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  • Germany says Russia behind Leipzig airport drone attack

    Germany says Russia behind Leipzig airport drone attack

    In a landmark public announcement that escalates tensions between Berlin and Moscow, German officials have formally named Russia as the perpetrator of an explosive drone attack last month at Leipzig/Halle Airport, a critical logistics hub supporting military shipments to Ukraine.

    The incident, which unfolded on August 4, saw an explosive-laden drone discovered near Ukrainian cargo aircraft parked at the eastern German airport. The device never detonated, investigators confirmed, after its detonator malfunctioned. Separately, probes suggest a second drone collided with a nearby cargo plane, while a third unmanned device was located in the area surrounding the airport 10 days after the initial discovery.

    Speaking at a Berlin press conference alongside German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt framed the attempted attack as fitting the long-documented blueprint of Russian hybrid operations targeting European states. He added that German authorities operate under the working assumption that further attacks on German soil are likely.

    Leipzig/Halle Airport holds unique strategic significance: it is used by the German military and NATO allies to transfer military supplies, and it also acts as a operational base for Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines, the carrier that moves the vast majority of Ukraine’s airborne cargo. That strategic role makes it a logical target for Moscow, analysts note, at a time when Germany remains one of Kyiv’s most prominent backers in its war against Russian invasion.

    In response to the confirmed Russian involvement, Wadephul announced sweeping diplomatic measures: he has ordered the closure of Russia’s consulate in Bonn, and the government will terminate the operating contract for the Russian House in Berlin, a facility long suspected by security observers of being used for Russian espionage and disinformation campaigns.

    The formal accusation and retaliatory measures have drawn immediate reaction from across the Western alliance. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte released a statement on X confirming the alliance’s full solidarity with Germany, noting that “the evidence is clear” and that he supports the actions Berlin has taken in response. The incident is scheduled to be a top topic of discussion during a meeting of European Union foreign ministers taking place in Ireland on the same Tuesday the announcement was made.

    Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement in attacks on European soil, and in response to the new measures, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Russia would retaliate for what it calls “anti-Russian decisions”, according to Russian state news agency Interfax.

    This formal attribution marks a shift from Berlin’s previous cautious stance, which only referenced potential involvement by “foreign powers” without naming a specific actor. US media had already reported that American intelligence agencies linked the attack to Russian actors, confirming the assessment that German intelligence had privately reached.

    German officials have long warned that the country faces daily hybrid threats from hostile powers. Last week, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has taken a hardline stance in support of Ukraine, reiterated that any actor that carries out hostile acts against German interests will “pay a price”. The German government is currently moving forward with plans to expand the legal powers of the country’s intelligence agencies, which have long been criticized for having limited authority to counter hybrid and asymmetric threats.

    The announcement comes at a sensitive domestic political moment for the Merz administration. A key regional election in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, where the airport is located, is approaching, and polls suggest the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) could win enough support to take control of the state government for the first time in the party’s history. The AfD, Germany’s largest national opposition party, has campaigned on ending all military and political support for Ukraine and restoring normal diplomatic and economic ties with Russia.

    In a separate development that adds to growing concerns over security on German soil, German police confirmed Tuesday they are launching an investigation into the discovery of improvised explosive and incendiary devices at a power substation in the eastern state of Brandenburg. The devices damaged a power line, causing a temporary power outage in the area. No group or actor has yet been linked to the sabotage attempt, and investigations into what happened remain ongoing.

    Over the past 12 months, multiple NATO member states, Germany included, have recorded a surge in drone sightings near critical infrastructure, military bases, and industrial facilities, raising alarms across the alliance over the growing scope of Russian hybrid activity targeting Western countries.

  • Germany blames Russia for last month’s attempted drone attack at Leipzig airport

    Germany blames Russia for last month’s attempted drone attack at Leipzig airport

    BERLIN — In a significant escalation of diplomatic tensions between Berlin and Moscow, the German government formally announced Tuesday that it holds Russia directly responsible for an attempted explosive drone attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport last month, a key logistics hub critical to Western military and humanitarian support for Ukraine.

    The foiled plot first came to light on the evening of August 4, when security personnel discovered an explosives-laden drone positioned near a Ukrainian-owned aircraft parked at the airport. Bomb disposal experts successfully carried out a controlled defusion of the device before it could be detonated, preventing potential mass casualties and major infrastructure damage.

    German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told reporters the botched attack aligns with a well-documented pattern of aggressive covert activity that Western officials have labeled “Russian hybrid operations.” “The German government has conducted a thorough investigation and comes to the clear conclusion that Russia is responsible for the hybrid attack in Leipzig on August 4,” Dobrindt stated.

    In response to the alleged plot, Berlin has announced sweeping retaliatory diplomatic measures. Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul confirmed that the Russian consulate general in Bonn will be shut down permanently, effective September 18. Additionally, the operating contract for the Russian House, a prominent Russian cultural center located in central Berlin, will be terminated immediately.

