Lead Story
Colombia earthquake death toll tops 250 as rescuers dig through second night
The death toll from Monday's magnitude 7.4 earthquake in western Colombia passed 250 by August 11-12, 2026, with 101 people killed in Pereira and 95 in Cali, the country's third-biggest city, according to local officials. The quake, the most devastating to strike Colombia this century, tore through the country's coffee-growing heartland, cracking, leaning or flattening apartment blocks, homes, schools and health centers. The UN humanitarian office OCHA estimated roughly 5,000 homes were damaged, and search teams worked into a second full day pulling survivors from collapsed apartment blocks, a hospital wing and a mountainside cable car system, though officials said many people remained trapped under rubble. Newly inaugurated President Abelardo de la Espriella declared a three-month economic relief measure for the hard-hit coffee-growing region of Risaralda and deployed troops to assist relief efforts.
Read more →Lead Story
Colombia earthquake death toll tops 250 as rescuers dig through second night
The death toll from Monday's magnitude 7.4 earthquake in western Colombia passed 250 by August 11-12, 2026, with 101 people killed in Pereira and 95 in Cali, the country's third-biggest city, according to local officials. The quake, the most devastating to strike Colombia this century, tore through the country's coffee-growing heartland, cracking, leaning or flattening apartment blocks, homes, schools and health centers. The UN humanitarian office OCHA estimated roughly 5,000 homes were damaged, and search teams worked into a second full day pulling survivors from collapsed apartment blocks, a hospital wing and a mountainside cable car system, though officials said many people remained trapped under rubble. Newly inaugurated President Abelardo de la Espriella declared a three-month economic relief measure for the hard-hit coffee-growing region of Risaralda and deployed troops to assist relief efforts.
DRC Ebola death toll passes 2,000 in fastest-spreading outbreak on record
The Democratic Republic of the Congo reported on August 11, 2026 that confirmed Ebola deaths had reached 2,011, out of 4,381 confirmed cases across multiple provinces, making it the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record. The death toll was reached almost three times faster than in the 2014-16 West Africa outbreak that was previously the worst in history: it took nearly five months for that outbreak to hit 1,000 deaths, while the current DRC outbreak hit 2,000 deaths in under three months. The outbreak was officially declared on May 15, though genetic sequencing showed it actually began months earlier, in February, and is being driven by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there are currently no approved vaccines or treatments. Health authorities say efforts to reach remote affected areas are being hampered by rebel conflict, poor roads and work stoppages over unpaid wages, and the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
Read more →DRC Ebola death toll passes 2,000 in fastest-spreading outbreak on record
The Democratic Republic of the Congo reported on August 11, 2026 that confirmed Ebola deaths had reached 2,011, out of 4,381 confirmed cases across multiple provinces, making it the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record. The death toll was reached almost three times faster than in the 2014-16 West Africa outbreak that was previously the worst in history: it took nearly five months for that outbreak to hit 1,000 deaths, while the current DRC outbreak hit 2,000 deaths in under three months. The outbreak was officially declared on May 15, though genetic sequencing showed it actually began months earlier, in February, and is being driven by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there are currently no approved vaccines or treatments. Health authorities say efforts to reach remote affected areas are being hampered by rebel conflict, poor roads and work stoppages over unpaid wages, and the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
Syrian court sentences Assad and his brother to death in absentia for war crimes
A Syrian court sentenced ousted president Bashar al-Assad, along with his younger brother Maher, to death in absentia on August 11, 2026 for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during the country's 14-year conflict, which left about half a million people dead. The sentences from the Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus, aired live on state TV, are the first against Assad or members of his inner circle since his five-decade family dynasty collapsed 20 months ago. The court also sentenced six former military and security officials in absentia, including Maher al-Assad, who ran the army's elite Fourth Division. Judge Fakhareddine al-Aryan said Assad "used state agencies to commit war crimes and crimes against humanity." Both brothers fled to Russia after the government's collapse in December 2024 and received asylum there, making it unlikely either will ever actually face justice, though the verdicts are expected to be popular among Syrians frustrated with the pace of accountability under the new government.
