Rare ceremonial heads discovered in Peru shed light on 'Warriors of the Clouds'

A drone view shows archaeologists working on an ancient pre-Hispanic structure belonging to the Chachapoyas culture, known as the "Warriors of the Clouds," at the Ollape archaeological site, in Chachapoyas, Amazonas, Peru, on Aug 5, 2025.
PHOTO: Reuters

August 08, 2025 

CHACHAPOYAS - Archaeologists in Peru's Amazon region have uncovered two rare, 1,000-year-old ceremonial stone club heads along with roughly 200 ancient structures and a unique zigzag frieze.

The discoveries were made at the Ollape site in the Amazonian district of La Jalca in an area where the Chachapoyas civilisation, or "Warriors of the Clouds," developed between 900 and 1,450 A.D.

According to lead archaeologist Pablo Solis, these findings offer a new understanding of the less-studied society that inhabited the area.

The intricately crafted club heads are believed to have held ceremonial significance, hinting at ritual practices of a society whose cultural footprint remains largely unexplored.

The intricate zigzag pattern is the first of its kind to be found in the region, and the number of structures suggests Ollape was an important ceremonial and residential hub.

Peru is rich in archaeological discoveries, with researchers frequently uncovering ancient remains. The country is home to numerous historical sites, including the famous Machu Picchu in the Andean highlands of Cusco and the mysterious Nazca lines etched into the desert along the coast.

Prague zookeepers turn to puppets to parent baby vultures

Prague Zoo curator of birds Antonin Vaidl feeds a lesser yellow-headed vulture, which hatched three weeks ago, by using a puppet that imitates a parent bird, at the zoo, in Prague, Czech Republic, on Aug 8, 2025.

PHOTO: Reuters

August 08, 2025 


PRAGUE - Zookeepers feeding two baby vultures in Prague are using a hand puppet designed to look like the chicks' parents, a technique they hope will ensure the birds learn to identify with other vultures - not humans.

Staff at Prague Zoo had to start hand-feeding the lesser yellow-headed vultures when their parents stopped nesting. After using the approach with other birds, they quickly made a hand puppet that looks like an adult vulture's head.

"If we raised (the bird) in direct contact with humans, it would become imprinted to humans, and then it would be difficult to breed that individual within the species," said Antonin Vaidl, Prague Zoo's curator of bird breeding.

Human imprinting increases the risk of a chick struggling to build a relationship with a mate in adulthood.

Hand puppets have previously been used with other bird species at the zoo including rhinoceros hornbills and Javan green magpies, with their design reflecting distinctive features such as a large colourful beak.

Prague is one of three European zoos to breed the lesser yellow-headed vulture, also known as the savannah vulture.

CLIMATE CRISIS

Greece wildfires: Three dead as winds disrupt ferries, evacuations

AFP
8 Aug, 2025 


Three people, including two Vietnamese tourists, died in Greece as wildfires were fuelled by strong winds. Photo / Aris Messinis, AFP

Three people including two Vietnamese tourists have died in Greece as ferocious winds whipped up wildfires and disrupted ferry travel for tens of thousands of summer holidaymakers.

More than 200 firefighters backed by 11 water bombers and seven helicopters were battling a blaze in Keratea southeast of Athens, Costas Tsigkas, head of the association of Greek firefighter officers, told ERT state television.

“It’s a difficult fire,” he said, citing gusts of wind and reporting that several communities had been evacuated.

Firefighters discovered the body of an elderly person inside their burned home in Keratea and the wind was hampering water bombers’ ability to operate, fire service spokesman Vassilis Vathrakogiannis told a press briefing.

An AFP journalist in the nearby town of Palaia Fokaia, around 45km south of Athens, saw fire consume a house and thick smoke choke the air.

Firefighters were sprinting to direct hoses and douse the flames, while a helicopter swooped overhead to drop water.

Earlier, a separate blaze on the island of Cephalonia was brought under control, local officials said, while the situation “has improved” on the Peloponnese peninsula west of Athens, Vathrakogiannis announced.

The civil protection ministry had said wind gusts would reach 88km/h, especially in the southern Aegean and the Sea of Crete.

National weather service EMY said the gusts would weaken after midnight, but the civil protection ministry placed several areas under the highest alert for wildfires on Saturday, including the Attica region, which includes Athens.

Over 200 firefighters and multiple aircraft battled the blaze in Keratea, southeast of Athens. Photo / Aris Messinis, AFP

The coastguard had earlier said a Vietnamese man and woman from a cruise ship group had died at the Sarakiniko beach on the tourist island of Milos in the Cyclades.

“The man and woman were found unconscious in the sea and were taken to the local health centre,” a coastguard spokeswoman said.

“The woman fell in the water and the man apparently tried to save her.”

The gales confined many ferries to port, the main mode of transport connecting thousands of islands and their crucial tourism sector.

The coastguard said most ferries were unable to depart on schedule from Piraeus and other Athens ports, especially to the Cyclades or Dodecanese islands. Several services were cancelled and others postponed.

At Piraeus, hundreds of travellers crowded outside a ferry bound for the Cycladic islands of Paros and Naxos, waiting for news on a possible departure.

Nearby, stranded travellers surrounded by rucksacks and suitcases formed a huge queue outside a ticket office and made desperate phone calls hoping to make rearrangements to save their journeys.

“There’s huge lines, huge commotion, everyone’s waiting in the sun and it’s a very tough time,” said Philip Elias, an American tourist.

Maritime connections with the Saronic islands near Athens including Aegina, Hydra, Poros and Spetses and the Ionian Sea were unaffected, the coastguard said.


Strong winds are common in Greece at this time of year, and firefighters have already faced several major blazes this summer, including on the islands of Evia and Chios as well as in the western Peloponnese.

– Agence France-Presse

Greece fights wildfires amid gale-force winds

Locals try to extinguish a wildfire burning in Keratea, near Athens, Greece, on Aug 8, 2025.
PHOTO: Reuters

PUBLISHED ON August 08, 2025

ATHENS - At least one person died and homes and farmlands were destroyed as wildfires stoked by gale-force winds broke out across Greece on Friday (Aug 8), from the southern outskirts of the capital Athens to regions near Ancient Olympia.