    Leipzig/Halle Airport is far more than a standard commercial cargo hub: it serves as a primary logistics gateway for Western support to Ukraine, and regularly hosts Ukrainian Antonov transport aircraft that carry military and humanitarian aid into the war-torn country. It also hosts the NATO Strategic Airlift International Solution (SALIS) program, which conducts near-daily operations moving military equipment to NATO battle groups deployed along the alliance’s eastern flank, stretching from Finland in the north to Romania in the south, while also supporting mission deployments for both the EU and individual NATO member states.

    This is not the first time the airport has been targeted in suspected sabotage linked to Russia. In 2024, an incendiary device detonated at an on-site logistics center, igniting a fire in a freight container that was preparing to be loaded onto a cargo plane bound for Ukraine. Western security officials have long suspected that attack was coordinated by Russian intelligence services.

    For years, Western governments have accused Moscow of running a coordinated continent-wide campaign of sabotage, covert attacks, and disruptive activities across Europe. The core goal of this campaign, officials say, is to erode public and political support for Ukraine in the face of Russia’s full-scale invasion, and to destabilize political and social order within European Union and NATO member states. Moscow has repeatedly denied all accusations of involvement in sabotage activities across Europe.

  • Frances hits Shein and Temu with fast fashion fees

    Frances hits Shein and Temu with fast fashion fees

    France has officially implemented a landmark tiered levy on ultra-fast fashion apparel this week, a regulatory move designed to rein in the growth of budget e-commerce clothing giants while addressing the sector’s well-documented environmental harms. The new fee structure, which entered into force on Tuesday, was authorized by a national law passed this past June that specifically targets major players in the ultra-fast fashion space, including China-linked brands Shein, Temu and AliExpress.

    Ultra-fast fashion, a business model defined by rapid production of low-cost, trend-driven clothing that encourages frequent consumer turnover, has come under growing fire from European policymakers for its outsized carbon footprint, textile waste generation, and unfair competition with traditional apparel retailers. French officials argue that the low price points of these e-commerce giants have spurred a dramatic surge in disposable clothing consumption across the country, amplifying environmental damage at a time when France is pushing for broader sustainability reforms in the fashion industry.

    The legislation defines ultra-fast fashion based on two core metrics: the total volume of clothing a retailer places on the French market each year, and the cost of repairing a damaged garment relative to its original purchase price. The per-item levy scales upward based on how a brand performs against both criteria, with initial 2026 fees ranging from just €0.50 for basic underwear to €2 for cotton T-shirts, €9 for denim jeans, and €12 for outerwear jackets. By 2030, the maximum per-item fee is set to rise to nearly €20, though the levy will be capped at 50% of a garment’s pre-tax retail price to avoid excessive cost increases for low-budget items.

    Notably, the French government confirmed in July that the levy will not apply to established European fast fashion retailers such as H&M and Zara, a carve-out that has drawn criticism for appearing to favor domestic and regional industry players while targeting foreign e-commerce brands. China’s Ministry of Commerce has already pushed back against the law, labeling it discriminatory, a non-tariff trade barrier, and a potential violation of core World Trade Organization (WTO) trading principles.

    Mathieu Lefevre, the French minister leading the regulatory push, has defended the policy, emphasizing that the environmental and economic harms of the ultra-fast fashion model are already widely recognized by climate and industry experts. The rollout of the levy comes at a pivotal moment for Shein, the largest of the targeted brands, which just completed its initial public offering (IPO) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company closed its first day of public trading with a valuation of $26.2 billion, a sharp drop from the nearly $100 billion valuation it commanded in private funding rounds just a few years ago. Shein has faced mounting headwinds in recent years, including intensifying global competition, ongoing trade tensions between China and Western nations, and persistent scrutiny over the ethical standards of its global supply chain.

    In a statement to the BBC ahead of the levy’s implementation, Shein argued that the targeted regulation would have a direct negative impact on household budgets across France. At a time when French consumers are already grappling with the ongoing fallout from the global cost-of-living crisis, the company said the new fees would only further erode ordinary shoppers’ purchasing power. Temu, another Chinese-owned e-commerce platform that has faced widespread criticism from policymakers in the United States and United Kingdom, has pushed back against being categorized as an ultra-fast fashion brand. A Temu spokesperson told the BBC that the company acknowledges the importance of the environmental goals behind France’s new legislation, but noted that Temu operates as a third-party online marketplace rather than a clothing manufacturer, and therefore does not fit the definition of an ultra-fast fashion retailer. AliExpress has not yet issued a public comment on the new levy as of Tuesday’s implementation. The policy is widely seen as a test case for broader European Union regulation of ultra-fast fashion, with Brussels currently drafting its own region-wide rules to curb the sector’s environmental impact.

