Hard Numbers: South Korea’s false alarm, Kyiv targeted, Sudan’s broken truce, Iran’s persecuted journalists, UK’s cheese tussle

People watch a news report on North Korea firing what it called a space satellite toward the south, in Seoul, South Korea.
People watch a news report on North Korea firing what it called a space satellite toward the south, in Seoul, South Korea.
REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

124: South Koreans awoke Wednesday to frantic government warnings to seek shelter after North Korea launched its first spy satellite into space. But minutes later, Seoul told residents they could relax because Pyongyang’s projectile had gone bust, landing in waters 124 miles west of a South Korean island.

3: Russian airstrikes on Kyiv overnight killed three people, including a child. Two of the victims – a nine-year-old girl and her mother – were killed after they tried to enter a bomb shelter at a medical clinic during the strike but found it locked from the outside.

25 million: The Sudanese military said it will abandon a recently implemented ceasefire after six weeks of conflict with the Rapid Support Forces, a rival militant faction. Both sides accuse the other of violating the truce. Fighting is now expected to ramp up in the country, where the UN says that 25 million – more than half the population – already rely on humanitarian aid to get by.

2: Bogus trials have begun for two Iranian journalists who reported on the in-custody death of Mahsa Amini in Sep. 2022. Niloofar Hamedi’s charges include “collaborating with the hostile government of the United States” for reporting on Amini’s arrest, while Elaheh Mohammadi is being similarly charged for covering the slain woman’s funeral. Both could face the death penalty.

7: Hundreds of people flocked to a southwest English city this week to watch a group of revelers chase a 7-pound (3-kilogram) wheel of Double Gloucester cheese down a hill. (The winner gets to gloat and keep the cheese.) But the event is not without safety concerns: The 19-year-old who won the women’s race was briefly knocked unconscious before getting back on her feet and soaring to victory.

More from GZERO Media

The biggest story of our G-Zero world, Ian Bremmer explains, is that the United States – still the world’s most powerful nation – has chosen to walk away from the international system it built and led for three-quarters of a century. Not because it's weak. Not because it has to. But because it wants to.

Wreckage of public transport buses involved in a head-on collision is parked at a police station near the scene of the deadly crash on the Kampala-Gulu highway in Kiryandongo district, near Gulu, northern Uganda, October 22, 2025.
REUTERS/Stringer

A horrific multi-vehicle crash on the Kampala-Gulu Highway in Uganda late last night has left 46 people dead. The pile up began after two buses traveling in opposite directions reportedly clashed “head on” as they tried to overtake two other vehicles.

U.S. President Donald Trump attends a bilateral meeting with China's President Xi Jinping during the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019.
REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

As China’s Communist Party gathers this week to draft the country’s 15th five-year plan, the path it’s charting is clear: Beijing wants to develop dominance over 21st century technologies, as its economy struggles with the burgeoning US trade war, a slow-boil real-estate crisis, and weak consumer demand.

When Walmart stocks its shelves with homegrown products like Fischer & Wieser’s peach jam, it’s not just selling food — it’s creating opportunity. Over two-thirds of what Walmart buys is made, grown, or assembled in America, fueling jobs and growth in communities nationwide. Walmart’s $350 billion commitment to US manufacturing is supporting 750,000 jobs and empowering small businesses to sell more, hire more, and strengthen their hometowns. From farms to shelves, Walmart’s investment keeps local businesses thriving. Learn how Walmart's commitment to US manufacturing is supporting 750K American jobs.

Last week, Microsoft released its 2025 Digital Defense Report, highlighting the evolving cybersecurity landscape and Microsoft's commitment to defending against emerging threats. The report provides an in-depth analysis of the current threat environment, including identity and access threats, human-operated attacks, ransomware, fraud, social engineering, and nation-state adversary threats. It also outlines advancements in AI for cyber-attack and defense, as well as the emerging cybersecurity threat of quantum technology. The report emphasizes the need for international collaboration, proactive regulatory alignment, and the development of new tools and practices to enhance cybersecurity resilience. Explore the report here.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman chairs the inaugural session of the Shura Council in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on September 10, 2025.

Saudi Press Agency/Handout via REUTERS

There are a lot of good vibes between the United States and Saudi Arabia right now. Whether that stretches to the Riyadh normalizing relations with Israel is another matter.