targeting Zawiya
Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) has warned that it could shut down the country’s largest operating refinery following repeated drone attacks on oil facilities in the western city of Zawiya.
The latest attack on Monday targeted an oil-blending and packaging plant operated by the Zawiya Oil Refining Company, according to the NOC. The drone fell near its main oil tank and a pipeline network used to manufacture products for the domestic market, but caused no casualties or material damage, according to the NOC.
“If these attacks continue, [the board] will be compelled to declare force majeure and completely halt operations at the refinery,” the state oil company said on Tuesday, urging firefighting and safety crews to remain on high alert.
The NOC said a previous strike hit a gasoline tank belonging to its subsidiary Brega Oil Marketing Company, igniting a major fire. The tank, which contained around 4.5 million liters of gasoline, later “collapsed completely,” it added.
On Saturday, a strike damaged a tank holding untreated naphtha, creating two holes and causing part of its contents to leak, the company reported.
“Any attack on these facilities constitutes a direct threat to the security and safety of the country and the resources of the people,” the NOC said.
The corporation declared the highest state of emergency in the area on Monday and called on the authorities to investigate the attacks and bring those responsible to justice. No group has claimed responsibility.
#Zawiya | Two fuel storage tanks at Brega Oil Marketing Company’s Zawiya Oil Depot .. one containing gasoline and the other kerosene .. were struck by an FPV drone, causing fires at the facility.
Located around 40 km west of the capital Tripoli, the Zawiya refinery can process about 120,000 barrels per day and is connected to the 300,000-barrel-per-day Sharara oil field. It is currently Libya’s largest functioning refinery.
The facility has previously been caught up in the country’s chronic insecurity. In December 2024, clashes between armed groups damaged several storage tanks and started major fires, prompting the NOC to declare force majeure – a provision allowing it to suspend contractual obligations in extraordinary circumstances.
Turmoil has plagued Libya since longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown with NATO support in 2011. The country remains divided between rival administrations in Tripoli and the east, while political disputes and armed unrest have repeatedly disrupted oil production.
In August 2024, the eastern-based authorities closed oil fields and terminals during a dispute over control of Libya’s central bank. The NOC lifted force majeure that October after an agreement on the bank’s leadership.
The renewed violence comes as Libya seeks to revive foreign energy investment. In 2025, the NOC launched the country’s first oil-and-gas exploration bidding round in 17 years, offering 20 onshore and offshore blocks.
At least 169 people have been killed and 668 injured in regional capitals after a magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck the western part of the country
The death toll from the devastating earthquake that struck western Colombia has risen to at least 169, according to the Colombian Association of Capital Cities (Asocapitales).
The association said on Tuesday that 165 of the fatalities had been recorded in four regional capitals, accounting for more than 97% of the nationwide death toll.
At least 668 people have been injured and 165 buildings have collapsed in the cities, Asocapitales said, adding that search and rescue operations are ongoing in the affected areas.
The magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck on Monday, with its epicenter in western Colombia, affecting the departments of Valle del Cauca, Caldas, Choco, and Risaralda.
Harrowing footage shows people fleeing shaking and collapsing buildings. A disturbing video filmed in Cali appears to show four people being crushed by a falling balcony as they fled a clinic.
Cali Mayor Alejandro Eder imposed a curfew from 8 PM to 6 AM to maintain order, saying that police and military personnel would patrol the city and help search for survivors.
Music has a way of bringing people together. At Renmin University of China, young people from China, the United States and the United Kingdom gathered for a special choir exchange. They shared the stage, exchanged stories and connected through the power of music. Beyond the performance itself, this was a moment of cultural exchange, where different backgrounds met, friendships grew, and music became a bridge between young hearts.
Join CGTN reporter Wang Tao as he explores how a simple tune brought young people from different countries closer together. And the conversation doesn't end here. We want to hear from you: What does China look like in your eyes? Create a video and share China in your own way – through your talent, creativity, or personal stories. Post your video with #GenCoolChallenge and let the world see China from your perspective.
Hugo Broos says he will not return to management but is open to an advisory role with the national team
Hugo Broos has confirmed his departure as head coach of South Africa’s national football team after leading Bafana Bafana to their first FIFA World Cup knockout-stage appearance, but said he could remain involved in another role.
The 74-year-old leaves his post as the longest-serving manager in Bafana history after taking the reins in June 2021, a highly successful five-year tenure that culminated in South Africa famously reaching the FIFA World Cup knockout stages for the first time.
Broos had repeatedly stated that the 2026 showpiece in North America would mark the definitive end of his dugout career, but his comments following Bafana’s heroic tournament run had left some lingering uncertainty over whether he could extend his stay.
However, speaking directly to Belgian publication Voetbalnieuws, Broos insisted his decision to step away from the rigours of coaching is final.
“Will I continue as a coach after all? No, it is irreversible!” Broos declared.
”If they need me for something else, perhaps in scouting, that is something else. But football is no longer going to be a part of my life 24 hours a day.”
Broos revealed that he has already held initial discussions with South African Football Association (SAFA) president Danny Jordaan, who is eager for the Belgian to remain closely involved with the national team setup in a high-level advisory capacity.
”I have already had a conversation with the chairman of the South African federation. He would like to keep me, but in a different role, as an advisor or something like that,” Broos said.
“I will return at the end of July to say a final farewell; I am curious to see what he will propose to me.”
Whilst elite coaching may now be behind him, Broos joked that his wife has already made it clear retirement should not mean spending all of his newfound spare time around the house.
”My wife is happy that I’m quitting, but she’s already warned me: ‘Just make sure you don’t get in my way!’” he laughed.
”Suppose I have to be in South Africa for a few weeks every two months: why not? Better that than being a nuisance at home because I have nothing to do.”
Михаил Боркунов, главред тг-канала #ВнешнийВраг и Владимир Трухан, полковник запаса ЦА МО. Обсудили последние события, дали им оценку и ответили на вопросы.
A massage therapist sparked debate online after being filmed arguing about Muslims in a grocery store
More than $140,000 has been raised online on behalf of a Texas woman filmed making anti-Islam comments in a grocery store.
The 44-second video which surfaced on Sunday shows a woman in blue medical scrubs confronting two other women who remain off camera.
The woman, identified by media reports as massage therapist Dasha Kilpatrick, says: “Islam is a terrorist organization, not a religion. I’m very educated on this subject. You need to leave. You’re not welcome here. This is not a Muslim country. This is a Christian country.”
One of the women is heard responding, “You need to leave,” while another says, “We have citizenship here.”
The altercation was reportedly filmed inside an H-E-B supermarket in Conroe, Texas.
After Kilpatrick faced backlash online, a fundraiser was launched on the Christian crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo. As of Tuesday, it raised $140,178.
This is not an outlier or an isolated incident. Perhaps the most disturbing part is the conviction this woman has in believing neighbors shopping at HEB are a threat to her and her country. This "hate virus" is a contagion we must confront with facts, truth, and unity. #txlegepic.twitter.com/Sg30vqknhp
— Rep. Suleman Lalani, M.D. (@DoctorLalani) June 21, 2026
“Dasha’s been fully doxxed, fired, and canceled for daring to speak truth in her own country. She’s now dealing with lost income, threats, and the mob coming for her holistic practice,” the fundraiser page states.
Texas State Representative Suleman Lalani described Kilpatrick’s remarks as “disturbing.”
“This ‘hate virus’ is a contagion we must confront with facts, truth, and unity,” he wrote on X.
Inner Light Holistic Healing, a business where Kilpatrick was reportedly listed as an employee, has been flooded with negative reviews.
Others, including Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace, expressed support for Kilpatrick.
“I stand with Dasha, do you?” Mace wrote on X.
Anti-Muslim incidents in the US have increased in recent years amid debates over immigration, conflicts in the Middle East, and concerns about Islamist terrorism.
