Top World News
Opinion: Opinion | The Last Bet? What Trump's 'Mother Of All Bombs' Could Actually Do To Iran
Can an MOAB deliver a decisive blow to Iran that may force it to surrender immediately, as Japan did after Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War 2?
North Korea's 'Proof Of Life' Amid Kim Jong Un 'Brain Haemorrhage Death' Rumour
The proof of the apparent public appearance comes after Wanjun Xie, a US-based Chinese dissident associated with the China Democracy Party, posted a series of explosive allegations on X.
India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement Takes Effect: Which Sectors Stand To Gain Most
India-New Zealand FTA: For India, the removal of import duties in New Zealand could make their products more competitive against goods from countries.
Police Officers Rescue Unconscious Man From Burning House In Virginia
Body camera footage showed the officers running upstairs and finding a door locked from the inside.
Giving £2 a day to people in the Amazon helps protect rainforest, pilot project finds
Researchers say almost 90% of participants in unconditional basic income scheme in Peru adopted environmentally beneficial practicesA pioneering project to provide Indigenous people in the Peruvian Amazon with an unconditional basic income has contributed to the protection of the rainforest, according to a study.The analysis from the University of Bath is expected to contribute to a growing debate about the role of direct payments to communities that maintain globally important ecosystems. Continue reading...
Downtown datacenter? AI plan floated for boarded-up San Francisco mall
Developers propose turning San Francisco Centre into not a server-based facility but a ‘community-based AI exhibit’Downtown San Francisco has shown signs of revival since being battered by the Covid pandemic, which led to what many called a “doom loop” of vacant buildings, a worsening homelessness crisis, and dwindling public transit. But one highly visible reminder of the city’s struggle to recover remains: the San Francisco Centre mall, which sits at the heart of these urban renewal efforts and has been conspicuously boarded up since January of this year.A number of ideas have been floated for the mall’s reopening, including a multi-level sports complex, housing, and more traditional retail uses. But now, another potential plan has emerged: the shuttered mall is being considered for an AI datacenter project, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Continue reading...
Oct 20, 2026
Storm Austen forecast to hit southern UK
UK government failures led to Covid spreading ‘like wildfire’ in care homes, inquiry finds
Inquiry chair says failure to advise care homes to isolate people discharged from hospital was ‘significant oversight’• UK politics live – latest updatesThe care sector was “an afterthought” during the Covid-19 pandemic, and government failures caused the virus to spread “like wildfire” among vulnerable and elderly people, a public inquiry has found.Heather Hallett, who is leading the Covid-19 inquiry, said it was a “significant omission” that the government did not advise that patients discharged from hospitals into care homes should be isolated, causing the virus to spread rapidly among residents and staff. Continue reading...
Italy to deploy 500 troops to Milan after days of protests and looting
Government planning tougher security measures after protests over high cost of living descend into violenceWhy are people protesting across Europe?Italy’s government is sending 500 soldiers to Milan as it vowed a “firm response from the state” after protests against the high cost of living descended into clashes with police, vandalism and looting, and ahead of further demonstrations planned on Saturday.The government, led by the far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, is also planning to swiftly approve tougher new security measures, including extending preventive detention for minors, cracking down on youth gangs and banning gatherings for people deemed a threat to public order, according to reports in the Italian press on Tuesday. Continue reading...
Thames Water creditors secure former Labour minister to drive rescue deal
Stricken UK water supplier lines up John Hutton as independent chair designate if takeover goes aheadThe group of Thames Water creditors pursuing a £10bn rescue deal for Britain’s largest water supplier has lined up a former senior Labour minister to chair the company, as it tries to win over the government.The creditor consortium, called London & Valley Water, said on Tuesday that Lord John Hutton had been selected as independent chair designate of the Thames Water board, if the consortium’s takeover of the utility goes ahead. Continue reading...
Helen Haines loses leg as surgeons fight to save the other after alleged attack in Wangaratta
Independent MP is in critical yet stable condition after man allegedly did U-turn to strike her twice with his carBrendan Nugent’s family say Helen Haines has been their friend for more than 20 years‘I don’t want to be known as a hero’: barber who rushed to help Helen Haines praised by PMGet our new political email, free app or daily news podcastThe man accused of attacking Helen Haines allegedly made a U-turn before ramming the independent MP twice in an alleged targeted attack near her electorate office, causing her to lose one of her legs.The member for Indi was airlifted from Wangaratta in northern Victoria to Melbourne’s Alfred hospital for emergency surgery on Monday night. Continue reading...
Brendan Nugent’s family say Helen Haines has been their friend for more than 20 years
Father of 43-year-old Tarrawingee man who allegedly attacked the independent MP says incident is ‘devastating and unfathomable’Who is Helen Haines, the MP allegedly attacked in Victoria?Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcastThe father of a 43-year-old man accused of allegedly attacking Helen Haines has pledged to work with police and described the incident as “shocking and horrific”.The independent MP remained in a critical condition on Tuesday after being airlifted from Wangaratta in northern Victoria to Melbourne’s Alfred hospital for emergency surgery on Monday night. She has lost one leg, with surgeons working to save the other. Continue reading...
Federal efforts over alleged noncitizen voting escalate with California arrests | First Thing
The DoJ has charged 28 green card holders in California, accusing them of fraudulently registering to vote. Plus, is the world really ready for AI actors?Don’t already get First Thing in your inbox? Sign up hereGood morning. The US Department of Justice has charged 28 green card holders in California, accusing them of fraudulently registering to vote and casting illegal ballots. The arrests – 11 people are in custody – mark the latest escalation in federal efforts against alleged noncitizen voting.The crackdown comes days after the DOJ sued California to block the state from tabulating certain ballots in November’s midterms. California’s secretary of state, Shirley Weber, called the demands “outrageous”, pointing out that federal officials have spent months making “vague and unsubstantiated allegations”. Democrats and voting rights groups say the administration is laying the groundwork to sow doubt over November’s election results.How are Congress members being targeted before the midterms? More than three dozen members of US Congress have had their offices targeted with envelopes containing white powder, less than three weeks before the election, as federal agents try to identify who is behind the campaign.What has Donald Trump said about the French protests? At a rally in Kansas Trump described France as a once-great nation that had been “conquered, looted, and burned to the ground by migrants, jihadists, and communists”. Earlier in the day, Trump repeated his baseless claim that migrants had “taken over” France, and also claimed that “Paris is going to be a Muslim city very soon”. Muslims make up 10-15% of the population of the capital. Continue reading...
