As preliminary vote counts roll in from Russia’s recent parliamentary election, political observers and analysts are describing the projected outcome as entirely predictable, with no unexpected shifts in the country’s legislative power structure. Early data from election commissions across the nation points to a clear victory for United Russia, the political party closely aligned with the Kremlin and current presidential administration. The projected seat share indicates the party is well-positioned to hold onto its constitutional supermajority, a level of representation that allows it to pass constitutional amendments and advance core policy priorities without requiring support from opposition factions. Political commentators have widely noted that the projected result follows pre-election polling and expert projections that consistently showed United Russia holding a significant lead over competing parties. This outcome is expected to reinforce the current political balance in Russia’s national legislature, maintaining the status quo that has defined the country’s parliamentary landscape for multiple election cycles.
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Lindsay Clancy’s ex-husband explains why he forgave her over children’s killings
The devastating 2023 case of three young children killed at the hands of their mother, Lindsay Clancy, in Duxbury, Massachusetts, has captured national attention, and recently ended in a mistrial after the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict on the murder charges. Now, Patrick Clancy, Lindsay’s ex-husband and the father of the three slain children – 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson, and 8-month-old Callan – has broken his silence in a candid interview with CBS, opening up about forgiveness, his own struggle with grief, and the toxic online harassment that has upended his life in the aftermath of the tragedy.
Lindsay Clancy, 36, has not denied killing her three children on January 24, 2023. Immediately after the deaths, she jumped from the second-story window of the family home, leaving her permanently paralyzed, and she attended her seven-week trial in a wheelchair. Her legal team has argued that she should not be held criminally liable for the deaths, as she was suffering from severe postpartum psychosis – a rare and severe mental health condition that can trigger episodes of mania, psychosis, and debilitating depression following childbirth. Patrick Clancy, who testified during the trial about his ex-wife’s declining mental state after the births of their children, stood by this account, noting that mental illness often hides its severity until it is too late.
In the interview, Patrick Clancy explained that his choice to forgive Lindsay came from his firm belief that her severe untreated mental illness, not inherent cruelty, caused the unthinkable act. Rejecting the inflammatory tabloid headlines that labeled Lindsay a “killer mom” and “monster,” Clancy said none of these dehumanizing labels matched the reality of his ex-wife’s struggle. “I believe that it was her mental illness that caused that,” he stated. “So I shared those words. And I think when it comes to forgiveness, I also felt that if I didn’t get there, I would be eaten up inside forever.” When asked if he carried guilt over failing to prevent the tragedy, Clancy said he did the best he could with the limited understanding and resources he had at the time, a burden he carries with him every day.
In the weeks after the deaths of his children, Clancy said his grief became so overwhelming that he experienced suicidal ideation, admitting he did not expect to live to see his 35th birthday and felt at peace with that possibility. What has compounded his pain, he says, is the relentless wave of online hate and baseless conspiracy theories that have targeted him in the months since the tragedy. Internet users have falsely accused him of covering up for Lindsay and sharing blame for the children’s deaths, while tabloid media has hounded him and his new wife, Rachel Danis, publishing invasive photos of the couple during their daily lives.
Clancy called these false, widespread accusations deeply harmful, noting they distract from the core issue at the heart of the tragedy: gaps in care and awareness for perinatal mental health. The vitriol has been so severe that Clancy was forced to leave his longtime home in Duxbury and relocate to New York City to seek anonymity and escape the constant public scrutiny. “It’s painful to see,” he said of the online harassment. “And it makes it difficult to be in public and it’s possible that some of those people after seeing lie after lie after lie, they start to believe it and that’s what we’re left with.”
Today, Clancy is rebuilding his life with Danis, and the couple are expecting a new family together. Looking forward, he says he is eager to share the story of his three late children with his future kids, noting that all children hold an equal place in a parent’s heart regardless of whether they are here physically. The mistrial, declared earlier this month after the deadlocked jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict, leaves the future of the case unresolved. Prosecutors have not yet announced whether they will pursue a retrial, and the next court hearing is scheduled for September 29 at Plymouth Superior Court in Massachusetts.