President Donald Trump, who signed an executive order restricting entry from several Muslim-majority countries during his first term in office, has recently accused Democrats of covering up several high-profile fraud cases in Minnesota involving Somali Americans.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said it received 8,683 complaints of discrimination and bigotry last year, the highest annual number since the organization began publishing the data in 1996.
Alireza Beiranvand delivered another outstanding World Cup performance on Sunday, making seven saves to help Iran battle to a 0-0 draw against Belgium in Group G in Los Angeles.
The Iranian goalkeeper repeatedly frustrated the Belgian side's attacks and helped Team Melli collect a second consecutive draw, but the result will leave a sense of frustration after the Red Devils were reduced to 10 men in the second half.
Belgium defender Nathan Ngoy was shown a straight red card in the 66th minute after a costly mistake. His attempted back pass fell short before he brought down Mehdi Taremi to prevent the Iran forward from bursting through on goal.
The Iranians were unable to turn their numerical advantage into a winning goal, needing instead to once again rely on Beiranvand late in the match. The shot-stopper denied Maxim De Cuyper on two occasions, including a close-range opportunity in the 86th minute.
A second straight draw extended a difficult run for the Belgians, who have yet to score through their own efforts at this tournament, after opening with a 1-1 stalemate against Egypt that featured an own goal. Despite controlling possession for much of the opening hour, Belgium once again lacked a cutting edge in front of the net.
Despite the off-field challenges surrounding the team, Iran once again showed resilience on the pitch. With two draws from two matches, the squad will head into its final game in Group G knowing that a place in the knockout phase remains within reach.
Iran and Belgium both have two points after back-to-back draws, while Egypt now leads the group with four points following a 3-1 triumph in Vancouver that left bottom side New Zealand stuck on one, behind goals from Mostafa Zico, Mohamed Salah and Trezeguet.
In the day's other high-profile match, Spain bounced back emphatically from its disappointing opening draw by thrashing Saudi Arabia 4-0 in Group H in Atlanta. Lamine Yamal scored his first World Cup goal and Mikel Oyarzabal struck twice as the European champions rediscovered their attacking rhythm.
Yamal gave the Spaniards an early breakthrough in the 10th minute after arriving at the back post to convert Oyarzabal's pass. The Saudis struggled to cope with La Roja's movement and quickly fell further behind, with Oyarzabal finding the net twice in the space of three minutes before halftime to put the result beyond doubt.
An own goal shortly after the break completed the scoring as Spain cruised through the remainder of the contest. Yamal's opener also earned him a place in the record books, as the 18-year-old became the second-youngest Spanish scorer at a World Cup, as well as the second-youngest player to notch the first goal for a team at the tournament behind Brazil legend Pele.
Cabo Verde, meanwhile, continued its run as one of the tournament's biggest surprises after fighting back to earn a 2-2 draw against Uruguay in Group H in Miami. The result came just days after the Blue Sharks held Spain to a scoreless draw in their World Cup debut.
Kevin Pina put Cabo Verde ahead with the country's first-ever World Cup goal, before La Celeste responded through Maximiliano Araujo and Agustin Canobbio prior to halftime. The African side refused to back down, however, with Helio Varela restoring parity in the second half to clinch another valuable point.
The draw leaves Cabo Verde firmly in contention for a place in the knockout phase heading into its final group match against Saudi Arabia. With two points from two games, the Atlantic island archipelago has already turned heads by standing toe-to-toe with two former World Cup champions.
Cabo Verde and Uruguay both have two points after their stalemate, behind top-of-the-table Spain with four, while Saudi Arabia brings up the rear with one.
Riots, revolutionaries, symbols, scandals – and the conflict no other rich country had to face like the US
Recently George Floyd’s brother showed off his new diamond encrusted gold medallion with George’s face on it worth about $45,000. He claimed that it immortalized Floyd’s legacy.
Many commenters were doubtful if that was the best way to express feelings and asked whether the medallion had been paid for with donations to Floyd’s family.
Today, the struggle for minority rights in the US may look chaotic, strange, and even bizarre. But in fact, it wasn’t that different in the 20th century – that idealized era of famous orators and revolutionaries, as well as now-forgotten riots and strange political projects.
Moreover, we tend to forget that when it comes to minority rights, no other developed nation has faced the same challenges as the US.
At the time of the start of the Black Power movement, the situation with racial equality in the US was, for lack of a better word, confusing. African Americans, like everyone “born or naturalized in the United States,” had been considered full-fledged American citizens since July 9, 1868, when the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution was adopted. Technically, at that point the debate over the rights of African Americans was over.
At the same time, however, the Jim Crow laws – a collection of statutes which discriminated against African Americans – remained in effect in many states. These laws were named after the minstrel song ‘Jump Jim Crow’ which mocked African Americans. The social segregation laws ranged from requiring African Americans to sit in designated rear sections of buses and trains to bans on interracial marriages.
These laws were primarily in effect in the South and Southeast: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. But some of the laws were also in effect in other states, like Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and California.
African Americans also frequently met with informal discrimination. For example, they were often denied access to skilled professions, admission to universities, and, most importantly, mortgages. Many banks also practiced “redlining”: neighborhoods with large black populations were considered high or “red” risk, even if they were peaceful and prosperous. Therefore, the lenders refused to issue loans to residents of these areas. At this time, housing prices began to rise, making it nearly impossible to improve living conditions without getting a mortgage.
In fact, these informal, unwritten restrictions were even worse than the Jim Crow laws. They not only isolated African Americans from society but also prevented them from improving their situation. But if anyone pointed out this injustice, skeptics could respond that there were no official laws against African Americans that prevented them from taking out loans or voting. On paper, they were free and full-fledged citizens, but in practice, things were different.
In 1964, a Harlem resident got into a conflict with a group of black schoolchildren. 15-year-old African American Jerome Powell was shot and killed by police in front of his friends and about a dozen witnesses. A police officer claimed Powell had lunged at him with a knife, while other witnesses claimed the teenager had actually surrendered. On June 16, the riots, later known as the Harlem Riots, began. Approximately 4,000 people participated in them. Ultimately, one person was killed, 118 were injured, and 465 were arrested.
Powell’s death was the spark that lit a powder keg. Tensions in black neighborhoods had been growing for a long time, and the frustration erupted into violence. Over the next four years, new riots erupted in black neighborhoods across the United States. They became known as the Ghetto Riots.
The situation culminated in nationwide riots in April 1968 after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. There were pogroms, lootings, fires, and shootouts in cities across the US. In Chicago alone, 11 people were killed and more than 500 injured.
Then-US President Lyndon B. Johnson was somewhat understanding of the rioters and said, “When you put your foot on a man’s neck and hold him down for three hundred years, and then you let him up, what’s he going to do? He’s going to knock your block off.” However, he had no plans to negotiate with the rioters and was unable to allocate significant resources for social assistance, since the authorities were preoccupied with the Vietnam War.
Johnson authorized the army to suppress the riots and condemned all those who broke the law. His successor, Richard Nixon, maintained a hardline policy against black activists and their allies. US authorities had long viewed Black Power with suspicion, and sometimes even hostility.
Soft power and revolutionaries
Sixty years ago, on July 16, 1966 (exactly two years after the death of Jerome Powell) activist Kwame Ture (better known as Stokely Carmichael) delivered a speech outlining the ideas that he had united under the slogan ‘Black power’.
“It is a call for black people in this country to unite, to recognize their heritage, to build a sense of community. It is a call for black people to define their own goals, to lead their own organizations,” Carmichael said.
His speech was the culmination of the March Against Fear, in the course of which participants marched from Memphis, Tennessee, to Jackson, Mississippi to protest racism in the South and restrictions on their voting rights. As a result, thousands of African Americans were registered to vote. This was not a spontaneous action, but the result of arduous work.
