Rescuers working to reach 10-year-old Ayoub on Sept 5, after he fell into an 80m-deep well near his home in Algeria. The traditionally dug well was just 40cm in diameter, making efforts to rescue him difficult.ALGIERS - Rescuers in Algeria on Sept 5 recovered the body of a 10-year-old boy who was trapped inside a well for four days, civil protection authorities said.Efforts to rescue the boy, whom authorities identified only by his first name, Ayoub, had drawn widespread attention across the country, and social media was awash with calls to save him.On the evening of Sept 5, however, the civil protection announced that “the child was found and recovered dead”.Teams had been working to reach Ayoub after he fell into an 80m-deep well near his home in the desert municipality of Brezina in El Bayadh province, some 550km south of Algiers.The civil protection said the well was dry and dug using traditional methods. It was only 40cm in diameter, which made efforts to rescue the boy difficult.While the operations were still ongoing, rescuers said they had been struggling to reach him because he was “trapped beneath a thick layer of soil”.Images released by authorities and local media showed heavy machinery digging a large pit alongside the well in an attempt to reach the boy. AFP
Read briefing BUENOS AIRES, Sept 5 - Argentines have broadly backed President Javier Milei’s forceful push against oil drilling near the Falkland Islands, underscoring the enduring resonance of Argentina's sovereignty claim over the British-controlled archipelago.In a televised address on Thursday, Milei said he would submit a bill to Congress to toughen sanctions against companies drilling and participating in "other activities on the islands that impact our natural resources."Milei previously favored diplomacy over confrontation on the Falklands. Argentina has claimed sovereignty over the Falkland Islands for nearly two centuries and lost a war with Britain over them in 1982. Britain said on Friday its position was "unwavering."Because Argentina does not administer the islands, it cannot directly block drilling there.In Buenos Aires, Mariana Hamicha, a 49-year-old accountant, said Milei's tougher stance signaled Argentina was standing up for its interests."I think taking a firm stand, especially regarding the exploitation by foreign companies and the extraction of oil, can be a way of drawing a line in the sand," Hamicha said.Milei also proposed creating a national security council to coordinate across aerospace and maritime security policy, and pledged more funding for a naval base in the southernmost province of Tierra del Fuego, a strategic gateway to the Falkland Islands and Antarctica. The government has not provided further details on the bill.“What Milei understood is, this is the moment to act,” said Juan Battaleme, a former secretary of international affairs for defense under Milei.Milei's speech came days after President Donald Trump suggested the U.S. could reconsider its neutral stance, citing frustration with Britain's limited support for U.S.-led military operations in the Middle East.The Sea Lion oilfield north of the Falkland Islands is operated by majority owner Navitas Petroleum, with Rockhopper Exploration owning 35%. The two owners have strong ties to Israeli investors.The companies said on Friday they had valid petroleum licenses and did not think Milei's comments would affect the project. Shares of both companies fell sharply on Friday.Candela Mascetti, a researcher at the Escuela Superior de Guerra in Buenos Aires, said Milei's remarks marked a notable shift for a president often criticized for not giving enough attention to the Falklands issue.“I don’t think having a naval base implies a call to arms, but it’s a posture that we hadn’t seen from Milei’s government in such a strong way,” Mascetti said.Falklands War veterans and the left-wing opposition have criticized Milei for praising former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, whose government defeated Argentina in the war over the islands, as one of the world's "greatest leaders." He also said Argentina hoped islanders would "one day decide to vote for us," a comment critics said echoed Britain's emphasis on the residents' right to self-determination.Milei, expected to run for reelection in 2027, has a low approval rating of 36.8%, according to an August poll by Zuban Cordoba and Associates."Given Milei’s poll numbers — and Trump’s hints that he is reconsidering the U.S. position on the dispute — it makes sense that Milei is adopting a harder line," said Benjamin Gedan, director of the U.S.-based Stimson Center's Latin America program.Even some of his political opponents welcomed Thursday's announcement, while criticizing Milei for not taking aggressive action earlier.Juan Grabois, a prominent leftist leader, said on X: “Milei’s 180-degree turn is welcome; he went from being a colonized fool to reclaiming Argentina’s historical stance.”Guillermo Carmona, who oversaw Argentina's policy regarding its claim to the Falklands under the previous center-left government, said Milei's measures were a positive step but insufficient given Argentina's close diplomatic ties to Israel.Israeli officials did not respond to a request for comment on Milei's proposed sanctions. REUTERS
Read briefing German police officers carrying out searches on Sept 2, after a sabotage attempt on Germany's electricity grid.BERLIN - Explosives have been found near two electricity substations in Germany, with authorities investigating whether the incidents were linked with similar attacks earlier this week, police said on Sept 5.Germany has been rattled by attacks on electricity substations across the country this week which were apparently aimed at cutting power from coal-fired power stations and causing widespread blackouts.Authorities said the attacks were likely a case of “climate extremism”, after a 48-year-old man, named in German media as Daniel V, sent letters claiming responsibility for the acts and suspected explosives were found during searches of his apartment.On Sept 5, regional authorities said that, “Following a report from a citizen, 12 improvised explosive devices were discovered on Friday near high-voltage lines close to the electrical substations of Baerwalde (near Bautzen) and Graustein (near Goerlitz).”Bomb disposal units disabled the devices and the surrounding electricity lines were briefly taken offline for the operation, police said.Police said they were investigating a “possible link” with the other incidents at electricity substations.On Sept 4, the Bild tabloid reported that a heavily armed elite police team had stormed a truck in Hambach Forest in North Rhine-Westphalia state suspected of belonging to the activist, but had failed to apprehend him.The area is highly symbolic for Germany’s climate movement. Activists spent years protesting plans to raze vast tracts of forest to expand the nearby Hambach open-cast lignite mine.Germany has faced a spate of attacks on the power grid in recent times, with far-left activists claiming responsibility in some cases.The most serious took place in Berlin in January, causing an electricity outage that left tens of thousands of homes and thousands of businesses without power for nearly a week in the middle of winter. AFP
