Trump says he will declare Strait of Hormuz US territoryArmy tanks cut firebreaks as wildfires spread in western EuropeMoscow rejects Black Sea truce as port strikes go onAt least five killed as 7.7 quake collapses buildings on FloresCongo's Ebola outbreak reaches a sixth province as deaths pass 2,100Israel to hand West Bank policing to police as Qusra siege holdsOil posts sharp weekly gain as Hormuz blockade holdsColombia searches for hundreds missing as quake toll passes 285Nvidia scales back its $250bn backstop for OpenAI data centresRSF attack kills at least 14 civilians in North KordofanHouthi missiles kill at least four at Yemen's Mokha portKushner to visit Israel after Netanyahu rejects Hamas disarmament planJane Street books about $15bn loss after Situational Awareness slumpOne levee breach sealed after Henan floodsUS retail sales slump as 30-year yields hit 25-year highTaliban mark five years in power as Kabul courts WashingtonRussian regions ration fuel after strikes on refineriesHezbollah rejects US framework as Beirut seeks withdrawal dateRussian campaign against Moldova detailed as Poland detains murder-plot suspectZambia halts presidential vote count after attacks on poll workersRecord rain east of Tokyo kills at least five, thousands stranded at NaritaSpaceX closes $60bn takeover of CursorFrance's top court strikes down social media ban for under-15sEurope's drought brings harvests forward and cuts river powerTakaichi sends Yasukuni offering on 81st surrender anniversaryPayPal in talks to sell itself to Stripe and AdventTaiwan simulates an internet blackout as US trains its coastguardUS questionnaire tests NATO allies' support for Trump before troop cutsVenezuela frees 131 political prisoners after first talks roundIndonesia to shut more than 750 state firmsUN warns food aid for 650,000 South Sudan refugees could stopUS urges Apple not to buy Chinese memory chipsAnthropic quarterly revenue passes $11.5 billionBP and Abu Dhabi's XRG take Venezuelan offshore gas licenceSpain and Morocco reinforce Ceuta border before crossing callBeijing rejects US report on rerouted Chinese exportsWhite House enlists private firms to hack foreign cybercriminalsNATO jets shoot down drone over LatviaChina calls US drone tariffs lose-lose as DJI wins new hearingUkraine's grain exports fall 70 percent as Black Sea trade stallsChina's humanoid robot push widens as robot games quadruple in sizeMarcos says China oil talks have moved forward despite maritime rowEtna ash keeps Catania airport shut, more than 1,000 flights cancelledChinese lab Z.ai releases coding model targeting US rivalsApple alerts iPhone users in 110 countries to spywareYen resumes slide as traders rebuild short positionsBlackout hits four Central Asian countries at onceInvasive urban mosquito drives malaria rise in AfricaUS shifts to sanctions rather than force against CubaEgypt examines legal questions on joining Mecca defence pactData centre projects hit power delays and a US subpoenaAI export boom lifts Taiwan and Hong Kong growth forecastsFrance puts tax portal breach at 678,000 usersMangione pleads guilty to shooting UnitedHealthcare chiefChina backs Moscow on Kurils after Putin's island visitQuantum networking records set in China and GermanyRecord Dax profits coincide with German industrial job cutsTrump family crypto venture wins preliminary approval for bank charterSingapore criminalises AI-generated intimate imagesChina's Ecological and Environmental Code takes effectLula's lead over Flávio Bolsonaro narrows before Brazil's electionRussian stock indices end week lower as ruble weakensIran-aligned Iraqi militia warns against forced disarmamentChina reports 522,000 new Covid cases in JulyAzerbaijan overtakes Russia as Türkiye's biggest pipeline gas supplierSon of Mexico's former president says US revoked his visaUS tells Canada to end retaliation or face new tariffsFarage wins back Clacton seat as standards inquiry resumesUS immigration agency issues electrified gloves to its officersToxic gas leak kills eight at Bangladesh shipbreaking yardTrump says he will declare Strait of Hormuz US territoryArmy tanks cut firebreaks as wildfires spread in western EuropeMoscow rejects Black Sea truce as port strikes go onAt least five killed as 7.7 quake collapses buildings on FloresCongo's Ebola outbreak reaches a sixth province as deaths pass 2,100Israel to hand West Bank policing to police as Qusra siege holdsOil posts sharp weekly gain as Hormuz blockade holdsColombia searches for hundreds missing as quake toll passes 285Nvidia scales back its $250bn backstop for OpenAI data centresRSF attack kills at least 14 civilians in North KordofanHouthi missiles kill at least four at Yemen's Mokha portKushner to visit Israel after Netanyahu rejects Hamas disarmament planJane Street books about $15bn loss after Situational Awareness slumpOne levee breach sealed after Henan floodsUS retail sales slump as 30-year yields hit 25-year highTaliban mark five years in power as Kabul courts WashingtonRussian regions ration fuel after strikes on refineriesHezbollah rejects US framework as Beirut seeks withdrawal dateRussian campaign against Moldova detailed as Poland detains murder-plot suspectZambia halts presidential vote count after attacks on poll workersRecord rain east of Tokyo kills at least five, thousands stranded at NaritaSpaceX closes $60bn takeover of CursorFrance's top court strikes down social media ban for under-15sEurope's drought brings harvests forward and cuts river powerTakaichi sends Yasukuni offering on 81st surrender anniversaryPayPal in talks to sell itself to Stripe and AdventTaiwan simulates an internet blackout as US trains its coastguardUS questionnaire tests NATO allies' support for Trump before troop cutsVenezuela frees 131 political prisoners after first talks roundIndonesia to shut more than 750 state firmsUN warns food aid for 650,000 South Sudan refugees could stopUS urges Apple not to buy Chinese memory chipsAnthropic quarterly revenue passes $11.5 billionBP and Abu Dhabi's XRG take Venezuelan offshore gas licenceSpain and Morocco reinforce Ceuta border before crossing callBeijing rejects US report on rerouted Chinese exportsWhite House enlists private firms to hack foreign cybercriminalsNATO jets shoot down drone over LatviaChina calls US drone tariffs lose-lose as DJI wins new hearingUkraine's grain exports fall 70 percent as Black Sea trade stallsChina's humanoid robot push widens as robot games quadruple in sizeMarcos says China oil talks have moved forward despite maritime rowEtna ash keeps Catania airport shut, more than 1,000 flights cancelledChinese lab Z.ai releases coding model targeting US rivalsApple alerts iPhone users in 110 countries to spywareYen resumes slide as traders rebuild short positionsBlackout hits four Central Asian countries at onceInvasive urban mosquito drives malaria rise in AfricaUS shifts to sanctions rather than force against CubaEgypt examines legal questions on joining Mecca defence pactData centre projects hit power delays and a US subpoenaAI export boom lifts Taiwan and Hong Kong growth forecastsFrance puts tax portal breach at 678,000 usersMangione pleads guilty to shooting UnitedHealthcare chiefChina backs Moscow on Kurils after Putin's island visitQuantum networking records set in China and GermanyRecord Dax profits coincide with German industrial job cutsTrump family crypto venture wins preliminary approval for bank charterSingapore criminalises AI-generated intimate imagesChina's Ecological and Environmental Code takes effectLula's lead over Flávio Bolsonaro narrows before Brazil's electionRussian stock indices end week lower as ruble weakensIran-aligned Iraqi militia warns against forced disarmamentChina reports 522,000 new Covid cases in JulyAzerbaijan overtakes Russia as Türkiye's biggest pipeline gas supplierSon of Mexico's former president says US revoked his visaUS tells Canada to end retaliation or face new tariffsFarage wins back Clacton seat as standards inquiry resumesUS immigration agency issues electrified gloves to its officersToxic gas leak kills eight at Bangladesh shipbreaking yard
Bota