  • A series of heatwaves leads Britain to record its hottest summer

    A series of heatwaves leads Britain to record its hottest summer

    LONDON – The United Kingdom’s national weather service has confirmed that the country’s 2026 summer, a season defined by back-to-back blistering heatwaves, widespread drought, and destructive wildfires, stands as the hottest ever recorded in British history. Provisional data from the Met Office, which has tracked temperature trends across the nation since 1884, shows this summer shattered the previous record set just one year prior.

    The mean average temperature for summer 2026 hit 16.5°C (61.7°F), eclipsing 2025’s average of 16.1°C (61°F). That 2025 reading had itself broken the prior record of 15.7°C (60.2°F) set in 2018, marking an accelerating pattern of record-breaking heat that climate scientists tie directly to anthropogenic climate change. Alarmingly, all five of the hottest summers recorded in the U.K. have occurred since 2003.

    “These records are now breaking with increasing frequency, reflecting the influence of human-induced climate change,” said Amy Doherty, head of the Met Office’s National Climate Information Center. “Particularly notable is how much we’ve exceeded the previous summer mean temperature record, set just last year.”

    Met Office climate modeling quantifies the stark impact of human greenhouse gas emissions: researchers calculated that fossil fuel pollution and other human-caused warming have made an extreme hot summer like this one 130 times more likely than it would be in a pre-industrial climate. Without human emissions, a summer this hot would be expected to occur roughly once every 1,000 years. Today, that same level of heat is projected to occur once every nine years on average.

    Heatwaves began plaguing the U.K. as early as late May, with recurring heat events striking every month through the end of summer, including two separate heatwaves in July alone. The extreme heat brought tangible, devastating harms across the country. The U.K. Health Security Agency estimates that 2,877 excess deaths in England were linked to the May and June heatwaves. A June 26 high of 38°C (100.4°F) in Norfolk set a new record for the hottest June temperature ever recorded in the region, while the year’s overall peak temperature hit 38.1°C (100.6°F) in London on August 13.

    Regional temperature breakdowns show England, Wales, and Northern Ireland all set new mean summer temperature records. Scotland bucked the trend, recording its sixth-warmest summer on record, with cooler and wetter conditions than the rest of the U.K. Even with the milder conditions in Scotland, the impacts of the persistent heat and lack of rainfall remain widespread: all of Wales and the vast majority of England are still experiencing official drought conditions months after the heatwave season began.

    “Our hottest summer ever is a brutal reminder that we’re not waiting for climate change to arrive in Britain; we’re living in the middle of it,” said Katie White, the U.K.’s Minister of Climate Transition. “With kids too hot to sleep, families worrying about older relatives, farmers watching fields dry out, and firefighters and our armed forces battling wildfires, we’ve all woken up to a reality none of us wants for the people and places we love.”

  • Air raid alert shatters first day of school in Kyiv after overnight Russian missile strikes

    Air raid alert shatters first day of school in Kyiv after overnight Russian missile strikes

    On a Tuesday morning in Kyiv’s Obolon district, just hours after Russian ballistic missile strikes rattled Ukraine’s capital overnight, festive balloons drifted across a school playground. Groggy but determined parents and children in celebration attire gathered to the sound of music, marking the traditional kickoff of a new academic year — the fifth such start since Russia’s full-scale invasion. Within seconds, however, the joyful atmosphere shattered: an air raid siren wailed, the crowd scattered, and laughter and melody were replaced by the rumble of distant explosions.

    This jarring interruption has become the new normal for Ukrainian education, as the country enters another school year with no end to the ongoing war in sight. Over the course of nearly three years of full-scale conflict, thousands of schools across the nation have been forced to reinvent themselves to survive. Many have shifted to fully remote or hybrid learning models, others hold lessons in bomb shelters, and countless facilities in destroyed or Russian-occupied territories have been shuttered entirely. Russian attacks have already leveled an estimated 1 million educational textbooks, and national officials are bracing for what is projected to be one of the harshest winters of the war, with repeated expectations of widespread power outages and infrastructure disruptions.

    As Russia ramps up the intensity of its assault, the cumulative strain of years of conflict weighs heavily on every layer of Ukrainian society. Ukrainian air defense systems still lack sufficient capabilities to intercept the growing barrage of high-speed Russian ballistic missiles, while repeated waves of Shahed attack drones can stretch air raid alerts and attacks across multiple consecutive days. For school administrators like Yevhen Poliakov, principal of Kyiv’s Lyceum Obolon, the choice to hold an in-person opening ceremony was a difficult one. After weighing the risks, he opted to move forward, confident that his school’s on-site bomb shelter would let students reach safety quickly — a bet that paid off when the siren sounded.