A major blaze broke out in the small town of Keratea southwest of Athens. Firefighters discovered the body of an elderly man in a burned-out structure there, Greek Fire Brigade Spokesman Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said during a briefing.

In the region of Ancient Olympia in the southwest of the country, huge flames devoured olive groves and forestland. Another fire broke out on the touristy island of Kefalonia.

Much of the region around Athens has seen barely a drop of rain in months.

Wind gusts of up to 80 kilometres per hour fanned the flames, setting olive tree orchards alight. Homes were engulfed as locals wearing flimsy face masks assisted firefighters.

Witnesses said the wind gusts were so strong that dousing some areas was near impossible.

"The wind would push it back," a Keratea resident told Reuters.

High winds are expected through the weekend and beyond.

At Ancient Olympia, an extensive region in the western Peloponnese that includes the site of the first Olympic Games, firefighters were battling a blaze fanned by interchanging winds.

"If the wind doesn't die down we will have huge problems," Ancient Olympia vice-mayor Georgios Linardos told state broadcaster ERT.

Gale-force winds caused extensive delays in the sailing of ferry boats from ports around Athens. On the island of Milos, two Vietnamese holidaymakers drowned at sea amid the high gusts, a coast guard official said.


Read Also

world
Massive French wildfire now contained, 16,000 hectares affected, local authorities say

Greece and other Mediterranean countries are in an area dubbed "a wildfire hotspot" by scientists, with blazes common during hot and dry summers. These have become more destructive in recent years due to a fast-changing climate, prompting calls for a new approach.

Parched southern France is currently facing its worst wildfire in decades, where fires are contained but not over.

Source: Reuters

Trinidad & Tobago's beloved ‘cascadu’ fish at risk

 

Trinidad & Tobago's beloved ‘cascadu’ fish at risk

The consequences of climate change are having an adverse effect on the species’ reproduction

Written byCari-Bois News

Posted 9 August 2025

Image of the Hoplosternum littorale (cascadu) via Canva Pro.

This article by Jenissa Lawrence, part of the third cohort of Cari-Bois’ Youth Journalism Project, first appeared in the Cari-Bois Environmental News Network on April 25, 2025. An edited version is being republished on Global Voices under a content partnership agreement.

There is a local legend about the cascadu that is passed on from generation to generation: if you eat the fleshy, freshwater fish, no matter where you roam, you will end your days in Trinidad. With local cascadu populations on the decline, however, fewer people may now have that assurance.

The University of the West Indies’ (UWI) Online Guide to the Animals of Trinidad and Tobago describes the cascadu as having “a body covered with tough armour which appears as long rows of bony scales, neatly packed along its sides as though they are intersecting each other for protection […] hence, the name armoured catfishes also given.”

While it is indeed a member of the catfish species, “with a broad head and two pairs of barbels projecting outwards from the chin area,” its scientific name is Hoplosternum littorale and it is native to Trinidad and the tropical Americas. Most commonly found in muddy, fresh water in the south and central parts of the country, the nocturnal species is dark brown to completely black in colour, which helps with camouflage when being hunted.

Yet, natural predators and fishing are not the primary reasons for the cascadu's decline. Four years ago, in August 2021, the Trinidad and Tobago Newsday reported that climate change is having an adverse effect on the species’ reproduction. Aquatic ecologist Ryan S. Mohammed explained that when the fish mate at the start of Trinidad's rainy season, which usually runs from June to December, the males build a floating nest for the female to lay her eggs. This is because the waterways they live in tend to have a low concentration of dissolved oxygen.

“With oxygen being key to the eggs’ survival,” he added, “the floating nest is made out of air, mucus and some vegetation. The eggs will remain just below the water's surface where they are kept properly oxygenated. However, the nest protects them from the high temperatures and direct sunlight found just above the water's surface.”

Since successful reproduction relies on a clear distinction between the dry and wet seasons, recent and often unpredictable changes to local weather patterns are contributing to the cascadu's decline.

In a telephone interview on April 10, 2025, Nirmal Ramoutar, a local cascadu farmer, said that temperature changes are also having a negative impact on the cascadu, which thrives in cool water. The species respires bimodally — the fish must intermittently come up for air — but when the temperature is too high, they will not surface.

Oxygen is also important for the survival of their eggs. Based on Ramoutar's observations, both the male and female cascadu build the nest, the top of which is made of grass or straw. The bottom, meanwhile — because it contains oxygen — looks like froth. He has noticed that as many as 15 females can lay eggs in one nest; after laying, however, only the male remains to take care of the thousands of eggs.

A 2021 article in the Trinidad and Tobago Express by environmentalist Heather-Dawn Herrera noted a decline in the cascadu as a result of not just climate change, but also human impacts like chemical run-off from agriculture. Despite these adverse effects, Ramoutar remains hopeful that rearing the fish in private ponds, thereby providing a suitable environment for them to thrive, can replenish their population.

In an effort to mitigate the effects of higher temperatures, Ramoutar grows lilies and water hyacinth to help keep the water cool. However, he must also ensure that these plants do not overcrowd the pond and prevent the cascadu from surfacing for oxygen.

Another effect of the climate crisis that Trinidad and Tobago has been experiencing is a significant increase in rainfall, which Ramoutar says also affects the cascadu. Flooding, for instance, can wash away nests, affect the ability of the fish to surface for air, and lower the oxygen content in the water, making it more difficult for them to breathe.

If these damaging effects are left unchecked, it could eventually lead to the extinction of this unique freshwater fish — and by extension, the eradication of a rich aspect of the country's cultural heritage. But, by protecting its habitat, monitoring water quality, and promoting sustainable practices, future generations can continue to enjoy the cascadu and keep its legend alive.