Read briefing TUNIS, Sept 4 - Tunisian police on Friday arrested prominent journalist Mohamed Yousfi, an outspoken critic of President Kais Saied, the head of the journalists' syndicate told Reuters, in a move critics said was aimed at stifling dissenting voices.Police arrested Yousfi as he was preparing to enter Express FM Radio to take part in a radio programme, said Zied Dabbar, the president of the SNJT union.Walid Ben Rhouma, a presenter at Express FM radio who had invited Yousfi to appear on his programme, said police told him that Yousfi would be taken in for questioning, without giving any reason.Yousfi, who is also editor-in-chief of the investigative news website Al-Qatiba, has been heavily critical of Saied's policies.Rights groups warn of growing attempts to stifle remaining independent voices in Tunisia since Saied suspended parliament in 2021 and dissolved it in 2022, ruling by decree.Several media figures have been jailed this year, including Zied Heni, Mourad Zghidi and Borhen Bsaies, and Khaoula Boukrim, who was sentenced in June to four years in absentia.Free speech initially flourished following the 2011 uprising that toppled Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and led to the "Arab Spring".But critics say Saied's accumulation of power in 2021 and decrees he has issued since then have dismantled democratic safeguards and enabled the authorities to pursue many journalists.As well as journalists, the leaders of Tunisia's main opposition parties have been jailed in the last three years, along with dozens of activists and businessmen, on charges of conspiring against state security, money-laundering and corruption.Saied says he will not be a dictator and that freedoms are guaranteed in Tunisia. REUTERS
Read briefing ROME, Sept 4 - A record period of government stability has strengthened Italy, which is no longer viewed within the European Union as "a case to monitor", Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Friday as her administration became the longest-serving of the postwar era.In a country notorious for political volatility, Meloni's right-wing coalition has surpassed Silvio Berlusconi's 2005 record, passing more than 1,400 days in office since taking power in October 2022.Speaking at an event in the southern city of Bari to mark the milestone, Meloni listed what she described as her government's key achievements. Delivering lasting political stability in a country that had had 68 governments in 80 years was itself a major accomplishment, she said."Stability is the first major reform we have delivered to this nation. Thanks to that stability, Italy has stopped being a country under watch in Europe," she told supporters.During a tumultuous global period of conflict and economic shockwaves, Italy has appeared steadier than some nearby countries, including France, which has had five prime ministers since autumn 2022, and Britain, which has had four.Meloni said political stability had reassured financial markets about Italy's handling of its public finances and high debt pile, helping soften borrowing costs on government bonds."Having the public accounts in order means fewer constraints. Those who keep their finances in order get to decide where to spend their money," she said.Analysts broadly agree that Meloni's strongest achievement has been restoring confidence in Italy's finances, but critics say little has been done to overhaul the inefficient public administration, healthcare and education systems.The government's main institutional reforms, including plans to strengthen the prime minister's powers, have stalled, while voters this year rejected a government-backed referendum on judicial reform.The centre-left opposition on Friday accused the government of failing to address Italy's longstanding problems."Four years of inactivity and inertia are not a badge of honour but an aggravating factor," said Giuseppe Conte, a former prime minister and leader of the 5-Star Movement, pointing to the country's persistently sluggish economic growth.A demonstration was staged in Bari against the rally organised by Meloni's Brothers of Italy party.With elections due next year, Meloni is expected to lead her coalition into the campaign.In opinion polls, the centre-left bloc holds a narrow lead over Meloni's alliance, whose support has been eroded by Futuro Nazionale, a far-right movement that has tapped into concerns over immigration, security and cultural change. REUTERS
Read briefing Trump did not say whether envoys Jared Kushner (left) and Steve Witkoff would visit Ukraine, Russia or both nations.WASHINGTON - US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, are heading abroad to attempt to forge a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, the US president told reporters on Sept 4.During comments in the Oval Office, Trump suggested the US had a fresh concrete proposal aimed at ending the war, which is now in its fifth year.He did not, however, elaborate on what that proposal would be, nor did he say if Witkoff and Kushner would be travelling to Ukraine, Russia or both nations.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sept 4 said the two men would fly to Ukraine on Sept 6 after visiting Moscow.“I sent Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, two great negotiators. They’ve done a great job, and we sent them over to see whether or not we can get something done. And there may be a good chance that we’ll do it.”The duo had been planning to travel to Moscow over the weekend followed by a visit to Kyiv, two sources previously told Reuters.However, the itinerary has been in flux in recent days, and the Kyiv section of the journey was still not completely certain, one of the sources said on Sept 4.The Trump administration’s attempts to settle the war in Ukraine have largely come to nothing, and negotiations stalled out in recent months.In late August, Central Intelligence Agency director John Ratcliffe travelled to Moscow in part to press counterparts there to consider a settlement, Reuters and several other media outlets reported.Most Western intelligence officials doubt Russian President Vladimir Putin is interested in a short-term deal, while Ukrainian intelligence believes he is in fact likely to escalate, rather than de-escalate the war in the near term.A Russian drone hit the headquarters of Ukraine’s SBU security service in Kyiv on Sept 4 in one of the most high-profile targets struck during the war.Witkoff, who is effectively the lead US negotiator with respect to the war in Ukraine, has travelled to Moscow numerous times but has not yet visited Ukraine. REUTERS
