Archived edition · World
Every hourly briefing ever published, opened in a new tab as its own front page.
Latest briefing
25 stories off the wire
Lead story
Somalia's government battles Al-Shabaab militants with no decisive advantage. Mogadishu needs to bolster its military and alleviate civilian suffering. The Somali government’s battle with Al-Shabaab militants grinds on, with neither able to gain a decisive advantage.
President-elect Abelardo “El Tigre” de la Espriella promises to fight armed groups in Colombia. This week on Hold Your Fire!, Richard speaks with Crisis Group experts Renata Segura and Elizabeth Dickinson about Colombia’s turbulent election, president-elect Abelardo “El Tigre” de la Espriella’s hardline promises to fight armed groups and the legacy of outgoing President Gustavo Petro’s signature policy of “Total Peace”.
US President Donald Trump agreed to further talks with Iran. He warned Tehran the cease-fire is over. US President Donald Trump said Iran has as requested that “talks” between the two countries continue, although he emphatically warned Tehran that the current cease-fire is no longer in effect amid a flurry of tit-for-tat strikes by both sides.
James Jay Carafano says Trump holds all the cards in dealing with Iran amid diplomatic efforts. Despite days of military exchanges between the United States and Iran, Washington insists it remains committed to finding a diplomatic solution. To better understand Washington's posture, RFE/RL spoke with the Heritage Foundation's James Jay Carafano.
Volkswagen is retrenching due to excess capacity and weaker demand in Europe's auto industry. European carmakers have too much capacityDiego Faßnacht reports that Volkswagen’s retrenchment reflects a broader structural crisis in Europe’s auto industry, where excess capacity, weaker demand and intensifying Chinese competition are forcing plant closures and job The post Volkswage.
Nigeria's President ordered an investigation into a fictitious federal agency allocated 1.3 billion naira. President ordered investigation after fictitious federal body allocated funding and office space, triggering renewed scrutiny of corruption A fictitious federal entity that was allocated 1.3 billion naira (£705,248) in Nigeria’s 2026 budget has precipitated a political storm in Africa’s largest democracy in the run-up to January’s general election. The fake agency came to light last October when Fe.
The LGBTQ+ cruise ship Scarlet Lady, carrying 2,000 passengers, was refused entry into Egypt. The ship was previously blocked from Turkish waters. Passengers were informed of the change Lady’s 2,000 passengers told of change as one of those onboard says they will ‘sparkle and spend elsewhere’An LGBTQ+ cruise ship blocked from Turkish waters this week has been refused entry into Egypt. The Scarlet Lady’s 2,000 passengers, including the Broadway performer Patti LuPone, woke on Thursday morning to find a note placed under their cabin doors informing them that the ship was urg.
The US-Iran war brought shipping to a near-standstill in the Strait of Hormuz, stranding 6,000 seafarers. Renewed hostilities between the United States and Iran reportedly brought shipping to a near-standstill in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, leaving around 6,000 seafarers stranded aboard hundreds of vessels and Gulf countries on high alert for further attacks.
Representatives from 12 countries conducted a "virtual diplomatic field visit" to a Gaza displacement site. They heard from residents about their pressing needs. The UN facilitated the virtual tour. Representatives from 12 countries carried out a “virtual diplomatic field visit” to a displacement site in the Gaza Strip and heard from some of the residents about their pressing needs, the United Nations said on Thursday.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk urged the Democratic Republic of the Congo's armed forces and the Rwanda-backed M23 group to cease hostilities following recent civilian deaths. He deplored the violence in eastern DR Congo. The conflict has resulted in numerous casualties. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk urged the armed forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group to cease hostilities as he deplored recent civilian deaths on Thursday.
The US struck 80 targets in Iran after Iranian forces fired on ships in the Strait of Hormuz. For the second time since the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed, Washington and Tehran have slipped back into direct military confrontation. The United States struck “80 targets in Iran with precision munitions” after Iranian forces fired on several ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz without prior coordination with Tehran.
The Iran deal failed to restore the old maritime order, analyst Noam Raydan says. The 60-day memorandum of understanding has unraveled, exposing disputes over control of a strategic waterway, a Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. The unraveling of the 60-day memorandum of understanding (MoU) was always likely to expose unresolved disputes over who controls one of the world's most strategic waterways, Noam Raydan, the William Sudhaus Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, tells RFE/RL.