The case has sparked urgent conversations about the need for greater awareness and accessible care for perinatal mental health conditions, which can have devastating consequences for families when left untreated. For anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts or emotional distress, support is available through global mental health organizations including Befrienders Worldwide, with dedicated resources listed for UK and US residents.
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US and China discuss AI safety plan ahead of Trump-Xi summit
Top economic policymakers from the United States and China convened in New York over the weekend for wide-ranging discussions that addressed a growing list of shared priorities, from artificial intelligence risk management to long-simmering trade tensions, ahead of a much-anticipated bilateral summit between the two nations’ leaders in Washington later this week.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters following the closed-door talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng that the meeting was productive, with the two sides advancing a proposal to establish a pioneering cross-border notification system for AI-related events that could carry national security implications for either country.
The push for greater coordination on AI governance comes amid mounting global scrutiny of the rapidly developing technology. In recent weeks, leading AI researchers and some of the tech industry’s most prominent leaders have issued urgent warnings about unregulated advancement, calling for developers to adopt more risk-conscious development practices. On the U.S. side, the White House has faced growing public pressure to slow AI rollouts to mitigate potential long-term harm to humanity, a concern President Donald Trump has pushed back on. Trump has repeatedly argued that existing guardrails are adequate, and that the U.S. cannot cede technological leadership to China — emphasizing earlier this month that “whoever wins in AI, wins the future.”
Bessent framed the proposed notification framework as a critical step toward greater openness between the world’s two largest AI developers. “We think that, just like with any cross-border activity, that moving from opaque to more transparency between the number one and the number two AI powers in the world is very important,” he told reporters after the meeting. This is not the first time the two nations have explored AI collaboration: during a May bilateral summit hosted by President Xi Jinping in Beijing, AI cooperation was already a core agenda item for the two leaders. That meeting produced a concrete trade deal under which China agreed to purchase Boeing commercial aircraft and large volumes of U.S. agricultural products in exchange for temporary U.S. tariff reductions.
Beyond AI, the talks also covered progress on a U.S.-China trade initiative called the Board of Trade, a working group tasked with identifying potential reciprocal tariff cuts on thousands of traded goods. The world’s two largest economies have maintained a temporary tariff truce that is scheduled to expire on November 10, making near-term progress on trade liberalization a top priority ahead of the leader-level summit.
Chinese state news agency Xinhua confirmed the details of the talks in its own readout, noting that the two sides held “candid, in-depth and constructive exchanges on key economic and trade issues” that included a full discussion of AI-related topics. The BBC has reached out to the Chinese Embassy in Washington for additional comment on the meeting outcomes, and had not received a response as of publication.
In a post to social media platform X Sunday, Bessent emphasized that the successful New York talks have cleared the way for the upcoming Washington summit. “These talks help lay the groundwork for President Trump to advance America’s economic interests and deliver results for the American people,” he wrote. The meeting comes as the U.S. and China remain locked in a long-term strategic competition to dominate the global AI and advanced technology sectors, but the weekend dialogue signals that both sides remain open to targeted cooperation on areas of shared risk and mutual interest.
