WASHINGTON, Sept 10 - President Donald Trump's administration has brought a number of high-profile cases, some of which have been dropped, dismissed or blocked by judges or juries.The Justice Department dropped its case against former U.S. Olympian David Hearn, who was accused of vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, part of Trump's efforts to remake Washington. In a July 31 court filing, federal prosecutors said evidence pointed to a flawed installation, not vandalism, as causing the liner of the newly renovated pool to peel.Trump, facing criticism over the $14.7 million renovation, had repeatedly blamed the problems on vandals he alleged had sabotaged the project.Hearn, 67, pleaded not guilty to felony destruction of property. He had acknowledged reaching into the pool to touch a section of already detached liner, but denied ever removing a piece. Lawyers for the former Olympic canoeist accused the Trump administration of using the case to provide "political cover" for mismanagement of the project.Christian Garcia was charged with assaulting a federal officer in June 2025 immigration protests in Santa Ana, California. He admitted to throwing a plastic water bottle toward officers but said the wind blew it back onto him.Garcia, 32 at the time, was arrested and held for three days, then lost both his jobs after his bosses told him they had been called by investigators.The Trump administration has brought criminal charges against at least 851 people accused of attacking or impeding federal officers, only to abandon them at an unusually high rate.A Reuters review of federal court records completed in July found that 31% of completed cases had ended in dismissal. That compares to 8% of all federal criminal cases, according to Federal Judicial Center data.Separately, former Justice Department staffer Sean Dunn, who hurled a sandwich at a Customs and Border Protection agent in fury over Trump’s law enforcement surge in Washington, was cleared of misdemeanor assault charges in November 2025 after a three-day trial.Prosecutors initially sought felony charges against Dunn, but downgraded the case to a misdemeanor after a grand jury declined to return an indictment, one of several cases in which grand juries refused to indict.New York Attorney General Letitia James, a longtime Trump critic, was charged in October 2025 with lying on a mortgage application. A federal judge dismissed the criminal charges the following month, saying the Trump-picked U.S. attorney who brought the case was unlawfully appointed.In December, a federal grand jury in Virginia refused to indict James on allegations of mortgage fraud for the second time, according to sources familiar with the matter.James, an elected Democrat, characterized the case as an abuse of the criminal justice system designed to punish her for her criticism of Trump and a lawsuit she led against Trump and his family real estate business.Former FBI Director James Comey, whom Trump fired in 2017 as the bureau investigated possible collusion between his 2016 presidential campaign and Russia, became a harsh critic and frequent target of the president.The Justice Department filed criminal charges against Comey in September 2025 alleging false statements and obstructing a congressional investigation over Comey's 2020 testimony when he addressed Republican criticism of the Russia investigation.In November, a federal judge dismissed charges against Comey, saying the U.S. attorney who brought the case was unlawfully appointed.In April, the Justice Department charged him with threatening Trump by posting a 2025 photo of seashells arranged on a North Carolina beach to show the numbers "86 47."In U.S. parlance, the number 86 can be used as a verb meaning to throw somebody out of a bar, while 47 could be seen as code for Trump, the 47th president. Comey's lawyers said the case was a vindictive prosecution. REUTERS
Read briefing RABAT, Sept 10 - Morocco's foreign ministry said on Thursday that no evidence established involvement of Rabat in the mass crossing into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in July, adding it rejected being drawn into Spain's domestic political battles.More than 70,000 people crossed from Morocco into Ceuta, fueling criticism in Spain of both Rabat and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.While most have since returned, over 100 died according to NGOs. Local authorities say thousands, including unaccompanied minors, remain in the enclave, living in makeshift camps or on the streets and beaches, fuelling near-daily protests by residents angry at the Spanish government's handling of the crisis.Spain's opposition parties have since targeted Pedro Sanchez's government's relationship with Morocco and accused Rabat of facilitating or orchestrating the crossing."Why continue to level accusations against Morocco when no evidence, facts, or reports establish any involvement on the part of Moroccan authorities?" the ministry said in a statement."Why are illegal migrants not being returned, even though the Moroccan government has officially committed to readmitting them? Why are unaccompanied minors being kept away from their families, when Morocco has urgently requested their return?" the ministry said.Reports released by the Spanish government on Wednesday showed that Spanish intelligence and security agencies had warned both Madrid and Moroccan counterparts about the possibility of a mass crossing."Morocco refuses to be used as a pre-election political pawn, nor does it accept being made the scapegoat in political score-settling," the ministry said. National elections are due in Spain by mid-2027.The ministry highlighted the close security, migration and economic cooperation established between Rabat and Madrid since Sanchez backed in 2022 Morocco's autonomy plan for Western Sahara.Morocco does not recognise Spanish sovereignty over Ceuta and the other enclave of Melilla. REUTERS
Read briefing Migrants arriving on small boats from mainland Europe has become a politically toxic issue in Britain.LONDON - Anti-immigration demonstrators in southern England massed outside a hotel where Pakistan’s Under-19 cricket team were staying after mistaking them for asylum seekers, British media reported on Sept 9.The incident on the evening of Sept 8 in a northern suburb of Portsmouth occurred some 48 hours after protesters disrupted the disembarkation of scores of migrants near the port city and confronted police in widely condemned scenes.Immigration and the arrival of tens of thousands of asylum seekers annually on small boats from mainland Europe has become a politically toxic issue in Britain, sparking numerous protests in recent years, some turning violent.The Sept 8 incident came after reports online about a coach with young Asian men on board being seen at a Marriott Hotel in the Portsmouth suburb of Cosham drew protesters to the venue, according to media reports.A councillor from anti-immigration party Reform UK went to the scene and helped disperse the crowd after confirming the men were in fact members of Pakistan’s teenage cricket team, Britain’s Guardian newspaper said.The senior Pakistan men’s side are currently involved in the third Test against England at Birmingham’s Edgbaston ground.A spokesman for Hampshire Police – which is responsible for the region – said the force “were notified that a group of people were starting to congregate” near the hotel on the evening of Sept 8.