“Israeli Culture Minister Miki Zohar has said that he will move to revoke the citizenship of filmmakers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor after their documentary on Israel’s genocide in Gaza, NAZA, won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival. In an X post on Sunday, Zohar called the documentary ‘vile’ and its win at the film festival ‘shocking’. He accused the filmmakers of harming the country ‘just to get applause from antisemites around the world’. The minister said that Abraham and Szor’s actions ‘constitute treason against the state’. … The 80-minute film documented Israel’s use of AI-powered systems to commit ‘calculated mass killings’ of Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Venice Film Festival’s official synopsis. The documentary received a 25-minute standing ovation at its premiere during the film festival.” (09/14/26)
“Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels [sic] captured more strategic islands in the southern Red Sea, government and Houthi officials said Monday, strengthening their control of a major maritime shipping route. The capture of the islands of Greater and Lesser Hanish came as [Saudi puppet regime] forces attempted to rally over the weekend and fight back after the rebels’ [sic] swift advances around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial shipping alternative to the Strait of Hormuz. The Houthis’ new gains further enable them to threaten Saudi crude oil shipments, which have used the Red Sea as an alternative to the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has been attacking shipping.” (09/14/26)
“Prime Minister Mark Carney has said Canada is seeking a ‘unique alliance’ with the European Union (EU) but not membership of the bloc, as its trade war with the US intensifies. … the Wall Street Journal reported that EU officials were open to a suggestion from Carney that Canada could become an ‘associate member’ of the bloc, according to officials from both sides. Carney instructed his special envoy to Europe to ‘scope out the most ambitious possibilities short of full membership’, the paper reported. … Since taking office, Carney has promoted a strategy aimed at creating a ‘more independent, more resilient economy’, in the wake of increasingly hostile policy towards his country from the Trump administration.” (09/14/26)
“A Russian drone struck a train near the Ukraine- Poland border on Sunday shortly after senior visiting officials — including the former prime ministers of the U.K. and Sweden — passed through, Ukraine’s state rail operator said. According to Ukrzaliznytsia, a diplomatic train carrying Boris Johnson, Carl Bildt and security advisers from several European Union states had purposely left the station at Yahodyn ahead of schedule. The visitors were on their way back from a security conference in Kyiv. ‘It is highly probable that the Russian drone ’s intended target was in fact the diplomatic train, which had departed the station earlier than scheduled,’ the company said in a Telegram post.” (09/13/26)
“Talks between Iran and several Gulf states on the disputed Strait of Hormuz have been postponed, Oman said on Sunday. Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi said Monday’s meeting had been postponed ‘in the interest of consensus.’ ‘We remain committed to fostering dialogue that supports stability and lasting cooperation in our region,’ he wrote on X. He did not announce a new date or elaborate on the reason for the postponement. … Tehran and Muscat have been negotiating for weeks on a mechanism to regulate shipping traffic through the strait, a key waterway for the global oil, gas and fertilizer trade. For Iran’s leadership, the Strait of Hormuz has become an important means of leverage in its conflict with the United States.” (09/13/26)
“A 40-year-old woman has died from measles complications in Pennsylvania, marking the state’s third measles-associated death this year as the U.S. experiences its worst resurgence of the highly contagious disease in 35 years. The woman, a Jefferson County resident, died Saturday, county Coroner Greg Furlong said on Facebook. … At least 676 measles cases have been confirmed in 37 counties in Pennsylvania so far this year, the state’s health officials reported Friday. The outbreak has hospitalized 124 people in the state. Of the confirmed cases, fewer than 1% had been fully vaccinated, Pennsylvania health officials said.” (09/13/260
“Indonesian rescuers say about 130 passengers and crew are missing after a ferry carrying more than 240 people sank in bad weather in the Java Sea. At least 113 people were rescued, and the bodies of six passengers were recovered as the search operation expanded in waters around the vessel’s last known position. The Indonesian passenger ship carrying 243 people was reported missing after losing contact early on Sunday during bad weather. … Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands, relies heavily on ferries as a key mode of transportation, with sea routes more affordable and readily available than air travel. However, safety standards are not always rigorously enforced, resulting in a relatively high accident rate.” (09/13/26)
“A federal judge issued a stay forbidding the administration from asking those seeking jobs in the federal government to say how they would help carry out presidential executive orders, in what some saw as a test of ‘loyalty’ to President Trump. U.S. District Judge George A. O’Toole Jr., a Clinton appointee to the court in Massachusetts, sided with labor unions that argued asking the question was an unconstitutional politicization of federal jobs. The question, the third in a series of four essay questions, was added to the hiring process last year in response to a Trump executive order. It asked applicants to say how they would advance such orders and to name one or two in particular. ‘The plaintiffs are likely to succeed in showing that Question Three is neither related to an important government interest nor narrowly tailored to promote that interest,’ the judge wrote.” (09/12/26)
“A growing consumer push to buy Canadian and boycott U.S. products is reshaping supermarket shelves in Canada, forcing grocers to improve country-of-origin labeling and secure new sources of supply. In Ontario, the president of independent grocer Vince’s Market, Giancarlo Trimarchi, turned to Facebook to show customers that most produce on the shelves of his stores is Canadian after receiving angry emails and comments about the grocer stocking U.S. produce. A bitter trade war between the United States and Canada has made consumers more conscious of where their dollars go. ‘Buy Canadian’ movements started last year after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian goods. They have intensified in recent weeks after trade talks broke down and Trump signed an executive order to change the name of to Lake America.” (09/12/26)
“President Trump on Saturday expressed optimism about the reunification of Ireland during a meeting with Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin in Dublin. The president, who is visiting his Irish golf course this weekend for a major golf tournament, said he would ‘love’ to see the joining of the Republic of Ireland and the [UK-occupied Six Counties]. … Previous U.S. presidents have typically avoided directly commenting on this contentious issue.” (09/12/26)
