Lead Story
Houthi rebels seize Yemen's Mayun Island, forcing Saudi Arabia to shut key oil pipeline
Iranian-backed Houthi forces captured Mayun Island, the only inhabited island inside the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, on Friday, September 11, 2026, giving the movement a fortified position at a chokepoint through which roughly 10-12% of global trade passes. The Houthis also seized the Greater and Lesser Hanish islands further north in the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia's energy ministry confirmed a crucial oil pipeline struck in an earlier attack would remain mostly out of service for several weeks for repairs, compounding the blow to the kingdom's oil exports. Security analysts warned the group now has the real capability to shut down maritime traffic through the strait entirely if it chooses.
Read more →Lead Story
Houthi rebels seize Yemen's Mayun Island, forcing Saudi Arabia to shut key oil pipeline
Iranian-backed Houthi forces captured Mayun Island, the only inhabited island inside the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, on Friday, September 11, 2026, giving the movement a fortified position at a chokepoint through which roughly 10-12% of global trade passes. The Houthis also seized the Greater and Lesser Hanish islands further north in the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia's energy ministry confirmed a crucial oil pipeline struck in an earlier attack would remain mostly out of service for several weeks for repairs, compounding the blow to the kingdom's oil exports. Security analysts warned the group now has the real capability to shut down maritime traffic through the strait entirely if it chooses.
Search for scores still missing after Indonesian ferry capsizes in Java Sea
The passenger ferry Virgo Transport 8, carrying 243 people from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan, capsized in rough weather early Sunday, September 13, 2026, after its captain radioed a distress call reporting waves up to three meters and a severe list. At least six bodies have been recovered and roughly 108 people rescued, but Indonesian authorities said this week that around 129 passengers remained unaccounted for, with some 622 personnel and 12 ships continuing the search around the vessel's last known position. Officials with the Directorate General of Sea Transportation said they are still investigating whether the disaster resulted from weather, mechanical failure or human error.
Read more →Search for scores still missing after Indonesian ferry capsizes in Java Sea
The passenger ferry Virgo Transport 8, carrying 243 people from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan, capsized in rough weather early Sunday, September 13, 2026, after its captain radioed a distress call reporting waves up to three meters and a severe list. At least six bodies have been recovered and roughly 108 people rescued, but Indonesian authorities said this week that around 129 passengers remained unaccounted for, with some 622 personnel and 12 ships continuing the search around the vessel's last known position. Officials with the Directorate General of Sea Transportation said they are still investigating whether the disaster resulted from weather, mechanical failure or human error.
China dismisses Anthropic CEO's AI warning as 'fearmongering' ahead of expected Trump-Xi summit
China's Foreign Ministry pushed back on Monday, September 14, 2026, after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei published an essay warning that a Chinese lead in artificial intelligence "would pose grave danger for the United States and the world" and called for the US to maintain restrictions on advanced AI chip sales to China. Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters that "fearmongering, confrontation and vicious competition will only disrupt the process of global AI governance, which serves no one's interest." The exchange came as senior US and Chinese officials prepared for preparatory AI governance talks ahead of an expected meeting between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping later in September, and as China's own spy chief separately warned of AI risks.
Read more →China dismisses Anthropic CEO's AI warning as 'fearmongering' ahead of expected Trump-Xi summit
China's Foreign Ministry pushed back on Monday, September 14, 2026, after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei published an essay warning that a Chinese lead in artificial intelligence "would pose grave danger for the United States and the world" and called for the US to maintain restrictions on advanced AI chip sales to China. Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters that "fearmongering, confrontation and vicious competition will only disrupt the process of global AI governance, which serves no one's interest." The exchange came as senior US and Chinese officials prepared for preparatory AI governance talks ahead of an expected meeting between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping later in September, and as China's own spy chief separately warned of AI risks.
At least 124 land and environmental defenders killed worldwide in 2025, Global Witness finds
A new Global Witness report titled 'Collective Power,' released Wednesday, September 16, 2026, documented the killings of at least 124 land and environmental defenders in 2025 as they protected forests, rivers, farmland and Indigenous territories from logging, mining and land grabs. Latin America accounted for 105 of the deaths, nearly 85% of the global total, with Colombia recording the highest toll of any country for a fourth consecutive year at 39 killings, followed by Brazil with 26 -- more than double its 2024 count. Researchers said the true toll is likely far higher, since repression and armed conflict make many deaths in remote areas impossible to verify, and noted that land disputes triggered more than half of the documented killings.
Read more →At least 124 land and environmental defenders killed worldwide in 2025, Global Witness finds
A new Global Witness report titled 'Collective Power,' released Wednesday, September 16, 2026, documented the killings of at least 124 land and environmental defenders in 2025 as they protected forests, rivers, farmland and Indigenous territories from logging, mining and land grabs. Latin America accounted for 105 of the deaths, nearly 85% of the global total, with Colombia recording the highest toll of any country for a fourth consecutive year at 39 killings, followed by Brazil with 26 -- more than double its 2024 count. Researchers said the true toll is likely far higher, since repression and armed conflict make many deaths in remote areas impossible to verify, and noted that land disputes triggered more than half of the documented killings.
Zelensky says Russian drones targeted his presidential plane twice in recent weeks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told CBS News in an interview broadcast Tuesday, September 15, 2026, that Russia targeted his presidential jet with drones on two separate occasions during recent trips through Moldovan airspace. "In Moldova, my presidential jet was there, and that's why they attacked Moldova. When we went back home, again through Chisinau, they did the same," Zelensky said, describing a previously unreported second incident during his return flight. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store had earlier said Zelensky's plane was 'almost hit' by a drone as he departed for Oslo on September 9. Zelensky called it part of a Russian strategy to intimidate Ukraine's allies, pointing also to a recent drone strike on a train carrying European officials and former CIA Director David Petraeus near the Polish border.
Read more →Zelensky says Russian drones targeted his presidential plane twice in recent weeks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told CBS News in an interview broadcast Tuesday, September 15, 2026, that Russia targeted his presidential jet with drones on two separate occasions during recent trips through Moldovan airspace. "In Moldova, my presidential jet was there, and that's why they attacked Moldova. When we went back home, again through Chisinau, they did the same," Zelensky said, describing a previously unreported second incident during his return flight. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store had earlier said Zelensky's plane was 'almost hit' by a drone as he departed for Oslo on September 9. Zelensky called it part of a Russian strategy to intimidate Ukraine's allies, pointing also to a recent drone strike on a train carrying European officials and former CIA Director David Petraeus near the Polish border.