“At least six Palestinians have been killed in Israeli drone attacks targeting two police posts in the Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip and the al-Mawasi area in Khan Younis in the south, as Israel presses on with its more than two-year genocidal war on the devastated enclave. The attacks overnight into Friday were condemned by Hamas as undermining mediator efforts during a ‘ceasefire’ phase that Israel has violated almost daily since October 10. Medical sources at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis reported the arrival of four bodies and several wounded individuals following an Israeli military strike on a police checkpoint at the al-Maslakh intersection in al-Mawasi. The sources said that the strike occurred in an area outside the Israeli military’s control, and described the condition of some of the wounded as critical.” (02/27/26)
“Mortgage rates dipped into the 5% range for the first time since 2022 as Treasury yields continued to fall. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell three basis points for the week ending Wednesday to 5.98%. That’s the lowest level since Sept. 8, 2022. The 15-year fixed rose nine basis points to 5.44%. Three months of a slow interest rate decline have filtered through the mortgage industry, with increasing reports of home loan rates finally slipping below 6%. Freddie Mac is the latest rate aggregator to record a sub-6% result, with a 30-year fixed rate of 5.98%.” (02/26/26)
“Kansas officials have sent letters out to over 1,000 transgender state residents, warning them that their driver’s licenses and birth certificates may now be invalid. Kansas Department of Revenue Spokesperson Zach Denney confirmed to The Topeka Capital-Journal that the letters were sent out to an estimated 1,500 trans people in the state after a new law took effect, invalidating gender marker changes on the documents. … State lawmakers previously passed the anti-trans legislation despite warnings from Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, who vetoed the bill. Lawmakers in both the state’s House and Senate overrode Kelly’s veto on Feb. 18. The law also banned transgender people from using bathrooms or locker rooms in government buildings that align with their gender identity and banned the creation of gender-neutral bathrooms with more than one stall.” (02/26/26)
“A local ceasefire around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southeastern Ukraine has been agreed, with the help of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to allow for necessary repairs of the backup power lines to the plant. The IAEA has confirmed that a local arrangement has been reached to help the repair teams ensure the safety of the plant, with demining activities in the area ongoing to enable access. Reuters noted that the plant, Europe’s largest, has been under Russian control since shortly after the start of the war in 2022. It is not currently producing electricity, and relies on external power to keep its nuclear material cool and avoid a catastrophic accident.” (02/27/26)
“An appellate court in Hong Kong reversed fraud convictions against former media tycoon Jimmy Lai. It was a rare victory for the prominent pro-democracy activist, who is a fierce critic of Beijing and has faced a litany of legal battles. Lai, 78, an outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist Party who founded the now-defunct Apple Daily, will stay in prison because he was sentenced to 20 years weeks ago after being convicted in another case brought under a China-imposed national security [sic] law. … The conviction that was overturned Thursday was from an earlier fraud case in which prosecutors alleged that a consultancy firm controlled by Lai had used office space that his media business rented for publication and printing purposes.” (02/26/26)
“French utility Engie will buy electricity distributor UK Power Networks for 10.5 billion pounds ($14.2 billion) in a bid to expand its power business, the company said on Wednesday as it reported flat full-year earnings and revised upward its outlook for the coming years. The deal, due to close in mid-2026, is expected to boost per-share earnings from the first year, the company said. UK Power Networks is owned by Hong Kong-listed CK Infrastructure Holdings (1038.HK), opens new tab (CKI). … UK Power Networks operates 192,000 km (119, 300 miles) of power lines serving 8.5 million customers across London and the southeast and eastern parts of England.” (02/26/26)
“A second British island voted Thursday to approve assisted dying, as a similar bill that would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales to choose to end their lives is bogged down in the British Parliament. The bill, which requires the formality of approval by King Charles III, would allow terminally ill residents who have lived in Jersey for more than year and are expected to have less than six months to live — or less than 12 months if they have a neurodegenerative disease — to end their lives. … Jersey, an island of about 100,000 inhabitants that sits in the English Channel off the northwest coast of France, is the second British Crown possession to approve assisted dying. The Isle of Man did so in March last year, but it has waited nearly a year for the king’s approval because it first requires the U.K. Ministry of Justice to process the legislation.” (02/26/26)
“Supercharged by billions in dollars from Congress, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has hired thousands of new officers to carry out Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign in an effort it has likened to ‘wartime recruitment.’ In several states, Democratic lawmakers want applicants to think twice about taking part. Bills introduced in recent weeks in the legislatures of at least four Democratic-led states would impose long-term consequences on new ICE employees by rendering them ineligible for jobs in law enforcement, public education, and, in their most expansive form, the entire state civil service. None of the proposals has been signed into law, and potential legislation may face legal challenges.” (02/26/26)
“A French court on Thursday sentenced Iranian national Mahdieh Esfandiari to one year in prison for justifying terrorism. Esfandiari, 39, was arrested in France last year over comments she is accused of having made on social media, including on Palestinian militant group Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. She was sentenced to four years, of which three are suspended, the judge said, citing ‘the nature of the acts and their seriousness.’ … Some observers see Esfandiari as a potential bargaining chip in negotiations with Tehran for the release of French nationals Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, who have been held in Iran since May 2022.” (02/26/26)
“The FBI has fired additional agents who worked on an investigation into President Donald Trump, this time terminating employees who participated in the probe into the Republican’s hoarding of classified documents, people familiar with the matter said Wednesday. The firings are part of a broader personnel purge under the leadership of Director Kash Patel, a Trump appointee who, over the last year, has pushed out dozens of employees who either contributed to investigations of the president or who were perceived as not in alignment with the administration’s agenda. The Justice Department has engaged in similarly sweeping firings of prosecutors since Trump took office last year.” (02/26/26)