Brazil's Lula vetoes parts of environment bill pushed by the opposition that could harm the Amazon

Brazil’s president has vetoed parts of a controversial congressional bill that sought to loosen the country’s environmental licensing rules

By MAURICIO SAVARESE 

Associated Press
August 8, 2025, 2:42 PM




SAO PAULO -- Brazil’s president vetoed Friday parts of a congressional bill that sought to overhaul the country’s environmental licensing rules — legislation pushed by the right-wing opposition but which environmentalists say would impede efforts to protect sensitive areas such as the Amazon rainforest.

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva threw out 63 out of the controversial bill's 400 measures, the government said, though the significance of the vetoes will be clearer once the bill is published in the official gazette and goes into effect.

Lula's supporters and environmentalists had dubbed the legislation “Devastation Bill,” while allies of former President Jair Bolsonaro, held in house arrest on charges linked to an alleged coup plot, had pushed for its approval in congress.

Critics had argued that the bill undermines safeguards and harms Brazil’s credibility ahead of hosting U.N. climate talks in November.

Environment protection groups welcomed Lula’s vetoes — though congress can still take steps to override them and introduce additional legislation.

Several government ministers, speaking at a news conference at the presidential palace, lauded Lula's changes, saying he threw out parts of the legislation that would allow for fast-tracking of projects in the Amazon and curtailed the authority of federal agencies in issuing licenses for projects.

Only enterprises of “low polluting potential” will be allowed to get that kind of fast track, the ministers said.

It was not immediately clear if Lula had vetoed a measure on upgrading existing roads without oversight, which could allow the paving of the entire highway running about 900 kilometers (560 miles) through the western Amazon.

Lula doesn’t have the majority in Brazil’s congress, where Bolsonaro allies often side with moderates to pass conservative legislation.

“We understand we are keeping a dialogue with congress and assuring that there is integrity in environmental licensing,” Environment Minister Marina Silva said.

“This is fundamental for the protection of the environment in a context of climate crisis, loss of biodiversity and desertification processes,” she added.

Lula had already spoken about possibly vetoing parts of the bill after it passed in congress last month. Brazil's lower house approved the legislation by 267-116 in July, dealing a big blow to Lula after several moderates had sided with Brazil's opposition.

The 79-year-old leftist Lula — who was facing higher unpopularity, growing opposition in congress and increasing risks to his likely reelection bid — saw his polls improve days later, after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed 50% tariffs on Brazilian imports.

Trump, an ally of Bolsonaro, had linked the tariffs to Bolsonaro’s trial, which he called a “witch hunt” and demanded an end to the proceedings.

Miriam Belchior, an official with Brazil's chief of staff, said Lula's vetoes will safeguard the “rights of Indigenous peoples and communities of descendants of slaves, and incorporate mechanisms to make licensing quicker, but without harming” Brazil's natural resources.

“This is a victory for the society,” said Malu Ribeiro, head of the SOS Atlantica nonprofit organization.

One of Lula's vetoes also addresses protection of another endangered area, Brazil’s Atlantic Forest, which is the focus of the work of Ribeiro's group. Without the vetoes, she said there would have been much harm to efforts of "everyone who defends this national treasure.”

Trump administration threatens to seize valuable patents from Harvard

THEFT IS THEFT UNLESS THE STATE DOES IT

The Trump administration has threatened to seize or license Harvard's federally funded patents, accusing the university of breaching contracts under the Bayh-Dole Act, as part of an escalating funding and civil rights dispute.


Harvard University (Image: Unsplash/ Somesh Kesarla Suresh)


India Today World Desk
New Delhi,

UPDATED: Aug 9, 2025 

In Short

Commerce Secretary accuses Harvard of breaching legal and contractual obligations

Government may take patents or issue licences under Bayh-Dole Act

Harvard must submit patent list by September 5

The Trump administration has launched a sweeping review of Harvard University’s federally funded research programmes, accusing the Ivy League school of breaking legal and contractual obligations tied to its lucrative patent portfolio.

In a letter obtained by Reuters, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick accused Harvard of “breaching its legal and contractual requirements” tied to the research programs and intellectual property derived from them.
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“The Department places immense value on the groundbreaking scientific and technological advancements that emerge from the Government’s partnerships with institutions like Harvard,” Lutnick wrote. “That carries a critical responsibility to ensure that intellectual property derived from federal funding is used to maximize benefits to the American people.”

Lutnick said the Commerce Department has begun a “march-in” process under Bayh-Dole, which could allow the government to take ownership of certain patents or issue licenses to other entities. Harvard has been given until September 5 to hand over a full list of patents stemming from federally funded grants, how they are used, and whether their licencing requires “substantial US manufacturing.”

As of July 2024, Harvard held more than 5,800 patents and more than 900 technology licenses with over 650 industry partners, according to its website. The university did not immediately comment.

Friday’s letter comes amid an escalating standoff between Harvard and the White House over allegations the school failed to address antisemitism on campus. Harvard sued in April after the administration began freezing or stripping billions of dollars in federal research funding.

President Donald Trump has made manufacturing and economic competitiveness a central theme of his second term, alongside tariffs on imports from dozens of countries.

Lutnick’s letter draws on the bipartisan Bayh-Dole Act, signed into law in 1980, which was intended to ensure Americans benefit from inventions developed with federal funding.

Other universities have faced similar scrutiny. Last month, Columbia University agreed to pay more than $220 million to settle antisemitism-related claims. The New York Times reported Harvard was willing to spend up to $500 million to resolve its own dispute.

- Ends
With inputs from Reuters

Trump administration seeks $1 billion settlement from UCLA, a White House official says

The Trump administration is seeking a $1 billion settlement from the University of California, Los Angeles, a White House official said Friday, weeks after the Department of Justice accused the school of antisemitism and other civil rights violations

BEING PRO PALESTINE 

IS NOT ANTI-SEMITISM,  

DEI IS CIVIL RIGHTS

Michelle L. Price, 

The Associated Press

FILE - Children play outside Royce Hall at the University of California, Los Angeles, campus in Los Angeles, Aug. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

The Trump administration is seeking a $1 billion settlement from the University of California, Los Angeles, a White House official said Friday, weeks after the Department of Justice accused the school of antisemitism and other civil rights violations.