“Officers subsequently attended and spoke to members of the public that had gathered who were expressing concerns about a coach that had been seen in the area,” the spokesman added.“The officers explained that their concerns were not correct,” the spokesman said, without confirming the Pakistani cricketers were the mistaken target.He noted the crowd of around 30 people dispersed a short time later and no offences were identified.Michael Bradley, a national organiser from the Stand Up To Racism organisation, condemned the incident as showing “where the scapegoating of refugees and migrants can lead”.“When a Pakistan U-19‘s team is faced by protests because it ‘might’ in fact be a group of migrants it means that effectively any group of black or Asian people coming into the city are being seen by the far right as a potential target,” he said.“It’s obvious where all this is going to end – racist attacks and more violence.” AFP
Read briefing FILE PHOTO: Michael Cohen, former lawyer for Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump, departs his home in Manhattan to testify in Trump's criminal trial over charges that he falsified business records to conceal money paid to silence porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, in New York City, U.S., May 20, 2024. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File PhotoSept 9 - U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that he would consider a pardon for Michael Cohen, his former fixer whose testimony contributed to a 2024 conviction against Trump, but who has more recently said that he "felt pressured and coerced."Asked by reporters on Wednesday whether he would consider a pardon for Cohen, who is seeking one, Trump said: "If everything is checking out, it's something I would consider.""I appreciate that at least he came out, although late, he came out and rectified the situation," he said.In 2018, Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison — and served more than a year — for a $130,000 hush payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election — as well as for other crimes, including cheating on his personal taxes and lying under oath to Congress.Trump was convicted in 2024 on 34 counts of falsification of business records to conceal the Daniels payment, in part due to Cohen's testimony. He has denied the encounter with Daniels, whose given name is Stephanie Clifford, and is appealing the ruling. REUTERS
Read briefing Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law, and U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, September 5, 2026. Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via REUTERSWASHINGTON, Sept 9 - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he had a "great" conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier in the week and that the Russian leader wanted to make a deal to end the war in Ukraine."He is wanting to make a deal, and if (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelenskiy is wanting to make a deal, that'd be very nice," Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One en route to Dallas for the Republican National Convention.Trump spoke over the phone with Putin on Tuesday, shortly after U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, returned from a diplomatic swing through Moscow and Kyiv. The duo, who are in charge of most major peace negotiations for the U.S., discussed potential proposals to bring the war to a close.Last month, Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe met with intelligence officials in Moscow, in part to encourage Russian officials to end their invasion.Despite those efforts and Trump's statements, intelligence officials in the U.S., Ukraine and throughout Europe continue to doubt Putin is seriously interested in ending his ongoing war, now in its fourth year."The holdup is two people who hate each other," Trump told reporters, referring to Putin and Zelenskiy."I think more than anything else, it's two people that hate each other." REUTERS
Read briefing KAMPALA, Sept 9 - A traditional Ugandan kingdom selected a television news anchor on Wednesday to succeed King Oyo Nyimba, who died last month aged 34 after becoming the world's youngest reigning monarch when he took the throne at age 3.Oyo Nyimba died on August 27 in the United States where he was receiving treatment for cancer. While Uganda is a constitutional republic, Oyo Nyimba ruled Tooro in western Uganda, one of the former British colony's ancient kingdoms, which wield enormous cultural and social influence.At a press conference in the kingdom's capital of Fort Portal, the royal clan's succession committee announced it chose Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma, a news anchor and editor at the state-run broadcaster UBC, as monarch.Oyo Nyimba, a U.N. goodwill ambassador championing the fight against HIV and AIDS, became the youngest reigning monarch in 1995 when he was crowned at age 3, according to Guinness World Records.A video of his coronation shows a little boy sitting in his chair playing with a toy, his small body almost disappearing underneath the royal crown and robes.Kijanangoma's selection contradicted an earlier announcement by the kingdom's Prime Minister Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire, who said the unmarried Oyo Nyimba had left behind a child who was his heir.Oyo Nyimba's body was returned to Uganda from the U.S. on Friday and preparations are under way for his burial on Saturday at the royal tombs near his palace in Fort Portal. REUTERS
Read briefing WASHINGTON, Sept 9 - U.S. President Donald Trump departed Washington for Texas on Wednesday aboard the Air Force One plane gifted by Qatar after an emergency slide deployed and was removed.The evacuation slide appeared to have accidentally activated shortly before Trump was due to board for a flight to Dallas for the first-ever Republican midterm convention. The issue briefly delayed Trump's departure.Asked by a journalist whether he was sure that the plane was safe to fly, Trump said: "Yeah, I am, or I wouldn't be on it."The Boeing 747-8 typically has 12 emergency inflatable evacuation slides. The slides are designed to allow passengers to reach the ground safely from a height of about 30 feet.Trump started flying aboard the jumbo jet on July 1 after accepting the plane as a gift last year. There was an accelerated effort to renovate the 747 before Trump started using it.Trump said last week the 747 would be taken out of service in October for unspecified security upgrades that would take about 60 days. REUTERS