While some participated in the riots, others established dozens of organizations to fight for the rights of minorities: from student councils to human rights groups. Most of the organizations consisted of passionate enthusiasts who organized peaceful protests, managed media support, and demanded de facto equality.
The Ghetto Riots frightened many Americans, even those who ideologically supported the struggle of the minorities. But the soft power approach of the activists helped foster a positive image of the movement.
One niche group, the Olympic Project for Human Rights (OPHR), was responsible for one of the movement’s most famous symbols. At the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, African American Tommie Smith won the 200-meter race, setting a new record of 19.83 seconds.
At the awards ceremony, he and bronze medalist John Carlos stood barefoot, with heads bowed and black gloves raised in a gesture of solidarity with the fight for black rights. Australian Peter Norman, a white athlete who won the silver medal, wore an OPHR badge to the ceremony as a sign of solidarity.
Smith and Carlos’ gesture drew criticism from politicians and Olympic officials, but they were the ones who showed the ‘humane’ face of the protest movement.
Some organizations, however, were not satisfied and wanted more. Ideas were voiced about creating an independent black state, where African Americans could create their own institutions and ensure social justice. This state was supposed to be established on the territory of Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi – the US government was supposed to transfer these states as reparations for slavery and ‘oppression’.
The Nation of Islam, an eccentric organization of black Muslims, particularly advocated for separation from the United States. It was popular for a while, largely thanks to Malcolm X. But following his departure from the organization, it lost followers and delved deeper into esotericism.
The Black Power movement also gave birth to revolutionary organizations which carried out bombings and shootouts with the police. As a result of their terrorist actions, about 100 people died.
It is difficult to say what proved more effective in the fight for the rights of African Americans: the peaceful protests, the threats of the revolutionaries, or simply the passage of time. But over time, most of the demands of Black Power supporters were fulfilled: by the end of the '60s, Jim Crow laws and restrictions in schools and cities were abolished, and anti-discriminatory laws were introduced. The overall culture also changed and became more inclusive.
Of course, to this day, people still complain about the unfair structure of society, since the struggle for freedom and equality never ends. But for the next 40 years, the US did not experience mass civil unrest or the resurgence of armed groups.
Failed export
By the '60s, the US was already actively exporting culture and ideas to Europe. Therefore, it’s hardly surprising that the vivid and highly idealized image of the struggle for minority rights had reached young people “across the pond.”
Protest culture grew and tensions increased. Finally, it spilled out onto the streets. On August 9, 1970, the Mangrove Protest occurred in London – a mass demonstration of activists outraged by police harassment of the local Afro-Caribbean community. The riot resulted in clashes and was followed by a high-profile trial.
And then... silence. Of course, in the UK, France, and other European countries, racism and equality were important issues: the flow of migrants from the colonies was increasing, and their integration became a pressing issue. But there were hardly any protests or riots.
There are two main reasons for this. Firstly, the fight for racial equality was largely integrated into the protests which socialists, liberals, and students organized against the policies of Margaret Thatcher, Charles de Gaulle and other conservative leaders. Therefore, the rights of minorities never became such a big social issue as in the US.
Secondly, in Europe, minorities became a truly noticeable group of the population only in the '60s, after the first waves of migration from the colonies. By this time, liberal ideas had already taken root in society and the government, so building a tolerant society was relatively simple.
Moreover, many countries – especially Spain, Russia and the Asian countries – had been ethnically and religiously diverse for a long time. They first encountered the issue of integrating “other-minded people” into society hundreds of years ago, so with newcomers, this process was a lot easier.
Of course, racial and ethnic conflicts are not unique to the United States. One of the most serious issues in the EU is the slow assimilation of new migrants. In Russia, there are still echoes of the conflicts between Russians and North Caucasians (although they have really lost steam over the last decade). And in China there are complaints of chauvinism – not only against whites or Africans, but also against other ethnic groups within China.
But in no First World country have the rights of minorities caused such disruption and violence or captured the attention of politicians and society for years. The US is the only developed country that has had to deal with such issues. Similar situations have only occurred in Africa, India, and Southeast Asia.
For a while, it seemed as if Americans had resolved the minority rights issue. But recent events show that this is still a long way off.
The attack targeted a large group of people celebrating Juneteenth, CBS News has reported
At least 13 people were injured in a suspected drive-by shooting that targeted a holiday crowd in Chicago on Friday night, CBS News has reported.
The incident took place on Juneteenth, a holiday that celebrates the end of slavery in the US.
At around 11 PM, a red SUV drove up to a large group of people in Roseland on the city’s South Side, and two people inside began shooting into the crowd, Chicago Police said, according to CBS News.
A 26-year-old woman in critical condition is being treated at the University of Chicago Hospital, it added.
The crime scene is littered with at least 100 evidence markers, while multiple cars and a bus stop were hit by gunfire, the outlet reported. The number of evidence markers suggests that roughly 100 rounds may have been fired.
Detectives are investigating, CBS said.
At least four people have been killed and at least nine others injured in separate shootings across the city since Friday night, ABC 7 Chicago reported.
The suspect reportedly claimed he was “protecting the country” from Muslims, as the attacks came amid a nationwide scandal over Pakistani rape gangs
Five men have been injured in a series of suspected anti-Muslim attacks in Edinburgh after an armed man was seen moving through the city, according to police and local media reports.
A 36-year-old white man has been arrested following what Police Scotland described as a “fast-moving sequence of events” on Friday night. Counter-terrorism officers have joined local police in the investigation, according to the BBC.
The attacks reportedly began near a mosque in Broomhouse, in the west of the city, where two men were injured and taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. Three other men were attacked on Telford Road and Leith Walk, police said, adding that “there is no further risk to the public.”
Footage circulating on social media appeared to show a bare-chested man carrying a large weapon and causing damage at several locations.
BREAKING NEWS: Counter Terrorism Police have launched an investigation after five people were stabbed in Edinburgh. A 36-year-old white Scottish man has been arrested in connection with the incident.
According to authorities, the suspect allegedly made a statement following his… pic.twitter.com/UDMNLECiDv
According to media reports, after the arrest the man said he was “protecting the country from these f***ing Muslim bastards raping our young daughters.”
The attacks came against the backdrop of a report released by Restore Britain leader Rupert Lowe that revealed predominantly Pakistani men had raped and abused large numbers of mostly white British girls across almost half of the UK’s municipalities over several decades. The findings triggered a nationwide backlash and reignited debate over immigration, policing and the authorities’ handling of child sexual exploitation cases.
#BREAKING: Scottish man arrested after stabbing five people in Edinburgh; says he was “protecting the country” from Muslims “raping our young daughters.” pic.twitter.com/EmYsakE53B
Assistant Chief Constable Catriona Paton called the incident a “shocking attack” and said there was “no place for racism or faith-based hate in Scotland.”
MEND Scotland, a Muslim engagement group, said several of the victims were from the Muslim community.
Scottish First Minister John Swinney also commented, saying that he was “deeply concerned” and that there was “no place for violence, racism or intolerance” in the country.
Co-hosts Canada moved to the brink of the knockout stage at the 2026 FIFA World Cup after Jonathan David scored a hat-trick in a commanding 6-0 victory over Qatar on Thursday, a landmark win that was tempered by the serious injury suffered by midfielder Ismaël Koné.
The result earned Canada their first-ever World Cup victory and continued the country's impressive start to Group B after opening the tournament with a draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina. It also represented an unprecedented attacking explosion for a team that had scored only two goals across all of its previous World Cup appearances.
David led the way with three goals, while Cyle Larin, Nathan Saliba and an own goal by Mohamed Manai completed the rout. Qatar finished the match with nine players after Homan Ahmed and Assim Madibo both received marching orders.
