US aircraft carrier on way to relieve USS Lincoln after issues reported aboard
French court blocks Macron’s social media ban for under-15s
Constitutional council says curbs infringe freedom of expression and privacy as president vows to rework legislation
France’s top court has blocked a ban on social media access for under-15s, ruling that it infringed freedom of expression and privacy.
The decision is a blow to President Emmanuel Macron as momentum builds around the world for Australian-style restrictions on children’s use of social media.
Continue reading...Activists try to deliver aid to Palestinians in homes besieged by Israeli settlers
China & Taiwan Update, August 14, 2026 – Institute for the Study of War
- China & Taiwan Update, August 14, 2026 Institute for the Study of War
- Taiwan’s War Games Are Spilling Into Everyday Life Bloomberg.com
- How a Drone ‘Hellscape’ Might Stop a Chinese Invasion of Taiwan The New York Times
- China calls Taiwan's annual military drills a 'wasteful charade' Reuters
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Five years after the Taliban swept to power, does the West have any influence?
Why is Selena Gomez being sued?
France’s top court blocks social media ban for under-15s – Reuters
- France's top court blocks social media ban for under-15s Reuters
- France’s top court blocks bill banning social media for under-15s CNN
- World in Brief: French court blocks social-media ban; Luigi Mangione pleads guilty to federal charges The Economist
- France’s Top Court Strikes Down Ban on Social Media for Children The New York Times
- Top French court upholds assisted dying law, rejects teen social media ban Al Jazeera
Hundreds arrested on suspicion of arson in France as wildfires rage across Europe
One person killed and hundreds evacuated in Croatia as blazes also hit Germany, Greece and Spain
Almost 500 people have been arrested on suspicion of starting wildfires in France since the start of the summer, authorities have said, as firefighters in half a dozen European countries tackle ferocious blazes amid a record-breaking heatwave.
A fire engulfed homes in a Croatian holiday resort on Friday, killing one person, injuring 40 and forcing 1,200 to evacuate, officials said, as the EU warned that pockets of “very extreme” wildfire conditions stretched across the continent.
Continue reading...Russian Regions Face New Fuel Crunch as Kyiv Hits Refineries – Bloomberg.com
- Russian Regions Face New Fuel Crunch as Kyiv Hits Refineries Bloomberg.com
- Ukrainian drone strikes push up Russian trucking costs, stoking inflation Reuters
- Putin Faces Humiliating New Crisis After Shock Attack The Daily Beast
- Russia's Diesel Exports Crash to Multiyear-Low amid Tight Global Market Crude Oil Prices Today | OilPrice.com
- Fights break out at gas station queues in Moscow as Russia’s fuel crisis deepens The New Voice of Ukraine
France’s top court blocks social media ban for under-15s – bbc.com
France’s top court blocks social media ban for under-15s
France’s top court blocks social media ban for under-15s
Canadian plasma clinics pause collections after deaths of two donors
Grifols, which runs private chain of clinics, to temporarily stop taking donations after new government investigation
A chain of private plasma donation clinics in Canada has said it is pausing collections after the deaths of two donors and a new government investigation into potential unsafe practices.
Grifols, a Spanish healthcare company which runs 17 clinics in Canada and is the country’s only private clinic for plasma donation, said it informed Health Canada of its decision to temporarily pause collections on Wednesday.
Continue reading...France’s social media ban for children under 15 struck down by top constitutional authority – CBS News
- France's social media ban for children under 15 struck down by top constitutional authority CBS News
- World in Brief: Sharp decline in American violent crime; French court blocks social-media ban The Economist
- France’s top court blocks bill banning social media for under-15s CNN
- France's top court blocks social media ban for under-15s BBC
- France’s Top Court Strikes Down Ban on Social Media for Children The New York Times
Colombia grapples with rebuilding a shattered nation after a deadly earthquake – AP News
- Colombia grapples with rebuilding a shattered nation after a deadly earthquake AP News
- A big earthquake reveals two very different Colombias The Economist
- Colombia hopes for miracles as search for quake victims goes on Yahoo
- Colombia’s earthquake is déjà vu for Venezuelans. The government response is anything but AP News
- Topos Azteca, a Mexican Volunteer Rescue Group, Helps With Rescue Efforts After Colombia Earthquake The New York Times
Iran War Updates: Iran strikes another ship in Strait of Hormuz as Israel steps up Lebanon attacks – CBS News
- Iran War Updates: Iran strikes another ship in Strait of Hormuz as Israel steps up Lebanon attacks CBS News
- Iran targets tankers in ‘unprovoked attacks’ in Strait of Hormuz, UAE says Fox News
- Iran attacks third UAE tanker within a week The Hill
- UAE says Iran attacked ADNOC vessel in Hormuz, urges waterway's reopening Reuters
- Oil Rises After Tanker Attack in Hormuz wsj.com
Belgian student strikes gold worth €9m while digging a new sewer
Kobe, 18, who made discovery on site of former brewery in Sint-Gillis-Dendermonde, at first thought trove was €1 coins
For a student with a summer job working on a Belgian building site, “money down the drain” has taken on a whole new meaning: excavating the trenches for a sewage system, he stumbled across a hidden trove of gold worth an estimated €9m (£8m).
“We suddenly saw something lying there,” 18-year-old Kobe told the Belgian news network VTM. “At first I thought it was €1 coins. So we started digging them up. Then we saw a gold bar. It turned out to be a bit more than we thought.”
Continue reading...What we know so far about the West Midlands fires – BBC
- What we know so far about the West Midlands fires BBC
- Heatwave latest: Emergency alerts sent to millions across England and Wales over threat of wildfires Sky News
- UK firefighters out in force to tackle fires on hottest day of the year AP News
- ‘It’s due to climate’: the people of Stourbridge on the town’s wildfires The Guardian
- UK houses caught up in wildfires during hottest day of the year Financial Times
Israel awaits US approval for operation to seize strategic ridge in southern Lebanon – report – The Jerusalem Post
- Israel awaits US approval for operation to seize strategic ridge in southern Lebanon - report The Jerusalem Post
- Israeli strike kills 7 in Lebanon, a vessel attacked in Hormuz and other news from the Middle East AP News
- Israel deliberately starting wildfires in southern Lebanon, firefighters say The Guardian
- Heavy environmental toll of war in southern Lebanon NPR
- Live updates • At least nine killed in overnight IDF strikes in southern Lebanon, reports say Haaretz