UCLA is the first public university whose federal grants have been targeted by the administration over allegations of civil rights violations related to antisemitism and affirmative action. The Trump administration has frozen or paused federal funding over similar allegations against private colleges.

The White House official did not detail any additional demands from the administration. The person was not authorized to speak publicly about the request and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The Trump administration suspended $584 million in federal grants, the university said this week, after the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division announced it had found UCLA violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 “by acting with deliberate indifference in creating a hostile educational environment for Jewish and Israeli students.”

Last month UCLA reached a $6 million settlement with three Jewish students and a Jewish professor who sued, arguing that the university violated their civil rights by allowing pro-Palestinian protesters to block their access to classes and other areas on campus in 2024.

The university has said it is committed to campus safety and inclusivity and will continue to implement recommendations.

“Earlier this week, we offered to engage in good faith dialogue with the Department to protect the University and its critical research mission,” James B. Milliken, UC president, said in a statement Friday. “As a public university, we are stewards of taxpayer resources and a payment of this scale would completely devastate our country’s greatest public university system as well as inflict great harm on our students and all Californians.”

As part of the lawsuit settlement, UCLA said it will contribute $2.3 million to eight organizations that combat antisemitism and support the university’s Jewish community. It also has created an Office of Campus and Community Safety, instituting new policies to manage protests on campus.

And UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk, whose Jewish father and grandparents fled Nazi Germany to Mexico and whose wife is the daughter of a Holocaust survivor, launched an initiative to combat antisemitism and anti-Israeli bias.

Last month Columbia University agreed to pay $200 million as part of a settlement to resolve investigations into the government’s allegations that the school violated federal antidiscrimination laws. The agreement also restores more than $400 million in research grants.

The Trump administration plans to use its deal with Columbia as a template for other universities, with financial penalties that are now seen as an expectation.

Michelle L. Price, The Associated Press

 

Trump launches shift in global trade rules

Posted August. 09, 2025 

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"We are now witnessing the 'Trump Round.' New trade agreements mark the start of a new global trade order."

Jamieson Greer, chief trade adviser at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, made the statement in an Aug. 7 op-ed titled “Why We Reshaped the Global Order,” published in The New York Times. He argued that a global trade system led by the World Trade Organization is no longer workable. Referring to “round” as a term traditionally used in trade talks, Greer said the so-called Trump Round, centered on high tariffs, is now replacing the multilateral trade framework that the WTO has long dominated.

Greer described the July 27 trade agreement reached in Turnberry, Scotland, between U.S. President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen as the basis of the “Turnberry Framework.” He called it “a historic agreement that is fair, balanced, and grounded in specific national interests.” While fewer than 130 days have passed since the start of the Trump Round and the Turnberry Framework remains under development, he said its implementation is moving forward steadily.

In the op-ed, Greer blamed the World Trade Organization for eroding the U.S. manufacturing sector by eliminating tariff protections, which he said favored countries like China with low labor standards. “Under the neoliberal trade system led by the WTO, the United States lost its industry and jobs,” he wrote. “China was the biggest beneficiary.”

As a remedy, he called for protecting domestic manufacturing with high tariffs. “President Trump laid the foundation for a new global trade order by pairing tariffs with investment agreements,” he said. He added that the new U.S. approach focuses on closely monitoring compliance and quickly reimposing higher tariffs in response to violations, instead of relying on what he described as the “tedious” dispute resolution process preferred by traditional trade officials.

Greer rejected expert concerns that higher tariffs would drive up consumer prices and burden the U.S. economy. “Despite broader tariff impositions, inflation remains under control,” he wrote. The U.S. Consumer Price Index for June rose 2.7% from a year earlier, staying within the Federal Reserve’s target range of around 2%.

Meanwhile, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told Fox Business on Aug. 7 that the 100% tariff on semiconductors will be waived for companies that pledged to build manufacturing facilities in the United States during President Trump’s term and followed through. As a result, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, which are making major investments in the U.S., are expected to be eligible for tariff exemptions.


Woo-Sun Lim imsun@donga.com

KURDS, DRUZE, ALAWITES, CHRISTIANS

Syria’s Minorities Demand Decentralized State, Constitution That Guarantees Pluralism

SDF forces in Hasakeh, Syria. (Asharq Al-Awsat file)

9 August 2025 

AD ـ 15 Safar 1447 AH
Asharq Al-Awsat 

Hundreds of representatives of Syria’s various ethnic and religious groups called Friday for the formation of a decentralized state and the drafting of a new constitution that guarantees religious, cultural and ethnic pluralism.

The declaration came at the conclusion of a one-day conference where some 400 representatives of Syria's ethnic and religious minorities gathered in an attempt to assert the rights of their communities in the country’s evolving political framework following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad last December.

The transition is to include elections scheduled for September and the eventual drafting of a constitution — a process that could take years. The post-Assad transition has so far been marred by violence against minorities, raising fears about the future.

Ghazal Ghazal, the spiritual leader of Syria’s Alawite minority, to whom Assad belongs, called for setting up a decentralized or federal system in Syria that protects religious and cultural rights of all components of the Syrian people.

The conference was held in Hasakeh, a northeastern Syrian city under the control of the Kurdish-led and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces.

Elham Ahmad, a senior official with the autonomous administration in northeast Syria, said she hopes to see the emergence of a Syria built on cultural and ethnic pluralism.

“This conference sends a message of civil peace and national reconciliation,” she said.

Hakemat Habib, one of the conference organizers, said that central governments and “tyrannical regimes” over the past decades have failed and that a democratic and decentralized state agreed upon by all Syrians is the only way to move forward. “Syrian identity includes all Syrians,” he said.

Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri, whose fighters clashed with pro-government gunmen last month, told the conference in a televised speech that “pluralism is not a threat but a treasure that strengthens unity.”

The interim government in Damascus did not comment on the conference.

