“Caught up in a crowd of protesters while delivering food in Indonesia’s capital on Thursday night, Affan Kurniawan dropped his mobile phone and knelt down to pick it up. At that moment an armored police vehicle slammed into the 21-year-old motorcycle taxi driver, pinning him under its front tires. As a crowd descended on the vehicle, the police officer hit the accelerator and ran over his body. Affan was rushed to a Jakarta hospital but didn’t survive. The fatal crash — caught on video and rapidly spread in group chats and on social media — turned what appeared to be manageable protests over rising costs of living into the most serious test yet for President Prabowo Subianto, who took power about 10 months ago. … While Jakarta appeared calmer on Monday morning, the past few days of protests have left at least four people dead and hundreds injured.” (09/01/25)
“The United States has suspended visa approvals for nearly everyone who holds a Palestinian passport, the New York Times reported on Sunday. The restrictions go beyond those Donald Trump’s administration had previously announced on visitors from Gaza. They would prevent Palestinians from traveling to the United States for medical treatment, attending college and business travel, the newspaper reported, citing unidentified officials. The state department said two weeks ago that it was halting all visitor visas for individuals from Gaza while it conducts ‘a full and thorough’ review, a move that has been condemned by pro-Palestinian groups.” (08/31/25)
“Ukrainian authorities have detained a suspect in the murder of Andriy Parubiy, a senior politician and former parliamentary speaker, and allege there is a Russian link to the killing. … On Saturday — in broad daylight — a gunman disguised as a food delivery worker fired eight bullets at Parubiy in central Kyiv, killing him. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the killer was well-prepared and organized. Parubiy’s murder is the latest in a string of killings of prominent Ukrainian politicians and activists this year, following the assassinations of former MP Iryna Farion in Lviv and anti-Russian activist Demian Hanul in Odesa.” (09/01/25)
“With migrant children waiting on tarmacs to be sent to their native Guatemala, a federal judge Sunday temporarily blocked the flights, siding with attorneys for the children who said the government was breaking laws and sending their clients to potential peril. The extraordinary drama played out overnight on a holiday weekend and vaulted from tarmacs in Texas to a courtroom in Washington. It was the latest showdown over the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration — and the latest clash between the administration’s enforcement efforts and legal safeguards that Congress created for vulnerable migrants. Guatemalan children who arrived at the border without their parents or guardians will stay for at least two weeks while the legal fight unfolds, according to the ruling.” (08/31/25)
“At least 800 people have been killed and more than 1,300 others injured in Afghanistan after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit the country, Taliban officials said Monday. … A U.N. team has been mobilized in Afghanistan, Secretary-General António Guterres said in a post on X. Several U.N. organizations, including the Children’s Fund, the World Health Organization, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, and the International Organization for Migration, said on X that they were providing emergency assistance.” (09/01/25)
“Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday that nothing is ‘off the table’ for cities with high crime rates and that others could see federal law enforcement on their streets — including in Republican-led states. President Trump’s activation of federal law enforcement and the National Guard in Los Angeles and Washington D.C. has been met with backlash and controversy, but his administration has continued to double down on the move, with Chicago the latest city on notice. Noem confirmed Sunday while appearing on CBS’ ‘Face the Nation’ that DHS intends to ‘add more resources’ to operations being conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Illinois and other states, but declined to give details over security concerns for agents and investigators on the ground.” (08/31/25)
“A Thai court removed the country’s suspended prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra from office on Friday for a serious breach of ethics over a controversial phone call she had with Cambodia’s former leader, plunging the kingdom into fresh political turmoil. Paetongtarn became the country’s youngest prime minister in August 2024 and has served only a year in office. In the leaked call, which took place on June 15 as border tensions with Cambodia escalated, Paetongtarn could be heard calling former Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen ‘uncle’ and appeared to criticize her own army’s actions in the border clashes that had led to the death of a Cambodian soldier.” (08/29/25)
“The White House has named a replacement for the director of the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a day after its previous leader was forced out of the job. Jim O’Neill currently serves as the deputy to Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, and will replace Susan Monarez after she was in the role for just a month. Lawyers representing Dr Monarez said her sacking was illegal, and alleged she was targeted by Kennedy because she refused ‘to rubber-stamp unscientific, reckless directives.’ The reason for her removal was that she was ‘not aligned with the president’s agenda,’ the White House said in a statement.” (08/28/25)
“The British government has blocked Israeli officials from attending a major defense conference in London amid continued criticism of the campaign in Gaza. Israel’s Ministry of Defense has previously been prominently represented at DSEI, a huge exhibition of weapons and other military equipment which takes place in London every other year. But a spokesman for the U.K. government told POLITICO they would not be invited to take part this year. Israeli arms companies will however be able to take part in DSEI as normal, according to Whitehall officials, and their presence is expected to draw large-scale protests. The spokesman said: ‘The Israeli government’s decision to further escalate its military operation in Gaza is wrong. As a result, we can confirm that no Israeli government delegation will be invited to attend DSEI UK 2025.’” (08/28/25)
“The Trump administration has approved a $825 million arms sale to Ukraine that will include extended-range missiles and related equipment to boost its defensive capabilities as U.S. efforts to broker peace between Ukraine and Russia appear stalled. The State Department announced Thursday that it had notified Congress of the sale of extended-range attack munition missiles and navigation systems for Ukraine. The sale will cover 3,350 ERAM missiles, 3,350 GPS units, along with components, spare parts and other accessories, as well as training and technical support. It said Ukraine would use funding from NATO allies Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway in addition to U.S. foreign military financing to pay for the equipment.” (08/28/25)