    Kyiv’s city education administration has outlined a flexible plan for the 2024-2025 academic year: most schools will operate with a mix of in-person and remote instruction, shifting models immediately in response to changing security conditions. Back in August, Ukrainian Education Minister Andrii Butenko released national data showing that of the country’s general secondary schools, 8,424 will run fully in-person, 1,306 fully remote, and 2,211 will use a blended format — meaning nearly one-third of all secondary schools cannot operate at full in-person capacity this year.

    Poliakov has long prioritized keeping students in the classroom, pointing to the well-documented downsides of extended remote learning. “Parents need to go to work to earn a living,” he explained. “We can teach their children here, and it is far better for a kid to be under our supervision than locked alone in a ninth-floor apartment with only a dog for company, with no idea what to do with themselves while mom and dad are gone.” To support flexible learning, his lyceum uses Mriia, Ukraine’s national digital education portal and app, to connect students, parents, teachers and administrators for seamless remote instruction when needed. The school is also retrofitting and expanding its shelter, stockpiling firewood and making other preparations for potential winter blackouts.

    Across Kyiv, the impact of recent attacks is impossible to ignore. At one school damaged in a Russian strike just days before the start of the term, only a small handful of families showed up for an informal opening ceremony. Three school buildings suffered extensive damage to windows, facades, hallways, doors and classroom equipment, so nearly all students began the year learning online. Still, some families made the trip anyway: Oksana Herasymchuk brought her daughter, who was starting middle school, to mark the occasion. Her daughter began first grade in 2022, just months after the full-scale invasion began, and the entire family has struggled to adapt to the constant uncertainty of wartime life. In the wake of the latest attack, Herasymchuk says she has no clear idea what comes next for her daughter’s education. “Our children’s generation has already had to face so many trials,” she said.

    For Yevhen Yurko, bringing his 6-year-old son Darii to the school for his first day was a deliberate act of normalcy. Darii’s first official lesson was held online, but he wanted to see the school building in person. Yurko photographed his son wearing a traditional embroidered vyshyvanka shirt standing in the nearly empty playground. “Even when everything is like this, I still wanted to have something to remember this day by,” Yurko said. He and his wife plan to remain in Kyiv and keep Darii enrolled at the school, convinced that he can get a quality education there even if all lessons end up being held in a basement shelter.

    Official data from Kyiv’s education department shows that since the start of the full-scale invasion, 318 education facilities across the city have been damaged by Russian attacks, including 156 primary and secondary schools. Some facilities have been hit multiple times, ranging from two to eight separate strikes. The number of first-graders enrolling in Kyiv schools has plummeted by roughly 40% since 2022, falling from 28,500 on September 1 2022 to just 16,600 this year. Nationwide, the total number of school-aged children in Ukraine has dropped by 17.5% — more than 755,000 students — since the 2021-2022 academic year, before the full-scale invasion began.

    Anna Putsova, co-founder of the savED charitable foundation that supports Ukrainian education during the war, summed up the current state of the sector: “Ukrainian education right now feels like a constant obstacle course. The system adapts, but conditions often change faster than you can build one stable model and say ‘now we work like this.’” Putsova emphasized that the long-term toll of the conflict on education extends far beyond damaged buildings: accumulated learning loss, a shrinking student population, and overwhelming burnout among teachers and administrators create overlapping crises that threaten the country’s future. “School is an environment where a child learns to interact with others, build relationships, work in a group, resolve conflicts, be part of a community,” she noted. “For some Ukrainian children, there hasn’t been a normal school experience in several years.”

    The impact of the war varies drastically across regions, Putsova explained. Some frontline areas face nonstop air raid alerts that disrupt classes multiple times a day, while other regions have relied almost exclusively on online learning for years, because safe in-person classes can only be held underground. In some host communities, an influx of internally displaced children has outstripped available school capacity, while other areas have lost so many students to displacement or emigration that schools have been forced to merge or close permanently. Among regions where savED operates, more than 92% of schools in Ukrainian-held southern Kherson are damaged or destroyed, alongside 39% in Mykolaiv, more than 67% in eastern Kharkiv, and nearly 54% in northern Sumy.

    In the long run, Putsova argued, the crisis in education is not just a problem for the current school year — it threatens Ukraine’s long-term prosperity as an independent nation. “In the long term, this is no longer just a question of school,” she said. “The knowledge level of today’s children will determine the quality of future specialists, the productivity of the economy, the country’s ability to create complex products and technologies.”

  • Norway’s new king takes oath as mourners pay respects to his late father

    Norway’s new king takes oath as mourners pay respects to his late father

    Norway has entered a new chapter in its modern constitutional monarchy this week, as the nation’s newly appointed king completed the formal oath of office to mark the start of his reign. The historic inauguration unfolded against a backdrop of quiet national grief, with the late King Harald V — the new monarch’s father and one of Norway’s longest-serving heads of state — lying in state at Oslo’s Royal Palace to allow members of the public to pay their final respects.