Syria's minorities demand decentralized state and a constitution that guarantees pluralism

Representatives from Syria's ethnic and religious groups have called for a decentralized state and a new constitution ensuring pluralism

ByHOGIR AL ABDO

Associated Press
August 8, 2025, 9:36 AM


HASSAKEH, Syria -- Hundreds of representatives of Syria’s various ethnic and religious groups called Friday for the formation of a decentralized state and the drafting of a new constitution that guarantees religious, cultural and ethnic pluralism.

The declaration came at the conclusion of a one-day conference where some 400 representatives of Syria's ethnic and religious minorities gathered in an attempt to assert the rights of their communities in the country’s evolving political framework following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad last December.

The transition is to include elections scheduled for September and the eventual drafting of a constitution — a process that could take years. The post-Assad transition has so far been marred by violence against minorities, raising fears about the future.

In their statements, the representatives condemned recent acts of violence by pro-government gunmen against the country’s minorities — primarily Alawites, Druze and Christians — and argued that these amount to crimes against humanity.

Ghazal Ghazal, the spiritual leader of Syria’s Alawite minority, to whom Assad belongs, said extremist ideology in Syria is imposing its will on Syrians in the name of religion and killing minorities. Ghazal called for setting up a decentralized or federal system in Syria that protects religious and cultural rights of all components of the Syrian people.

The conference was held in Hassakeh, a northeastern Syrian city under the control of the Kurdish-led and U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces.

Elham Ahmad, a senior official with the autonomous administration in northeast Syria, said she hopes to see the emergence of a Syria built on cultural and ethnic pluralism.

“This conference sends a message of civil peace and national reconciliation,” she said.

Violence against minorities following the December fall of the Assad family dynasty have killed hundreds of people and sent shockwaves throughout the country. The violence occurred despite pledges from interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, a former leader of al-Qaida’s branch in Syria, that all Syrians would be equally treated.

Hakemat Habib, one of the conference organizers, said that central governments and “tyrannical regimes” over the past decades have failed and that a democratic and decentralized state agreed upon by all Syrians is the only way to move forward. “Syrian identity includes all Syrians,” he said.

Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri, whose fighters clashed with pro-government gunmen last month, told the conference in a televised speech that “pluralism is not a threat but a treasure that strengthens unity.”

Also Friday, a top commander with the SDF, Sipan Hamo, blasted al-Sharaa’s government and accused it of continuing Syria's decades-old “dictatorship.” Hamo said in an interview with a local media outlet that the SDF wants to join the national army but the al-Sharaa’s government is not giving hope for a democratic state.

The interim government in Damascus did not comment on the conference.

Proposed US-Russia peace deal would hand Putin major gains in Ukraine: Report

A proposed US-Russia peace deal could secure major territorial and political gains for Vladimir Putin in Ukraine, according to a report citing unnamed diplomatic sources.



India Today World Desk
UPDATED: Aug 9, 2025 

In Short

Ukraine may cede Donbas, Crimea, parts of Luhansk and Donetsk

Trump hints at territory swap, Putin seeks peace

Putin-Trump talks set in Alaska, support from allies uncertain


The United States and Russia are weighing a peace deal that would redraw Ukraine’s borders and cement Moscow’s territorial gains, with US President Donald Trump hinting at a “swapping of territories” between the warring sides. Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources, said the proposal would see Ukraine surrender the entire eastern Donbas, Crimea, and parts of Luhansk and Donetsk — a plan Kyiv has yet to accept.

According to the Bloomberg report, the proposed settlement would require Ukraine to pull its forces from the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk, while Russia would halt offensive operations in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. If the report is true, the deal would be a big victory for Putin, who began the Ukraine invasion in February 2022. However, it remains unclear whether Moscow would give up any of the land it currently holds.

President Trump, speaking on Friday, offered only a broad outline. “Any agreement would likely involve some swapping of territories,” he said, without going into specifics. “President Putin, I believe, wants to see peace, and Zelenskyy wants to see peace. In all fairness to President Zelenskyy, he’s getting everything he needs to, assuming we get something done.”

Putin and Trump are expected to meet for talks next week in Alaska, with Washington working to rally support from Ukraine and European allies — a task Bloomberg described as “far from certain.”

In July, Trump set a 50-day deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire but has since reduced that target to a “lesser number,” saying he is “very disappointed” that Moscow has not eased its attacks.

On the battlefield, Ukrainian forces remain under severe pressure. The Pokrovsk area of Donetsk is bearing the brunt of Russia’s assault as the Kremlin tries to push into the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk region. Ukraine’s army is grappling with manpower shortages, while in the north, heavy fighting in Sumy aims to stop Russian troops from redeploying to the east.

For many on the front lines, the idea of negotiating with Moscow is a nonstarter. “It is impossible to negotiate with them. The only option is to defeat them,” said Buda, a drone unit commander in Ukraine’s Spartan Brigade, speaking to the Associated Press. “The only option is to defeat them.”

- Ends

Is Putin ready to end war in exchange for eastern Ukraine? All eyes now on his Alaska meet with Trump

US President Donald Trump confirms the highly anticipated summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15

 By The Week News Desk 

Updated: August 09, 2025

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and US President Donald Trump


US President Donald Trump has confirmed that he would meet Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15 to discuss ways to end the Ukraine war.

If the meeting happens, it would be the first US-Russia summit since 2021, when former President Joe Biden met Putin in Geneva.

“The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska. Further details to follow,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social page.


Trump’s deadline for Kremelin to agree to a ceasefire expired on Friday, and the Ukrainian leadership has expressed little hope for a diplomatic solution to the war.

Trump’s ultimatum to impose additional sanctions on Russia and his move to introduce secondary tariffs on countries that import Russian oil have made no breakthrough in bringing peace and stopping Putin from bombing Ukrainian cities.

Trump had said on Thursday that he would meet with Putin even if the Russian leader would not meet with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. That has stoked fears in Europe that Ukraine could be sidelined in efforts to stop the war.
Demand for Eastern Ukraine

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal on Friday reported that Putin has presented a sweeping proposal to end the war before the Trump administration.

Quoting European and Ukrainian officials, the report said Kremelin has demanded the control of Eastern Ukraine and a push for global recognition of its claims in exchange for a ceasefire.