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Presley Gerber, Cindy Crawford’s son, dies aged 27
The modeling world is mourning the sudden passing of Presley Gerber, the 27-year-old son of legendary supermodel Cindy Crawford, who died over the weekend at a Los Angeles rehabilitation center, according to official records from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner. No official cause of death has been released to the public as of yet.\n\nFollowing the news, Allie Jenkins, a spokesperson for the Gerber-Crawford family, confirmed the loss in a statement to CBS News, the US news partner of the BBC. The family has requested space and privacy as they navigate this devastating and painful period, asking that the public respect their grief.\n\nLike his mother and younger sister Kaia Gerber, Presley followed a path into professional modeling. He made his first runway appearance at the age of 16 for iconic Italian fashion house Moschino, kicking off a career that would see him front campaigns and walk shows for some of the biggest names in luxury fashion, including Burberry, Dolce & Gabbana, and Bottega Veneta.\n\nPresley came from a prominent family beyond the fashion industry: his father Rande Gerber is a successful entrepreneur who co-founded the wildly popular Casamigos tequila brand alongside Hollywood A-lister George Clooney.\n\nIn recent years, Presley spoke openly about his longstanding battles with mental health issues and substance use, becoming an advocate for others navigating similar struggles. In a 2023 interview with the Studio 22 podcast, he opened up about his experiences with depression and related challenges, saying he hoped sharing his story could help even one person pull themselves out of the dark place he once occupied.\n\nJust this month, his sister Kaia opened up about how Presley’s addiction struggles shaped the whole family in a feature for American Vogue. She reflected that when a family member faces this kind of battle, it shifts every person’s dynamic within the family, explaining that she had long positioned herself as the “easy, low-maintenance sibling” and avoided asking for support for her own struggles because of the focus on Presley’s health.
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UK should ‘team up’ with Canada in new Europe alliance, Canadian minister tells BBC
In a shifting global trade landscape marked by growing transatlantic tensions, Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne has publicly urged the United Kingdom to join an ambitious new economic alliance being forged between Canada and the European Union. Speaking in an interview with the BBC, Champagne framed the proposed bloc as a forward-thinking collaboration built for a dramatically changed global order, noting that shifting US policy has created an urgent need for like-minded nations to realign their economic relationships.
Champagne’s call follows a groundbreaking proposal from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who recently announced the EU would open negotiations for unprecedented associate membership status for Canada. Shortly after von der Leyen tabled the plan, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney—former Governor of the Bank of England—traveled to Strasbourg to address the EU legislature, a trip Champagne described as a foundational step toward building the “alliance of the future.” Carney has long advocated for a coalition of middle powers to collaborate on driving inclusive economic growth, strengthening supply chain resilience, and advancing shared security priorities.
Champagne emphasized that the UK and Canada are natural partners for this project, bound by overlapping values and aligned global visions. “We are independent and sovereign, but we are stronger together,” he told the BBC. “Why don’t we team up?”
The push for a new Canada-EU-UK alignment comes as Canada remains mired in an escalating trade conflict with the United States, triggered by sweeping tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump after his return to the White House last year. Last month, high-stakes trade talks between Ottawa and Washington collapsed entirely, leading both sides to impose tit-for-tat retaliatory tariffs. Champagne defended Canada’s response, saying the country had no choice but to stand up for its domestic industries, workers, and economic sovereignty. Calling Canada’s countermeasures “measured, targeted and strategic… dollar-for-dollar, tariff-for-tariff,” he added that the country has no interest in further escalation and stands ready to re-engage with the US when conditions are right, while pledging full, long-term support for any industries impacted by the dispute.
Trump has not only lashed out at Canada, labeling the country a “terrible trading partner,” but has also threatened additional tariffs on the European Union if the associate membership plan goes forward, dismissing the initiative as “laughable” and claiming it is hostile to US economic interests.
Champagne argued that the trade dispute has actually created a golden opportunity for Canada to diversify its economic partnerships, a goal that is supported by the country’s strong underlying fiscal position that has bolstered its resilience through the conflict.
The proposal also adds new uncertainty to the UK’s post-Brexit positioning, already strained by recent shifts in US rhetoric on the Falkland Islands and Irish unity. While the UK secured a renegotiated trade deal with the US last June, Champagne’s overture opens a new path for closer alignment with Europe. Recent diplomatic moves underscore the accelerating negotiations: Carney met UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham in Liverpool during his trip to Brussels and Strasbourg last week, while Champagne joined UK Chancellor John Healey at a meeting of EU finance ministers in Dublin this Friday. Burnham is set to meet Trump for the first time this week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Longer-term, the associate membership framework is being designed as a flexible structure for like-minded nations that do not seek full EU membership. Carney has already laid out key priorities for Canadian participation, including access to EU university exchange programs, scientific research collaborations, AI development initiatives, and joint defense funding projects, as well as expanded mobility for young Canadians and Europeans to study and live across the Atlantic. In return, Canada would position itself as a reliable supplier of critical minerals and natural gas to European markets, while seeking greater access to European advanced manufacturing and technology sectors. Discussions are already open to the possibility of other middle power nations joining the framework in the future, with Australia cited as an example of a potential future participant.