    The oath-taking ceremony, a constitutional requirement that formalizes the transfer of royal power following the passing of the previous monarch, stands as one of the most significant symbolic events in modern Norwegian political life. While the nation grapples with the loss of a beloved leader who steered the country through decades of social and economic change, the peaceful transition of power has reaffirmed the stability of Norway’s constitutional institutions.

    Thousands of mourners have already queued through the grounds of the Royal Palace to pay tribute to King Harald V, who was widely admired for his down-to-earth demeanor and unifying influence across Norwegian society. Many have left flowers, handwritten notes, and other tributes outside the palace gates, reflecting the deep affection the Norwegian public held for the late monarch. At the same time, political and civic leaders have welcomed the new king, emphasizing their confidence in his ability to carry forward the constitutional role of the monarchy and serve as a unifying figure for the nation.

    The dual ceremonies of mourning and inauguration underscore the unique balance of continuity and change that defines Norway’s monarchy: as the country says goodbye to a leader who shaped its modern identity, it also welcomes a new sovereign to guide the institution through the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.

  • European tour heads to Switzerland as the only main pro tour in action; Walker Cup held in Ireland

    European tour heads to Switzerland as the only main pro tour in action; Walker Cup held in Ireland

    Golf fans around the world have a stacked slate of elite tournament action to tune into this week, headlined by two marquee events across two continents. The European Tour’s annual Omega European Masters is set to get underway this week at the iconic Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club in the picturesque alpine town of Crans Montana, Switzerland, while the 2025 Walker Cup, the top amateur team competition between the United States and Great Britain and Ireland (GB&I), kicks off at Lahinch Golf Club in County Clare, Ireland.

    The Omega European Masters, widely regarded as one of the most visually stunning stops on the entire European Tour circuit, will carry a total prize purse of $3.75 million, with the champion taking home a $625,000 winner’s share. The 6,814-yard par-70 alpine course has played host to the event for decades, and this year’s field brings a mix of rising stars, seasoned veterans, and highly ranked competitors. South Africa’s Thriston Lawrence will return to defend his 2024 title, and the tournament marks the opening leg of the European Tour’s “Back Nine” stretch, where all but the final two events of the season will be held across continental Europe.

    Heading into the event, Ryan Gerard holds the distinction of being the highest-ranked player in the field at world No. 22, fresh off a third-place finish at last week’s Tour Championship at East Lake. Current Race to Dubai leader Patrick Reed, ranked 35th globally, is making his first appearance at the tournament in 11 years, competing in his sixth consecutive start to close out his season. Overall, the 2025 field features 10 of the top 100 ranked golfers in the world, and includes notable names such as Miguel Angel Jimenez – who is competing despite the PGA Tour Champions taking a scheduled break this week – John Daly II, making just his second career European Tour start after a tied 30th finish at the Nexo Championship in Scotland two weeks ago, and Sudarshan Yellamaraju, who earned his spot via the top-70 FedEx Cup exemption category.

    For U.S. viewers, all four rounds of the Omega European Masters will air exclusively on Golf Channel, with broadcast windows running 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET on Thursday and Friday, 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET on Saturday, and 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. ET on Sunday. Next week, the European Tour will travel to Northern Ireland for the Amgen Irish Open.

    Over at the Walker Cup, the biennial (now returning to an even-year schedule after a one-time odd-year adjustment) amateur team competition will see the defending champion United States look to extend their historic dominance over GB&I at the 6,950-yard par-72 Lahinch Golf Club, a links course that previously hosted the 2019 Irish Open (won by Jon Rahm) and the 2024 Palmer Cup college competition. The United States currently holds a commanding 40-9-1 lead in the overall series, and have claimed victory in the last five consecutive Walker Cup matchups, with GB&I’s last win coming in 2015 at Royal Lytham & St Annes.

    In 2024 at Cypress Point, the Americans dominated play, winning eight of 10 singles matches to secure a 17-9 victory, and return to compete this year with captain Nathan Smith at the helm, same as the 2024 event. GB&I will be led by returning captain Dean Robertson. The American side is led by top-ranked amateur Preston Stout of Oklahoma State, and features Stewart Hagestad competing in his sixth consecutive Walker Cup, with three returning players from the 2024 winning squad. GB&I brings six returning players from last year’s team, including Luke Poulter, son of legendary Ryder Cup competitor Ian Poulter, who is playing in his second straight Walker Cup, while Englishman Jack Whaley, the reigning U.S. Amateur champion, will make his first appearance in the competition. As defending champions, the U.S. needs 13 total points to retain the Walker Cup, while GB&I needs 13.5 points to claim the trophy. The competition format features four foursomes matches on both Saturday and Sunday, eight singles matches on Saturday, and 10 singles matches on Sunday.

