海角大神

Russia has taken Ukrainian children to at least 210 facilities for re-education and militarization since invading Ukraine, a Yale report published yesterday found. Authorities have sent orphaned children and those separated from their parents in occupied territory to schools and camps in Russia where they teach them to fight against their homeland. 鈥淭hey take them, they make them Russians and then they make them soldiers,鈥� the lab鈥檚 director told The New York Times. 鈥� Staff

South America鈥檚 Mercosur bloc signed a free trade deal with Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. The agreement aims to deepen ties amid global commercial uncertainty sparked by President Donald Trump鈥檚 tariffs, creating a free trade zone for nearly 300 million people. It could lower prices for items like Swiss chocolate and Norwegian cod in South America and beef in Europe. 鈥� The Associated Press

President Trump filed a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against The New York Times. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Florida, cites several articles and a book published ahead of the 2024 election, calling them part of a 鈥渄ecades-long pattern鈥� of 鈥渋ntentional and malicious defamation against President Trump.鈥� It follows a $10 billion suit Mr. Trump brought in July against The Wall Street Journal and Rupert Murdoch over a story on his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. 鈥� AP

Colombia鈥檚 peace tribunal issued its first sentence on war crimes committed during decades of conflict, finding seven former FARC leaders guilty of policies that led to the kidnapping of 21,000 people. The former leaders must work on projects such as locating missing persons and clearing land mines, and take part in symbolic acts of reparation with victims. 鈥� AP

The Taliban banned Wi-Fi in an Afghan province to 鈥減revent immorality.鈥� It鈥檚 the first ban of its kind since the Taliban took power in August 2021 and leaves the northern Balkh province without internet connection. Mobile internet remains functional. Blocking the internet is 鈥渂eyond my comprehension in such an advanced era,鈥� said one resident. 鈥� AP

Nearly two-thirds of Americans believe harsh political rhetoric is encouraging violence, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll following the assassination of Charlie Kirk. Close to 4 in 5 respondents said Americans have become less tolerant of different viewpoints in the past two decades. With political violence on the rise, politicians and citizens alike are looking for ways to turn down the temperature and restore civility. 鈥� Staff

We can hear more cosmic waves with the help of artificial intelligence. Albert Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves more than a century ago, but astronomers didn鈥檛 observe them until 2015. Now, researchers from Google DeepMind and the LIGO observatory have built an AI tool called Deep Loop Shaping that reduces the noise when they track these waves, cutting interference as much as 100-fold. Scientists say it shows promise for use in fields from aerospace and navigation to civil engineering. 鈥� Staff

Republicans have long railed against 鈥渃ancel culture鈥� and blamed the left for seeking to curb free speech. Now, they are catching criticism on the same grounds in the wake of Charlie Kirk鈥檚 assassination 鈥撀燼nd potentially going further by invoking the power of government to target perceived offenders.

History shows the loss of a charismatic leader can propel a political movement into something even more powerful 鈥� or mark the beginning of its decline. For now, Charlie Kirk鈥檚 allies are vowing to continue what he started.

Journalists and professors are among those who have lost their jobs for remarks they made in the wake of Charlie Kirk鈥檚 killing last week. Our columnist was reminded of a political silencing that happened over 60 years ago 鈥� President Lyndon B. Johnson鈥檚 effort to quiet Fannie Lou Hamer at the 1964 Democratic National Convention.

Across Syria, community leaders are choosing representatives to a parliament tasked with overhauling the country鈥檚 laws and setting a new constitution. If the process prioritizes technocratic expertise over parties and politics, Syrians hope it鈥檚 a step toward building a democratic legislature.

Before Shakespeare, there was Christopher Marlowe, whose poetry lifted up Elizabethan drama and augured a rivalry with the Bard of Avon. A Latin scholar who loved language, Marlowe broke through rigid conventions and government censorship to write plays that set the culture on its head.聽

This month鈥檚 annual gathering of the United Nations marks 80 years since its founding charter was adopted in the waning months of World War II. Since then, the U.N.鈥檚 membership has almost quadrupled, from 51 nations to more than 190. It has achieved successes in global health, peacekeeping, women鈥檚 and children鈥檚 rights, poverty reduction, and treaties that govern international communications, atomic energy, and air transport. But alongside these, the U.N.鈥檚 challenges and divisions have also multiplied.

The United States has long been the U.N.鈥檚 largest funder. However, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio claims, 鈥淭he post-war global order is not just obsolete, it is now a weapon being used against us.鈥澛燭he administration has accused the International Criminal Court, for example, of unfair investigation of U.S. personnel.聽The U.S. has recently slashed foreign assistance in general and scaled down participation in several multinational agencies and security alliances.

The U.N. now faces difficult discussions over its funding and purpose, requiring it to reflect on the changeless values that drove its creation.

鈥淭he UN鈥檚 founding ideals 鈥� dignity, justice, solidarity 鈥� are not obsolete,鈥� says Jem Bendell, a former professor at the University of Cumbria in Britain and consultant to the U.N. Postwar structures 鈥渨ere designed for a world that no longer exists,鈥� he agrees. But their 鈥渟pirit,鈥� he writes, represents 鈥渁 future, if we dare to change course.鈥�

Many citizens across the globe 鈥� notably Americans 鈥� still believe in multinational cooperation. In July, the Pew Research Center reported that 57% of Americans hold a favorable view of the U.N., an increase of five percentage points over last year. Support for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which is committed to mutual defense as well as 鈥渄emocracy, human rights and the rule of law,鈥� is at 77%, according to Gallup. The American Enterprise Institute concludes that more than half of 40 selected multinational organizations contribute 鈥渟ignificantly鈥� or 鈥渟ome鈥� to U.S. interests.

At the 鈥渉igh level鈥� U.N. sessions next week, world leaders will present their views on the future of the U.N. and divisive global issues 鈥� including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, as well as civil conflicts and climate change. There will likely be abstentions, vetoes, or walkouts.

Pursuing peace is not easy and will require the U.N. to be better at mediating conflict and forging consensus. Upholding the U.N.鈥檚 founding purpose, U.S. President Harry Truman said in 1945, would 鈥渢ax the moral strength and fibre of us all.鈥� But having the U.N. Charter at all was 鈥渃ause for profound thanksgiving,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t was proof that nations ... can state their differences, can face them, and then can find common ground on which to stand. ... That is the essence of keeping the peace in the future.鈥