Canada's celebrations, however, were overshadowed by concern for Koné, who was stretchered off early in the second half after suffering a broken left leg following a challenge from Madibo. The midfielder was taken to hospital and was preparing for surgery, with his family by his side.
Head coach Jesse Marsch described the occasion as a defining moment for Canadian football despite the emotional scenes surrounding Koné's injury.
"No one will forget this, and no Canadian will forget this day," Marsch said. "It's an incredibly seminal moment for everyone to understand that there's talent in this country, that there's mentality, that there's desire, that there are a lot of things that make this country special."
In other matches on the day, Switzerland's breakthrough finally arrived in the closing stages after coach Murat Yakin introduced Johan Manzambi in the 71st minute. The 20-year-old immediately changed the game, meeting a loose ball near the penalty spot with a powerful side volley after Amar Memic's attempted clearance from Ruben Vargas' cross to give the Swiss the lead.
Bosnia and Herzegovina's hopes of salvaging a result suffered another blow six minutes later when defender Tarik Muharemovic was shown a straight red card for bringing down Breel Embolo from behind and denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity. Switzerland quickly took advantage of the numerical edge, with Embolo setting up Vargas before Manzambi completed his brace in the 90th minute. Bosnian substitute Ermin Mahmic briefly reduced the deficit with a stunning volley in stoppage time, but captain Granit Xhaka converted a late penalty to complete the scoring.
The 4-1 victory put Switzerland in control of Group B with four points from two matches following its opening draw against Qatar. Bosnia and Herzegovina remained on one point and now faces a difficult task in its final group match against Qatar after conceding all five of its goals in the tournament after the 70th minute.
South Africa had struggled to create clear-cut opportunities for much of the match and looked set to leave Atlanta empty-handed before a late turning point helped them salvage a point. Pavel Sulc handled Thapelo Maseko's shot inside the penalty area in the 81st minute, allowing Teboho Mokoena to convert from the spot and secure Bafana Bafana's first point of the tournament.
Czech Republic had numerous opportunities to put the match out of reach long before the equalizer arrived. Patrik Schick headed wide inside the opening minute, while Vladimir Darida and Schick both squandered promising chances early in the second half. South Africa, meanwhile, rarely tested goalkeeper Matej Kovar until the closing stages, but the late goal sparked a surge of momentum that nearly produced a winner.
The result keeps Group A finely balanced heading into the final round of fixtures, with both South Africa and the Czech Republic still in contention for a place in the knockout stage. South Africa coach Hugo Broos praised his team's response after the opening defeat to Mexico and highlighted his players' resilience against a physically imposing opponent. "I am very proud of my team when you see the reaction after the Mexico game," Broos said. "The Czech Republic team is very powerful, and very tall. We did very well with the second balls. It was a fantastic performance."
In the other clash of Group A, Mexico edged the Republic of Korea 1-0 to become the first team to reach the last 32.
Thousands took to the streets of Geneva ahead of the summit at a nearby French resort town
Riot police in Geneva clashed with protesters on Sunday ahead of a Group of Seven summit in neighboring France. The violence disrupted a No-G7 demonstration which drew thousands.
Geneva lies around 30 km from Evian-les-Bains, a French resort town on the shores of Lake Geneva where the 2026 G7 summit is scheduled to take place Monday to Wednesday. The Swiss authorities closed 25 of the 35 border crossings with France from Thursday afternoon, citing security concerns.
Around 60 organizations representing a range of causes, including feminist groups, trade unions, and supporters of Palestinian and Kurdish statehood, took part in the Geneva march. Organizers said around 20,000 people attended; police estimated the crowd at 7,000 at the start of the demonstration.
Police used water cannons and tear gas against rioters, who hurled projectiles at the officers.
American entrepreneur Elon Musk, the co-owner and CEO of Tesla, became the world’s first trillionaire last week after his other company, SpaceX, raised $75 billion in an IPO.
Apart from the clashes, the five-kilometer march along the shores of Lake Geneva, which passed near the United Nations quarter, was described by the media as loud and colorful but largely contained. Demonstrators chanted slogans against fascism, imperialism, and capitalism. One banner depicted US President Donald Trump as a dinosaur devouring the Earth.
The G7 was formed in 1973 as a club of the world’s largest economies, but its influence has declined as non-Western powers, especially China, gain greater weight in the global economy. Critics argue that the format is outdated and far less relevant than the more inclusive G20.
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky is reportedly expected to attend the meeting in Evian to seek additional funding for Kiev’s drone war against Russia. Politico reports that Ukraine hopes to raise up to $20 billion from NATO countries.
Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi’s trip is an opportunity to move “from declarations to action,” Israeli President Isaac Herzog has said
Somaliland’s president has made his first visit to Israel, months after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government controversially recognized the breakaway territory as an independent state.
Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi was welcomed by Israeli President Isaac Herzog at the Presidential Residence in Jerusalem on Sunday at the start of what officials described as the first state visit by a Somaliland leader to Israel.
Herzog said it was a “great honor” to receive Abdullahi on a visit that “symbolizes the great potential of the new partnership” between the “two countries,” adding that the two sides must now move “from declarations to action.”
Somaliland’s presidency said Abdullahi was received with full state honors and that the two leaders held talks on economic and investment partnerships, innovation, technology, agriculture, and regional security. The Somaliland leader also visited the World Holocaust Remembrance Center, Mount Herzl, and the Grove of Nations, where he planted a tree.
Speaking at a joint press conference with his Israeli counterpart, Abdullahi thanked West Jerusalem for receiving him and said the people of Somaliland spent decades seeking international recognition.
“They were asking only one question. To see us. Only one country decided to see us,” he said, referring to Israel.
Israel recognized Somaliland as a sovereign state in December, drawing condemnation from Somalia and several African governments. Netanyahu’s office said at the time that the two sides had signed a joint declaration and that the move was made “in the spirit of the Abraham Accords.”
#01. The President of the Republic of Somaliland visited Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, Mount Herzl, and the Grove of Nations, where he ceremonially planted a tree. pic.twitter.com/nfGtvoABAd
Mogadishu, which considers Somaliland part of its territory, has rejected Israel’s recognition as illegal and a violation of Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. It also condemned Somaliland’s plan to open an embassy in Jerusalem, saying any unilateral action by the breakaway region has no legal effect. Israel remains the only state to recognize Somaliland.
The African Union has also rejected the move, warning that it risks setting a “dangerous precedent” and could undermine peace and stability across the continent.
Somaliland gained independence from the UK in 1960, while Somalia achieved independence from Italy shortly afterwards. The two states were united as the Somali Republic in 1960 until Somaliland proclaimed sovereignty in 1991 following a decade-long civil war. Abdullahi, who took office in December 2024, has made securing international recognition for Somaliland a top priority.
His trip to Israel follows the opening of a new Somaliland representative office in Taipei last Friday, despite objections from Somalia and China. Somaliland’s representative in Taiwan, Mahmoud Adam Jama Galaal, said Beijing and Mogadishu failed to pressure Hargeisa into cutting ties with the island, which he described as a “very important ally.”
“We have the right to choose who we have relationships with. It’s our prerogative,” he said, according to Reuters.
Brazil settled for a 1-1 draw against Morocco in their opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday, with Vinicius Junior scoring a crucial equalizer after the record five-time champions were outplayed for long stretches at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
North African football giants Morocco took a deserved lead through Ismael Saibari and threatened to hand Brazil a defeat in Group C before Real Madrid star Vinicius produced a moment of individual brilliance to rescue a point for Carlo Ancelotti's side.
The Atlas Lions made the brighter start and controlled much of the first half through an energetic midfield led by 18-year-old Ayyoub Bouaddi, who continued to justify the growing excitement surrounding his international future.
Brazil struggled to gain control in midfield as Casemiro and Bruno Guimaraes found it difficult to cope with Morocco's intensity and movement. Morocco repeatedly targeted Brazil's right flank, where central defender Roger Ibanez had been deployed at right-back.