Read briefing BARRANQUILLA, Colombia, Sept 8 - The United States was hoping to wrap up "good, solid" trade deals in the foreseeable future with Colombia, Peru and Ecuador, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday, as he began a tour of the three Latin American countries whose leaders are closely aligned with President Donald Trump's administration.Washington is stepping up security engagement with the region on issues including migration and drug trafficking amid an effort to reassert U.S. influence across Latin America that has seen U.S. forces capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro during a raid on Caracas early this year and ramp up economic pressure on Communist-led Cuba.Rubio, speaking to reporters in Florida before embarking on the trip, defended U.S. involvement in Venezuela's oil sector, saying energy fields previously held by Chinese, Russian and Iranian companies could generate revenue for Venezuelans through partnership with the United States under a future democratically elected government.Rubio later on Tuesday stepped off a plane, along with his wife, in the Colombian coastal city of Barranquilla, where he will meet right-wing President Abelardo De La Espriella before traveling later this week to Ecuador to meet President Daniel Noboa and then to Peru for talks with President Keiko Fujimori, who was inaugurated on July 28.The visit comes at a moment of growing ideological alignment with all three nations, which Rubio said was part of a trend in the Western Hemisphere toward support for Washington's goals."We have a lot of common interests with them, both taking on regional transnational criminal terrorism and also economic engagements. We’re hoping to wrap up good, solid trade deals with all three of these countries in the foreseeable future," Rubio said.The discussions come as Colombia is seeking relief from U.S. tariffs of 12.5% that took effect in July, which officials have said could affect Colombian exports.De La Espriella, an anti-establishment figure who refers to himself as "The Tiger," was endorsed by Trump, and has asked the U.S. leader to suspend the tariff after a powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck the west of the country in August, just days after De La Espriella was sworn in.The U.S. has said that it plans to provide $1 billion in security assistance to the new government.De La Espriella, who has pledged a widespread crackdown on crime and drug trafficking and canceled peace talks with armed groups pursued by his leftist predecessor, has added Colombia to Trump's "Shield of the Americas," a military alliance of right-wing leaders pledging to fight drug trafficking.U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has floated the possibility of joint strikes on Colombian armed groups, saying the South American country had authorized operations to destroy "terrorists and terror networks" including rebel groups like the National Liberation Army (ELN), which the U.S. designates as a terrorist group, and remnants of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas. REUTERS
Read briefing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arriving in Gardermoen, Norway, on Sept 8, ahead of King Harald V's funeral.OSLO - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Norway on Sept 8, the eve of the funeral of King Harald V, in a visit that will also allow talks with Oslo on air-defence support.Zelensky is due to meet Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store “this evening”, the premier’s office said in a statement.“We will discuss continued support for Ukraine. The main issue is strengthening air defence and assistance in other areas that are important for getting through the winter,” Zelensky said, in a post on X.The Ukrainian leader said he and his wife would “express our gratitude to Norway at the farewell ceremony for His Majesty King Harald V”, who died in August aged 89 and will be buried in Oslo on Sept 9.“Ukraine has a critical need for air defence systems and other forms of military support, and it is preparing to face a difficult winter,” Store’s office said.“The talks will focus in particular on how Norwegian military and civilian assistance can best meet Ukraine’s current needs,” it added.“Our weak point is anti-ballistic capabilities. We will grow stronger. I will have meetings in both Norway and Canada,” Zelensky said on Sept 6.Norway is one of the main providers of military and civilian aid to Kyiv following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. AFP
Read briefing FILE PHOTO: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy greets Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere before a Ukraine-Nordic-Baltic summit (NB8), amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine August 23, 2026. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich/File PhotoSTOCKHOLM, Sept 8 - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrived in Norway on Tuesday to attend the funeral of King Harald V, the office of Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said.Tens of thousands of people as well as leaders from around the world are expected to be in Oslo for the funeral on Wednesday of King Harald, who died on August 28 at the age of 89.Stoere said in a statement that he would meet Zelenskiy on Tuesday evening, with their discussions to focus on Ukraine's air defence. Russia has resumed its near-constant drone and missile attacks on Kyiv after a brief halt for the visit of U.S. peace negotiators.Russian strikes killed five people in the Ukrainian capital on Tuesday, and other fatalities were reported in various parts of the country, officials said."Ukraine has a critical need for air defence and other military support, and they are facing a demanding winter," Stoere said."The topic of the meeting is, among other things, how Norwegian military and civilian support can best meet Ukraine's needs right now".Zelenskiy, posting on the Telegram messaging app, said he wanted to express his gratitude at the funeral for Norway's help during the 4-1/2-year war with Russia.He said talks with Stoere would focus on air defence and efforts to help Kyiv face Russian attacks through another winter.There would also be discussions with companies taking part in the Freyja initiative to create a European anti-ballistic system, Zelenskiy said. REUTERS