    Broadcast coverage of the 2025 Walker Cup will also air on Golf Channel for U.S. audiences, with coverage running 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, and split windows of 3:30 a.m. to 8 a.m. ET and 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. ET on Sunday. The next Walker Cup is scheduled for 2028 at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon.

    Beyond these two headline events, this week also brings a full slate of action across every major professional golf tour. On the PGA Tour, fresh off Scottie Scheffler’s win at the Tour Championship and his second consecutive FedEx Cup title – a victory that pushed him past Tiger Woods’ 26-year record for career PGA Tour earnings – the tour is on a break before the Biltmore Championship in Asheville kicks off September 17-20. On the LPGA Tour, Ruoning Yin claimed victory at last week’s FM Championship, and the tour will head to the Solheim Cup next week, with Nelly Korda entering the week as the leader of the Race to CME Globe. The PGA Tour Champions saw Steven Alker secure his second consecutive win with a victory at the Ally Challenge last week, and will compete in the Sanford International next week, with Stewart Cink holding the lead in the Charles Schw Cup standings. The Korn Ferry Tour’s most recent event was won by Yuta Sugiura, with the circuit next heading to the Simmons Bank Open, and Ross Steelman leading the overall points race.

    Lower-tier and amateur tours also have full competition schedules this week: the Challenge Tour hosts the Rosa Challenge Tour at Rosa Golf Club in Konopiska, Poland, with Hugo Townsend returning as defending champion; the United States Golf Association hosts both the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur at Montclair Golf Club in West Orange, New Jersey (with Ina Kim-Schaad defending) and the U.S. Senior Amateur at Baltimore Country Club’s East Course in Lutherville, Maryland (with Mike McCoy defending); the Legends Tour hosts the NI Legends at Galgorm Castle Golf Club in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, with Markus Brier defending; the Japan LPGA hosts the Golf5 Ladies at the Golf5 Club in Mizunami, Gifu, Japan, with Yuna Araki defending; and the Korea LPGA hosts the OK Savings Bank OK Man Open at Adonis Country Club in Pocheon, South Korea, with Shinsil Bang defending.

  • Sexual assaults happening almost every day in Ceuta, prosecutors say

    Sexual assaults happening almost every day in Ceuta, prosecutors say

    Nearly two months after an unprecedented mass migrant crossing into the Spanish North African exclave of Ceuta, the territory remains mired in a deep humanitarian, political and security crisis, with thousands of migrants still stranded and rising tensions between local communities, national political leaders and regional neighbors.

    Between July 30 and 31, more than 72,000 migrants crossed the border from Morocco into Ceuta, one of two Spanish autonomous territories on North Africa’s coast that Morocco has long claimed as its own. While the vast majority of arrivals have since returned to Morocco, official estimates indicate as many as 5,000 migrants remain in the exclave — a figure that includes between 1,400 and 1,600 unaccompanied minor children. The unplanned, sustained population surge has upended daily life in Ceuta, stoked violent clashes between migrants and long-term local residents, and created one of the most pressing political challenges for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s government in recent years.

    Among the most alarming developments to emerge from the ongoing crisis has been a sharp rise in reported sexual assaults across Ceuta. Chief prosecutor Silvia Rojas confirmed to local media that 23 sexual assault cases have been formally recorded since the mass influx began in late July, a rate of roughly one incident per day. Nine of these recorded assaults targeted minor children. Rojas emphasized that migrant girls and young women face disproportionate risk in the current environment, noting that their irregular legal status leaves them particularly vulnerable to exploitation. Many additional assaults are believed to have gone unreported, Rojas added, with victims deterred from coming forward by fear of repercussions and their unstable living situation in Ceuta. So far, eight suspects have been identified in connection to the cases: four Moroccan citizens, three Spanish nationals and one Belgian, according to Spanish news agency Efe. The Spanish Society of Epidemiology has publicly warned that gender-based violence in this context cannot be dismissed as an isolated collection of unconnected incidents.

    In response to mounting pressure, the Sánchez government has taken a series of steps to address the crisis. Spain’s cabinet has approved a multi-million euro emergency aid package designed to expand access to essential public services and fund care for the hundreds of unaccompanied migrant children remaining in Ceuta. On Tuesday, Sánchez convened his second national security council meeting in one week to coordinate a whole-of-government response to the unrest. In a move widely interpreted as an effort to reassert Spanish sovereign authority over the exclave, Sánchez announced earlier this week that King Felipe VI would visit Ceuta “as soon as conditions allow.” The announcement carried significant diplomatic weight: the last visit by a Spanish monarch to Ceuta, in 2007, prompted Morocco to recall its ambassador from Madrid in protest, and a new royal visit is expected to reignite diplomatic friction between Madrid and Rabat.

