Colombia Opens the Door to US Military Strikes Against Cartels

Colombia has asked the United States to collaborate in joint military operations against armed criminal organisations, potentially opening a new front in Washington’s expanding war against drug cartels.

The request could bring American intelligence, surveillance and strike capabilities directly into operations conducted on Colombian territory.

US defence chief Pete Hegseth announced the move during a meeting of the Americas Counter-Cartel Coalition in Panama on Wednesday.

He said Colombia had authorised joint operations intended to destroy what Washington and Bogotá describe as terrorists and terror networks, although neither government has yet published the agreement or defined its operational limits.

Israel–Lebanon Deal Stalls as Hezbollah Refuses To Surrender Its Weapons

Israel has declared that its forces will not leave southern Lebanon until Hezbollah has been disarmed and its military threat removed across the country.

Defence Minister Israel Katz has also ordered the Israel Defense Forces to prepare for an extended deployment, placing the future of the occupied security zone behind a condition Hezbollah has repeatedly refused to accept.

The announcement sharpens the central deadlock threatening the US-backed peace framework. Israel will not withdraw before Hezbollah gives up its weapons, while Hezbollah will not discuss disarmament before Israeli troops leave Lebanese territory.

The Bishop, the Alcohol-Fuelled Parties and 13 Guilty Verdicts

One of Australia’s most senior former Catholic clerics has been convicted of sexually abusing two young Indigenous men during his time in charge of a vast and isolated diocese. Christopher Alan Saunders, the former Bishop of Broome, was found guilty of 13 sexual offences following a trial in the District Court of Western Australia.

The convictions include one count of sexual penetration without consent and 12 counts of unlawful and indecent assault. Saunders, 76, was acquitted of six other charges considered by the jury and has been remanded in custody ahead of sentencing on 21 September.

Antwerp Denies Trump’s Diamond Ring Influenced Tariff Exemption

Antwerp’s diamond industry has denied that an extravagant ring created for Donald Trump influenced the restoration of a valuable United States tariff exemption.

The rejection follows accusations from two Democratic senators who questioned why the gift was presented less than four weeks before European natural diamonds regained tariff-free access to America.

The timing is politically explosive, but it is not proof of a deal. The Antwerp World Diamond Centre says the tariff campaign predated the ring, relied on longstanding economic arguments and had already produced an identical exemption in September 2025.

Bomb Hidden in Public Square Kills Russian Serviceman in Sevastopol

A Russian serviceman has been killed by an explosive device in Sevastopol, turning an ordinary public space in occupied Crimea into the scene of a suspected targeted assassination. Russia’s Federal Security Service says it has detained a woman and alleges that she acted under instructions from Ukrainian intelligence.

The blast reportedly struck on the morning of Thursday, 13 August, close to a bench in a square behind a residential area on Stoletovsky Prospekt. Early accounts suggested that the device had been concealed in or near a rubbish bin and detonated as the serviceman passed.

The $12.5bn Lakers Gamble: Can Luka Dončić Lead A New Dynasty?

The Los Angeles Lakers are entering one of the biggest transitions in their history. Josh Kushner and former Disney chief Bob Iger have agreed to purchase the franchise in a deal valued at $12.5 billion, just as LeBron James’ departure leaves Luka Dončić as the undisputed centre of the team.

The agreement would establish a record valuation for an American professional sports franchise, eclipsing the approximately $10 billion valuation attached to Mark Walter’s purchase of control only last year.

It still requires due diligence and approval from the NBA’s Board of Governors, but its significance already extends beyond an extraordinary purchase price.

Meta Blocks Three-Quarters Of A Million Teen Accounts — Yet Children Are Still Getting Through

Meta has removed access to approximately 756,000 Facebook and Instagram accounts suspected of belonging to Australians under 16. It is one of the largest age-based social-media lockouts ever attempted and a striking demonstration of what happens when governments force technology companies to identify their youngest users.

The headline number is enormous: approximately 462,000 Instagram accounts and 294,000 Facebook accounts were deactivated between the beginning of December 2025 and the end of June 2026.

Yet the removals do not settle the central question hanging over Australia’s experiment—whether teenagers are actually leaving social media or simply finding new ways back in.

Putin Reopens An 81-Year Wound With First Visit To Japan-Claimed Island

Vladimir Putin has made his first visit to Iturup, a Russian-controlled Pacific island that Japan claims as Etorofu, transforming a decades-old territorial dispute into a highly visible demonstration of power.

The Russian president toured civilian facilities, met regional officials and spoke to residents on 13 August after observing exercises involving Russia’s Pacific Fleet.

Japan responded with a strong formal protest. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called the visit “absolutely unacceptable”, while Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi restated Tokyo’s position that Etorofu and the other Northern Territories are inherently Japanese territory.

The immediate danger is not that Japan and Russia are preparing to fight over the islands.

The deeper consequence is that Moscow is turning effective control into an increasingly permanent political, civilian and military reality while relations with Tokyo collapse around it.

Trump Fights To Restore Election Integrity Order Before America Votes

Donald Trump has returned to the US Supreme Court in an urgent attempt to restore his administration’s mail-in ballot restrictions before November’s midterm elections.

The latest filing argues that lower courts are prematurely preventing the federal government from pursuing election-security measures before agencies have even finalised how those measures would work.

The dispute now carries enormous consequences. If the justices intervene, Trump could revive a plan involving citizenship-verification lists and tighter Postal Service procedures as states prepare for elections that will determine control of Congress.

Ukraine Says It Has Retaken 745km² From Russia — But The Map Tells A More Complicated Story

Ukraine says it has recaptured 745 square kilometres of occupied territory in one of its most significant battlefield announcements of 2026.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said an eight-month offensive restored Ukrainian control over 26 settlements and struck a major blow against Russian forces.

If confirmed in full, the operation would demonstrate that Ukraine remains capable of planning and executing substantial territorial advances despite Russia’s larger military and continued pressure elsewhere.

Yet independent battlefield mapping presents a more complicated picture, with parts of the claimed area still classified as contested or Russian-held.