The push for closer ties also carries broader geopolitical undercurrents: last year, shortly after taking office, Carney invited King Charles to open the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa, a move widely interpreted as a rebuke to Trump’s repeated public suggestions that Canada could become part of the United States. To date, the formal details of the EU’s associate membership offer for Canada have not been finalized, with negotiations still in the early stages.
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Japan braces for record rain as powerful typhoon nears east coast
As Japan enters the final stretch of its annual typhoon season, the country’s 25th named storm of 2026, Typhoon Dujuan, has swept toward Japan’s eastern coastline, bringing destructive winds, extreme rainfall and widespread disruption to daily life and major public events just as the nation’s five-day autumn holiday gets underway.
Meteorologists tracking the storm confirm Dujuan carries sustained wind speeds of 126 kilometers per hour, with dangerous gusts that can reach up to 180 kilometers per hour. Current forecasting models project the storm will pass close to the Boso Peninsula in Chiba Prefecture, located just outside the Tokyo metropolitan area, on Monday. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has issued urgent warnings that the storm could dump record-breaking rainfall across large swathes of the country through Tuesday, urging residents in low-lying coastal zones to prepare for immediate evacuation if ordered, and stay vigilant for the risk of deadly landslides.
According to JMA projections, accumulated rainfall could reach as high as 350 millimeters in the central Tokai region, 300 millimeters across the greater Kanto region and Izu Islands, and up to 200 millimeters in the northern Tohoku region. Beyond landslide risks, the agency has flagged severe flooding in low-lying coastal and riverine areas as a major threat to public safety.
The storm’s arrival has already upended transportation networks across eastern Japan. All Nippon Airways has suspended all flight operations to and from Hachijo Island, a small popular tourist destination located south of Tokyo that is already being battered by heavy downpours and powerful winds. JR East, Japan’s largest regional rail operator, has paused multiple service lines running through Chiba Prefecture, which is home to Tokyo’s primary international gateway, Narita Airport, leaving thousands of holiday travelers stranded.
Beyond transportation disruptions, the typhoon has forced the closure of numerous popular tourist attractions across eastern Japan, and the cancellation of dozens of planned holiday events. The Rock in Japan music festival scrapped all scheduled performances for Monday, while the annual Tokyo Game Show, one of the video game industry’s biggest global conventions, canceled its full slate of Monday programming.
Even the ongoing Asian Games, hosted this year across Aichi Prefecture and the city of Nagoya in central Japan, have felt the storm’s impact. Organizers confirmed that widespread safety concerns over the approaching typhoon kept thousands of spectators away from Sunday’s official opening ceremony held at a 30,000-seat main stadium, with large sections of the venue standing visibly empty throughout the event.