Moscow is demanding a total of four provinces in eastern Ukrainen—Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson.
Putin’s phone calls

On Friday, Putin dialled both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping and apprised them of the situation in Ukraine.

Earlier, Putin had made similar phone calls to leaders of South Africa, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Belarus, the Kremlin said.

The calls suggested that Putin perhaps wanted to brief Russia's most important allies about a potential settlement that could be reached at a summit with Trump, reported the Associated Press.

US President Donald Trump and Russia's President Vladimir Putin talk during the family photo session at the APEC Summit in Danang, Vietnam. (Reuters Photo)

Ukraine war briefing: 

Trump flags ‘swapping of territories’ as he and Putin set a date for Alaska talks

US president claims exchanges will be ‘to the betterment of both’ before announcing talks with Putin for Friday. What we know on day 1,263

See all our Ukraine war coverage
Staff and agencies

Sat 9 Aug 2025 

Donald Trump has said any peace deal between Ukraine and Russia would involve territory swaps, as he named a date and location for talks with Vladimir Putin. The US president said: “But we’re gonna get some [territory] back. We’re gonna get some switched. There’ll be some swapping of territories, to the betterment of both.” He did not provide further details. Kyiv did not immediately comment on the talks or the possibility of territorial exchanges.

Trump said he planned to meet the Russian president next Friday in Alaska. He announced the location in a brief post on his Truth Social site. Russian state media agency Tass confirmed the date and location of the meeting, citing Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov. Putin said earlier he was not ready to meet Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after the proposal of a three-way meeting by US envoy Steve Witkoff. “I have nothing against it in general, it is possible, but certain conditions must be created for this,” Putin said of a meeting with Zelenskyy. “But unfortunately, we are still far from creating such conditions.”

Ushakov said another summit with the US president could be held in Moscow, and said an invite had already been extended. The White House has not commented yet on the remarks.

The US president’s remarks on Ukraine came after Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, said a “freeze” in the conflict could be close, after speaking with Zelenskyy, who has communicated with Trump and European leaders in recent days. “There are certain signals, and we also have an intuition, that perhaps a freeze in the conflict – I don’t want to say the end, but a freeze in the conflict – is closer than it is further away,” Tusk said during a news conference.

Ukraine’s president said late on Friday that Kyiv was in “constant communication with the American side” as the deadline for a Russian ceasefire passed. Zelenskyy said “No orders to stop have been given to the Russian army” and that the day had seen more than 100 drone strikes on Ukraine, as well as frontline assaults and other airstrikes. He added that all Ukraine’s allies were “united in the understanding that there is a chance to achieve at least a ceasefire, and that everything depends on the right pressure on Russia”.

Viktoriia Roshchyna, the Ukrainian journalist who died in Russian captivity last year, has been buried in Kyiv, in a ceremony attended by relatives and colleagues who paid tribute to her singular professional courage and the importance of her work. Roshchyna was reporting on Russia’s systematic policy of extrajudicial detention and torture in occupied parts of Ukraine before falling victim to it herself. She died at the age of 27 last year in murky circumstances, after more than a year in Russian captivity. Her body was returned earlier this year with some of the internal organs missing.

Russian nationalists have long demanded the return of Alaska. Now Trump has invited ICC-indicted Putin to the state

The Last Frontier state was purchased from the Russians by the U.S. for a sum of $7.2 million in 1867

Rhian Lubin
in New York
Saturday 09 August 2025 

The Independent

Trump confirms meet with Putin is not conditional on Putin-Zelensky talks

President Donald Trump is set to meet with Vladimir Putin in Alaska next week, the state that Russia once laid claim to and nationalists want to take back.

Trump announced Friday that a meeting has been set with the Russian leader on August 15 in the Last Frontier state to discuss the war in Ukraine, which the president claimed he would end “on Day One.”

Despite facing an International Criminal Court arrest warrant, the meeting would mark the first time in a decade that Putin has set foot on U.S. soil.

“The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska,” Trump declared on Truth Social.

Critics pointed out that Russia once laid claim to the state of Alaska at the beginning of the 1770s—where they mercilessly exploited Alaskan natives to hunt fur for the Russians—and nationalists have long wanted to take it back.


open image in galleryPresident Donald Trump announced Friday that a meeting has been set with the Russian leader on August 15 in the Last Frontier state to discuss the war in Ukraine (AP)
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Alaska was purchased from the Russians by the U.S. for a sum of $7.2 million in 1867—the equivalent of between $129 million and $153.5 million today.

“Trump has chosen to host Putin in a part of the former Russian Empire. Wonder if he knows that Russian nationalists claim that losing Alaska, like Ukraine, was a raw deal for Moscow that needs to be corrected,” said Michael McFaul, a professor of political science at Stanford University and former. U.S. ambassador to Russia.

“Let's all hope that Putin doesn't ask to take Alaska home with him as a souvenir, or Trump might give that away too,” political commentator David Frum said in a post on X.


“Trump inviting war criminal Putin to America is nauseating enough, but hosting him in Alaska — while Putin's pet propagandists routinely demand it back from the US on state TV — is beyond the pale,” author and commentator Julia Davis wrote on X. “Unless Putin is arrested upon arrival, there's no excuse.”

She posted a series of clips and screenshots of pro-Putin Russian commentators suggesting that Alaska should be part of their country once again.

Trump’s former national security adviser-turned foe, John Bolton, said the move reminded him of a blunder the president allegedly nearly made in his first term.


open image in galleryCritics pointed out that Russia once laid claim to the state of Alaska at the beginning of the 1770s—where they exploited Alaskan natives to hunt fur for the Russians—and nationalists have long wanted to take it back (Reuters)

“This is not quite as bad as Trump inviting the Taliban to Camp David to talk about the peace negotiations in Afghanistan,” Bolton told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins. “But it certainly reminds one of that.”

“The only better place for Putin than Alaska would be if the summit were being held in Moscow,” Bolton added. “So the initial setup, I think, is a great victory for Putin.”

GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said that she was “deeply wary” of Putin as she reacted to the news that the summit would take place in her home state.

