Saturday, September 13, 2025

BIG Wrap

UN health chief at Yemen airport during Israeli strikes

(BBC News) The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) and other UN staff were at Yemen's international airport in Sanaa on Thursday during Israeli air strikes that are reported to have killed at least six people. WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said they were about to board a plane when the attacks began. Houthi-run Saba news agency said three people were killed at the airport and 30 injured. It said another three people were...

At least 21 killed in Mozambique after top court’s election decision

(Al Jazeera Media Network) At least 21 people have been killed in unrest since Mozambique’s top court confirmed the governing party Frelimo’s victory in disputed elections, the interior minister says. The dead include at least two police officers, Interior Minister Pascoal Ronda said at a news conference on Tuesday. A total of “236 acts of serious violence were reported” since Monday across the Portuguese-speaking African country, in which at least 25 people were wounded, including 13 police...

Denmark boosts Greenland defence after Trump repeats desire for U.S. control

(BBC News) The Danish government has announced a huge boost in defence spending for Greenland, hours after US President-elect Donald Trump repeated his desire to purchase the Arctic territory. Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the package was a "double digit billion amount" in krone, or at least $1.5 billion (£1.2bn). He described the timing of the announcement as an "irony of fate". On Monday, Trump said ownership and control of the huge island was...

Why is Trump threatening to take over the Panama Canal?

(Al Jazeera Media Network) On Sunday, United States President-elect Donald Trump said that his new administration will try to regain control of the Panama Canal. His statements drew rebuke from Panama President Jose Raul Mulino. Trump brought up the Panama Canal at AmericaFest, an annual event organized by conservative group Turning Point. “We are being ripped off at the Panama Canal like we are being ripped off everywhere else,” he said at the Arizona event, adding that the US...

U.S. warplane shot down in Red Sea ‘friendly fire’ incident

(BBC News) An American fighter jet has been shot down over the Red Sea in an apparent "friendly fire" incident, the US military has said. Both crew from the US Navy F/A-18 Hornet ejected safely, with one suffering minor injuries, according to Central Command. The incident came after the US carried out a series of air strikes against a missile storage site and command facilities in the Yemeni capital Sanaa operated by Iran-backed Houthi militants. US Central...

Biden signs funding bill into law, averting U.S. government shutdown

(Al Jazeera Media Network) United States President Joe Biden has signed into law a bipartisan funding bill that averts a government shutdown, days after Congress was thrown into turmoil after President-elect Donald Trump rejected an initial deal. The White House announced on Saturday that Biden had signed the legislation, which funds the government through mid-March. “This agreement represents a compromise, which means neither side got everything it wanted. But it rejects the accelerated pathway to a tax cut...

More than 700 killed since May in siege of Sudan’s el-Fasher, UN says

(Al Jazeera Media Network) More than 700 people have been killed in el-Fasher in Sudan’s North Darfur state since May, the United Nations human rights chief has said, imploring the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to halt a siege of the city. The siege and “the relentless fighting are devastating lives every day on a massive scale,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said in a statement on Friday. “This alarming situation cannot continue....

Six killed in strike on Russia’s Kursk after deadly missile attack on Kyiv

(BBC News) Russia says six people have been killed, including a child, in a Ukrainian strike in the Kursk region. This comes after Ukrainian officials said Moscow had launched a fresh missile attack on Kyiv, damaging a building hosting several embassies. In Russia, the acting governor of the Kursk region said in addition to those killed, several were taken to hospital following the attack on the town of Rylsk. Alexander Khinshtein said a cultural centre, a fitness...

Gisèle Pelicot’s ex-husband jailed for 20 years in mass rape trial

(BBC News) French rape survivor Gisèle Pelicot's ex-husband has been jailed for 20 years after drugging and raping her, and inviting dozens of strangers to abuse her over nearly a decade. Dominique Pelicot, 72, was found guilty of all charges by a judge in Avignon, southern France. He cried in court as he was sentenced to the maximum term. He was on trial with 50 other men, all of whom were found guilty of at least...

U.S. government shutdown looms as Trump, Musk slam spending deal

(BBC News) A US government shutdown could be two days away after President-elect Donald Trump called on Republican lawmakers to reject a cross-party funding bill. Trump urged Congress to scrap the deal and pass a streamlined bill. His intervention followed heavy criticism of the bill by tech billionaire Elon Musk. Congressman Steve Scalise, the Republican House Majority Leader, indicated on Wednesday night that the bill was dead after Trump denounced it. The short-term funding bill will need...