Syria has sentenced former President Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia, alongside his brother Maher, while his cousin and former Daraa security chief Atef Najib also received a death sentence. The ruling is a landmark moment for a country still dealing with the consequences of the 2011 uprising and the war that followed. But the…
Reports of a missile attack on a Saudi-linked commercial vessel in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, reportedly killing three crew members, two Pakistanis and one Indonesian, are the latest warning that the Red Sea shipping crisis is becoming harder for commercial operators to ignore. The details of the reported incident are still developing, and there has…
Mark Zuckerberg is making a big bet on an AI future where superintelligence is not controlled by a handful of governments or technology companies, but is placed directly in the hands of ordinary people. In a new vision for Meta, Zuckerberg argues that advanced AI should focus on individual empowerment, invention and a balance of…
The Trump administration has launched another attempt to narrow who can receive U.S. citizenship at birth, signaling that becoming American could become significantly harder for some families if the policy survives the legal challenges expected to follow. On August 6, President Donald Trump signed two executive actions targeting birthright citizenship and so-called “birth tourism”. The…
The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is entering a dangerous phase, with cases continuing to rise rapidly in the country’s eastern hotspot zones. The World Health Organization is warning that the response needs to be scaled up urgently as transmission continues, particularly in Ituri province. The latest numbers show how quickly the…
North Korea launched a suspected short-range ballistic missile towards waters off its east coast on Thursday, according to South Korean officials. The projectile fell into the sea and did not pose a reported threat to Japanese territory. On its own, another North Korean missile test might look routine. Pyongyang has conducted repeated launches this year…
China has retaliated against the United States with sanctions on American entities and tighter controls on drone exports and related technologies, escalating a technology dispute that is increasingly moving beyond smartphones and semiconductors. Beijing’s latest measures come days after the United States restricted imports of new foreign-made humanoid robots, robot dogs and power inverters, citing…
The United Kingdom’s decision to cut its development aid allocation to Nigeria by 50.2% should be viewed as more than another reduction in foreign assistance. It is a reminder that Nigeria cannot build its future around money that ultimately depends on the priorities of another country. The UK’s planned reduction reportedly takes direct aid to…
The deaths of two firefighting pilots in Greece this week are more than a tragic accident. They are another reminder that Europe’s wildfire crisis is becoming increasingly dangerous, longer lasting and far more expensive than it was just a decade ago. Two firefighting helicopters collided while battling a massive wildfire northwest of Athens, killing a…
For years, the biggest obstacle for many Nigerians applying for a U.S. tourist or business visa was getting approved. Under a new permanent policy announced by the U.S. State Department, another challenge is now firmly on the table: affordability. The United States has officially made its visa bond program permanent, allowing consular officers to require…