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‘I’m so, so sorry’: Ed Sheeran addresses Gaza on stage after losing every opening act
A weeks-long controversy over pro-Palestine advocacy on Ed Sheeran’s North American tour has culminated in the British pop star breaking his public silence, labeling Israel’s military campaign in Gaza as unjustifiable and issuing an apology to fans following widespread international backlash. The dispute traces back to early this month, when American rapper Macklemore — a scheduled opening act for Sheeran’s ongoing Loop Tour — took the stage at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium wearing a traditional keffiyeh. Performing before a crowd of over 80,000, Macklemore openly voiced his support for Palestinian people and played his pro-Palestine anthem *Hind’s Hall*, sparking immediate pushback from pro-Israel advocacy groups. These groups quickly launched a public petition demanding Macklemore be removed from all upcoming tour dates, escalating pressure on tour organizers and venue stakeholders. The confrontation came to a head ahead of Sheeran’s planned back-to-back shows at Massachusetts’ Gillette Stadium, scheduled for September 25 and 26. The stadium’s owner, billionaire Robert Kraft — a self-described outspoken supporter of Israel who reaffirmed his commitment to the Jewish state in a 2019 comment — issued an ultimatum: remove Macklemore from the lineup, or the entire shows would be canceled. Kraft also lobbied other tour venue owners to join the pressure campaign, forcing tour stakeholders to make a forced choice. Last week, Macklemore announced via social media that he had been dropped from the tour due to Kraft’s ultimatum. The rapper’s disclosure triggered a wave of solidarity across the tour’s supporting acts: one by one, all remaining opening acts announced they would withdraw from the tour in protest of Macklemore’s removal and in support of Palestinian rights. Among the artists who pulled out was Grammy-winning producer and musician Finneas, brother of pop star Billie Eilish, who wrote on Instagram, “Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed,” adding that he stood with the Palestinian people. Other withdrawing acts included Irish performers Aaron Rowe and Beoga, and Danish pop group Lukas Graham. The mass withdrawal led to major disruptions for Sheeran’s first show following the controversy, a performance at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field: the concert start time was delayed by two and a half hours, and Sheeran ultimately performed the entire set without any supporting acts. When Sheeran finally took the stage, he addressed the controversy for the first time publicly, telling the gathered crowd, “I’ve had to take and make difficult decisions and I am making mistakes and I’m so, so sorry.” Moving past his earlier statement that he would not use his platform to comment on the conflict, Sheeran explicitly called Israel’s war on Gaza “catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate.” Hours before the Philadelphia show began, pro-Palestinian protesters gathered outside the venue to voice their criticism of the decision to remove Macklemore, demonstrating ahead of the performance. Just days before his on-stage comments, Sheeran had responded to criticism on social media, arguing that the decision to remove Macklemore had not been his, but rather a choice forced on the tour by promoters and venue owners. He added that he had previously chosen to stay silent on what he called Israel’s genocide in Gaza to avoid mixing his platform with political speech. In the wake of his removal from the tour, Macklemore has drawn broad support from fans and public figures across the globe. Last week, he pledged to donate the entire $1 million he earned from his opening sets on Sheeran’s tour to six organizations working to support Palestinian people. Within days of his announcement, popular children’s content creator Ms. Rachel said she would match Macklemore’s $1 million pledge, donating the sum to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. “I will match Macklemore’s donation, and I invite every wealthy white celebrity to match it and speak out against the genocide in Gaza,” she said in her public announcement.
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Haiti extradites 18 suspects in assassination of president to US
Half a decade after the shocking assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise sent the already unstable Caribbean nation into a tailspin of chaos, 18 alleged co-conspirators in the killing have been transferred by air from Haiti to South Florida to face trial in U.S. courts.
The attack that took Moise’s life unfolded in July 2021, when a team of gunmen, most of whom were identified as Colombian mercenaries, stormed the president’s private residence in Port-au-Prince and fatally shot him in his bedroom. The brazen, high-profile murder sent immediate shockwaves across Haiti and the international community, as observers and everyday Haitians alike grappled with how a sitting head of state could be killed with such startling impunity.
For years, formal investigations into the assassination in Haiti have ground to a complete halt. Widespread gang domination of large swathes of the country and a total breakdown of law and order have left the Haitian justice system unable to pursue viable cases against the remaining suspects. That institutional collapse has placed the full burden of pursuing accountability on U.S. law enforcement and prosecutors, who have chosen to try the suspects in Florida courts.
According to official statements from U.S. authorities, the planning and financial backing for the assassination plot were coordinated across three locations: Florida, the neighboring Dominican Republic, and Haiti itself. To date, 30 individuals have been formally indicted on charges connected to Moise’s killing, and Sunday’s extradition marks a major milestone in the long-running investigation.
