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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a press conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Ukrainian Independence Day, Aug. 24, 2025.
Hard Numbers: Ukraine blocked from using long-range US missiles, Israeli strike on hospital, Taliban gaining legitimacy, & More
190: Ukraine has not been able to fire US-made long-range missiles – which have a range of 190 miles – into Russia, as Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby blocked Kyiv from using these weapons. Colby is a prominent China hawk who sees support for Ukraine as a distraction from challenging Beijing. Earlier this year, he blocked a weapons shipment to Ukraine, before US President Donald Trump overruled him.
20: An Israeli strike on a hospital in southern Gaza killed at least 20 people, including five journalists, per the Hamas-run health ministry. The Israeli Defense Forces said it “regrets any harm to uninvolved individuals.” Hamas has been known to put its military centers underneath hospitals.
1.3 billion: European and Asian postal services are halting US shipments after Trump revoked the de minimis tariff exemption, which had allowed packages under $800 to enter duty-free. With 1.3 billion parcels shipped under the rule last year, the change threatens global e-commerce, discount retailers, and potentially even personal gift-giving.
15: In a sign that the Taliban is gaining some measure of legitimacy on the global stage, at least 15 countries now have ambassadors in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, including China, Russia, Iran, and several Gulf states. Western countries have yet to embrace the Islamist militant group that now runs Afghanistan, but some are taking steps to engage with them, especially on issues of migration.
92%: Ukraine marked Independence Day with President Volodymyr Zelensky urging perseverance in Kyiv’s Maidan Square, as Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney and US special envoy Keith Kellogg visited in solidarity. The holiday marks the day in 1991 when Ukraine’s Parliament voted to reject Soviet rule following a referendum that 92% of Ukrainians voted in favor of.Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva participates in the Inauguration Ceremony of the GWM Factory in Iracemapolis, state of Sao Paulo, on August 15, 2025.
What We’re Watching: Brazil’s left-wing leader makes a comeback, Israel considers Gaza options, India and China explore border drawings
Brazil’s Lula finds a recipe for left-wing LatAm success
Brazil is now subject to 50% tariffs from the United States, but President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva appears to be reveling in it: his approval rating jumped another three percentage points in August, per Genial/Quaest polling, reaching 46%, up from 43% in July and 40% in May. It appears Lula’s positioning as a foil to US President Donald Trump – just see his recent interviews with international outlets – is paying dividends. At a time when much of South America appears to be tilting right, the Brazilian leader may have found a recipe for keeping the left in power.
Escalation or ceasefire: what next for Gaza?
Israel reiterated Tuesday that it won’t accept a ceasefire until Hamas releases all 50 remaining hostages – 20 of whom are believed alive. This comes after Hamas officials said it had accepted a Gaza ceasefire deal, one that would return 28 of the hostages, including 10 of those who are living. Even if the truce does come to fruition, it won’t necessarily spell the end for war in the enclave: Israeli forces are ramping up activity as it prepares to invade Gaza City, calling up an extra 60,000 reservists which doubles the total number currently active.
India and China look to settle disputed border
As India-US relations worsen under Trump’s tariffs, New Delhi’s relationship with China is looking up. India and China agreed this week to explore demarcating their disputed border, a move both sides hailed as a step toward easing decades of tensions. The decision came during Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s first visit to Delhi in three years, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s expected trip to China for a regional summit. While the border remains fraught, both governments say progress could build trust and spill over into other cooperation, from trade to travel. Next stop for Wang: Pakistan, India’s rival and China’s longtime ally, who would be miffed without a visit.Graphic Truth: Another US ceasefire proposal for Gaza
It’s been two weeks since Israel launched its latest offensive in Gaza, one that is set to expand further. Attacks on the enclave in this period have regularly killed dozens, per Hamas-run health ministries, with reports over the weekend of deaths at an aid site. Some of Israel’s allies are even turning on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The offensive does appear to have weakened Hamas – the Israeli military said it killed Muhammad Sinwar, the militant group’s Gaza leader, during airstrikes in May. US special envoy Steve Witkoff wants to seize on this opening, and has sent a ceasefire offer to Hamas – one that includes an exchange of hostages for prisoners. This Graphic Truth lays out the key terms of the deal. Hamas has countered: it said it’s willing to release the hostages, but wants a permanent ceasefire.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini brief the media at the European Council in Brussels, Belgium, on December 11, 2017.
