“Iran’s foreign minister has declared that cooperation with the United Nations nuclear watchdog is ‘no longer relevant’ after Western countries reinstated international sanctions on the country. ‘The Cairo agreement is no longer relevant for our cooperation with the IAEA,’ Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday, referring to a deal signed last month with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). That agreement had laid out a framework for renewed inspections and monitoring after Tehran suspended cooperation following Israeli and United States attacks on its nuclear facilities in June. However, the deal lost significance after Britain, France and Germany – all signatories to the 2015 nuclear accord – triggered the return of UN sanctions, accusing Iran of breaching its commitments, claims which Tehran has rejected.” (10/05/25)
“Ukraine staged one of its biggest attacks [i]n the war on Russia, striking a major explosives plant and the largest oil loading terminal in occupied [sic] Crimea. Both exploded in giant flames – two of multiple targets hit in an overnight onslaught against Vladimir Putin involving more than 250 drones. … Ukrainian drones reportedly ignited the Sverdlov plant in Dzerzhinsk, one of the largest Russian manufacturers of explosives, detonators, munitions components, including aviation bombs, artillery shells, and warheads for missiles. … Russia claimed to have shot down 251 drones – the second highest number of the war.” (10/06/25)
“Groups of negotiators from Israel and the United States, as well as representatives from Hamas, have gathered in Egypt to discuss a 20-point plan to bring Israel’s military campaign in Gaza to an end. … Under the proposed framework, Hamas would release the 48 hostages it has been holding since the October 7, 2023, attacks in Israel. About 20 hostages are believed to still be alive. Israel is in turn supposed to return hundreds of Palestinian[ hostage]s it is holding. … The proposal also calls for an immediate ceasefire and an interim Gaza government led by former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and overseen by the United States, among other officials.” (10/06/25)
“Bitcoin set a fresh record on Sunday for the first time since mid-August, as the US government shutdown drove investors to safe-haven assets in a migration dubbed the ‘debasement trade.’ The largest digital-asset climbed to $125,689 over the weekend and remained in touching distance of its all-time high on Monday morning in Singapore at about $123,700, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The surge came amid a US government shutdown that’s helped fuel demand for perceived safe-haven assets.” (10/06/25)
“French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has resigned hours after appointing new cabinet, reports said. Lecornu, a former defence minister, was appointed by President Emmanuel Macron last month. The unexpected resignation has once again revealed the deepening political crisis in France. … Lecornu, a close ally of Macron, on Sunday appointed his cabinet after weeks of consultations with political parties and the cabinet was set to hold its first meeting on Monday. But Macron’s largely unchanged cabinet announcement triggered a backlash from opposition parties and even his own supporters.” (10/06/25)
“The Trump administration will start mass layoffs of federal workers if President Donald Trump decides negotiations with congressional Democrats to end a partial government shutdown are ‘absolutely going nowhere,’ a senior White House official said on Sunday. As the shutdown entered its fifth day, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told CNN’s ‘State of the Union’ program that he still saw a chance that Democrats would back down, averting a costly shutdown and federal employee layoffs that have been threatened by White House budget director Russell Vought. There have been no tangible signs of negotiations between congressional leaders since Trump met with them last week. The shutdown began on Oct. 1, the start of federal fiscal year 2026, after Senate Democrats rejected a short-term funding measure that would keep federal agencies open through Nov. 21.” (10/05/25)
“Japan’s ruling conservative party has elected Sanae Takaichi as its new leader, positioning the 64-year-old to be Japan’s first female prime minister. Takaichi is among the more conservative candidates leaning to the ruling party’s right. A former government minister, TV host and avid heavy metal drummer, she is one of the best known figures in Japanese politics – and a controversial one at that. She faces many challenges, including contending with a sluggish economy and households struggling with relentless inflation and stagnant wages. She will also have to navigate a rocky US-Japan relationship and see through a tariff deal with the Trump administration agreed by the previous government. If confirmed as prime minister, one of Takaichi’s key challenges will be uniting the party after a turbulent few years which saw it rocked by scandals and internal conflicts.” (10/04/25)
“A federal appeals court in Boston ruled on Friday that the Trump administration cannot withhold citizenship from children born to people in the country illegally [sic] or temporarily, adding to the mounting legal setbacks for the president’s birthright order. A three-judge panel of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals became the fifth federal court since June to either issue or uphold orders blocking the president’s birthright order. The court concluded that the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on their claims that the children described in the order are entitled to birthright citizenship under the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment.” (10/03/25)
“A federal judge has temporarily blocked a new Trump administration policy to keep migrant children in detention after they turn 18, moving quickly to stop transfers to adult facilities that advocates said were scheduled for this weekend. U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras on Saturday issued a temporary restraining order to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to not detain any child who came to the country alone and without permission in ICE adult detention facilities after they become an adult. The Washington, D.C., judge found that such automatic detention violates a court order he issued in 2021 barring such practices. ICE and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security didn’t immediately respond Saturday to emails seeking comment.” (10/04/25)
“The Trump administration plans to federalize 300 members of the Illinois National Guard, Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker said Saturday. Pritzker said the guard received word from the Pentagon in the morning that the troops would be called up. He did not specify when or where they would be deployed, but President Donald Trump has long threatened to send troops to Chicago. ‘This morning, the Trump Administration’s Department of War gave me an ultimatum: call up your troops, or we will,’ Pritzker said in a statement. ‘It is absolutely outrageous and un-American to demand a Governor send military troops within our own borders and against our will.’ A spokesperson for the governor’s office said she could not provide additional details. The White House and the Pentagon did not respond to questions about Pritzker’s statement.” (10/04/25)