The Situation · Edition 22

Saturday, 15 August 2026

← 14 AugToday →

Trump said on Friday he would soon declare the Strait of Hormuz a territory of the United States; Tehran rejected the claim. The waterway has been shut since February, and crude closed Friday with a weekly gain of about 6 percent, while economists warn Iran's economy is nearing collapse.

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Israel's defence minister ordered the army on Friday to hand West Bank civilian law enforcement to the police, as settlers besiege Palestinian families in Qusra since Sunday. Russia turned down Kyiv's offer of a mutual halt to Black Sea attacks, and Italian Eurofighter jets shot down a drone over Latvia. Houthi missiles killed at least four at Yemen's al-Makha port, and Sudan's Rapid Support Forces killed at least 14 civilians in Umm Arda. A magnitude 7.7 quake off Indonesia's Flores island killed at least five early on Saturday.

US retail sales fell in July by the most in more than a year, with 30-year yields at a 25-year high. The Wall Street Journal reported that Nvidia has downsized its $250bn backstop for OpenAI data-centre spending, and that Jane Street lost about $15 billion after trouble at the AI fund Situational Awareness.

Barely reported: power failed simultaneously in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan on Friday afternoon, Meduza said, the four still tied to a shared Soviet-era grid. Watch whether Zambia resumes the presidential count it halted after allegations of violence and fraud.

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Global · 5

Middle East · 9

Europe · 15

Asia · 19

Africa · 5

North America · 13

South America · 4