    Sánchez’s handling of the announcement has already drawn domestic criticism. Political commentators have highlighted that the prime minister’s public remark — noting that no Spanish king had visited Ceuta in 20 years — was factually inaccurate: current King Felipe has only occupied the throne for 12 years, and the 2007 visit was conducted by his predecessor, Juan Carlos I. The comment was widely read as an implicit criticism of the monarch, even as Sánchez met with the king later the same day. The prime minister also noted that he is the only sitting Spanish prime minister to have made an official visit to Ceuta while in office, having traveled to the territory on July 31 as the crisis unfolded.

    Beyond domestic pushback, the Sánchez government faces widespread condemnation from political opposition over its management of the entire crisis. The conservative mayor of Ceuta, Juan Jesús Vivas, has called for nationwide demonstrations across mainland Spain on Wednesday, timed to coincide with Ceuta’s annual public holiday, to demand stronger government action. Main opposition party the People’s Party (PP) has accused Sánchez of improperly exonerating Morocco of involvement in the crisis. Hard-right party Vox has gone even further, claiming that Sánchez has not merely lost control of Ceuta — he has intentionally ceded Spanish authority over the territory. Local business leaders echo the frustration: Arantxa Campos, president of the Ceuta Employers’ Confederation, told the BBC that local authorities and businesses have received no clear plan from the national government, leaving them unable to plan for or address the ongoing strain on public services and local infrastructure. “We don’t even know when they’re going to finish screening everyone,” Campos said.

    A core point of political contention is the question of who bears responsibility for the unprecedented mass crossing. Sánchez has deliberately avoided blaming Moroccan state authorities, stating that no available intelligence reports point to any official Moroccan involvement in organizing or encouraging the surge. Morocco has repeatedly denied any role in orchestrating the crossing, and PP spokesperson Borja Sémper has questioned this narrative, arguing that tens of thousands of people could not have mobilized to the Ceuta border without the knowledge of Moroccan authorities.

    Instead, Sánchez has pointed to disinformation campaigns on social media as a key driver of the crisis, claiming that false content has been spread by actors linked to Russia, Israel and an international far-right movement, which has long weaponized migration to destabilize European governments. He clarified that the disinformation campaign did not necessarily originate with a state actor, but his allegations have already drawn fierce pushback from both countries. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar called the claim “a blatant lie”, while Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman has demanded concrete evidence to support the allegations. Both nations have outright denied any involvement in the crisis.

    Spanish fact-checking organization Maldita has confirmed that in the weeks leading up to the July 30 crossing, encouraging messages circulated widely on Moroccan social media platforms, urging people to attempt the crossing after a June ruling from Spain’s Supreme Court. Multiple posts in August falsely framed the Ceuta border fence as easy and safe to cross, despite the high human cost: Ceuta’s mayor confirms that at least 100 people died attempting to swim around the border barrier during the mass influx.

  • PSG cashes in again as Ibrahim Mbaye joins Aston Villa as part of a $460 million summer sell-off

    PSG cashes in again as Ibrahim Mbaye joins Aston Villa as part of a $460 million summer sell-off

    PARIS – On the final day of the 2025 summer transfer window, French Ligue 1 giant Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), a two-time European champion, confirmed its latest high-profile outgoing deal: promising Senegalese forward Ibrahim Mbaye will make a permanent move to English Premier League side Aston Villa. The transfer marks another milestone in the Parisian club’s dramatic strategic shift, moving away from its decades-long identity as soccer’s biggest spender to a new model focused on generating massive revenue through player sales.

    This summer, PSG has outperformed every other top European club in transfer revenue generated from outgoing player moves, with cumulative earnings surpassing 400 million euros ($464 million). That figure puts it ahead of fellow big spenders Aston Villa and Manchester City of the Premier League, capping a wildly successful window for the club’s new commercial strategy.

    Contrary to some fan concerns that PSG is selling off its core talent, club insiders emphasize that every player moved out this window, including Mbaye, was a rotational substitute under head coach Luis Enrique. Even the summer’s largest outgoing deal, the 145 million euro transfer of Bradley Barcola, fits this deliberate framework: the club has only offloaded players not central to Enrique’s starting XI plans, allowing it to cash in on valuable assets while keeping its core competitive squad intact.

    A product of PSG’s renowned youth academy, the 18-year-old Mbaye has already built an impressive resume on and off the pitch for club and country. He has earned 15 senior international caps for Senegal, and earlier this summer at the World Cup, he made history as the youngest African player ever to score at the men’s World Cup, finding the back of the net in Senegal’s 3-1 group stage defeat to host nation France. Back in 2023, Mbaye became the youngest player in PSG history to make a Ligue 1 debut, stepping onto the pitch at just 16 years, six months and 23 days old. Over his time in the first team, Mbaye lifted eight major trophies with PSG, including two Champions League titles, two European Super Cups and two Ligue 1 crowns. Mbaye’s transfer package is valued at up to 60 million euros ($69 million), adding to PSG’s massive summer haul.