Read briefing The new map - known as the Equal Earth cartographic projection - more accurately depicts the scale of the continents than the traditional Mercator projection that it replaces.UNITED NATIONS, United States - The United Nations General Assembly voted on Sept 4 for a resolution spearheaded by several African countries to adopt a map that makes their continent bigger while shrinking North America and Europe - aiming at “a more accurate representation” of world geography.The resolution was backed by 164 countries while the United States voted against it and six other states abstained.The new map - known as the Equal Earth cartographic projection - “offers a more accurate representation of the sizes of continental landmasses and to this end is a relevant option for improving the accuracy of the cartographic representation of the world,” the resolution says.It urges member states to adopt the new map in place of the traditional Mercator projection, which was designed for maritime navigation by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569.The foreign minister of Togo, which drove the resolution, said maps “shape our understanding of the world.”“They guide education, nourish the imagination, and influence collective perceptions. They are therefore never neutral, when they present a distorted image of our planet, they risk perpetuating inaccurate representation that are passed down through generation,” Robert Dussey said at the UN.The Mercator projection focused on accurate depictions of the shapes and angles of land masses, but their relative sizes were often inaccurate - in part due to the challenge of rendering a three-dimensional globe onto a two-dimensional map.It inflated northern regions and compressed equatorial ones, making Europe and North America appear much larger, while shrinking Africa and South America.A group of cartographers launched the Equal Earth projection in 2018. It makes Africa, Latin America, South Asia and Oceania appear vastly larger.“Equal Earth preserves the relative surface areas of continents and, as much as possible, shows their shapes as they appear on a globe,” one of the cartographers, Bojan Savric, told AFP in 2025.The foreign ministry of France - which co-sponsored the resolution in support of the new map - announced on Sept 4 that it would abandon the Mercator projection.In that map, “the United States, Russia and China take on a disproportionate visual prominence compared to Africa, Latin America or south-east Asia,” while “Greenland appears almost as big as Africa,” Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said.The initiative comes as France is seeking to improve relations with Africa, particularly in former colonies with which it has prickly ties. AFP
Read briefing QUITO, Sept 4 - Ecuador defended on Friday U.S. operations that intercepted and sank three Ecuadorean vessels this week, saying they were the product of joint investigations to disrupt drug trafficking.The sinkings are the latest in a broader U.S. military campaign known as Operation Southern Spear that has destroyed some 70 vessels and killed more than 220 people over the past year, drawing criticism from human rights groups and some Latin American leaders who call the strikes extrajudicial killings."This is work carried out through international cooperation," Ecuador's Interior Minister, John Reimberg, told local broadcaster Teleamazonas. "This is not something where action is taken lightly or the first time something suspicious is seen.""These are investigations conducted with the United States precisely to determine what these vessels are doing, the logistics they are providing, so that drug shipments can ultimately be disrupted," he said, adding refueling stations allow small speedboats to transport drugs to Mexican ports and then on to the United States.The boats intercepted and sunk this week were being used as refueling stations for drug trafficking by the Los Choneros gang, the U.S. Southern Command said on X, where it also posted videos of the vessels being blown up after occupants were removed.The Ecuadorean Navy said late on Thursday that the crews of two vessels, a total of 28 people, would be transferred to the port city of Manta and were expected to arrive on Friday. Other crew members, meanwhile, "remain at sea aboard their respective vessels."Though the U.S. government has claimed responsibility for dozens of attacks as part of Southern Spear, it has not claimed three others this year which bear the hallmarks of U.S. strikes, involving fishing vessels from Ecuador's Manabi province. REUTERS
Read briefing TUNIS, Sept 3 - Tunisia's Cassation Court on Thursday upheld prison sentences of up to 45 years imposed on opposition leaders, lawyers and businessmen on charges of conspiracy, their lawyers and families told Reuters.The opposition said the ruling, which is the final stage of the three-year legal proceedings and cannot be appealed, reinforces President Kais Saied’s authoritarian rule.Forty people were charged with conspiring to overthrow the president in one of Tunisia’s largest recent political prosecutions. Twenty fled abroad and were sentenced in absentia.“The ruling confirms that the judiciary is not independent,” said lawyer Haifa Chebbi, daughter of prominent opposition figure and National Salvation Front leader Nejib Chebbi, who was sentenced to 12 years."Opponents entered prison by political decision and will leave when Saied falls,” she said.Saied has said the judiciary remains independent and that he would not become a dictator. In 2023, when most of the defendants were arrested, he said the politicians were "traitors and terrorists" and that judges who would acquit them were their accomplices.Tunisia's justice minister has said the defendants tried to destabilise the country and overthrow Saied.Rights groups say Saied has controlled the judiciary since suspending parliament and seizing extraordinary powers in 2021, ruling by decree, dissolving the independent Supreme Judicial Council and sacking dozens of judges in 2022.Prominent opposition figures Ghazi Chaouachi, Issam Chebbi, Jawhar Ben Mbarek and Ridha Belhaj were sentenced to 20 years in prison, while politician Noureddine Bhiri received 10 years. REUTERS
