Saturday, August 29, 2026
At least 37 dead and hundreds evacuated after strike on Kyiv weapons depot
KYIV, Ukraine
Thirty-seven people have died and almost 400 have been evacuated after a Russian drone strike hit a depot storing weapons for Ukraine's military near a residential area on the outskirts of Kyiv.
The strike caused shells, mines and drones to detonate late on Friday, triggering a blast that damaged nearby properties including a care home for the elderly and disabled, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
He said the storage site "definitely shouldn't have been there" and that an investigation had been launched into "terrible negligence on the part of those who stored explosive right next to people".
The attack is the second to hit a munitions depot near Kyiv in recent months, prompting renewed anger.
Four children are among the 42 people injured in Friday night's explosion, according to regional head Tymur Tkachenko, with a rescue operation ongoing at the site, in the Bucha district, on Saturday.
Russia's Ministry of Defence said in a statement that its forces had targeted "an ammunition depot" in Myla, a village to the west of the Ukrainian capital, holding "components and launch boosters for FP-1/FP-2 long-range unmanned aerial vehicles".
"Everything is completely damaged," local resident Liubov Pavlenko, 45, told our reporter after inspecting her home.
"There are cracks all around the entire perimeter, and cracks around the windows. Basically, the structural integrity has been compromised."
Zelensky said the decision to store explosives in the village was "absolutely unacceptable", adding: "Criminal proceedings have been opened on charges of official negligence."
The office of Ukraine's prosecutor general earlier said it was reviewing the "legality of the placement and storage of explosive objects and materials" near residential buildings in Myla.
It said the "actions of officials who made the relevant decisions" would also be investigated.
However, Zelensky earlier stated that "there are regulations in place - ammunition cannot be stored near homes or other residential areas", adding "appropriate conclusions will certainly be drawn".
He referenced the strike on an ammunition warehouse in Vyshneve in July, which caused a secondary detonation that killed nine, injured dozens more and damaged more than 280 homes.
Friday night's explosion has raised fresh questions about why munitions were being stored so close to people's homes, especially given the regularity of Russian aerial attacks.
"The authorities, the Ministry of Defence - why was this allowed at the depots, in a place where there used to be food?" Borys Daniyluk, 61, said.
"Why were ammunition and weapons stored there, next to a populated village? There are no words, just emotions."
Ukrainian Prime Minister Sergiy Koretsky expressed regret that a "lesson" had not been learned following the explosion in Vyshneve.
The investigation into that incident revealed serious failings on the part of a state-owned company that had not complied with regulations regarding storage of explosives near residential buildings.
Zelensky indicated that the Myla depot had been operated by Ukraine's armed forces.
"In the fifth year of the full-scale invasion, making the same mistakes over and over is criminal negligence," Koretsky said on Telegram.
"Everyone responsible, without exception, must face severe punishment so that such situations never happen again."
Friday, August 28, 2026
US to control 65bn barrels of Venezuela's oil
WASHINGTON, United States
The United States has reached a deal with Venezuela to control more than 65 billion barrels of its proven oil reserves, President Donald Trump announced.
"This Historic Transaction MORE THAN DOUBLES American Oil Reserves, greatly increases our Oil Supply, and will substantially lower Gas Prices for all Americans," Trump posted on social media.
Venezuela's interim President, Delcy Rodriguez, hailed the agreement as one that would help her nation's economic revival.
Trump vowed to tap Venezuela's reserves, the world's largest, after the US captured its then-President Nicolás Maduro this year.
More recently, Trump has been under pressure to tame domestic petrol prices, which spiked amid the Iran conflict.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the oil deal "a huge win for both the American and Venezuelan people". Few details were released.
"For the Venezuelan people, this deal will bring nearly $100 billion in private investment, support thousands of high-paying jobs, and drive the reconstruction of Venezuela's economy," Rubio said on social media.
In his own post, Trump said Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had reached the agreement with Venezuela's leadership "through a partnership with private business".
He did not elaborate on the partnership or describe possible commitments and terms for the US in the deal, but he claimed the agreement was reached "at no cost to the American Taxpayer".
Venezuela's interim president said in a statement that the agreement would have "a significant impact on our nation's revival".
The deal calls for the development of 17 strategic oil fields with a proven potential of 65 billion barrels, as well as "an investment of more than $100 billion, and more than $209 billion in taxes for the State", Rodriguez said.
"These investments will contribute not only to the recovery and modernization of our industry, but also to our country's economic growth, the energy security of our hemisphere, and greater balance in international markets," she said.
Under the deal the US government will retain 55% control of a joint venture with an "experienced private operator in Venezuela", a US official said.
Rodriguez gave the venture a 100-year concession to operate in the oil fields, according to the official.
Trump gave few specifics of the highly unusual agreement, which apparently grants the US direct governance over a foreign country's sovereign national resources.
The deal would also appear to be wider in scope than the US-led Coalition Provisional Authority's control over Iraq's oil revenues after Saddam Hussein was ousted in an American-led invasion in 2003.