“This is another opportunity for the Arctic to serve as a venue that brings together world leaders to forge meaningful agreements,” Murkowski said in a post on X Friday. “While I remain deeply wary of Putin and his regime, I hope these discussions lead to genuine progress and help end the war on equitable terms.”


open image in galleryUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who will not be at next week’s summit, was ambushed in Oval Office earlier this year by Trump and Vice President JD Vance (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Putin is wanted by the ICC on a warrant dating back to March 2023 for alleged involvement in the abduction of children from Ukraine during the conflict triggered by Moscow’s invasion of its neighbor. At least 19,000 Ukrainian children are thought to have been kidnapped and taken to Russia since the invasion began in February 2022, although Ukrainian officials say the total is probably far higher. Putin’s children’s rights commissioner, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, is also charged over the same alleged offenses.

Putin has traveled overseas since the warrant was issued, including to ICC member state Mongolia. He’s also traveled to China and North Korea, which are not court members.

During the 2024 presidential election campaign, Trump repeatedly pledged to end the war between Russia and Ukraine on ‘Day One,” but later claimed he said it “in jest.”

Negotiations on peace talks have been slow moving and, at times, fraught.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who will not be at next week’s summit, was ambushed in the Oval Office earlier this year by Trump and Vice President JD Vance. The vice president attacked Zelensky for not saying thank you enough for U.S. financial and military support and accused him of being “disrespectful.”

Trump has made numerous pro-Putin statements in the past, and said gets along with the dictator “very well.” His tone changed this month, when he said he was “disappointed” with Putin as peace talks continued to drag and violence in Europe continued.

The most famous meeting between the two presidents took place in Helsinki, Finland, in July 2018, during Trump’s first term as president. Following the meeting, Trump publicly contradicted U.S. intelligence agencies and appeared to take Putin’s word over their findings regarding Russian election interference.

The remarks caused bipartisan outrage in Washington, with many accusing Trump of having “sided with the enemy.”

Trump has also publicly blamed Zelensky – rather than Putin – for starting the war.

GROK RAPE

Elon Musk's AI accused of making explicit AI Taylor Swift videos

Imran Rahman-Jones
Technology reporter

BBC

Getty Images

Elon Musk's AI video generator has been accused of making "a deliberate choice" to create sexually explicit clips of Taylor Swift without prompting, says an expert in online abuse.

"This is not misogyny by accident, it is by design," said Clare McGlynn, a law professor who has helped draft a law which would make pornographic deepfakes illegal.

According to a report by The Verge, Grok Imagine's new "spicy" mode "didn't hesitate to spit out fully uncensored topless videos" of the pop star without being asked to make explicit content.

The report also said proper age verification methods - which became law in July - were not in place.

XAI, the company behind Grok, has been approached for comment.

XAI's own acceptable use policy prohibits "depicting likenesses of persons in a pornographic manner".

"That this content is produced without prompting demonstrates the misogynistic bias of much AI technology," said Prof McGlynn of Durham University.

"Platforms like X could have prevented this if they had chosen to, but they have made a deliberate choice not to," she added.

This is not the first time Taylor Swift's image has been used in this way.

Sexually explicit deepfakes using her face went viral and were viewed millions of times on X and Telegram in January 2024.

Deepfakes are computer-generated images which replace the face of one person with another.

'Completely uncensored, completely exposed'

In testing the guardrails of Grok Imagine, The Verge news writer Jess Weatherbed entered the prompt: "Taylor Swift celebrating Coachella with the boys".

Grok generated still images of Swift wearing a dress with a group of men behind her.

This could then be animated into short video clips under four different settings: "normal", "fun", "custom" or "spicy".

"She ripped [the dress] off immediately, had nothing but a tasselled thong underneath, and started dancing, completely uncensored, completely exposed," Ms Weatherbed told BBC News.

She added: "It was shocking how fast I was just met with it - I in no way asked it to remove her clothing, all I did was select the 'spicy' option."

Gizmodo reported similarly explicit results of famous women, though some searches also returned blurred videos or with a "video moderated" message.

The BBC has been unable to independently verify the results of the AI video generations.

Ms Weatherbed said she signed up to the paid version of Grok Imagine, which cost £30, using a brand new Apple account.

Grok asked for her date of birth but there was no other age verification in place, she said.

Under new UK laws which entered into force at the end of July, platforms which show explicit images must verify users' ages using methods which are "technically accurate, robust, reliable and fair".

"Sites and apps that include Generative AI tools that can generate pornographic material are regulated under the Act," the media regulator Ofcom told BBC News.

"We are aware of the increasing and fast-developing risk GenAI tools may pose in the online space, especially to children, and we are working to ensure platforms put appropriate safeguards in place to mitigate these risks," it said in a statement.

New UK laws

Currently, generating pornographic deepfakes is illegal when used in revenge porn or depicts children.

Prof McGlynn helped draft an amendment to the law which would make generating or requesting all non-consensual pornographic deepfakes illegal.

The government has committed to making this amendment law, but it is yet to come into force.

"Every woman should have the right to choose who owns intimate images of her," said Baroness Owen, who proposed the amendment in the House of Lords.

"It is essential that these models are not used in such a way that violates a woman's right to consent whether she be a celebrity or not," Lady Owen continued in a statement given to BBC News.

"This case is a clear example of why the Government must not delay any further in its implementation of the Lords amendments," she added.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "Sexually explicit deepfakes created without consent are degrading and harmful.

"We refuse to tolerate the violence against women and girls that stains our society which is why we have passed legislation to ban their creation as quickly as possible."

When pornographic deepfakes using Taylor Swift's face went viral in 2024, X temporarily blocked searches for her name on the platform.

At the time, X said it was "actively removing" the images and taking "appropriate actions" against the accounts involved in spreading them.

Ms Weatherbed said the team at The Verge chose Taylor Swift to test the Grok Imagine feature because of this incident.

"We assumed - wrongly now - that if they had put any kind of safeguards in place to prevent them from emulating the likeness of celebrities, that she would be first on the list, given the issues that they've had," she said.