Read briefing U.S. President Donald Trump speaks about election security during an address to the nation from the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 16, 2026. SAUL LOEB/Pool via REUTERSLONDON, Sept 3 - U.S. President Donald Trump said Britain was "on the edge of disaster," voicing concerns in an interview with GB News about the country's high energy costs, net zero policies and the impact of mass migration.Relations between Britain and Trump's United States have been turbulent in recent years, deteriorating from the highs of a pomp-laden state visit to London in 2025 into heavy criticism on a range of domestic and foreign policy areas.Speaking on Thursday, Trump repeated his admiration and affection for King Charles and love of Britain as a country, but said Prime Minister Andy Burnham's government had serious problems to overcome."Your country's in trouble. You're on the edge of disaster," he said. "You have a tremendous immigration problem, and you have a tremendous energy problem. Your energy is three, four times higher than it should be."Trump, who calls climate change a hoax, has previously criticised Britain's shift away from fossil fuels and repeatedly called on successive leaders to exploit its North Sea oil and gas reserves.Burnham is weighing whether to permit two large North Sea developments to go ahead, promising a pragmatic approach to energy transition but repeating his government's belief in the need to shift to clean sources of electricity."If you don't stop people pouring into your country from all over the world, you're not going to have a country left," he said.Concerns about immigration, centred on people arriving illegally on small boats from continental Europe, are among the most important issues for many British voters and have fuelled a surge in popularity for Nigel Farage's right-wing Reform party.Burnham's government has repeated pledges made by his predecessor Keir Starmer to stop such crossings. Earlier this week, it said they had fallen sharply and that work targeting launches and the criminal gangs behind them was bearing fruit. REUTERS
Read briefing Concerns about the capabilities of advanced AI models have grown since OpenAI launched the previous version of its flagship model, GPT-5, a year ago.SAN FRANCISCO - ChatGPT maker OpenAI said on Sept 3 it would begin rolling out its newest and most powerful artificial intelligence (AI) model to select customers, saying it had built in safeguards to mitigate security risks.“At this level of capability, safety has to become our top priority,” OpenAI president Greg Brockman told reporters on a call about the release of GPT-6, also known as Astra.Just over a year has passed since OpenAI launched the previous version of its flagship model, GPT-5.Concerns about the capabilities of advanced models have grown since then, following incidents involving systems built by OpenAI and rival developer Anthropic.OpenAI paused some model development for two weeks this summer after two models it was testing were involved in a security breach at AI platform Hugging Face.The San Francisco-based company said Astra was developed with stronger safeguards after that incident, though Astra itself was not involved in the hack.Some cybersecurity customers will get access to the new model on Sept 3, the company said, with a wider rollout to other paying customers to follow. Users on the free tier or the cheapest paid plan will not get access.In a blog post, OpenAI said Astra can autonomously handle a wide range of “tedious” computer tasks, including website creation, scientific analysis, game development, cybersecurity and coding.To illustrate the time savings of building autonomous AI agents with Astra, the company said the model could cut apartment hunting from six hours to under 10 minutes.“It’s not unreasonable to feel that we are now in the AGI era,” Brockman said on the call, referring to artificial general intelligence, a hypothetical stage at which AI systems match human intelligence across most tasks.OpenAI previously had an agreement with Microsoft, one of its earliest and largest investors, under which an exclusivity clause would end once OpenAI reached AGI. Those terms were scrapped in April.OpenAI chief scientist Jakub Pachocki acknowledged there was still uncertainty about how a new model behaves once released.“A model can become very good at achieving a goal, and it can still act in ways that go against what the person intended,” Pachocki said on the same call.“We also have to be willing to slow down or withhold further scaling when our confidence in safety is not sufficient,” he added.OpenAI, Anthropic and more than 100 other organisations signed an open letter last week calling for a coordinated global response to AI-related cybersecurity risks, warning that the window to strengthen cyber defences was limited.Anthropic went further on Aug 31, calling for industry-wide coordination on safety and on the pace of developing increasingly capable models.“I believe that shared safety standards and international coordination on further AI development need to be prioritised now,” OpenIA’s Pachocki said on Sept 3.The US state of Alabama opened an investigation into OpenAI last week over the Hugging Face breach, his office citing what it called the company’s complete lack of oversight and adequate safeguards. AFP
Read briefing The badge of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is embroidered on a polo shirt of an ICE employee in Arlington, Texas, U.S. August 26, 2025. REUTERS/Shelby TauberWASHINGTON, Sept 3 - An immigration officer has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of making false statements about the shooting of a Venezuelan man in Minnesota during a deportation surge last winter, according to a source familiar with the matter on Thursday.Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Christian Castro was indicted on six counts of lying to investigators, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation. The charges will be unsealed once Castro is in custody, the person said.The charges are an extraordinary step by a Justice Department that has refrained from alleging criminal wrongdoing by federal officers. This is the first known Justice Department prosecution of a federal immigration officer over wrongdoing in the Minneapolis operation, part of President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.Castro faces state charges in Minnesota for shooting and wounding Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in the leg on January 14, at the height of Trump's deportation campaign in Minnesota, which drew weeks of protest.There is an active Minnesota state arrest warrant for Castro, who spent 90 days in a Texas county jail. He was released last week after Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, said he was refusing to sign extradition papers sent by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, a Democrat.The state charges also include falsely reporting a crime after Castro allegedly wrongly told superiors at the Department of Homeland Security that Sosa-Celis and others attacked him with a snow shovel and broom, which was disproved by video evidence.DHS has suspended Castro, and the person familiar with the case said a civil rights investigation is ongoing and no decision has been reached yet in that matter.Matt Evans, a federal prosecutor who had been working on the case, was fired this week after ProPublica reported he sent an email to Sosa-Celis’ lawyers saying DOJ attorneys had stopped his efforts to bring federal charges, according to the person familiar with the case. Evans is now being investigated for obstruction of a grand jury investigation, the person said.Castro has not publicly addressed the state charges against him since his release from the Cameron County jail last week, and he could not immediately be reached for comment on Thursday.The Trump administration has largely defended the conduct of ICE agents, saying incorrectly that they have absolute immunity from state prosecutions.Robin Wolpert, a lawyer for Sosa-Celis, said in a statement her client wants Castro to be held "fully accountable" with stronger civil rights charges. "Mr. Castro has been indicted for making false statements," she said. "But he made them to cover up the fact that he shot my client through the door of an occupied house without a self-defense justification."The ACLU of Minnesota announced on Thursday that it will represent Sosa-Celis as he sues the Trump administration. REUTERS
Read briefing Scientists testing spacesuits during a press event on Sept 3 at a new lunar simulation facility in western Germany, called LUNA.WASHINGTON - The Trump administration pressured US space companies not to attend a high-profile space summit in Paris organised by French President Emmanuel Macron, triggering a last-minute reshuffle and the cancellation of some announcements, according to people familiar with the matter on Sept 3.The White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy hosted a call a week ago with several US space companies planning to attend the Sept 9 to 10 event and said their attendance could suggest support for European policy positions with which the US disagrees, four of the sources said.The summit will feature speeches from Macron and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, as European countries ramp up investments in civil and military space capabilities and reduce reliance on US firms like Elon Musk’s SpaceX for satellite communications and rocket launches.The White House officials on the call, which was first reported by Politico, steered clear of explicitly directing companies not to attend, but made strong suggestions against attending, the sources said.Some announcements planned for release at the summit between European and US companies have since been cancelled, according to one of the sources.An OSTP official said, “The Trump Administration continues to collaborate with allies and partners in space. We look forward to productive conversations at the Space Summit on key priorities including science missions, exploration programmes, and space security.”France has said the “International Space Summit” will open a dialogue between participants including heads of state and other decision makers and industrial or scientific groups from some 120 countries.The aim is to discuss various declarations of intent, but the informal political summit is not designed to take policy or budget decisions, European space officials said.
Read briefing New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani (centre), in explaining the ban, said children need teachers and human connection in order to learn and grow.NEW YORK - New York City officials announced a one-year moratorium on students using artificial intelligence in public elementary and middle schools, the latest step by public officials to set guidelines around new technology in the classroom.The move by the nation’s largest school district is the most restrictive to date across the US, though other districts, including Los Angeles, have said they are reviewing AI policies.Mayor Zohran Mamdani told reporters on Sept 2 that schools would halt the current use of about 40 educational tools in New York City classrooms.“Children need teachers and human connection in order to learn and grow. They need to develop skills alongside their peers, build relationships with educators and wrestle with tough problems on their own,” Mamdani said at a press conference.Major AI developers Google, Anthropic and Microsoft did not immediately reply to requests for comment.The policy will affect about 600,000 public school students through eighth grade, while high school students will be allowed to use AI in some cases. Teachers will be permitted to use AI for lesson planning and tasks such as scheduling, the city said in a statement.New York City public schools previously imposed a temporary ban on ChatGPT soon after its rollout in 2022. The restriction was later lifted and replaced by a custom AI-powered teaching assistant, according to Microsoft, part-owner of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI. REUTERS
Read briefing MEXICO CITY, Sept 2 - A Mexican musician, his pregnant wife, 3-year-old daughter, a young domestic worker and the family's pet dog were tied up and shot dead in a gruesome scene at his penthouse in an upscale residential block outside Mexico City.Their 6-year-old son was found at the scene unharmed, local authorities said on Wednesday.Jonathan Melendez, 38, was a composer who played keyboard for the indie rock band Camilo Septimo. His wife, Ana Paola, was approximately four months pregnant, officials said.The couple, their toddler daughter, and a 21-year-old woman who worked at their home had all been shot at the apartment on Tuesday night, the State of Mexico prosecutor's office said in a statement.The victims, including the family's dog, were bound with duct tape. The three-year-old girl was shot in the head at close range, authorities said. Two other victims were also shot in the head, and one was shot in the back.The prosecutor's office said it had arrested two suspects, including an associate of Melendez who could have used his relationship with the musician to gain access to the apartment.Neighbors reported hearing shouts and gunshots, local media reported, and the bodies were found inside the penthouse shortly before midnight.Camilo Septimo is a synthpop and indie band that was expected to play its next show in the border city of Ciudad Juarez later this month. REUTERS
