Thursday, September 18, 2025

BIG Wrap

Bomb kills military blogger in Russian cafe

(BBC News) An explosion in a St. Petersburg cafe has killed prominent Russian military blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, Russia's Interior Ministry has confirmed. At least 19 people were injured in the bomb blast at Street Food Bar No 1. Videos posted on social media show an explosion and injured people on the street. It is not clear who was responsible for the blast. Tatarsky (real name Maxim Fomin) was a vocal supporter of Russia's war in Ukraine. He was...

OPEC+ announces additional production cuts

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ oil producers have announced voluntary cuts to their production amounting to about 1.15 million barrels per day (bpd), calling it a “precautionary measure” aimed at market stability. The 23-nation group had been largely expected to stick to its already agreed 2 million bpd cuts when its ministerial panel, which includes Saudi Arabia and Russia, meets virtually on Monday. In October, OPEC+, which comprises the Organization of the...

Three British men reportedly held by Taliban in Afghanistan

(BBC News) Three British nationals are being held in custody by the Taliban in Afghanistan, a humanitarian organization has told the BBC. Scott Richards from the Presidium Network named one of the men as Kevin Cornwell, 53, from Middlesbrough. Richards said he and a man who has not been named were arrested on January 11. He confirmed a third British man was taken into custody on a different date. The Foreign Office said it was working hard to...

Trump to be charged over hush money

(BBC News) Former U.S. President Donald Trump will be charged over hush money payments made to a porn star just before the 2016 presidential election. The details of the case against him have not yet been released. A grand jury has voted to indict him after investigating a $130,000 payout to Stormy Daniels, reportedly in an attempt to buy her silence over an alleged affair. Trump, 76, denies wrongdoing. He is the first serving or former U.S....

As it clamps down on TikTok as potential surveillance tool, U.S. spies on world through Google, Meta, and others

(Al Jazeera Media Network) During a five-hour grilling of the chief executive of TikTok last week, United States lawmakers railed against the possibility of China using the wildly popular, partly Chinese-owned app to spy on Americans. They did not mention how the U.S. government itself uses U.S. tech companies that largely control the global internet to spy on everyone else. As the U.S. considers banning the short video app used by more than 150 million Americans, lawmakers...

Musk among leaders urging halt to training of potent AI systems

(BBC News) Key figures in artificial intelligence want training of powerful AI systems to be suspended amid fears of a threat to humanity. They have signed an open letter warning of potential risks, and say the race to develop AI systems is out of control. Twitter chief Elon Musk is among those who want training of AIs above a certain capacity to be halted for at least six months. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and some researchers at DeepMind also...

Biden, Netanyahu exchange words over protests

(Al Jazeera Media Network) United States President Joe Biden has told Israel it “cannot continue” pushing ahead with deeply controversial judicial reforms — now on hold — that have prompted months of unrest. And those comments led Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to say he does not make decisions based on pressure from abroad. Biden’s comments on Tuesday came as Netanyahu was being accused by opponents of riding roughshod over Israeli democracy in an attempt to strengthen...

Bankman-Fried accused of Chinese bribe

(BBC News) Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of failed crypto firm FTX, has been accused of bribing at least one Chinese official. In new charges unveiled in the U.S., officials accuse the entrepreneur of authorizing a bribe of "at least $40 million" to try to gain access to trading accounts frozen by Chinese authorities. The allegations add to the fraud case filed last year after FTX's collapse. Bankman-Fried pleaded not guilty to those claims earlier this year. He is under...

Iran, Syria denounce U.S. attacks on Iran-linked facilities

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The governments of Iran and Syria have condemned the United States for attacks on Syrian soil that reportedly killed 19 people, which Washington said it carried out following a drone attack on U.S. forces. Both the Iranian and Syrian foreign ministries late on Saturday slammed the U.S. air attacks that targeted the strategic region of Deir ez-Zor bordering Iraq. In a statement, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said the “terrorist” attacks by the U.S....

NATO condemns Russian nuclear rhetoric

(BBC News) NATO has condemned Russia's "dangerous" and "irresponsible" rhetoric after Vladimir Putin's decision to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. The organization is "closely monitoring" the situation and said the move would not lead it to change its own nuclear strategy. The U.S. said it did not believe Russia was preparing to use nuclear weapons. Belarus shares a long border with Ukraine, as well as with NATO members Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia. Ukraine has called for an...