The breakthrough arrived after a moment of inspiration from Brahim Diaz. The Morocco playmaker collected the ball deep inside his own half before delivering a perfectly weighted pass for Saibari, who raced through and calmly lifted his finish over goalkeeper Alisson to put Morocco ahead.
The 2022 World Cup semi-finalists nearly doubled their advantage shortly afterward, but right-back Achraf Hakimi elected to shoot rather than square the ball to Diaz in a promising position.
Brazil eventually found themselves level through Vinicius. The 25-year-old collected a pass from Guimaraes near the byline, skipped past Neil El Aynaoui and fired home from a tight angle to level the score before halftime.
Ancelotti, Brazil's first ever foreign coach reacted at the break by replacing both Casemiro and Ibanez with Fabinho and Danilo, with the changes helping the South American team regain greater control of the contest. Brazil who last won the World Cup in 2002, looked more organized after the interval and spent long periods pushing Morocco deeper into their own half.
Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was required to make several important saves, keeping out efforts from Igor Thiago and later substitute Luis Henrique as Brazil searched for a winner.
Mohamed Ouahbi's team, meanwhile, remained dangerous on the counterattack and nearly snatched victory late on after a mistake from Alisson created a promising opportunity.
Despite Brazil's improved second-half display, Ancelotti admitted his side has significant work to do if it hopes to challenge for a sixth World Cup title.
"We need to improve," the Italian said after the match. "This was a tough match, especially in the beginning. The team was a bit anxious, nerves were all over the place. I think we have to reassess what we did in this match. But we can't lose heart - you don't win a World Cup based on your first match."
Morocco head coach Mohamed Ouahbi, who took charge earlier this year, was encouraged by his team's performance despite missing out on all three points.
"The players are disappointed because they wanted to win," Ouahbi said. "In the second half, the rhythm dropped but that is understandable against a team of this quality."
The result leaves both teams with work to do in Group C, though Morocco's performance reinforced its status as one of the tournament's potential dark horses, while Brazil will look for further improvement under Ancelotti as the World Cup progresses.
The New York Knicks completed a remarkable postseason run on Saturday night, defeating the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals to secure their first championship since 1973.
Jalen Brunson was named NBA Finals MVP after producing a historic performance, scoring a franchise Finals-record 45 points as New York clinched the series 4-1.
The title run was defined by resilience. The Knicks rallied from double-digit deficits in all four of their victories against San Antonio, including a 16-point comeback in the championship-clinching game.
"I have no words," Brunson said during the on-court celebration. "It's everything I ever dreamed of."
The Spurs once again seized control early, building a 10-point lead in the first quarter before stretching the advantage to 16 in the second. New York struggled offensively from the opening tip, missing 16 of its first 18 shots and failing to make its first 11 attempts from inside the arc.
At one stage, Spurs star Victor Wembanyama had more blocked shots than the Knicks had made field goals. Yet New York gradually found its footing, using a 22-9 run in the second quarter to cut the deficit before trailing 42-37 at halftime.
As they did throughout the series, the Knicks responded well when the pressure was highest.
Brunson took over in the fourth quarter, scoring 13 consecutive points to fuel another comeback and move New York to within touching distance of the championship. His 45-point outing broke the franchise Finals record previously held by Willis Reed, who scored 38 points against the Los Angeles Lakers in 1970.
Mikal Bridges added 14 points and Josh Hart contributed 13 as the Villanova trio helped guide the Knicks to one of the most significant victories in franchise history.
"I don't know what I'm feeling," Brunson said. "I'm in awe. Whenever someone counted us out, we found a way to come back and do something about it."
San Antonio was led by rookie Dylan Harper's 25 points, while Wembanyama finished with 19 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots.
The Knicks entered Game 5 with momentum already on their side after erasing a 29-point deficit in Game 4 before winning 107-106 on OG Anunoby's tip-in with 1.2 seconds remaining. It was the largest comeback in NBA Finals history.
Compared to that dramatic turnaround, overcoming a 16-point deficit in the decisive game seemed almost routine.
New York finished the postseason with a perfect 4-0 record in closeout games, all of them on the road. Thousands of Knicks fans traveled to Texas to witness the franchise end a championship drought that had lasted more than five decades.
For Brunson, who won two NCAA titles at Villanova before transforming the Knicks after arriving in New York four years ago, the Finals MVP award was the crowning achievement of an unforgettable season.
And for the Knicks, the long wait is finally over.
French rider Valentin Debise secured a thrilling victory for China's ZXMOTO in Race 1 of the FIM Supersport World Championship Emilia-Romagna Round on Saturday, claiming his sixth win of the 2026 season and strengthening his position in the championship battle.
The result lifted Debise to second place in the riders' standings on 188 points, ahead of Spain's Jaume Masia. ZXMOTO remains third in the manufacturers' championship with 190 points.
After finishing third in the Superpole race earlier in the weekend to earn a front-row starting position, Debise quickly established himself among the frontrunners when Race 1 got underway at the Misano circuit.
The Frenchman settled into third place behind Yamaha riders Can Öncü and Adrian Huertas Arenas during the opening laps, with the leading trio gradually breaking away from the rest of the field.
As the race progressed, the battle for victory narrowed. By Lap 9, Öncü dropped back, leaving Debise and Arenas locked in a head-to-head fight at the front.
The contest remained undecided until the final lap, when the two riders exchanged the lead several times. Debise ultimately made a decisive move in the closing stages and held on to take the checkered flag.
Arenas finished second, while Öncü completed the podium in third.
ZXMOTO's Federico Caricasulo crossed the line in ninth place, while QJMOTOR rider Raffaele De Rosa finished 16th.
Debise praised both his rivals and his team after the race.
"The race was very competitive," he said. "Winning is never easy, and I had to put in a lot of effort."
The 32-year-old also highlighted the progress made with the ZXMOTO machine throughout the season.
"The more we go on, the closer we get to understanding the bike. I really enjoy riding it and I feel comfortable," he added.
Debise credited the team for making effective technical adjustments after challenges encountered in high temperatures during the previous round in Aragon.
"Earlier at Aragon, the heat created some difficulties, but those problems have been resolved here and the bike is back to normal," he noted.
The Emilia-Romagna Round concludes with Race 2 on Sunday, where Debise will look to add another victory to his growing tally and further close the gap at the top of the championship standings.
The demonstrations in Scotland come after a stabbing attack allegedly involving a Sudanese asylum seeker
Anti-immigration and anti-racism protesters scuffled with police during rival demonstrations in Glasgow, Scotland, amid tensions fueled by a stabbing attack allegedly involving a Sudanese asylum seeker.
On Saturday, the NGO Stand Up to Racism held a rally in downtown Glasgow, with organizers calling on supporters to “reclaim the streets from the far right.” Participants carried Scottish and Palestinian flags and chanted, “Refugees are welcome here,” according to The Herald.
Around 70 counterprotesters arrived at the event, many dressed in black and wearing balaclavas.
THE STREET ARE OURS: THOUSANDS OF ANTIRACISTS RECLAIM THE STREETS IN GLASGOW AND HUMILIATE FAR RIGHT THUGS
— Stand Up to Racism - Scotland (@SUTRScotland) June 13, 2026
As police sought to keep the rival groups apart, some anti-immigration demonstrators pushed against barriers and shoved officers. Some of their opponents also pushed police while attempting to break through the separation line.
NEW🚨: Chaos on the streets of Glasgow, Scotland!
Police clash with young patriots protesting against mass migration.
Meanwhile, pro-migrant and woke groups are also holding demonstrations in Glasgow today. pic.twitter.com/W7smAavlu1
— The Reformed Media (@ReformedMedia_) June 13, 2026
#Scotland — Neo-nazis carrying Israeli flags are trying to attack anti-racist demonstrators in Glasgow.