Read briefing Meta’s Muse agent is designed to access a person’s apps across categories like email, calendar, payments, health, shopping and the smart home.NEW YORK - Meta rolled out on Sept 8 a long-touted AI assistant that can autonomously send emails, sell a car and book travel on a person’s behalf, despite internal concerns that the technology mismanages its access to sensitive personal data.The company’s Muse agent, known internally as Hatch, is the centrepiece of chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg’s plan to offer “personal superintelligence” to the billions of people who use Meta’s services daily.The product will be available only in the US initially, via a dedicated Muse app or Meta’s WhatsApp messaging service, Meta said in its announcement.Meta said it plans to add the agent to its line of smart glasses “soon,” without elaborating.Modelled on the open-source AI agent OpenClaw, Muse is designed to access a person’s apps across categories like email, calendar, payments, health, shopping and the smart home, Meta said. People choose which apps it connects to and can revoke access at any time.Each Muse agent runs on its own virtual machine, a cloud-based emulation of a personal computer, which enables it to keep carrying out requests in the background even when a person is not actively using it.Syncing up with apps containing a person’s real data increases the agent’s potential utility, while also significantly raising the stakes for safety and reliability issues, both for the users who have entrusted it with their information and others who may be on the receiving end of agent misbehavior.Vishal Shah, vice-president of AI products at Meta, said the company had initially delayed the release of the product in April to make it more secure. Meta determined that work had allowed it to “cross the threshold” and meet its minimum requirements for product safety, security, privacy, model performance and other metrics.“It is impossible to say that there is never going to be a mistake, but every single part of the architecture has been designed to make this as safe, as secure, as private as we can possibly make it,” Shah said.As recently as this week, Meta employees testing the tool internally have reported cases of Muse successfully arranging vacation logistics, disconnecting without explanation and uploading sensitive information without permission, according to internal posts seen by Reuters.One person wrote that the product had been so useful in arranging itineraries and ground transportation for them that they described it as “the third participant” on their recent three-week honeymoon in Indonesia.In another post, an employee who had prompted Muse to monitor for tickets and other items that sell out quickly reported encountering “many failure modes that made it unreliable.” The product stopped refreshing the page after about 15 minutes, silently ignored other errors and at times disabled monitoring “for no apparent reason,” the person said.Meta chief technology officer Andrew Bosworth posted that he kept getting logged out and needing to log back in, sometimes several times within a few minutes.Others flagged serious security flaws, like an agent routing around guardrails to expose a person’s personal iCloud photos after being prompted to identify toys visible in pictures from a child’s birthday party.Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the specific incidents. REUTERS
Read briefing Stranded passengers at Heathrow Airport's Terminal 5 in London, Britain, on Sept 8, after a technical issue disrupted hundreds of flights at key airports around the country.LONDON - European budget carriers Wizz Air and Ryanair called on Sept 8 for an overhaul of Britain’s air traffic control provider NATS following a new technical issue that disrupted hundreds of flights at key airports in the country.“A critical national infrastructure provider should not repeatedly bring the aviation system to a standstill. NATS is simply not fit for purpose in its current form,” a spokesperson for Wizz Air said.Rival Ryanair also criticised the agency and called for the resignation of its chief executive officer, Martin Rolfe.“Following the 2023 collapse, we were told lessons would be learned. We were told ‘resilience would improve’. We were told the systems had been fixed. Yet here we are again,” Ryanair chief operations officer Neal McMahon said.NATS said it had implemented a fix to the latest issue and was working with airlines and airports to get things back to normal.“We are continuing to work closely with our airline and airport customers on recovery. We apologise sincerely for the disruption to people’s journeys today, and they should continue to check with their airline,” a spokesperson said in a statement.In 2024, Britain’s aviation regulator said NATS needed to review its contingency plans for outages after the automatic processing of flight plans malfunctioned a year earlier, causing chaos across Britain’s airports.The Civil Aviation Authority said on Sept 8 it had been in touch with NATS over the incident and expects the latter to share a full report.“We will then consider whether any further steps need to be taken to help secure the safe reliability of the UK’s air traffic control system,” a CAA spokesperson said. REUTERS
Read briefing Robots, ranging from bipedal humanoids to dog-like quadripeds, are seen at a demonstration calling for AI regulation in front of the Polish digital affairs ministry in Warsaw on Sept 7, 2026.WARSAW - Waving flags, “chanting” slogans, and marching in circles: around 30 robots took to the streets of Warsaw on Sept 7 to campaign for AI regulation in front of the Polish digital affairs ministry.The protest was organised by Democratism, an initiative that, according to its website, aims to launch debate “on how AI and robotisation affect the labour market”.“The robots present here are meant to show that this technology is already a reality,” Agibot A3, one of the AI-powered humanoid robots, told AFP.Chants of: “Defend workplaces”, “Time for rules”, and “Don’t wait, regulate” played on loudspeakers as the robots – which ranged from bipedal humanoids to dog-like quadripeds – demonstrated.“We particularly want to address the issue of the potential replacement of people both by humanoid robots and by artificial intelligence in cognitive work,” organiser Grzegorz Kulis told AFP.“If we don’t react now, we may soon have a problem,” he added, emphasising the need for “rules and regulations that would serve as a shield protecting workers”.Aside from attracting the attention of several passers-by, Kulis said the use of robots was meant to show their existing capabilities and thereby, the urgency of the situation.“These robots can already move around freely, they’re already ‘protesting’”, he said.A humanoid robot of Delta Robots Agibot is seen during an interview with a journalist at the demonstration.The marching robots were met with a visit from Poland’s Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski, who spoke to Kulis on site.“Uncontrolled (AI) models, implemented into humanoids that will also keep evolving as robotisation moves forward, are a major problem,” he said.Kulis, who is now the CIO of a robotics company and CEO of an employment agency, served two terms on the Labor Market Council at the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy.“We feel responsible for starting to inform society about the rapid and dynamic technological changes which personally frighten us,” he told AFP.In July, Poland’s conservative-nationalist president Karol Nawrocki signed into law a Bill put forth by the ministry putting the EU’s AI Act into practice.It created a national authority capable of enforcing existing EU regulations, which had already formally come into force. AFP