But it is unclear whether the Venezuela agreement could face legal and constitutional challenges in the South American nation. The official text of the agreement between Washington and Caracas has not been released.
President Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were seized in a US special forces operation authorised by Trump on 3 January.
In the hours after the raid, Trump said his administration would run Venezuela until a "safe, proper and judicious transition" could take place, adding that the US would indefinitely control the sale of the country's oil.
Venezuela has the largest proven oil reserves in the world - an estimated 303 billion barrels. However, production has plummeted since its peak in the late 1990s.
Trump has asked US oil firms to invest at least $100bn (£75bn) to restore the country's oil industry.
He has also claimed the rights to Venezuela's oil after saying that the country had in the past "unilaterally seized and sold American oil, American assets and American platforms, costing us billions and billions of dollars".
Zambian opposition leader Mundubile taken into custody on treason charges
LUSAKA, Zambia
Zambian opposition leader Brian Mundubile and his presidential running mate Makebi Zulu have been taken into custody over allegations of treason, police said on Thursday.
Mundubile reportedly surrendered to police after two weeks in hiding following a summons over an alleged national security threat.
The 55-year-old lawyer was runner-up in this month’s presidential election that saw incumbent Hakainde Hichilema re-elected with 60 percent of the vote, according to official results.
Mundubile, who received 38 percent, had vowed to challenge the result but Zambia closed down its entire judiciary on Monday, the last day for filing an objection, citing “security reasons.”
International NGO Human Rights Watch said the closure was “without credible explanation,” calling it “a blow to the administration of law, transparency, and due process in Zambia.”
The Constitutional Court said on Tuesday it had not received any petition challenging the election outcome, clearing the way for Hichilema's inauguration.
However, Chief Justice Mumba Malila said he had received a petition from a member of the public on his private email address.
He called the submission "highly irregular" but said he had referred it to the Constitutional Court for consideration.
Mundubile took refuge the day after the August 13 election at an international human rights organisation after police raided his home.
Former cabinet minister Mutotwe Kafwaya was shot and killed during the operation, and 11 people were arrested. Police alleged they were involved in insurgency or militia activity, allegations Mundubile dismissed as “fabricated.”
U.S. deports dozens to Haiti as migrants arrive in unfamiliar country
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti
More than 50 people have been deported from the United States to Haiti, arriving in the northern city of Cap-Haïtien as the country grapples with deadly gang violence and insecurity.
Among those on Thursday’s flight was Jay Dabelus, a professional boxer who was born in the Bahamas and says he has never lived in Haiti.
“I just arrived in Haiti. I don’t know much about Haiti. Actually, I don’t know anything about Haiti. I was born in the Bahamas, and I had been living in the U.S.A. for about 20-something years.”
Dabelus said he left the Bahamas as a child and spent more than two decades in the United States before being detained and deported.
Now in Haiti, he says he has no family or resources to rely on.
“Other than that, I’m in the land of Haiti. It is nice here, but I am trying to move on. I don’t have any resources, family members, or people to aid me, so I am trying to see how I can go from there.”
The flight carried more than 50 deportees, including two minors, according to Haiti's National Office of Migration.
It arrived in Cap-Haïtien because the main airport in Port-au-Prince is considered too dangerous amid widespread gang violence.
The deportation comes days after a gang attack in Haiti left 47 people dead and more than 50 kidnapped.
It is the second U.S. deportation flight to Haiti since Temporary Protected Status was ended for some 350,000 Haitians living in the United States.
The first flight, on August 20, carried more than 160 people.
As with previous arrivals, several deportees covered their faces after landing, highlighting the security fears they face in a country many may have little or no connection to.
Thursday, August 27, 2026
'High risk' of lake breaching and causing second flood, warns China
TIBET, China
China has warned there is a "high risk" that a lake which formed after the recent landslide near the Nepal-Tibet border may breach its banks, causing a second flood downstream.
The warning comes after Wednesday's deadly flash flood in the same area which scientists say was triggered by the collapse of a mountain glacier into a river.
As of Friday morning, an estimated 2.5 million cubic metres of water had accumulated at the barrier lake, according to state broadcaster CCTV. A barrier lake is a body of water formed when debris dams up a river.
Officials said that three million cubic metres of water is expected to flow into the lake between Thursday and the weekend, posing a "high risk of breach".
The barrier lake, which formed at the confluence of the Chhochen Khola and Purepu Tsangpo rivers, has already started to overflow, according to China's Ministry of Water Resources.
The area has also seen heavy rain.
Authorities have sent engineering teams to monitor the lake's water levels and the atmospheric conditions.
A CCTV report on Friday morning said that most of the Chinese emergency services were stuck at a village about 7km (4 miles) from Gyirong Port, the major land crossing linking Nepal and China which was hit by Wednesday's massive flood.
This was because the barrier lake was "overflowing non-stop" which could lead to fresh floods or debris flows.
Due to the risks, search and rescue operations had to be suspended near the Nepal-Tibet border, according to the report.
The lake is in the same region as the Langtang Lirung peak, where the collapsed glacier is believed to have originated, and several kilometres upstream from Gyirong Port.