In a public post on X, Jason Reding Quiñones, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, framed the extradition as a key new step in the ongoing push for justice. “Five years later, we are still bringing defendants before American courts, and we are not finished,” he wrote. FBI Special Agent Brett Skiles echoed that commitment, noting that the multi-national, coordinated operation to take the suspects into custody demonstrates the bureau’s unwavering dedication to holding every person involved in the plot accountable.
The group extradited on Sunday includes 17 former Colombian soldiers and one high-ranking former Haitian government official: Joseph Badio, who served in the anti-corruption unit of Haiti’s Ministry of Justice at the time of the assassination. Prosecutors have alleged that a Miami-based private security firm played a central role in recruiting the Colombian ex-soldiers to carry out the plot.
Four co-conspirators already received convictions in a Miami court back in May for their roles in the conspiracy. Their charges include conspiracy to kidnap or kill Moise and conspiracy to provide material support for the assassination, and all four face the possibility of life sentences if the convictions hold. Several other suspects connected to the plot were shot and killed by Haitian police in the immediate aftermath of the 2021 attack.
Notably, the Colombian former soldiers charged in the case have long maintained they were misled about the plot’s end goal. They claim they believed they were hired to take part in a political coup to remove Moise from power, and had no advance knowledge that the operation intended to assassinate the president.
In the five years since Moise’s death, Haiti has been consumed by an unprecedented wave of gang-led violence that has devastated communities and paralyzed daily life. Data from the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti shows that between April and June 2026 alone, at least 1,408 people were killed and another 656 injured in gang-related conflict across the country. The Haitian government is currently scheduled to hold the first presidential and legislative elections since 2016 on December 13, though the vote remains contingent on whether the country’s volatile security situation can stabilize enough to support a free and fair electoral process.
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Watch: Dramatic moment a cargo ship crashes into another vessel
A shocking collision between a large cargo vessel and a smaller fishing boat off the coast of Singapore has been captured on camera, leaving maritime authorities working to piece together the full details of the incident. The verified footage, which has begun circulating in maritime safety circles, shows the sudden, dramatic moment when the cargo ship makes impact with the fishing vessel, catching the chaotic interaction on record for investigators.
As of the latest updates, official investigations remain ongoing, with probe teams still working to pin down the precise timeline of the accident and the sequence of events that led to the crash. Maritime safety officials have not yet released additional information on potential casualties, damage estimates, or any human factors that may have contributed to the incident, as they continue their work to verify all facts surrounding the collision. This event has drawn attention to ongoing navigation safety concerns in one of the world’s busiest maritime shipping corridors, where heavy commercial traffic mixes with smaller local fishing operations on a daily basis.
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Trial of ex-police officer accused of double murder to begin in Sydney
A highly anticipated double murder trial is set to open Monday in Sydney, putting a former New South Wales police officer in the dock for the alleged fatal shootings of his ex-partner and her new partner early last year.
Thirty-one-year-old Beaumont Lamarre-Condon faces two counts of domestic violence-related murder and a third charge of aggravated break and enter, all of which he has pleaded not guilty to. Investigators allege the ex-officer used his service-issued police firearm to kill 26-year-old Jesse Baird, a working television presenter, and 29-year-old Luke Davies, a Qantas flight attendant who was Baird’s new boyfriend, inside a private residence in Paddington, an inner-city suburb of Sydney.
The case first sparked widespread public attention in February 2024, when members of the New South Wales Police Force launched an urgent, large-scale search for the two missing men. The search was triggered after police discovered bloodied personal items linked to Baird and Davies in a waste bin located in southern Sydney. Within days of the discovery, Lamarre-Condon turned himself in at a local police station and was formally taken into custody on the murder charges. Eight days after the killings are alleged to have occurred, authorities located the pair’s bodies, hidden inside surfboard bags in a remote rural area more than 200 kilometers southwest of Sydney.
In the weeks following his arrest and charging, New South Wales Police terminated Lamarre-Condon’s employment with the force. Court proceedings are scheduled to kick off Monday with the selection of a jury, after which both prosecution and defense legal teams will deliver their opening statements to the court. Legal observers estimate the trial will continue for approximately three months as evidence is presented and witness testimony is heard.