What We’re Watching: Pressure on Israel, Jitters in Bolivia, Podcasts for Democrats
Israel under fresh pressure
The UK and EU threatened Tuesday to revise trade ties with Israel unless PM Benjamin Netanyahu stops the new offensive in the Gaza Strip and allows sufficient humanitarian aid into the besieged enclave. This comes after the UK, Canada, and France threatened Israel on Monday with “concrete measures,” like sanctions. Netanyahu and his far right coalition allies say they are intent on destroying Hamas, though critics warn Israel is becoming a “pariah.”
The Morales of the story: Bolivian heavyweight to defy election exclusion
Bolivia’s socialist powerbroker Evo Morales, who governed from 2006 until he was ousted in protests in 2019, is officially ineligible to run in this August’s presidential election because of term limits. Yet he has pledged to mobilize his supporters to defy this rule, setting up a potentially destabilizing contest as his once-formidable leftwing MAS movement splinters into rival factions.
Democratic donors try a pivot to podcast
Faced with the vast array of conservative or MAGA-friendly online influencers who helped Donald Trump to win the 2024 election, Democrats and their donors are now trying to cultivate a creator economy of their own ahead of the 2026 midterms. There’s lots of money and pitches, but can you really create a viable ecosystem of influencers overnight? Authenticity, the heartbeat of any political campaign, is hard to create in a lab. You’re either a born killer or you’re not.
Tourists in the center of Madrid, Spain, after the announcement of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to block almost 66,000 illegal ads, on May 19, 2025.
HARD NUMBERS: Spain clamps down on Airbnb, Cat busted smuggling drugs in Costa Rica, and More
66,000: Amid growing concerns from residents, the Spanish government is calling for the removal of 66,000 Airbnb listings for violating tourist accommodation regulations. Protests have been erupting across the country – the second most popular tourist destination in the world, behind France – as frustration mounts over over-tourism and a housing crisis.
50: Of the 240 Venezuelans deported from the United States to El Salvador, at least 50 entered the United States legally and violated no immigration laws, according to an analysis from the center-right CATO Institute. This study follows an earlier report that 75% of the 240 men had no criminal record.
100: Israel allowed the United Nations to bring 100 aid trucks into Gaza on Tuesday, caving to mounting international pressure to provide relief for residents affected by an eleven-week blockade. UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher called for more aid, estimating that 14,000 babies could die in Gaza in the next 48 hours without immediate access to more aid.
$5 million: The Trump administration is discussing whether to offer $5 million to the family of Ashli Babbitt, an Air Force veteran who was killed as she stormed the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, as part of a settlement over a wrongful-death lawsuit. President Donald Trump granted clemency to all those involved in the Jan. 6 riot, but this move would go a step further.
235.65: Officers at Pococi Penitentiary in Costa Rica apprehended a paws-itively furry culprit caught up in a prison drug-smuggling scheme: a cat carrying 235.65 grams of marijuana and 67.76g of heroin. The drugs have since been confiscated, and the animal was put into the care of the National Animal Health Service.President Joe Biden at an event with Kamala Harris on lowering drug costs for America.
HARD NUMBERS: Biden diagnosed with cancer, Russian drones hammer Ukraine, Israeli forces enter Gaza, Pope Leo gets political, UK and EU are friends again, Austria wins Eurovision
9: Former US President Joe Biden, 82, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer that has metastasized to the bone. Biden’s cancer has a “Gleason score” of 9 out of 10, which means it is highly aggressive, but since it requires hormones to grow, may respond to treatment that deprives the tumors of hormones. Both US President Donald Trump and former Vice President Kamala Harris expressed their sorrow on social media and wished the former president a successful recovery as he and his family review treatment options.
273: Russia launched 273 drones in the Kyiv region of Ukraine Sunday, killing one woman and causing widespread damage in its biggest drone attack of the war. Ukraine accused Russia of also intending to fire an intercontinental ballistic missile, but Moscow did not comment. The escalation comes ahead of US President Donald Trump’s calls with the presidents of Russia and Ukraine on Monday, to broker a ceasefire deal.
140: Palestinian health officials say Israeli air strikes killed over 140 people in Gaza Sunday, raising accusations of ethnic cleansing by the UN. Israel subsequently began a ground offensive in the territory after peace talks stalled in Qatar, with officials saying that the strikes were part of its plans to “achieve all of the war goals in Gaza” and establish “operational control” of parts of the territory.