Read briefing About half of the fleet of 5,100 aircraft operated by customers of Canadian business jet maker Bombardier is located in the US.WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said on Sept 7 that Canada-based airplane maker Bombardier would no longer be allowed to sell in the United States unless it started manufacturing in the country.“NO MORE SELLING BOMBARDIER IN THE UNITED STATES! Their products aren’t good enough!” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.“If they want our Market, they must build here, and stop treating America like a ‘piggybank’,” he said.Trump’s post, which comes amid a growing trade dispute between Washington and Toronto, was the latest salvo in his campaign to pressure foreign and domestic companies to manufacture more products in the US.That objective has driven many economic policies in his second term, especially a near global tariff-wall that has drawn complaints from many US trading partners.The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on how Trump would enforce the action or the steps he would take.Bombardier already has a defence division with a US-based factory, in Kansas, where it prepares planes for special mission purposes. About half of the fleet of 5,100 aircraft operated by Bombardier customers are located in the US.In January, Trump said the US was decertifying Bombardier Global Express business jets and threatened 50 per cent import tariffs on all aircraft made in Canada until the country’s regulator certified a number of planes produced by US rival Gulfstream. Neither occurred, but the following month Canada certified several Gulfstream planes.Bombardier announced on Sept 1 that it would acquire a Canadian factory from supplier Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which manufactures wings for the private jet maker’s Global 5500 and 6500 aircraft.In July, Bombardier reported that its quarterly revenue grew 6 per cent compared with the same three months a year ago to US$2.15 billion (S$2.7 billion), helped by strong demand for aftermarket services. REUTERS
Read briefing Cuba’s Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez says the country remains willing to continue engaging in dialogue despite the lack of will and progress on the part of the US.HAVANA - The US embargo on Cuba incurred “record” losses of over US$8 billion (S$10 billion) on the communist island between March 2025 and February 2026, according to a government report presented on Sept 7.Cuba has been under a US trade embargo since 1962, with President Donald Trump piling on pressure on top of the decades-old measure since early 2026.The damages set out in the report exceed 2025’s peak by seven per cent, said Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.The figure “does not include the damage from the energy blockade” imposed by Washington in January “nor the damage from secondary sanctions” imposed on Cuban entities in May, the minister added.“The blockade does not punish a government; it punishes the daily life of a people in all its aspects,” Rodriguez said.Havana blames the crisis on an array of US-imposed punitive measures, while Washington attributes the hardship to poor internal management.Living conditions on the island are severe, with residents enduring regular rolling blackouts and chronic food and fuel shortages on a daily basis.Rodriguez pointed to an increase in infant mortality – from four per 1,000 births in 2018 to 9.9 in 2025 – as evidence of deteriorating standards.He ruled out declaring a humanitarian crisis, however, and praised what he called Cuban solidarity in the face of difficulty.The minister said Cuban authorities remain in contact with the US State Department but ruled out any normalisation of ties.Cuba remains willing to continue engaging in dialogue “despite the lack of progress” and “lack of willingness” on the part of the US, he said. AFP
Read briefing Eiffel Tower closed on Sept 7 as staff met over claims that female employees were asked to step out of sight during a Hindu group’s visit.PARIS - Female employees at the Eiffel Tower were asked to step out of sight during a visit by a Hindu religious delegation at the weekend, according to union representatives, prompting a staff protest and an investigation by the Paris city authorities.The monument was closed late on Sept 7 as employees held a meeting over the incident, which has angered staff and drawn criticism from French politicians.The dispute stems from a private visit on Sept 5 by a delegation of about 100 people linked to BAPS (Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha), a Hindu group whose representatives were in France for festivities related to the inauguration of a Hindu temple in the Paris suburbs.“As the delegation passed through, women were asked to leave their workstations so that men could take their places,” Diane Davoine, a union representative, told Reuters.“Tensions mounted over the weekend, so this morning, the employees decided to meet: first, to open a dialogue with management, and second, to ensure that women are never treated this way at the company again,” she said.Signs at the base of the tower on Sept 7 read: “The opening of the Eiffel Tower is delayed for operational reasons.”A sign reading ‘the opening of the Eiffel Tower is delayed for operational reasons, we apologise’ seen at the landmark in Paris, on Sept 7, 2026.Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gregoire said that an investigation would be launched “as soon as possible”. In a post on social media platform X, he said that he was aware of the employees’ anger and agreed their dissatisfaction was legitimate.“It is urgent that all light be shed on the facts that led to this protest,” Gregoire wrote.Spokespeople for BAPS and SETE, the company operating the monument, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.“I refuse to accept that women should be told to step aside to meet the demands of foreign visitors,” Yael Braun-Pivet, the president of the National Assembly, wrote in a post on X about the incident.“Welcoming others never means giving up our values. In France, women are fully present in public life. No one tells them to become invisible,” she added. REUTERS
Read briefing FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham leaves 10 Downing Street to attend his first PMQs at the House of Commons, in London, Britain, September 2, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Melville/ File PhotoLONDON, Sept 7 - Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday, with the two leaders agreeing on "the need to continue working towards a ceasefire" to end Russia's war in Ukraine, Downing Street said.• "The Prime Minister reiterated the UK's support for Ukraine and for recent U.S.-led peace negotiations," a Downing Street spokesperson said.• Burnham and Trump also discussed the Middle East, with Burnham "stressing the importance of the two-state solution, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and ensuring that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon", the spokesperson added.• Monday's call comes after U.S. peace envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv on Sunday, having spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday. REUTERS