Read briefing US President Donald Trump at a campaign rally for US Senator Darline Graham on Aug 21 at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.US President Donald Trump on Sept 2 told reporters that he planned extensive travel to states with high stakes races in the final month before the midterm elections in November.The midterms will be test of Trump's popularity as his approval rating sits at 33 per cent, the lowest level of his political career, just two months before election day, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.Republicans are seeking to defend slim majorities in the House and Senate against a seemingly more enthusiastic Democratic party."I will be going to Alaska. I'm going to be going the last 30 days before the election," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I’ll be making a lot of stops.”Trump said he would be campaigning for congressional candidates and “a few governors.”“I love the governors, but we’re interested in the Senate, and we're interested in the House,” Trump said.In recent weeks, Trump has travelled to Texas where he headlined a fundraiser for Senate candidate and state Attorney-General Ken Paxton and to South Carolina to campaign for Darline Graham in her senate primary race, which she won.“I will go to Alaska to make sure that a great senator gets reelected,” Trump said, voicing support for Senator Dan S. Sullivan in his race. REUTERS
Read briefing An ad for Google, at New York’s Times Square. A US federal judge ruled on Sept 2 that Google must make changes to address its advertising technology monopoly, but would not need to break up that business.Alphabet’s Google escaped a breakup of its advertising technology business on Sept 2, marking the third time in recent years that US antitrust enforcers have tried to force a Big Tech breakup and lost.US Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Virginia, declined to make Google sell AdX, where publishers pay Google a 20 per cent fee to sell ads in auctions that happen instantly when users load websites. The Department of Justice (DOJ) had argued Google could not be trusted to run the online advertising exchange after Brinkema ruled that Google had illegally quashed competition.The judge accepted behavioural remedies. She will release a detailed ruling in 14 days to give time to redact confidential information. Google had proposed fixes including providing real-time bid access to competitors.The ruling fuelled questions about whether courts are up to the task of checking the industry’s unprecedented power over the US economy, and the fate of a crackdown that started during President Donald Trump’s first term.Cases against Amazon and Apple involving smartphone and online retail markets have not yet gone to trial. And while two judges found Google engaged in anticompetitive conduct in separate markets, they rejected the strongest measure of requiring it to sell assets.AdX is a small part of Google’s business. Google shares pared gains slightly after the ruling and were up 0.6 per cent.Google welcomed the court decision. “We’re very pleased the Court rejected the DOJ’s proposal to break apart tools that help small businesses reach new customers and grow,” said executive Lee-Anne Mulholland.The DOJ is “pleased that the court ordered substantial relief,” it said in a social media post on X.“We are one step closer to restoring competition and bringing relief for the American people in online advertising markets. The Department is evaluating appropriate next steps,” the DOJ said.The DOJ and a broad coalition of states sued Google in 2023 over its dominance in markets for advertising technology used by online publishers and websites.In April 2025, Brinkema ruled that Google holds illegal monopolies on servers that host publisher ads and ad exchanges which sit between buyers and sellers. Google unlawfully locked publishers on its ad server into using its AdX, the judge found.The tech giant’s anticompetitive conduct “substantially harmed Google’s publisher customers, the competitive process, and, ultimately, consumers of information on the open web,” Brinkema said at the time.At a trial in 2025 on remedies in the case, the DOJ argued that Google cannot be trusted to run AdX, given its past behaviour.Google argued that a forced sale would be technically difficult and result in a long and painful transition that would hurt customers. The company also sought to show the DOJ’s demand was different from Google’s own previous offer to sell AdX to end an EU antitrust investigation, which Reuters reported in 2024.Ad Manager represented 4.1 per cent of Google’s overall revenue and 1.5 per cent of operating profit in 2020, according to Wedbush research and analysis of court documents. More recent figures were redacted from court documents.While Google has been ordered to change some business practices, the ruling is the third time in a row that a judge has rejected a bid by US antitrust enforcers to break up Big Tech.Sacha Haworth, executive director of The Tech Oversight Project, said the rulings “prove that the courts alone will not save us from Big Tech.” The advocacy group has proposed legislation aimed at restoring competition in digital advertising.A federal judge in Washington in 2025 rejected the Federal Trade Commission’s attempt to make Meta Platforms sell off Instagram and WhatsApp, saying the agency failed to prove that Meta holds a monopoly in a social media landscape that has shifted drastically since the case was brought in 2020. The FTC has filed an appeal. REUTERS