Taylor Swift's representatives have been contacted for comment.

MISOGYNISTIC TOXIC MASCULINITY

Why are sex toys being thrown during WNBA games?

Ana Faguy
BBC News

Getty Images


Multiple pro-women's basketball games were interrupted in the past several days after sex toys were thrown onto courts, leaving players and coaches frustrated and fans puzzled.

Two of the instigators are now facing criminal charges and the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) has condemned such behaviour.

This week, members of a meme-coin group reportedly claimed responsibility for some of the incidents in which brightly coloured dildos were thrown onto the court or bench area during games.

Players and coaches are concerned about safety, and the meaning and hostility behind the incidents.

The game between the Atlanta Dream and the Chicago Sky was paused in the closing seconds Thursday night after a purple sex toy was tossed from the stands onto the court.

While individuals in the stands were reportedly questioned, no one was arrested. The WNBA has said any fan caught throwing sex toys onto the court would be banned from the league and would face prosecution.

The exact number of incidents is unclear because in some instances, items are thrown but do not reach the court or the bench.

"It's super disrespectful," Chicago Sky player Elizabeth Williams said after a similar incident last week. "I don't really get the point of it. It's really immature. Whoever is doing it needs to grow up."

Minnesota Lynx Head Coach Cheryl Reeve called the increasing number of incidents a "distraction".

"This has been going on for centuries," she told reporters on Thursday. "The sexualization of women. This is the latest version of that. And it's not funny and it should not be the butt of jokes on radio shows, or in print or any comments."

On Tuesday, as the Indiana Fever played the Los Angeles Sparks, a green sex toy landed on the court near Indiana player Sophie Cunningham.

She had posted on social media days before, asking the culprits to stop throwing the objects saying, "you're going to hurt one of us".

"Everyone's trying to make sure the W is not a joke and it's taken seriously, and then that happens," Cunningham said, on her podcast episode on Tuesday.

So far, two arrests have been made. In Atlanta, Delbert Carver, 23, was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, public indecency/indecent exposure, and criminal trespass after he was accused of throwing a sex toy at a game on 29 July.

The WNBA responded in a statement: "The safety and well-being of everyone in our arenas is a top priority for our league. Objects of any kind thrown onto the court or in the seating area can pose a safety risk for players, game officials, and fans."

The second arrest was Kaden Lopez, 18, also accused of throwing a sex toy at a 5 August game in Phoenix and hitting a man watching the game on the head.

Since the incidents have increased, community members from a meme-coin called Green Dildo Coin have taken responsibility for some of the disruptions.

A spokesperson for the group told USA Today that members started throwing green sex toys to coincide with the launch of the meme-coin, which was created the day before the first incident. The group wanted to use the "viral stunts" to garner attention, they said.

"We didn't do this because like we dislike women's sports or, like, some of the narratives that are trending right now are ridiculous," the spokesperson said anonymously in a Thursday article.

They added that the two arrested were not associated with the group.

While many of the incidents included green toys, some were other colours, indicating that not all of the incidents were linked to the meme-coin.

Argentine lawmaker indicted over anti-Israel social media posts, in a first

Vanina Biasi was indicted over eight social media posts comparing Israel to the Nazi regime.

Vanina Biasi, national leader of the Partido Obrero, commemorates the National Day of Memory for Truth and Justice in downtown Buenos Aires, March 24, 2022. ( Nacho Boullosa/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
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By Juan Melamed August 8, 2025 

BUENOS AIRES — An Argentine lawmaker has been indicted on criminal charges after comparing Israel to the Nazi regime and calling it a “genocide state” on social media.

Vanina Biasi of the left-wing Workers’ Party is the first sitting legislator in Argentina to be indicted for antisemitism, and the case against her marks the first time social media posts demonizing Israel have been legally recognized as antisemitic in Argentina.

The indictment comes as Argentina takes an aggressive stance against antisemitism and anti-Israel activity, fueled by the philosemitism of its populist president, Javier Milei. A prosecutor first lodged charges against Biasi were first filed in late November 2023, days after Milei’s election and before he was sworn in. Biasi lost a series of appeals, leading to the formal indictment on Thursday.

The case against Biasi centers on eight tweets she posted on X between Nov. 27, 2023, and Jan. 29, 2024.

“The Zionist Nazis need to destroy UNRWA humanitarian aid so the extermination can accelerate. They use famine, like in Nazi concentration camps, as a method of extermination,” Biasi wrote in one of the tweets. In another, she wrote, “The Zionist state is Nazi because of its practices and ideology.”

The first prosecutor argued that Biasi’s messages went beyond free speech and constituted hate speech under Argentina’s Anti-Discrimination Law. A federal judge backed that assessment in April, saying that her posts incited hatred against Jews, and ordered a seizure of assets equal to about $7,500.

Biasi’s legal team appealed on free speech grounds.

On Thursday, the Federal Chamber unanimously upheld the indictment and asset seizure. The judges ruled that freedom of expression is not absolute and can be restricted to protect others’ rights, national security, public order, health or morals. They agreed that Biasi exceeded the limits of allowable free speech.

Biasi is a prominent leader of the Workers’ Party, a former national lawmaker, and a recently elected member of the Buenos Aires city parliament. If convicted, she could face a prison sentence of one month to three years.

The case has divided Argentinians, with some arguing that even if her posts might be seen objectionable, they should not be treated as illegal. Others say they are glad the government is taking a strong stance against antisemitism.

The Argentine government adopted the IHRA definition of antisemitism, which defines some forms of Israel criticism as antisemitic, in 2020.

DAIA, Argentina’s main political umbrella group, supported the charges, saying in a statement that the posts reproduced “classic stigmas of modern antisemitism” and that Biasi’s prominence meant their “negative impact and reach” were extended.

Biasi does not appear to have been restrained by the prosecution, which she said was politically motivated. “Now the court confirms the prosecution … when the whole world is talking about nothing but the genocide being perpetrated by the State of Israel,” she tweeted, calling for a mass protest against Israel on Saturday. “There is no greater absurdity than believing they will silence us with judicial persecution.”