Read briefing A drone view showing the damageafter a fireworks explosion that left at least 10 people dead at a village festival in central Mexico.MEXICO CITY - Fireworks stored inside a church in Mexico detonated during a village festival, killing at least 10 people, official said Sept 6.More than 60 were injured in the accident on the night of Sept 5 in the town of Santa Maria Canchesda in central Mexico, the local government said.Video broadcast by news outlets showed the huge blast came as people stood outside the church celebrating and enacting a ritual in which a bull made of straw and fitted with fireworks is burned and carried around town.The explosion knocked down walls of buildings and ignited a fire in the town square, prompting people to flee in panic, the video showed.Some people were trapped under the debris of fallen buildings, news reports said. AFP
Read briefing A view of an Amazon Prime Air cargo plane that airport officials said overran a runway at Miami International Airport, in Miami, Florida, US.An Amazon cargo plane overran a runway at Miami International Airport on Sept 6, shutting down the airport’s runways and taxiways and prompting an emergency response.The Boeing 767-300, operated by 21 Air as Prime Air Flight 7598, overshot the runway around 2pm after arriving from Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.The plane struck multiple vehicles near the airport and emergency units were assessing patients, according to a post on X from Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, which reported heavy flames and smoke when it responded to the incident.“Prime Air Flight 7598 overran Miami International Airport’s diagonal runway and is disabled at the north-west end of the airport,” Indira Almeida-Pardillo, a spokesperson for Miami International Airport, said in a statement. She said all runways and taxiways were closed as of 3pm and a ground stop was in effect.Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned of significant delays and possible cancellations in a post on X.21 Air, a Miami-based cargo airline, began operating Boeing 767-300 freighters on behalf of Amazon in 2024.Amazon’s in-house cargo airline has tilted its focus to larger aircraft that can handle longer distances and bulk shipping, with the 767 model that crashed in Miami now accounting for the biggest portion of its fleet. Amazon Prime also has 10 Airbus A330-300 freighters, as well as smaller narrow-body 737s for regional routes.Representatives for 21 Air and Amazon didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.While the circumstances of the accident remain unknown, the crash stands to be the worst cargo-related incident since UPS Airlines Flight 2976 was destroyed on Nov 4, 2025, after it impacted the ground shortly after takeoff at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Kentucky, killing the 3 crew members aboard the airplane and 11 people on the ground.The aircraft involved in the crash was more than 32 years old, having first flown June 1994. Over the decades, it changed hands, including operations for Air Europa, Kenya Airways and Atlas Air, a cargo specialist, after being converted into a cargo aircraft in 2016, according to data compiled by the Planespotters website.The Boeing 767 is no longer in production as a commercial aircraft but still widely flown. The manufacturer still makes the plane in low numbers as military refuelling planes. BLOOMBERG
Read briefing A woman crosses the street as motorists drive past an anti-US billboard at Enghelab Square in Tehran. Iran, a major oil producer with some of the world’s cheapest fuel, has for years heavily subsidised petrol.TEHRAN - The Iranian authorities on Sept 6 announced they were raising the price of petrol for heavier consumers, as the United States steps up sanctions seeking to isolate the country’s economy.Iran’s quota system prices petrol in three tiers – 1,500 tomans per litre for a consumer’s first 60 litres in a given month, 3,000 tomans per litre for their next 50, and 5,000 tomans per litre after that. The toman is an informal unit equivalent to 10 Iranian rials.On Sept 6, government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani said the price for the third tier would double to 10,000 tomans (about 5.7 Singapore cents).“The rate will increase to 10,000 toman rials from the morning of September 8,” Mohajerani said in remarks carried by state media.“Different numbers were mentioned in expert meetings, but because the president had promised the people, the rate of 10,000 tomans was set,” she added.She later clarified that the price of the first and second tiers would not be changed.Iran, a major oil producer with some of the world’s cheapest fuel, has for years heavily subsidised petrol, making any changes to pricing politically sensitive.The development comes as the Iranian currency was trading on the black market on Sept 6 at more than 2.2 million rials to the US dollar, according to websites that track the rate.Before the start of the Middle East war on Feb 28, the rial traded at around 1.7 million to the dollar, and in late April it hit what was then a record low of 1.8 million.Late in August, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent laid out plans for the “economic asphyxiation” of Iran, hoping to use financial pressure to hasten the end of the war.The new measures build on a sanctions regime by the US and allies that has been in place since 2018, when President Donald Trump withdrew from an international deal struck with Tehran on its nuclear programme.The United States has also put Iran’s ports under a naval blockade, attempting to reduce its oil exports to zero. AFP
Read briefing Household items including family photographs are taken out of a damaged building and placed in the yard following a US strike earlier in the week on Kuhestak, Sirik County, in Iran's southern Hormozgan province.KUHESTAK, Iran - Outside a home in southern Iran, family photos, appliances and household items were piled in a courtyard, pulled from the wreckage of what the authorities said was a US strike that killed five people as they gathered to celebrate a wedding.The bride and groom had not yet arrived when the blast tore through the Mallahi family’s home in Kuhestak on the night of Sept 1, according to relatives who spoke to Iranian media.But dozens of women and children had already gathered in the compound, waiting for the festivities to begin.The extent of the destruction was stark, according to AFP journalists who visited the area on Sept 6 under the supervision of the Iranian authorities.The ceiling of one of the rooms had completely collapsed, and walls in a hallway had deep cracks.Abandoned shoes, many of them dressy women’s sandals, were piled up in one room, while a gaping hole the width of a double-doorway was blown in the wall of another.Abandoned shoes, many of them dressy women’s sandals, were piled up in one room.The dead included a four-year-old child and three women, one of whom died later in hospital, as well as one man, with nearly 70 people wounded.Kuhestak, a small coastal town more accustomed to the sound of the surf in the nearby Strait of Hormuz, was rocked by the thunder of explosions as the US carried out a wider bombardment of southern Iran on Sept 1.The bride and groom had not yet arrived when the blast tore through the Mallahi family’s home in Kuhestak on the night of Sept 1.On Sept 6, workers were cutting away the remains of a