A brawl erupted in Lviv, western Ukraine, on July 8, between Ukrainian military recruiters and local residents as officers detained men who failed to register for duty. Authorities opened a criminal investigation. Russia was accused of using propaganda to incite unrest. A brawl between Ukrainian military recruiters and local residents erupted in Lviv, western Ukraine, on July 8, as the officers were detaining men who had failed to register for duty.
Ukraine launched multiple strikes against Russian energy assets, including oil terminals and tankers at sea. This forced Moscow to halt shipping through a major waterway. The attacks are part of Kyiv's "long-range sanctions" against Russia. Ukraine launched multiple strikes against Kremling energy assets, including oil terminals and tankers at sea, reportedly forcing Moscow to halt shipping through a major waterway as Kyiv intensifies what it has labeled its "long-range sanctions" against Russia.
Russian forces destroyed over 150 Ukrainian gas stations using Geran-2 drones in three months. Over the past three months, Russian forces have destroyed more than 150 gas stations in Ukraine using Geran-2 drones. The strikes are primarily carried out at a distance of 30–50 kilometers from the border and the front line.
Omsk residents are in shock after a surprise Ukrainian attack on the Siberian city. For more than four years, the inhabitants of Omsk, a Siberian city more than 2,250 kilometers east of Moscow, have watched the war against Ukraine from afar. This week they got a close-up view that has left many in shock.
Poland and Ukraine's ties are strained over World War II-era killings at a crucial time in Ukraine's defense against Russia. Poland, steeped in bad memories of the 1939 Nazi-Soviet invasion and decades of dominance from Moscow after World War II, is a firm backer of Ukraine’s defense against Russia. But a flare-up over their own bloody history is threatening ties at a crucial time -- and could have wide repercussions.
The UN Security Council called for urgent de-escalation amid a spike in civilian deaths from Russian drone attacks. The Security Council must use every tool and diplomatic channel to reach an urgent de-escalation, Rosemary DiCarlo, chief of UN political and peacebuilding affairs, told an emergency meeting on Thursday amid escalating deadly Russian drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian civilians. Stay tuned for live updates.
The United Nations paused to remember the over 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys killed in Srebrenica in July 1995. The town's women and survivors were left to rebuild their lives after the genocide. The UN marked the event to honor the victims and their families. The United Nations paused on Wednesday to remember the more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys killed in the town of Srebrenica in July 1995, and the women and survivors left to rebuild their lives in the aftermath.
Andy Burnham, a Labour Party member, is poised to become UK Prime Minister. He won a byelection in Makerfield on June 18. This development comes amid waning support for Keir Starmer within the party. Burnham, who is from Labour’s ‘soft left’ and was elected three times to run Manchester, won a byelection in Makerfield on June 18 in order to return to Westminster, as support for Keir Starmer within his party continued to evaporate.
Indonesia rewrites the inflation playbook by not hiking interest rates. For over three decades, the standard playbook for taming inflation has remained virtually unchanged. Faced with surging prices, central banks invariably resort to hiking interest rates. The ripple effects are swift: demand cools, consumption slows and inflationary pressures gradually recede. This inflation-targeting framework has anchored global monetary policy since the 1990s, proving highly effe.
Bangladesh's ousted leader Hasina plans to return in December with party colleagues to surrender. “My party leaders and workers are being subjected to tremendous repression. If death comes, I want it to come on my own soil, where my parents are buried and where their blood was shed,” Ms. Hasina said.
The US indicted Lawrence Bishnoi and Satinderjeet Singh for directing the 2023 assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. The US decision to indict jailed Indian gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his alleged North American associate, Satinderjeet Singh (“Goldy Brar”), for allegedly directing the 2023 assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada is more than another organized crime prosecution.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. They agreed on artificial intelligence, batteries, and defense manufacturing. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on July 2 produced a long list of agreements spanning artificial intelligence, batteries, critical minerals, defense manufacturing, energy resilience and financial cooperation.
Human activities are overwhelming the survival strategies of various species, species. Desert frogs, snails in extreme ocean depths, and species threatened by mining are among the newly endangered animals. Newly endangered animals include desert frogs and snails in extreme ocean depths, both threatened by miningLife has colonised every corner of the planet by evolving ingenious survival strategies but these are increasingly being overwhelmed by destructive human activities, this year’s red list of endangered species has revealed. Many snails, limpets and clams have adapted to life at crushing depths.
No stories match this region right now.