An anti-racism demonstration also took place in Belfast, Northern Ireland to denounce the riots that followed a stabbing on Monday. A Sudanese asylum seeker has been charged with attacking a man in the street and allegedly blinding him in one eye.
Another high-profile incident occurred on Friday in Brierfield, England, where a man stabbed a 17-year-old girl in the middle of a street, causing non-life-threatening injuries. Police described the suspect as a British man of Pakistani descent.
The recent attacks have reignited debates about migration and what right-wing politicians and activists describe as two-tier policing. They argue that the incidents highlight the government’s inability to adequately address crimes committed by foreigners and other offenders.
Prominent anti-immigration activist Tommy Robinson said he was detained for several hours at Heathrow Airport on Saturday under anti-terrorism legislation and had his phone seized by police.
According to Sky News, Robinson is scheduled to take part in a debate at the Oxford Union next week on whether the West is “right to be suspicious of Islam.”
By trapping migrants within the country indefinitely, the West is engineering a severe demographic crisis
Libyan social media has been simmering for weeks over the presence of irregular migrants, particularly those arriving from sub-Saharan Africa, with accusations directed at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other international agencies operating in the country. What began as online outrage has now spilled into the streets of Tripoli, where tensions over migration have once again become a focal point of political anger in the capital already strained by division and economic pressure.
Libya hosts one of the largest migrant populations in North Africa. According to the International Organization for Migration’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (IOM DTM), the country hostedmore than 700,000 migrants in 2024, rising to approximately 936,000by February 2026. This represents an increase of roughly 33% over the period – about 13% of the total population.
The majority of migrants are believed to be in an irregular situation and are concentrated in major urban centers such as Tripoli, Misrata, and Sebha. In the capital itself, aid agencies and local authorities describe large, fluid migrant communities that reflect Libya’s continuing role as a key transit hub toward Europe.
On June 4, protesters in the area of Janzour-Sarraj on the outskirts of Tripoli blocked access to the UNHCR office by unloading sand from a truck at the building’s entrance, effectively sealing off the compound, which was reported to be unoccupied at the time.
The move came after days of escalating rhetoric, including threats and online campaigns directed at the UN refugee agency and its representative in Libya, Carmen Sacco (UNHCR Libya spokesperson), following what activists described as misrepresented statements attributed to her regarding migrants and Libyan citizens. Video footage circulating on Libyan social media shows Libyan police attempting to calm the angry crowd and prevent it from breaking into the premises as the truck unloads sand at the entrance. The demonstrations followed a broader wave of calls for the closure of international organizations accused of facilitating the continued presence of migrants in Libya.
For many Libyans, migration has become the most visible symptom of a state that has never fully recovered from the 2011 NATO-backed overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi.
This public anger is understandable. Libya remains deeply divided between rival authorities in the east and west, its southern and coastal borders remain beyond effective state control, and outdated migration frameworks are inconsistently applied. No single government exercises full sovereignty over the country’s territory.
Yet, instead of addressing these structural weaknesses, public debate is increasingly dominated by accusations against international agencies. The entities are portrayed by influential domestic voices, including Grand Mufti Sadiq al-Ghariani, as actively playing a role in entrenching the presence of transit populations and turning the country into a permanent dumping ground for Europe’s unwanted migrants.
While Western media and the protesting crowds themselves frame this around irregular migration and the UNHCR, the true undercurrent of this public anger runs far deeper. The street mobilization in Tripoli is a proxy for a society completely exhausted by what has become of their daily lives.
Living in a country that produces over 1.4 million barrels of oil per day, ordinary Libyans – confronted by skyrocketing costs where day-to-day prices can jump by 5% – are trapped in a grueling economic paradox. They face double-digit inflation, a collapsing dinar, and a severe liquidity crisis that makes buying basic food and medicine a daily struggle.
The anger directed at international agencies is actually a localized explosion of a broader fury: Libyans are watching their national wealth absorbed into an elite system of patronage and parallel spending, while they are left to their own devices in a country where institutional rot is so rampant that Transparency International’s index places Libya among the six most corrupt nations on earth.
At its core, the entire migration debate leads straight back to the original sin of the 2011 NATO intervention. Fifteen years ago, Western powers were lightning-fast to drop bombs and dismantle a functioning, sovereign state under the banner of false promises – guaranteeing “freedom, democracy, and prosperity.” Instead, the West walked away, leaving behind a permanent security vacuum and a legacy of institutional rot.
Today, the tragic irony is that while billions of dollars in oil revenues disappear into thin air every single year through unaccountable rival factions, virtually nothing has been achieved for the Libyan people. The “humanitarian intervention” of 2011 engineered a lawless geographic buffer zone where the local population inherits the fallout of Europe’s border crises while being robbed of their own country’s wealth.
This brings us to the core structural deception of Western policy toward Libya. The European Union and the UK frequently issue statements lamenting Libya’s lack of a unified government, its human rights record, its lawless borders, and, most importantly, its deplorable treatment of irregular migrants.
Yet, the same countries find no contradiction in treating this fragmentation not as a crisis to be solved, but as a vital policy tool. Under international law, for example, states are bound by the principle of non-refoulement, meaning they cannot legally return asylum seekers to a country where they face systemic abuse or conflict. Yet Libya’s UN-recognized government, a swarm of associated militias, and its rival authority in the eastern region are being enabled by the EU to do exactly that.
Through heavily funded initiatives like the Support to Integrated Border and Migration Management in Libya (SIBMMIL) program, hundreds of millions of euros have flowed into providing the Tripoli-based authorities with the vessels and coordination tools necessary to force the return of refugees caught in international waters.
This transactional arrangement, long maintained in the country’s west, is now being aggressively extended to the eastern-based parallel administration. Despite formally withholding diplomatic recognition from Khalifa Haftar’s government, Brussels is currently financing a new €3 million ($3.46 million) Maritime Rescue Coordination Center in Benghazi.
By treating both rival authorities as outsourced border guards, the EU conveniently bypasses its own legal obligations, repatriating vulnerable populations to a territory perilous even for its own citizens.
Indeed, this policy of externalization has officially transitioned from hypocritical rhetoric to binding legislative reality. Following a definitive agreement between the European Parliament and the Council on the revised Returns Regulation on June 1, 2026, EU interior ministers concluded their June 4 meeting by charting a course to rapidly operationalize a framework for extraterritorial “return hubs” – third-country jurisdictions within which Libya is functionally included due to its status as migration route.
The newly adopted rules escalate coercive measures, permitting member states to deport unsuccessful asylum seekers to holding facilities outside Europe’s borders – even if those individuals possess absolutely no geographic, cultural, or personal connection to the host nation.
To be clear, no one is claiming that the European Union possesses a premeditated blueprint to transform Libya into a permanent containment zone for transit populations – despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of Libyans believe exactly that. However, the cumulative effect of these cynical containment policies achieves that precise result. By trapping hundreds of thousands of irregular migrants within the country, Western mechanisms project an impression that Europe is deliberately engineering a severe demographic crisis, forcing a settlement that dismantles the remains of Libya’s social cohesion.
Whether this outcome is an intentional strategy or the collateral damage of European self-interest, it has served as the catalyst behind the waves of anti-migrant anger fracturing the streets of Tripoli.
The toxic harvest of the 2011 NATO intervention has come full circle. The military campaign that shattered Libya’s institutional foundations under the banner of hollow promises has yielded a devastating reality. The structural fragmentation engineered by that original intervention have now been weaponized by Western capitals as a deliberate policy mechanism.
By financing localized militias and executing transactional arrangements across political divides, European governments have effectively transformed Libya into an offshore containment camp – a legal black hole designed to absorb the human fallout of their own border crises while shielding themselves from international accountability.