telecommunications tower that was knocked down in the attacks.The tower, about 15 metres high, had stood near the town’s port, and was about 100 metres from the house where the wedding was taking place.Workers solder the remains of a telecommunications tower destroyed following a US military strike earlier in the week on Kuhestak, Iran.A technical and administrative building in the same complex was also seriously damaged.Many pieces of shrapnel could be seen in surrounding areas, including at a shop near the tower, and several houses have been evacuated.The Iranian authorities have blamed the United States for the attack on the wedding ceremony, with the judiciary saying the US used precision-guided munitions and the foreign ministry calling it a “war crime”.The Iranian authorities have blamed the US for the attack on the wedding ceremony, with the judiciary saying the US used precision-guided munitions.Washington has not accepted responsibility for the attack, but has said it is investigating and does not target civilians intentionally.US officials said the military had targeted communications and other military infrastructure in the area. AFP
Read briefing Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky (fourth from right) meeting with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner (third and second from left, respectively) in Kyiv.KYIV - Washington’s envoys have brought new proposals on ending the war with Russia to Kyiv and President Volodymyr Zelensky is meeting them again in a trio format, a senior Ukrainian presidential official told AFP on Sept 6.The new talks came after Zelensky said “at the moment”, the war with Russia looked likely to continue into winter, following initial talks with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.But the senior presidential official told AFP: “It’s not the same as it was before. This one now is more effective. They’re still talking. This is actually the most important part.”Earlier on Sept 6, Witkoff and Zelensky had both given upbeat assessments of the talks, even if neither announced any breakthroughs on ending the conflict.Witkoff, who is President Donald Trump’s business ally, and Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, travelled to Kyiv a day after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow – the latest of several visits to the city.The visit to Kyiv on Sept 6 was their first to the Ukrainian capital, which has been enduring deadly Russian strikes for more than four years.Zelensky said: “We very much hope that we will be able to reach agreements with our American partners, and we are counting on the support of our European partners if the war continues in winter – and this is how it appears at the moment.”Zelensky also said Ukraine would hold talks with the US, France and Germany, but did not elaborate.The Ukrainian leader repeated his call that only a meeting between the two leaders could solve territorial issues.Moscow occupies large swathes of eastern and southern Ukraine and the Kremlin told the Americans on Sept 5 that it was feeling “confident” it would advance more.Moscow has said it wants not just the territories it occupies but the land it claims as Russian to be recognised as its own – terms unacceptable to Kyiv.Witkoff said both sides would need to compromise, adding: “We think we have the ingredients to get to that place.“We’ve had a very meaningful discussion, substantive, important, and we are very encouraged, and we look forward to continuing this as long as it takes.”Kushner added: “Hopefully this trip has come out with some new ways to advance forward. I think we’ve learned a lot from the trip.”Witkoff and Kushner travelled to the region hoping to revive the Trump administration’s push for peace in Europe’s worst conflict since World War II, after a summer of escalation.British, French and German representatives attended a separate round of the talks.Zelensky said he was grateful the Europeans were there, adding: “Here we are all on the same side.”Like all visiting officials, the American delegation had arrived by train, with “Peace Express” written on the platform at Kyiv Central Station.Russia and Ukraine vowed not to strike each other’s capitals during the US envoys’ trip.Moscow’s invasion has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions.A White House official said in a statement to AFP that in Moscow the envoys had “discussed substantive plans which will be announced in the coming weeks”.Without elaborating, the Kremlin said the Americans “put forward a number of ideas on possible routes to a settlement”.Putin has repeatedly said Moscow intends to seize the rest of eastern Ukraine, and Russia increased deadly strikes this summer.Since Putin launched the invasion in February 2022, the war has dragged on with no end in sight.Nataliia Lipekh, 67, said it was “absolutely necessary (for them) to be here” and to see that “our land is already soaked with this blood and that we need some help”.“At the moment, I have no grounds for hope,” said 29-year-old Yaroslav, saying he had seen “far too many of these negotiation processes”.Putin on Sept 5 told the US envoys that Moscow would ensure their safety in Kyiv.Trump had said his envoys were bringing a “proposal” to end the fighting. “We have an idea for peace,” he said, without elaborating.Despite the ceasefire pledges for the capital cities, fighting continued elsewhere.Ukraine’s air force said Russia had attacked overnight with 108 drones and missiles, while Moscow said it had shot down 258 drones.Ukraine said on Sept 5 that 10 people were killed by Russian strikes, including an 11-year-old boy. AFP
Read briefing A screen grab from footage provided by US Central Command on Sept 5 shows strikes that destroyed three oil tankers linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps after the Corps fired on American warships.WASHINGTON - The United States said it destroyed three Iranian oil tankers on Sept 5 in response to attempted missile attacks on naval vessels, prompting Iran’s military to warn of tougher reprisals if the strikes continued.The latest round of clashes, which began with US raids last week, comes with both sides deadlocked in the six-month war as Iran maintains its stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz and Washington presses its counter-blockade of Iranian ports.In addition to the renewed military action, Washington is seeking to choke Iran’s economy, announcing sanctions on entities with financial links to the Islamic republic in a bid to further isolate it and force it into submission.US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it targeted tankers linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), accusing the most powerful arm of the Iranian military of unsuccessfully firing at American warships.“Following Iran’s failed attacks, CENTCOM permanently disabled the IRGC crude oil carriers M/T Downy off the coast of Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 near Jask,” it said in a statement.