“Three Norwegian brothers have been arrested on suspicion of a ‘terrorist bombing’ at the US embassy in Oslo that caused minor damage at the weekend but no injuries. The police prosecutor Christian Hatlo told a press conference that the brothers, who were Norwegian citizens of Iraqi origin, had been arrested in Oslo and that police were investigating the motive. … The blast took place at around 1:00am local time on Sunday at the entrance to the embassy’s consular section. American embassies have been placed on high alert in the Middle East owing to US-Israeli strikes on Iran. Several have faced attacks as Tehran responds by targeting industrial and diplomatic facilities.” (03/11/26)
“Dementia has become the leading cause of death in Australia, a development that has prompted public health experts to call for a ‘shift in thinking’ about the disease. An estimated 446,500 people in the country are living with the disease as of 2026, according to data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and the Australian Bureau of Statistics. … a 2024 survey found that more than a quarter of Australians incorrectly believed there was nothing they could do to reduce their risk of dementia. … Estimates suggest that about two in five dementia cases in the country can be prevented.” (03/11/26)
“Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) told GOP colleagues Tuesday that they don’t have the votes to pass a House-approved voting reform bill through the Senate by forcing Democrats to use a talking filibuster to oppose it, rejecting President Trump’s full-court press. Senate Republicans at a Tuesday lunch meeting discussed the prospect of forcing Democrats to actively hold the floor for days — or even weeks — of continuous debate to make it as hard as possible for them to block the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which Trump called his ‘No.1 priority’ at an issues conference with House Republicans on Monday. Trump warned in Florida on Monday that passing the SAVE Act is critical to helping Republicans keep control of Congress in November.” (03/11/26)
“Mortgage applications increased 3.2% from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending March 6, 2026. On an unadjusted basis, the index increased 4.1% compared with the previous week. The refinance index 0.5% from the previous week and was 81% higher than the same week one year ago. The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 57.8% of total applications from 59.8% the previous week.” (03/11/26)
“At least 65 Nigerian soldiers have been killed in jihadist raids across the country’s north-east in the last two weeks, as the west African state battles to contain one of the world’s deadliest terror groups. On 5 and 6 March, gunmen from Islamic State West Africa Province (Iswap) overran four military bases in Borno state, the epicentre of the insurgency. Nigerian daily the Punch reported that about 40 soldiers were killed in total in these attacks. In a statement on 7 March, the same day a mass funeral was held for the fallen troops, the military disputed the death toll but did not provide an alternative number. … Last month, 200 US troops arrived in northern Nigeria to train their counterparts, weeks after the US president, Donald Trump, announced airstrikes on terrorist elements in the region.” (03/11/26)
“The Department of Homeland Security’s investigations arm is investigating [sic] 2020 election results in Arizona, the state’s attorney general, Kris Mayes, and a source familiar with the matter confirmed to ABC News on Tuesday. It is not typical for Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to investigate election results, though the agency has investigated voter fraud cases in the past. The agency serves as the investigative arm of DHS and usually investigates transnational crime, including drug smuggling and human trafficking. … Despite the Trump administration’s efforts to relitigate the 2020 election, Biden won the election by 7 million votes, including winning six out of the seven battleground states. The overall electoral count was 306 to 232.” (03/11/26)
“The new U.S. ambassador to South Africa has been summoned to explain his criticism, the country’s foreign minister said Wednesday, as a diplomatic rift continues over foreign policy that the Trump administration describes as anti-American and domestic policies it calls anti-white. Ambassador Leo Brent Bozell III was summoned after speaking at a meeting of business leaders on Tuesday, where he challenged the South African government over its diplomatic ties with Iran and its affirmative action laws that advance opportunities for Black people ahead of other races. The rift has grown between the former allies since President Donald Trump returned to office. Ties have plunged to their lowest point since the end of apartheid, or white minority rule, in 1994. Trump has been critical of South Africa’s Black-led government. Bozell, a conservative activist appointed by Trump, took up his role in Pretoria last month.” (03/11/26)
“At a nuclear summit near Paris earlier this week, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the move away from nuclear energy made by some European Union countries as a ‘strategic mistake.’ Nuclear power, she explained, is a ‘reliable, affordable source of low-emission electricity.’ The head of the EU Commission announced new financial aid for such power plants. Von der Leyen’s words reverberated in Germany, which switched off its last nuclear reactor in 2023. … However, Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) said on Tuesday that previous federal governments had decided to phase out nuclear energy, and that rolling back this decision was not possible. He added, however: ‘I regret this, but it is the way it is, and we are now concentrating on the energy policy we have.'” (03/11/26)
“Amazon has secured a major win in its lawsuit against Perplexity. A federal judge has ordered Perplexity to block its AI agents from placing orders on Amazon without permission. In the lawsuit filed in November, Amazon accused Perplexity of using its Comet AI browser to covertly access the Amazon website and users’ accounts to place orders on their behalf. Before filing the complaint, Amazon had also sent Perplexity a cease-and-desist letter accusing it of disguising Comet as Chrome to ensure its AI agents could avoid detection. … Amazon has welcomed the preliminary injunction. … For the e-commerce giant, the case could also be about protecting its advertising revenue. As Bloomberg notes, Amazon earned $68 billion from ads last year, as brands are still willing to pay huge sums for prime visibility across the platform. If customers purchase products without visiting the website, that revenue could take a hit.” (03/11/26)
“A group representing many of the world’s wealthiest countries agreed Wednesday to release the largest volume of emergency oil reserves in its history, in a bid to counter the effects of the Iran war on energy markets and the halt of cargo shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The Paris-based International Energy Agency said it will make 400 million barrels of oil available from its members’ emergency reserves, which is more than double the 182.7 million barrels that the IEA’s 32 member countries released in 2022 in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. ‘This is a major action aiming to alleviate the immediate impacts of the disruption in markets,’ IEA executive director Fatih Birol said. ‘But, to be clear, the most important thing for a return to stable flows of oil and gas is the resumption of transit through the Strait of Hormuz.'” (03/11/26)