    Beyond Mbaye and Barcola, PSG has offloaded a host of other squad players this window, including defender Noham Kamara, South Korean midfielder Lee Kang-In, striker Randal Kolo Muani and Portuguese forward Gonçalo Ramos. The club used less than 210 million euros ($243 million) of its transfer sales revenue to bring in new signings: Ferran Torres, Maghnes Akliouche, Mika Godts, Lucas Lucas, Lucas Digne and Alessandro Longoni. The result is a net capital gain of nearly 200 million euros ($232 million) from this summer’s transfer activity alone.

    This strategic shift is a dramatic departure from the club’s approach for more than a decade. Since Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) completed its takeover of PSG in 2011, ownership spent lavishly to attract global superstars including Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Lionel Messi and Neymar, turning a mid-tier French club into one of the richest and most competitive sides in European soccer. The turning point came after Kylian Mbappe’s high-profile departure to Real Madrid in 2024, when Enrique pushed for a new recruitment model focused on signing less high-profile but high-potential talent to build depth across every position, creating healthy competition for starting spots and flexible squad rotation.

    The overhaul has already delivered tangible on-pitch results: PSG has won consecutive Champions League titles under the new structure. Off the pitch, the financial results are equally impressive. PSG reported last October that it closed the 2024–25 season with a record 837 million euros ($970 million) in total revenue, a milestone that came on the back of the club’s first ever Champions League title. Since QSI’s 2011 takeover, the club’s annual turnover has increased ninefold, underscoring the long-term success of its evolution.

  • Submersible joins search for 20 missing in deadly Cypriot ferry disaster

    Submersible joins search for 20 missing in deadly Cypriot ferry disaster

    Two full days have passed since the passenger ferry Filo Jet capsized and sank off the northern coast of Cyprus, and search operations have entered a new critical phase with a specialized submersible deployed Tuesday to locate 20 people still unaccounted for. The disaster, which unfolded Sunday afternoon as the catamaran ferry departed the northern Cypriot port of Kyrenia (called Girne in Turkish) en route to Tasucu, Turkey, has already left eight people dead.

    Carrying a total of 267 passengers and crew, most of whom were Turkish tourists returning from holiday, the Filo Jet quickly keeled over and sank after passengers reported hearing multiple loud bangs from below deck. Survivor accounts describe immediate panic as water rushed into the vessel, trapping dozens of people in the main passenger seating area as the ship tipped onto its side.

    According to Unal Ustel, Prime Minister of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Turkey’s specialized search-and-rescue ship TCG Isin has now reached the wreck site, located roughly 7.5 kilometers off the Cypriot coast. The sunken ferry rests at a depth of more than 500 meters (over 1,600 feet), far beyond the range of standard diving operations. To address this extreme depth, the TCG Isin carries a remotely operated submersible capable of descending up to 1,000 meters (3,280 feet), fitted with high-resolution cameras to map the seabed and robotic arms to recover debris and evidence. The vessel also hosts a team of 15 specialized divers to support operations.

    “Once the wreck is identified, salvage operations will begin at a significant depth of 500 meters,” Commander Ulas Cesur, head of the mission aboard the TCG Isin, told reporters. “Detailed search and investigation activities will be carried out around and on the wreck using a remotely operated underwater vehicle.”

    Ustel emphasized that authorities are committing all available resources to the operation, backed by full support from the Turkish government. “We will continue our search and rescue operations and technical work uninterrupted for as long as needed,” he stated in remarks published by TRNC newspaper Kibris.

    As search efforts press forward, three of the eight confirmed victims were laid to rest across Turkey on Tuesday. Fourteen-year-old Nisa Torer, who was returning from vacation with her widowed father and two younger brothers, was buried in the southern Turkish city of Gaziantep. Her father remains among the missing. Fifty-six-year-old Nihat Balyemez was also interred in Gaziantep, while 60-year-old Huseyin Ozdemir was buried in Silifke, Mersin province. Ozdemir had traveled to Cyprus for a family wedding; his wife is still missing, but their two daughters were pulled from the water alive.

    Since the disaster was reported, a massive multi-domain search effort has been mounted. Overnight Monday, air and sea crews combed the area for any signs of surviving passengers, and to date, the operation has involved one fixed-wing aircraft, seven helicopters, five drones, and 17 surface vessels, according to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency.

    In the wake of the sinking, authorities have launched a formal investigation into the cause of the disaster. Eight crew members and a senior director of the ferry’s operating company, Filo Denizcilik, are currently in police custody. An additional five people, including other Filo Denizcilik employees and northern Cypriot port officials, remain under formal investigation.

    The incident takes place against a long-standing geopolitical backdrop: Cyprus has been divided along ethnic lines since a 1974 Turkish invasion, following a Greek nationalist coup attempt. Turkish Cypriots declared independence as the TRNC in 1983, a move recognized only by Ankara, which maintains more than 35,000 troops on the northern portion of the island.