Read briefing The survivors alleged OpenAI knew that the chief suspect was planning the attack but made a “conscious decision” not to warn the authorities. OpenAI was hit with multiple lawsuits claiming the artificial intelligence company could have prevented a mass shooting in Canada earlier in 2026 by informing law enforcement about the suspected killer’s messages with the popular chatbot ChatGPT.The complaints were filed on Sept 2 in federal court in California by teachers, students and a principal who were present during the February massacre at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in British Columbia.They alleged OpenAI knew that Jesse Van Rootselaar, the chief suspect, was planning the attack due to her use of ChatGPT, but made a “conscious decision” not to warn the authorities. “This is not someone typing into Google ‘Where can I buy a gun?’” said Jay Edelson, an attorney for the plaintiffs in the cases. “This is technology where the chatbot is helping plan murders.”The lawsuits aren’t the first against OpenAI tied to the shooting. In April, seven cases were filed by other family members and victims, including the mother of a girl killed in the shooting and a 12-year-old student who was shot. Those cases are ongoing. Jason Kwon, OpenAI’s Chief Strategy Officer, said in a statement on Sept 2 that it’s “completely untrue to say that the people at the center of these challenging decisions do not prioritise safety.”“There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about what happened at Tumbler Ridge, or the victims of this devastating tragedy and their families,” Kwon said in a statement. “It’s a constant and sobering reminder of the important and incredibly difficult work that many people in my team do each and every day.”Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman, who is a defendant in the lawsuits, wrote a public letter to the Tumbler Ridge community apologising for failing to report the suspect’s account to law enforcement. OpenAI and other chatbot makers have faced a stream of litigation since 2024 related to its users committing crimes or alleging that extensive use of the technology has inflicted a range of harms on children and adults alike. In some cases, the chatbots have been accused of fostering delusions and despair for some and leading others to suicide and even murder-suicide.In the Tumbler Ridge cases, the lawsuits claim OpenAI’s automated system flagged the account used by Van Rootselaar, 18, for “gun violence activity and attack planning” roughly eight months prior to the shooting. An internal safety team at the company reviewed the issue and recommended referring the chat logs to law enforcement.In June 2025, leaders at the company vetoed the recommendation and deactivated Van Rootselaar’s account, according to the complaints. Despite the deactivation, she was able to register for a new account. The decision about whether to alert law enforcement was in the hands of OpenAI’s Chief Global Affairs Officer Chris Lehane, the suits claim.Kwon defended Lehane, saying “it is absolutely false to say Chris Lehane was involved with our original referral decision, or that our investigators report to him in any way.” The suits allege the company prioritised its reputation over the safety threat posed by the conversations Van Rootselaar had with ChatGPT. “The risk of real-world deaths never factored into the calculation – or if it did, it was treated as an acceptable cost of protecting the corporate brand,” the lawsuits say.On the day of the attack, Van Rootselaar allegedly shot and killed her mother and stepbrother at home and then went to the Tumbler Ridge campus and killed six other people, five of whom were children. She was found dead after the shooting from what appeared to be a self-inflicted wound. BLOOMBERG
Read briefing The presence of Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov (left) at the G-20 meeting in the US prompted protests from European officials.ASHEVILLE, United States - Canadian Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said on Sept 1 that his Russian counterpart’s presence at US-hosted Group of 20 (G-20) talks has caused unease among participants, given the suffering of Ukraine since Moscow’s 2022 invasion.“It created discomfort, no doubt about that,” Champagne told AFP when asked if the Russian finance minister’s unexpected appearance impacted meetings.Champagne was speaking in Asheville, North Carolina, where finance leaders from the G-20 major economies are gathered over two days of discussions ending on Sept 1.But the presence of Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov prompted protests from European officials, who objected to appearing in a traditional “family photo” with him.An EU spokesperson noted the bloc’s representatives were only given short notice of his attendance.Moscow has intensified its strikes on Kyiv this summer, with US-brokered talks remaining frozen.The Group of Seven (G-7) held talks on the sidelines of the G-20 meetings late on Aug 31 in Asheville, discussing Ukraine aid.“The G-7 has always been very united in our support for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in the face of the illegal invasion and the suffering that we see,” Champagne said, noting the intensity of the conflict.Champagne added that the smaller grouping, of which both Canada and the US are also a part, will continue being firm in its support for Ukraine.Champagne is also entering bilateral talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on the afternoon of Sept 1, as the North American neighbours remain in a trade war.He plans to be “constructive and firm,” stressing that “we’re not seeking escalation.”President Donald Trump in late August imposed 50 per cent tariffs on certain Canadian goods, alleging “discriminatory treatment” of US commerce.This triggered Ottawa’s retaliation, with planned counter-tariffs of 15 per cent to 50 per cent taking effect Sept 8.“This is not a trade conflict we have chosen, but we need to respond to maintain a level playing field” between US businesses and Canadian ones, Champagne said.While trade talks have stalled, Champagne maintained that Canada is “always happy to explore ways where we can reengage” on a mutually beneficial basis.As Bessent tries to rally partners to join Washington’s economic pressure campaign on Iran amid fighting in the Middle East, Champagne added that Ottawa remains ready to look at further sanctions.“We have been in lockstep with our partners” on sanctions targeting Russia and Iran, Champagne said.But Canada’s trade with both parties is already at the “lowest level I could imagine,” he added. AFP
Read briefing MOSCOW, Sept 1 - Russia's embassy in Germany said on Tuesday that German allegations that Russia was responsible for an attempted drone attack at Leipzig/Halle airport last month were an absurd and baseless provocation which stood to benefit Ukraine, the militaristic wing of the Europe's elite, and arms makers.The German government said on Tuesday it had concluded that Russia was to blame for the incident and ordered a series of measures in response, including the closure of a consulate and a Russian cultural centre in Berlin.Russia's embassy in Germany said in a statement that the measures amounted to an unprecedented escalation."The Russian ambassador categorically rejected the accusations levelled by Berlin as unsubstantiated, absurd and contrary to common sense," the embassy said."He pointed out that the measures announced by the German side represent an unprecedented escalation in Russian-German relations and will not remain without consequences, for which the German Government will bear full responsibility." REUTERS
