Top World News

Aug 26, 2026 - World

As photojournalist sentenced to 15 years, rights groups warn law would turn civic engagement into security crimeIran has taken the first step towards criminalising contact with foreign media, in a move human rights groups have said attempts to “sever the entire Iranian society from the rest of the world”.For journalists, researchers and even ordinary citizens, the proposed law being discussed by Iranian lawmakers this month could make speaking to international audiences and groups a potential criminal act and restrict coverage of events such as January’s mass anti-regime protests. Continue reading...

Aug 25, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump has submitted a nuclear agreement with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Congress for approval, a move that has the potential to radically reshape the balance of power in the Middle East, according to a new report. The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing "an administration official," that the agreement includes a stipulation that Saudi Arabia recognize the State of Israel and sign the Abraham Accords. The Kingdom has not signed the accords because of Israel's resistance to Palestinian statehood. The Journal added that the agreement is expected to set off "intense debate" on Capitol Hill. "When Trump officials announced the 30-year accord last month, they said then that it would give U.S. companies a central role in developing Saudi Arabia’s nuclear infrastructure while excluding foreign competition," the report reads in part."But the deal has proved to be controversial because it would potentially open the door for uranium enrichment to take place on Saudi territory," it added. The deal was submitted at a time when Trump appears to be looking for a way out of the war against Iran. Trump has threatened to increase hostilities with the regime if it does not relent, but those threats have thus far yielded no returns. Meanwhile, public polling shows that more than three-quarters of Americans are against the war. Economic data has also pointed to the conflict for the ongoing economic challenges, which are also weighing on Trump's approval rating.

Aug 25, 2026 - World

CIA Director John Ratcliffe reportedly slipped into Moscow on a secret trip Tuesday, marking the highest-level visit by a Trump administration official to Russia since January — even as the Kremlin insists no such meeting is happening at all.CBS News and Axios both reported Ratcliffe's presence in the Russian capital, citing sources familiar with the situation, though neither outlet identified who he was meeting or what was discussed. Meanwhile, according to Al Jazeera, flight-tracking data showed a U.S. military C-17 departing Riga, Latvia early Tuesday morning and landing in Moscow roughly 74 minutes later, before departing again later in the day.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov flatly denied anything was underway, saying, "No, there are no such plans." When pressed specifically about reports of the U.S. military plane landing in Moscow, Peskov claimed he had "no such information."But Axios reported that Washington gave Ukraine advance notice of the senior delegation's trip and asked Kyiv to hold off on strikes until the group left Russian territory.The visit comes as U.S.-brokered talks to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine remain stalled, though Moscow did free a former U.S. Marine detained since 2022 earlier this month, reportedly over health concerns.Ratcliffe has quietly played a central role in several high-profile prisoner swaps between Washington and Moscow since President Trump returned to office in January 2025, including the release of dual national Ksenia Karelina last year. If confirmed, his reported Moscow trip would be the first by a sitting CIA director since William Burns traveled there in 2021.The CIA declined to comment on the reports.

Aug 25, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump spent Tuesday morning threatening Canada online while Ottawa put a nearly 100-page tariff schedule on the calendar he cannot stop.Four Canadian cabinet ministers announced the retaliatory tariffs in Ottawa on Tuesday, according to the New York Times. The duties cover about 700 American products and take effect Sept. 8.The rates range from 15 to 50 percent, matching the level Washington set for each product, according to CNBC. Prime Minister Mark Carney had promised a "dollar for dollar" response after talks collapsed Friday night, the Times reported.The schedule runs nearly 100 pages, Global News senior journalist Mackenzie Gray reported on X. It taxes fish, stoves, carpets, men's suits and fishing rods."Our preference was to find a deal that benefits both countries," Canadian trade minister Dominic LeBlanc told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Tuesday. "We still believe that's possible. But in the meantime, we're not waiting by the phone."Trump answered on Truth Social, where he suggested halting business with Ontario and repeatedly floated renaming Lake Ontario to "Lake America," CNBC reported."I deal with many countries, and Canada is easily the most difficult and unreasonable," Trump wrote in one post.Trump warned Monday that he would double tariffs on Canadian cars and auto parts to 50 percent, but not until Jan. 1, 2027, Global News reported. Canada's deadline is two weeks away.Canada doubled its own tariffs on American steel and aluminum to 50 percent, the Times reported. Ottawa added $7.5 billion for businesses and workers harmed by the trade war, according to CNBC.Senior Canadian officials said the list was not built to punish particular American businesses or states, but to help Canadian industry, Gray reported.Trump has also complained that the United States runs a trade deficit with Canada. That gap exists largely because Americans buy Canadian crude oil, CNBC reported.His tariffs have excluded oil, natural gas, potash and many minerals, according to the Times.Polls taken before the tariffs took effect Saturday showed broad Canadian support for retaliation, the Times noted. Ontario Premier Doug Ford has pressed for it, while Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has urged restraint.Canada's economy is about one-twelfth the size of the American economy, according to the Times, and economists say the resulting price increases will hurt Canadian companies, too.

Aug 25, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump floated the idea of changing the name of Lake Ontario to “Lake America” on Tuesday amid his ongoing trade feud with Canada, a pitch that was met with collective sighs by critics who spoke to their exhaustion with the chaotic Trump administration.In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump claimed that his administration was “giving serious consideration” to the name change as he did not “expect to [be] doing much business with Ontario any longer.” The idea is similar to his executive order issued in early 2025 to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America,” a move that received intense scrutiny at the time.Regarding Trump’s latest name-change idea — one that came amid Trump imposing 50% tariffs on some Canadian goods, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney vowing to match said tariffs “dollar for dollar” — critics were quick to condemn it.The Bulwark's Sam Stein quipped on X, "He's out of ideas."Stephen Hayes, editor and CEO at The Dispatch, mocked, "It's still astonishing - ten years into the Trump era - that our president so often behaves like a 10 year-old. And that so much of our national policymaking is based on the juvenile emoting of an adult who functions like a preteen."“We are living in the stupidest f------ times,” wrote Jason Willan, a prominent fantasy sports analyst, in a social media post on X.Roland Ley, a former contributor for Euromaidan Press, called Trump the “greatest idiot” he had witnessed in his “lifetime.”“Just as internationally 'Gulf of America' isn't recognised, this won't be either,” Ley wrote in a social media post on X. “Not even passed by the US Senate anyway.”In response to Trump’s announcement, Canadian horse-racing photographer Julie Wright quipped, “Lunatic says what,” and prominent online influencer Mario Nawfal argued that Trump’s trade war was “getting silly” in a post on X to his more than 3.8 million followers.“It would require a lot more than a President’s bad mood to change the name of a gulf or great lake!” Nawfal wrote. “Maybe a vote or something a bit more thought out.”