200,000: An estimated 200,000 well-wishers, including a slew of world leaders, packed St. Peter’s Square in Rome for the first sermon of Pope Leo XIV - and the pontiff didn’t leave out the politics. Leo stated that his role is to serve without “yielding to the temptation to be an autocrat,” remarked on Ukraine being “martyred,” and deplored the people of Gaza being “reduced to starvation.”
12: The United Kingdom and the European Union have decided that there are plenty of fish in the sea for them to share: London granted EU boats access to UK waters for the next 12 years in return for fewer checks on British food exports to the 27-country bloc. The deal also includes a significant security pact. It’s a significant moment for UK-EU relations, just nine years after their infamous divorce.
160 million: Austria took top prize in the 69th Eurovision song contest Saturday, with classically trained countertenor JJ wowing an estimated 160 million viewers with his soaring pop-opera ballad, Wasted Love. Second place went to Yuval Raphael of Israel with a moving trilingual performance of New Day Will Rise, while Tommy Cash of Estonia came in third with his frothy fast-dancing confection, Espresso Macchiato.A demonstrator looks up at her sign during a rally demanding the Supreme Court uphold the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which grants citizenship to all individuals born within the country’s borders, in Washington, D.C., USA, on May 15, 2025.
HARD NUMBERS: SCOTUS hears birthright case, Tensions flare between Guyana and Venezuela, More strikes in Gaza, The cat’s out of the gene pool
14: The Supreme Court is reviewing arguments on the Trump administration’s plan to end birthright citizenship. A lower court blocked it, citing the 14th Amendment, which guarantees citizenship for “all persons born or naturalized in the United States.” The White House isn’t challenging the lower courts’ reasoning, but is arguing that the district judges lacked authority to issue nationwide injunctions in the first place.
3: Guyanese soldiers have come under attack three times in 24 hours in Essequibo, an oil-rich border region that both Guyana and neighboring Venezuela claim. Guyana has administered the region for decades, but Venezuela says it intends to have Essequibo included in its gubernatorial elections scheduled for May 25 as a means to fully incorporate the region.
114: At least 114 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes across Gaza on Thursday, including 56 in Khan Younis. Israel said it was targeting Hamas fighters. The strikes come as Hamas and Israel hold indirect talks on a potential ceasefire and hostage deal.
10.6 million: What do Garfield, Crookshanks, and Puss and Boots have in common? They’re orange and, until now, no one has known why. A group of scientists — with the help of 10.6 million yen ($72,800) in crowdfunding from cat lovers — found that ginger cats lack part of their genetic code, causing cells to produce lighter colors in their fur, eyes, and skin (especially in males). Orange you glad I didn’t say meow?
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a house, in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip, on May 14, 2025.
HARD NUMBERS: Israeli air strike in Gaza kills 50, Houthis try and fail to hit Israel, Al Qaeda-linked group kills Burkina Faso soldiers, Uruguayan liberal hero dies, Brazil’s secret cash cow
50: An Israeli air strike in Northern Gaza killed at least 50 on Tuesday night, including 22 children and 15 women, according to an Indonesian hospital operating in the area. Israel has ramped up its latest Gaza offensive, with its security cabinet reportedly approving a plan to “capture” the enclave.
3: The Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired three missiles at Israel during a 24-hour period spanning Tuesday and Wednesday, two of which were intercepted. Israel seems ready to respond, ordering a trio of Yemeni ports to be evacuated.
60: An Al Qaeda affiliate killed 60 Burkina Faso soldiers in the country’s northern Loroum province, amid mounting tensions in a place that has been roiled by an Islamist insurgency for nearly a decade. It’s not clear when exactly the attacks took place.
89: Uruguay’s former president José Mujica, renowned for his humble lifestyle, died at the age of 89. He had cancer of the esophagus. Once the leader of a violent guerilla group in the 1960s, he served 15 years in prison before eventually becoming president in 2010. He earned cult status among liberals worldwide when he became the first leader to legalize weed.
80%: Zebus, an Indian cow breed renowned for its humped back and turkey wattle, now comprise 80% of Brazil’s total cattle herd. They are more resistant to heat and parasites than their European cousins, allowing them to proliferate, which in turn has helped Brazil become the largest net exporter of food.