“Hollywood directors on Tuesday reached a four-year tentative contract agreement with studios and streaming services. The deal struck between the Directors Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers came four weeks after talks began. The talks were the first under new DGA President Christopher Nolan, who took the job in September. Along with similar four-year deals — longer than the industry three — ratified in recent weeks by unions representing writers and actors, the DGA agreement adds to the likelihood of long-term labor peace despite many other industry upheavals. The collective bargaining agreement must still be approved by the guild’s national board, and no details on the terms will be released until then, the DGA said in a statement. It then must be ratified by the guild membership.” (06/10/26)
“India has summoned a senior US diplomat after US forces fired on a Palau-flagged vessel with 24 Indian sailors on board off the coast of Oman, leaving three Indian seafarers missing. India’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed to Al Jazeera on Wednesday that it had summoned Jason Meeks, the US Embassy’s deputy chief of mission in New Delhi. The US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said it carried out a ‘precision’ strike on a vessel, the Settebello, as it transited the Gulf of Oman transporting Iranian oil on Tuesday evening, claiming the crew failed to comply with instructions from US forces.” (06/10/26)
“The Trump administration’s export controls, sanctions and tariffs are hurting American firms in China without achieving their policy goals of blocking critical technology or reviving US manufacturing, according to a new business survey. … The report said that nearly half of the 175 respondents to the survey were affected by US export controls and sanctions, with around 61 per cent of those firms losing sales to Chinese competitors – a rise of five percentage points from 2025. Over 72 per cent of the surveyed companies were also hit by the tit-for-tat tariffs unleashed by both countries, with close to 40 per cent of the affected businesses losing sales as a result of the US duties. The report said that these losses had not forced American companies to onshore manufacturing – only 14 per cent of respondents expanded production at home while 36 per cent increased production in third countries.” (06/10/26)
“An American diplomat was found dead in Myanmar’s largest city, the U.S. State Department said, and members of the diplomatic community in Yangon say a Thai woman has been detained by police in connection with the investigation. American officials in Thailand and the U.S. Embassy in Myanmar referred questions on the case to the State Department, which confirmed the ‘death of a U.S. government employee’ assigned to the embassy in Yangon but gave no other details. … According to three people in the diplomatic community in Myanmar, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case, the man was found dead about two weeks ago at the Sakura Residence & Hotel.” (06/10/26)
“Microsoft’s Office 2019 apps for Mac will stop working next month, because the company isn’t renewing a certificate that validates Office licenses. Owners of Office 2019 for Mac are being warned they’ll have to purchase Office 2024 or a Microsoft 365 subscription if they want to continue editing documents. Microsoft previously promised that ‘all your Office 2019 apps will continue to function,’ when it announced end of support in 2023. The company then quietly updated that support note last month to remove the mention of apps continuing to function, replacing it with ‘Rest assured that all your Office 2019 apps won’t lose any data.’ Starting on July 13th, Office 2019 for Mac and Office 2021 for Mac will both run in ‘reduced functionality mode,’ allowing people to open files but not edit, save, or create new documents.” [editor’s note: If you purchased Office 2019, you made a mistake in buying from an untrustworthy company. Instead of taking the bait again, switch to e.g. LibreOffice, which is free – TLK] (06/10/26)
“The four young men in the rebel camp hidden deep in jungle-covered mountains never wanted a part in Myanmar’s civil war. They didn’t choose to be soldiers for the military either. One had been a chef on his way home from work when he was grabbed off the street. His lack of ID was enough for the military to detain him and force him to sign up. Another was taken on his way back from a late-night karaoke session; a third had been working for the forestry department when he was arrested. The fourth man says on being arrested, drugs were slipped into his shoe, and he was framed and made to enlist. ‘Before we even understood what was happening, we were sent straight to the front lines,’ one of the men – all between the ages of 19 and 25 – tells the BBC. ‘They made us do all kinds of things we didn’t want to do,’ another adds.” (06/10/26)
“Annual inflation rose to a three-year-high of 4.2% in May, underscoring how elevated energy prices are rippling through the US economy, according to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices rose 0.5% on a monthly basis, driven higher by the US-Israeli war with Iran, the latest Consumer Price Index shows. The higher cost of energy accounted for 60% of the monthly increase. Overall food prices and grocery prices didn’t rise as fast as they did in April, increasing 0.2% and 0.1%, respectively, versus 0.5% and 0.7%. Economists were expecting prices to rise 0.5% from the month before and for the annual rate to accelerate to 4.2% from the 3.8% reported in April, according to FactSet estimates.” (06/10/26)
“Malian authorities arrested two prominent journalists in the past two days, the latest crackdown on freedom of expression by the West African country’s military leadership during a security crisis. … In Mali, public statements suggesting that the military is losing ground to jihadist groups often leads to charges. … In January 2025, Malian authorities banned the sale of the Pan-African magazine Jeune Afrique. Several French media outlets, including France24, TV5 Monde, and Radio France International, are also banned from broadcasting in Mali. Several opposition leaders have been imprisoned for criticizing the military regime.” (06/10/26)
“Belgium on Wednesday rejected Washington’s demand to impose an entry ban on travelers from the Democratic Republic of Congo, setting up a transatlantic clash over measures to prevent Ebola from spreading during the World Cup. Speaking on Radio 1, Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke said Belgium would continue following scientific advice rather than bowing to political pressure from Washington. … The remarks come after reports surfaced that U.S. Ambassador Bill White urged Belgium to adopt strict American-style travel restrictions on Congolese travelers ahead of the World Cup, which kicks off Thursday in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Daily flights connect Brussels to Kinshasa. According to U.S. media,Washington has warned European countries that if they do not adopt America’s tougher travel restrictions, they could be subject to U.S. entry bans.” (06/10/26)
“Imprisoned rap mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has been accused of sexually assaulting a child actor in an explosive lawsuit filed in California that accuses him of acting ‘beyond the bound of decency.’ Combs, 56, is serving a 50-month prison sentence for prostitution-related offenses after a bombshell eight-week trial in New York City that laid bare his infamous ‘freak-offs’: twisted, multi-day parties rife with drugs, degrading sex acts and children’s swimming pools full of baby oil. In the new lawsuit, a child actor going by the pseudonym John Doe accuses the disgraced Bad Boy Entertainment founder of sexually assaulting him during a networking event in the Hollywood Hills in May 2007, according to ABC News. ‘Defendant Combs’[s] conduct … was outrageous, intended to terrorize and cause him emotional distress, and did in fact cause him emotional distress,’ the lawsuit viewed by the outlet reads in part.” (06/10/26)