Separately, Nepali authorities have warned of the risk of blockages causing further floods along the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers.
They have warned people to stay away from the rivers until further notice.
Scientists have said that the flood on Wednesday was likely to have been caused by part of a glacier near Langtang Lirung collapsing into the river below, which in turn caused a massive surge downstream carrying water and debris.
Several hundred people have died in Nepal and with hundreds more still missing after the flash flood. On the Tibet side of the border alone, more than 550 are missing - nearly half of which are foreigners.
Kenya's President acknowledges failures in handling of Gen Z protests, orders investigations
NAIROBI, Kenya
President of Kenya, William Ruto, has acknowledged failures in his administration’s handling of the 2024 Gen Z protests and the 2025 anniversary demonstrations, saying no blood should have been shed during the protests.
President Ruto, who in 2024 described some of the protesters as “treasonous criminals,” has now directed investigations into deaths, alleged abductions and cases of excessive use of force during the demonstrations.
The Gen Z protests of 2024 and 2025 marked one of the sharpest confrontations between Kenya’s youth and the government, with several demonstrators killed and many others injured.
Security agencies faced accusations of widespread use of excessive force against protesters.
President Ruto is now revisiting those events, saying the loss of life was never warranted.
“No Kenyan should lose their life, liberty or dignity merely for criticizing the government, expressing an unpopular opinion or participating in peaceful demonstrations,” President Ruto stated.
It marks an apparent change of tone for President Ruto, who, during his address to the nation amid the June 2024 Gen Z protests, described some of the marchers as “treasonous criminals.”
The anniversary protests in 2025 also saw the President take a hardline stance, including remarks that appeared to support the use of force against violent protesters.
During the June 2024 and June 2025 demonstrations, protesters were shot, while others were allegedly abducted or later found dead.
The President now says he recognises the pain left behind by the events.
“I recognise the pain that remains from the events of that period. Some families lost loved ones. Serious allegations were made concerning unlawful arrests, enforced disappearances and the excessive use of lethal force,” President Ruto stated.
The President noted that the only way to establish the truth and deliver justice is through credible investigations into the alleged violations.
“Every credible violation of human rights must be investigated independently, thoroughly and transparently. Where wrongdoing is established, those responsible must be held accountable,” President Ruto highlighted.
Catastrophic floods kill over 350 in Nepal and Tibet, with more than 1,300 missing
DEVIGHAT, Nepal
Rescue teams searched Thursday for hundreds of missing people along the Nepal-China border, where a deadly torrent of water and mud several stories high swept through communities a day earlier following a glacier collapse.
Videos of the disaster showed people running before the floodwaters swallowed them up and washed out buildings and bridges. More than 350 people were killed, police said, and more than 1,300 were missing, including scores of foreigners and pilgrims. Hundreds of others have been displaced across the Himalayan region.
The steep slopes and lush valleys below the Himalayan mountain range — home to many of the world’s highest peaks and remaining glaciers — are especially vulnerable to flooding and landslides. Melting glaciers have become more common because of human-caused climate change.
Images showed what appeared to be the second floors of buildings in Nepal’s hard-hit Nuwakot district slathered in mud after the torrent rushed by. Debris hung from tree branches and wires, vehicles were buried and some stunned survivors were caked in mud.
Nirajan Paudyal, a journalist based in Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu, worried for his parents and other relatives in the district’s village of Soley.
“I fear there won’t be any update,” Paudyal said.
The disaster has left at least 826 people missing in Nepal. Authorities in Tibet, an autonomous region of China, reported at least three dead and 558 missing.
Nepalese officials said that dozens of bridges were destroyed and nearly 40 kilometers (25 miles) of roads were damaged, complicating search efforts.
The Nepalese army has rescued more than 100 people by helicopter, army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Raja Ram Basnet said. Army teams also evacuated people trapped inside facilities linked to the Trishuli hydropower project, he added.
Dozens of injured people have been transported to Kathmandu for medical care.
Rescuers found bodies in Chitwan district hundreds of kilometers (miles) downstream from the hardest-hit areas.
Bishal Kumar Bhandari, chairman of the Nepal Red Cross Society, said the agency has shifted its focus from rescue to large-scale relief operations in the flood-hit districts. He said that around 1,200 people were displaced from at least three villages.
In Tibet, a mudslide that struck Wednesday near the land border crossing of Gyirong Port left mud in the surrounding areas that was more than 1½ meters (5 feet) deep on average, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported.
Roads leading to the crossing were all damaged, while secondary collapses or landslides might occur as rain continued in the area, it added.
China’s premier, Li Qiang, arrived Thursday in Gyirong to direct rescue efforts, alongside 500 military and paramilitary personnel.
Chinese authorities also warned that a lake at the confluence of the Tsogyal and the Purupqiangzangbu rivers is overflowing and may burst.
The United Nations’ humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, announced Thursday on X that he has ordered the release of $2 million from the U.N.'s Central Emergency Response Fund to help with medical care, shelter and water. He called the floods “horrifying.”
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