“American forces also completely destroyed the unladen crude oil carrier M/T Kylo... in the Gulf of Oman, striking the vessel in multiple critical locations to render it inoperable after the crew was directed to abandon ship.”Video posted by CENTCOM showed large fireballs and billowing flames after projectiles slammed into the ships.The three vessels were “part of a multibillion-dollar shadow network that funds the IRGC and its regional proxies,” it said.After the strikes, CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper said: “If you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost – taking out three of yours.”The Iranian foreign ministry hit out at Washington over the attack, saying it “strongly condemns the US aggressive action in attacking Iranian commercial vessels” and calling the strikes “illegal and aggressive actions” without providing further details.A correspondent for Iranian state TV in Jask in the southern province of Hormozgan said one of the tankers was empty, and the second was carrying oil. The crews were transported to shore on lifeboats, they said.Another state TV correspondent on Kharg Island said the attack there caused no casualties.Iran’s Khatam-al Anbiya central military command warned that if the US continued its attacks, then Iranian retaliation against US warships would be “more severe than before, and there is a possibility of their expansion.”The Trump administration has been seeking to play down the significance of the six-month conflict, which has proven increasingly unpopular at home as midterm elections near.US Vice-President J.D. Vance went so far as to say that he “wouldn’t call it a war,” claiming that “right now, there is no active shooting” despite the ongoing exchanges of fire.US President Donald Trump backed his comments on Sept 4, calling the Iran war “small potatoes” for the US and insisting: “It’s not a big thing.”Iran’s security chief Mohsen Rezaei warned this week that the Islamic republic had adopted a “new strategy” against Washington in the war that “will shatter your foundations.”The US has been trying to step up pressure on Tehran over its blockade of the Hormuz Strait, through which one-fifth of world oil supplies previously flowed.A fragile ceasefire collapsed in July after attacks on commercial ships in the strategic waterway.Trump has in recent weeks repeatedly threatened to claim sovereignty over the strait, even posting a map showing it as a “new US territory.”Vance has also insisted that the US would not reopen talks with Iran until it ended attacks on commercial shipping in the Hormuz.But with fuel prices threatening to cost Trump’s Republicans their control of Congress at the ballot box, his administration has begun pushing the message that oil flows through the waterway are now returning to prewar levels.“Their control over the Strait of Hormuz is effectively gone,” Vance said of Iran on Sept 3.Before the latest hostilities erupted, the United States had appeared to be pivoting to economic warfare rather than military operations.On Sept 4, the Treasury announced sanctions on a Turkish bank over its alleged ties to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, and last week Washington took a step towards cutting off a major Egyptian bank’s UAE operations from the US financial system.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has laid out plans for the “economic asphyxiation” of Iran, warning of dire consequences for countries that do not join the American pressure campaign. AFP
Read briefing Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) shaking hands with Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump's son-in-law, as US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff looks on, at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on Sept 5.MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin met US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in the Kremlin on Sept 5, telling them at the start of the talks that the situation in Ukraine is “difficult”.Putin praised US President Donald Trump’s efforts to end the four-and-a-half-year war in Ukraine.Trump suggested on Sept 4 that the US had a fresh proposal aimed at ending the war. He did not elaborate.“Understanding that he is entering a difficult situation, he nevertheless does not stop his efforts to help bring about a settlement and to make his contribution to resolving the Russian-Ukrainian conflict,” Putin said.As in previous meetings, Putin was flanked by his foreign-policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, and his investment envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, who met the two visitors at the airport, took them to a restaurant, and then accompanied them to the Kremlin.Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said in a statement posted on the Kremlin’s channel in Max messenger that Putin had ordered the military not to strike Kyiv for three days, starting at midnight on Sept 5, in connection with Witkoff and Kushner’s visit to the Ukrainian capital.Putin noted in his opening remarks that the intensity of Ukrainian attacks on Russia had also decreased and promised to ensure the safety of the US negotiators.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had spoken to the two US envoys, set to visit Ukraine on Sept 6, adding that Ukraine was prepared to refrain from strikes on Moscow through Sept 7.The Russian Defence Ministry reported 53 Ukrainian drones in Russian airspace on Sept 5, significantly fewer than the average seen in recent months. Moscow celebrated City Day on Sept 5, with hundreds of thousands of people taking part in open-air festivities across the city.A vast gulf remains between Russia and Ukraine on how to end the war - the deadliest in Europe since World War II.A source close to the Kremlin, speaking before reports emerged of a possible trip by Trump’s envoys, said Putin was still intent on capturing more territory.“There is no chance of reaching an agreement regarding the front line until Putin finishes securing the remaining part of the Donetsk region,” the source told Reuters, adding that the Kremlin leader was confident – based on reports from his commanders – that this would happen by the end of the year.Western military analysts see such a possibility as remote, given Moscow’s slow rate of progress. Ukraine has refused to surrender land it has successfully defended at huge cost, and rejects such terms as tantamount to surrender.The Kremlin said on Sept 4 the position that Putin set out in a speech two years ago – that Ukraine should cede the entire territory of four regions claimed by Russia and abandon its plan to join NATO – was “unshakeable”.Since the last peace talks in February, each side has intensified long-range air attacks deep inside the other’s territory, while the war at sea has also escalated.On the ground, the front lines have remained largely static, with Russia making only gradual gains in its attempt to take the whole of Ukraine’s Donbas region.Ukraine’s drone strikes on Russian oil refineries have led to a summer of fuel shortages and rising prices for Russian motorists, while some 30 attacks on giant warehouses belonging mostly to Wildberries, the country’s biggest online retailer, have affected the consumer economy. REUTERS
Read briefing 