Read briefing Sept 1 - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned airlines and insurance companies on Tuesday that the presence of Ukrainian drones had made Russian skies dangerous to use and were effectively closed."Today, we want to warn every airline that uses Russian airspace, every insurer, everyone who still uses key Russian airports: the Russian sky is becoming completely dangerous," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.Ukraine poses no threat to civil aviation, he said, "but there will be drones in Russia's skies and due notice must be taken"."Although Russian authorities are not properly announcing it, Russian airspace will effectively be closing. The war started by Russia is closing its own skies," Zelenskiy added.Russia has stepped up its air attacks on Kyiv and other cities in recent weeks, with Moscow's latest strike killing 12 people and injuring many more, the sixth straight day of intense assaults on the Ukrainian capital.Ukraine has responded with frequent drone strikes on Russian targets, many associated with the country's oil industry as well as retail sites. REUTERS
Read briefing People looking on at the scene of the stabbings in New York’s Times Square on Aug 31. According to ABC7 New York, a woman stabbed two people before confronting police.NEW YORK - A Bank of America (BofA) vice-president, Erin Piacenti, was killed in a stabbing at Times Square on Aug 31.Piacenti, 32, was a vice-president in BofA’s business selection and conflicts unit, according to her LinkedIn profile.“We are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our colleague. She was a valued teammate who will be greatly missed. Our hearts go out to her family and all of her loved ones,” the US banking giant said, in an emailed statement to Reuters on Sept 1.New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on Aug 31 in a press briefing that a woman carrying multiple knives stabbed two people in Times Square before police used a Taser and fired their weapons.BofA’s Manhattan office is located a stone’s throw from Times Square at One Bryant Park.The bank also has other locations across New York City, the heartbeat of the American financial system.Piacenti sustained stab wounds in the incident and was later pronounced dead, the NYPD said.NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch added that the attacks appeared random and unprovoked.“The investigation remains ongoing by the NYPD Force Investigation Division,” the NYPD said in a statement, adding that the suspect, Pamela Cisneros, a 49-year-old woman, was killed on Aug 31 as officers responded.The incident comes after the fatal shooting of a senior Blackstone executive last summer when a gunman, carrying an assault rifle, walked into the lobby of a midtown Manhattan office building and opened fire. REUTERS
Read briefing Drivers queuing at a petrol station in Tehran on Aug 25. Iran faces difficulty importing enough fuel to meet demand due to a US naval blockade.TEHRAN - A top Iranian official called on citizens to curb their petrol consumption on Sept 1, as the country faces difficulty importing enough fuel to meet demand due to a US naval blockade.“Of course, part of the responsibility for this high consumption does not lie with our people; it lies with our industry,” parliament speaker and top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said, in a televised address.“But in any case, what is clear is that we need to save gasoline in our consumption.”Washington imposed its blockade of Iranian ports in retaliation for Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital conduit for Gulf oil and gas shipments.The US has also recently announced new wide-reaching sanctions aimed at further isolating the Iranian economy.In recent days, long queues of vehicles have been seen at petrol stations in Tehran.Iranian Vice-President Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah said last week that domestic petrol production was “insufficient, and because of the US naval blockade, we cannot import it”.Days earlier, the Iranian president’s chief of staff had said petrol quotas would be reviewed.Ghalibaf on Sept 1 said that conserving fuel “requires collective wisdom and certainly requires the people’s cooperation”.“If we consume it properly, we can manage with the amount of gasoline we produce in the country,” he said.With many Iranians feeling the pinch of soaring inflation and dimmed economic prospects exacerbated by the war, Ghalibaf also announced plans to expand subsidies.“The government and parliament are determined to increase the credit allocated to the electronic food subsidy programme, especially for those income deciles that are bearing the greatest share of the economic pressure,” he said.Demonstrations over economic concerns in December 2025 ultimately spiralled into a broader anti-government protest movement that peaked in January before being quelled.“In fact, all our efforts as officials should be aimed at reducing the pressure on the people so that there is less dissatisfaction, because the people’s satisfaction is a fundamental principle for us,” he said. AFP
Read briefing A fire at the WB Electronics factory in the central city of Skarzysko-Kamienna was started deliberately, Polish prosecutors said.WARSAW - Polish prosecutors announced on Aug 31 that they had launched a terrorism investigation into a fire at a drone factory.The fire at the WB Electronics factory in the central city of Skarzysko-Kamienna was started deliberately, a prosecution statement said.Authorities have not said who was suspected, but Poland, a key ally of neighbouring Ukraine, has accused Russia several times of attempted sabotage since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.Firefighters took two hours to control the fire early on Aug 31 and the country’s ABW intelligence agency has joined the investigation with the police.The prosecution statement said an investigation had started “for participation in the activities of a foreign intelligence service directed against the Republic of Poland and for a terrorist offence, consisting of deliberately causing a fire on the premises of the WB Electronics factory using a device containing flammable materials.”Several countries in eastern Europe have said they have been the target of spying and sabotage as part of a “hybrid war” they blame on Russia. AFP
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