Read more →Syrian court sentences Assad and his brother to death in absentia for war crimes
A Syrian court sentenced ousted president Bashar al-Assad, along with his younger brother Maher, to death in absentia on August 11, 2026 for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during the country's 14-year conflict, which left about half a million people dead. The sentences from the Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus, aired live on state TV, are the first against Assad or members of his inner circle since his five-decade family dynasty collapsed 20 months ago. The court also sentenced six former military and security officials in absentia, including Maher al-Assad, who ran the army's elite Fourth Division. Judge Fakhareddine al-Aryan said Assad "used state agencies to commit war crimes and crimes against humanity." Both brothers fled to Russia after the government's collapse in December 2024 and received asylum there, making it unlikely either will ever actually face justice, though the verdicts are expected to be popular among Syrians frustrated with the pace of accountability under the new government.
Iran and Oman near Hormuz shipping deal, but US conditions remain unmet
Iran and Oman signaled growing optimism in early-to-mid August 2026 that they are close to an agreement on managing shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has kept closed amid its standoff with the United States. After more than three weeks of talks, the two countries have produced broad agreement on proposed inbound and outbound shipping routes, with a deal requiring Iran to commit to not firing on commercial vessels. However, Iranian officials cautioned that an Iran-Oman agreement would not by itself reopen the waterway to normal traffic, since Tehran says Washington must separately lift its naval blockade and sanctions, withdraw US forces from the region, pay war reparations and release frozen Iranian assets. US Vice President JD Vance said the administration is seeking to "maximize the amount of oil and gas" moving through the strait and wants Gulf output restored to pre-conflict levels. The prolonged closure of one of the world's most important oil chokepoints has continued to unsettle global energy markets.
Read more →Iran and Oman near Hormuz shipping deal, but US conditions remain unmet
Iran and Oman signaled growing optimism in early-to-mid August 2026 that they are close to an agreement on managing shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has kept closed amid its standoff with the United States. After more than three weeks of talks, the two countries have produced broad agreement on proposed inbound and outbound shipping routes, with a deal requiring Iran to commit to not firing on commercial vessels. However, Iranian officials cautioned that an Iran-Oman agreement would not by itself reopen the waterway to normal traffic, since Tehran says Washington must separately lift its naval blockade and sanctions, withdraw US forces from the region, pay war reparations and release frozen Iranian assets. US Vice President JD Vance said the administration is seeking to "maximize the amount of oil and gas" moving through the strait and wants Gulf output restored to pre-conflict levels. The prolonged closure of one of the world's most important oil chokepoints has continued to unsettle global energy markets.
Kyiv steps up strikes on Russian oil sites as Pyongyang sends more troops and missiles
Ukrainian forces have been targeting Russian oil facilities almost daily in the run-up to August 12, 2026, striking at the heart of the Russian economy more than four years into Moscow's full-scale invasion, with President Volodymyr Zelensky saying the goal is to force Russia to the negotiating table. Ukraine also struck a Russian petrochemical plant more than 2,000 kilometers from the border. On the ground, Russian forces launched dozens of attacks on Ukraine's Kherson region, killing four people and injuring seven, according to regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin, while two ambulance workers were killed in a Ukrainian drone strike on Russian-occupied Horlivka in Donetsk, per the Russian-installed administration there. Zelensky said North Korea is sending increasing numbers of ballistic missiles and troops to Russia as Ukraine's drone strikes reach farther into Russian territory, calling it the first time in Russian history that the country cannot wage a war without foreign supplies.
Read more →Kyiv steps up strikes on Russian oil sites as Pyongyang sends more troops and missiles
Ukrainian forces have been targeting Russian oil facilities almost daily in the run-up to August 12, 2026, striking at the heart of the Russian economy more than four years into Moscow's full-scale invasion, with President Volodymyr Zelensky saying the goal is to force Russia to the negotiating table. Ukraine also struck a Russian petrochemical plant more than 2,000 kilometers from the border. On the ground, Russian forces launched dozens of attacks on Ukraine's Kherson region, killing four people and injuring seven, according to regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin, while two ambulance workers were killed in a Ukrainian drone strike on Russian-occupied Horlivka in Donetsk, per the Russian-installed administration there. Zelensky said North Korea is sending increasing numbers of ballistic missiles and troops to Russia as Ukraine's drone strikes reach farther into Russian territory, calling it the first time in Russian history that the country cannot wage a war without foreign supplies.