The suspect died following a standoff with officers, according to the Midland Police Department
At least one person has been killed and 11 others wounded after a gunman went on a shooting spree in Midland, Texas, Mayor Lori Blong said in a press briefing on Friday.
“We do have 11 known victims at this time,” she said. “There’s at least one victim that is dead on the scene.”
The police have confirmed that the gunman is also dead.
Officers initially responded to reports of an active shooter in the southwestern part of the city on Friday morning, according to the Midland Police Department.
“Officers heard gunfire coming from the building and worked quickly to secure and clear the area. Armored units were deployed, and partner agencies assisted in the response,” Midland Police Chief Greg Snow said in a statement, adding that attempts had been made to resolve the “standoff with the shooter” safely.
The police department later reported that “the suspect is confirmed deceased” and that the incident was over.
A video circulating on social media purportedly shows several officers taking cover behind a police cruiser, with one leaning out to fire an assault rifle.
🚨#Breaking Ector County Sheriff Mike Griffis has confirmed an active shooter in #Midland Texas; the suspect is reportedly barricaded in a building in downtown Midland near the Tall City Vet Clinic and All American Collision and Victorian Inn in the area of Business 20 and…
The tournament should have been postponed. Instead, the media machine is polishing the brand and pretending not to see the blood.
There was never a chance that Washington’s man in FIFA, football’s world governing body, was going to do the right thing and postpone the World Cup. Nor that he would strip the US and Canada of hosting rights after their attack on Iran. The FIFA president, Lebanese-Swiss Gianni Infantino, is doing what’s right for his sport, his ‘shareholders’, and a compliant sports media will assist the most bigly sportswashing psy-op ever.
Sports media, no fur coat and no underwear
The term “fanboys/girls with laptops” is attributed to our former Capital Sports guest, Irish journalist Paul Kimmage. The ex-pro cyclist ‘spat in the soup’ of the sport he loved by exposing rampant doping in ‘Rough Ride’, to date, the finest sports book ever written. His target: the press pass wearing, goodie bag hungry mob of oddballs so in thrall to the stars they report on, that no crime or offence can be mentioned.
The nub is that the majority of these folks, who exist in every media outlet’s sports department in every country, were the last kids picked for teams in school. Devoid of sports ability (they believed), they vicariously live sporting lives by following their heroes and quietly going weak at the knees when Cristiano Ronaldo, Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods, or Maria Sharapova, cast a smile their way.
Some have landed top media management spots in FIFA, from where they dispense largesse [access and goodie bags] to those desperate to be favored. And media organizations, in order to ensure their reporters and commentators are granted permission to cover the World Cup, will ‘play ball’. What FIFA wants, FIFA gets, and the media will give it up happily.
Selling out to avoid missing out
It’s been interesting to witness my peers brag about covering this upcoming ‘show’. From LinkedIn to Instagram, so many decent folk are making sure everyone knows they’re going to the World Cup and their previous posts critiquing US or Israeli military adventures, or indeed FIFA, have either been edited or removed.
I asked one woman, who will work with a European broadcaster, where was her excellent takedown of the awarding of the FIFA Peace Prize to US President Donald Trump? It had garnered hundreds of likes and comments on LinkedIn, yet, had vanished.
“My agent,” she replied, with a smiley face emoji, explaining that they were warned that any social media posts critical of the US or US government could mean a refusal at border control.
I guess I was lucky that I turned down the chance to work at the event, though my decision was formed pre-Iran attacks. I couldn’t morally perform a Men in Black on my brain and scrub my social media, articles, broadcasts, and soul clean.
One football writer I expected to take a stand was Alexander Abnos, a senior sports editor with The Guardian US. With the anti-ICE protests in his nation as a background, he wrote that the US “is not fit to stage soccer’s showpiece event.” He signed off with “it would be hard to argue if the World Cup was moved out of the US entirely.”
– Messi, mascots, tickets and Trump: 48 questions for the 48-team World Cup (April 1)
– Lionel Messi exits Miami game before World Cup with possible injury (May 25)
– World Cup 2025: a visual guide to the stadiums across the trio of host nations (June 1)
And he outdid himself, also on June 1, with a real doozy to show he was chugging the FIFA Kool Aid: “Gathered around a laptop, the USMNT create their World Cup journey’s first memeable moment.”
Alexander is not the worst, he’s just an example of what was already underway before the June 11 kick-off – and what is now in full swing. The media has already gone into overdrive with superlatives for the brand ambassadors of fizzy drinks and sportswear. We are already being encouraged to forget that the US, with the collusion of Canada and a clatter of other countries taking part in the jamboree, are complicit in the ongoing killing of Iranians, Palestinians, Russians, Lebanese, and more. The football is now on, and the brainwashing has already begun.
In the last two weeks, I’ve chatted with 19 fellow sports journalists and commentators, asking if they were off to the World Cup. From 6 different countries, working with a range of outlets from TV to radio to newspapers, they happily engaged.
Only three weren’t going, as they were covering it from home. Of the others, every single person felt “uneasy” or “not at all happy” to be going, telling that it was their job and that they had to “pay the mortgage.”
I asked the travelling 16 if they disagreed with the World Cup going ahead. Fourteen felt it should be postponed, two said it should be removed from the US and Canada, and given solely to Mexico. Those two, I should add, are French. All said they felt nervous about safety and that the fans will be ripped off.
One reporter, from BBC, said the only bonus is no English hooligan violence.
“As the old joke from 1994 goes, they’ll lose on small arms fire alone,” he joked. He was referring to asides made when the English team failed to qualify for the last time a World Cup was held in the US.
Yet the potential for a terrorist attack at a mega-event (World Cup or Olympic Games), has never been higher, or more expected.
Bombs and bedlam
The last successful terrorist attack, pardon the phrasing, at a mega-event was at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. That was by an anti-abortion activist and resulted in a single death. Atlanta will host seven games this summer, including a semi-final. Although combined intelligence agencies and police forces foiled a reported Osama Bin Laden plot at the 1998 World Cup in France, and Russia’s FSB thwarted several drone attacks in 2018, everyone was caught out on July 18 that year.
On the biggest stage of all, the Final between France and Croatia, with hundreds of millions watching and listening around the world, a rag tag collection of attention seekers dressed up as police officers charged onto the field. In my opinion, causing Croatia to wobble and lose their shape.
From my commentators spot in Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium, I saw uniformed people leap onto the field and thought, they shouldn’t be here, something’s wrong. A wave of panic hit the media zone and a prominent British commentator took off his headset and stood up to leave. It left a sour taste in the mouths of those there to cover the game.
Later, I was not alone in being infuriated when NPR’s Scott Simon called this dangerous precedent “a conspicious act of bravery.” I hope he’ll be happy if similar idiots or terrorists carry out a copy cat “act” this summer.
Entering end game
There is a real chance that there will be at least 3-5 occurrences like this, though they could be far more dangerous. The clowns who illegally entered the field of play in Moscow in 2018 may have cost Croatia the title, but at this World Cup, lives could be lost.
The Center for Strategic and International Studies gave their usual rundown of threats to the World Cup in regurgitated AI slop, which one FIFA insider told me is “what we all know anyway… and they offer zero insight.” FIFA are so concerned with safety, that they lumped in around $650 million to bolster security in host cities. In Russia and Qatar, this wasn’t needed. The US and their subordinate to the north are actively involved in wars in Palestine, Lebanon, and Iran. A lot of people are ready to make a statement, FIFA know this.
“This is the most dangerous World Cup ever,” the FIFA man told me on on May 29. “Here in the [marketing] department, it’s the first time in my experience where staff are turning down the chance to go.” He’s been with FIFA since 2004.
The sentiment is echoed in fan group WhatsApp group chats, many are truly worried for their safety.
In an Eintracht Frankfurt ‘Nationalmannschaft’ [German National Team] group with over 1,000 followers, a debate has been raging over the wisdom of following their side in North America. One man, from Wiesbaden, made the point that the danger isn’t the German matches in Houston, Texas and East Rutherford, New Jersey, but the middle one against Cote d’Ivoire in Toronto. “It is a soft underbelly and the most dangerous. It could be bombs and bedlam,” he noted.
Yet, for sports media, the genuine fears of fans are hidden. England’s sports media is missing in action. They previously lied about and sneered at Qatar, Russia, Brazil, and South Africa. For the BBC in 2022, the biggest danger for ‘fans’ was not being able to drink beer in Qatar. In Russia, it was being murdered at passport control or disappeared to a gulag. It’s crickets for this World Cup.
The flash has already gone off, and most of the sports media seems happy to forget what came before. The biggest ever sportswashing event kicks off on June 11 and all we can hope for is no terrorist attacks, and some good football. I’m already halfway there.
It’s time Africa moved from the periphery and became a global defender of the rule of law and sovereignty, experts say
The joint US-Israeli military strikes on Iran and Tehran’s regional retaliation could give the African Union (AU) an opportunity to cement its identity as a defender of the UN charter and international law, but, as African experts argue, it seems to have missed it.
Dr. Wafula Okumu, executive director of The Borders Institute, says the AU’s reaction to the Iran crisis clearly showed that the continental body suffers from what he describes as a “crisis of consistency”.
According to Okumu, the AU Commission chairperson’s “softly-worded”statement on the US-Israeli attack on Iran and its sharp condemnation of Iran’s reaction portrayed Africa as succumbing to “selective Chartersim,” a practice it has long condemned in others.
“The AU appeared not keen on outrightly calling out the US and Israel for attacking Iran. It seemed to be taking a safe and neutral position, but its reaction to Iran’s retaliation lacked the tone of a peacemaker,” Dr. Okumu told RT.
Dr. Okumu notes that the AU’s “unsettling silence” on the breach of Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter, which prohibits the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, appeared to be justifying the actions of the aggressors (the US and Israel) against the victim of the aggression (Iran).
“The AU ought to have outrightly called out the US and Israel for violating Article 2(4). It should have questioned whether the conditions stipulated in Article 51 had been met to justify the invasion of Iran,” he said.
He explains that by adopting a posture of neutrality between an aggressor and a victim of that aggression, the AU “inadvertently weakened the very legal norms it purports to uphold.”
“The AU was simply not bold enough to call out the US and Israel for infringing on the sovereignty of Iran,” he said.
‘The current geopolitical settings are confusing for Africa’
Nicodemus Minde, a peace and security governance researcher at the Institute for Security Studies in Nairobi, says Africa is good at the “art of selective application of principle’,’ especially in situations where powerful global players are the aggressors.
Minde argues that it was wrong for the AU to describe Iran’s retaliation as a violation of sovereignty, while failing to apply the same language when condemning the attacks by the US and Israel.
“The AU is a victim of unjustifiable inconsistency. There is nothing wrong with lawfully defending a victim against an aggressor. Africa must move from the periphery and be a bold, universal defender of the rule of law and sovereignty,” said Minde.
According to Minde, as much as it is right for the AU not to take sides in global crises, it is only right for it to side with the law while protecting its interests.
“The current geopolitical settings are complex and confusing for Africa, and the only thing that can shield Africa from being swallowed into the current global conflicts is by defending the law and speaking against violations committed by either the East or the West,” said Minde.
He called for the formulation of a common foreign policy among African Union member states to help the continent navigate shifting geopolitics with principled consistency.
‘A violation is a violation, whether committed by the US or Iran’
Chepkorir Sambu, a peace and security researcher and law lecturer at Kenya’s Kabarak University, explains that for the AU to become an effective foreign policy actor on the global stage, it should firmly ground its actions in international law and consistently defend the UN Charter.
Sambu says the AU and its leadership should stop living under the unspoken fear of the US and other Western power players, and instead openly call them out when they are wrong.
“What the AU needed in the US-Israel versus Iran crisis was not taking a pro-Iran or anti-West stand, but simply being pro-rule-of-law. We cannot appear to be subtly supporting the actions of the aggressor while loudly condemning the victim,” she argues.
She added, “Africa must be explicit in reaffirming Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter on the prohibition on the use of force as the cornerstone of international law. A violation is a violation, whether being committed by the US or Iran.”
Sambu argues that the AU should apply the same legal and moral standard to all breaches of sovereignty, regardless of the actor. Condemning Iran’s retaliation is legitimate, but it is legally and morally incoherent without a prior, and equally strong, condemnation of the initial attack.
‘Africa has the power to be the voice of reason’
Dr. Okumu says the time is ripe for Africa’s voice to dominate the global stage and that it matters now more than ever, especially as the world fragments amid great-power competition.
“Africa must come out as the voice and promoter of the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the non-use of force as the primary shields for less powerful states. The AU has a historic opportunity and a profound responsibility to be the world’s leading champion of these norms,” he told RT.
He says Africa should speak with a clear, principled, and unwavering voice, and be part of the geopolitical shifts and realignments without fear.
“Africa, through the AU, must avoid the trap of political expediency and embrace the disciplined legal consistency that is the true source of its authority. The continent has the power to be the voice of reason on the globe, and that power must be exercised,”Dr. Okumu concluded.
Scandal-plagued Graham Platner will face Republican Susan Collins in November’s Senate election
US Marine veteran Graham Platner, who recently covered up a Nazi-style tattoo, has won Maine’s Democratic Senate primary and will face Republican Senator Susan Collins in November.
Platner, a progressive with no previous political experience, won 75% of the vote, garnering support from left-wing Democrats and attracting large crowds with firebrand rhetoric, including promises to “topple the oligarchy” and accusations that his future opponent serves the “Epstein class.” Other Democrats, however, have expressed concerns about whether Platner can defeat Collins in light of his numerous scandals.
Platner, who completed three tours in Iraq with the Marines and another in Afghanistan as a National Guardsman, long had the Totenkopf emblem – the Nazi skull symbol famously referenced in the “Are We the Baddies?” Mitchell and Webb comedy skit – tattooed on his chest.
The candidate said he was unaware of the symbol’s meaning when he got the tattoo in Croatia in 2007 while heavily intoxicated alongside fellow service members. He described it as “a terrifying-looking skull and crossbones,” noting that the National Guard prohibits tattoos that are “extremist, racist, sexist, or otherwise indecent.”
CNN: "[Graham] Platner referred to [his tattoo] as 'my Totenkopf,' which is a reference to the skull and cross bone used by Nazi SS units years before the controversy became public." pic.twitter.com/maQ6FnoEDM
In October 2025, Platner covered the tattoo with a different design – a Celtic knot featuring a wolf-like creature that some suggested resembled Fenrir, a wolf from Norse mythology. Critics argued that Nordic-inspired imagery is also popular among some far-right and white supremacist groups.
“If I was ever under the impression that it was a symbol associated with that ideology, I would not have gone through life taking photographs of myself,” said Platner, who describes himself as an anti-fascist.
The Democrat faced accusations of anti-Semitism after he made the refusal to take donations from the pro-Israeli lobby group AIPAC a campaign point. Collins, who is openly pro-Israel, collected almost 20% of her war chest from AIPAC, according to media estimates.
Platner has also been criticized for old online posts in which he used homophobic slurs and argued that victims of sexual assault in the military should “act like an adult” and avoid getting “blacked out f*cked up.” He later apologized and attributed the comments to struggles with PTSD.
Earlier this month, reports surfaced that Platner had sent sexually explicit text messages to multiple women while married.
US President Donald Trump has endorsed Collins and branded Platner a “thug” who was “worse than any human being that has ever run for office.”
Trump’s approval rating remains near the lowest level of his political career as the campaign is dominated by concerns about the cost of living, rising energy prices, and the unpopular war with Iran.
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