Former New York Times CEO and BBC director-general Mark Thompson is teaming up with Filipino journalist and press freedom advocate Maria Ressa to spearhead a global initiative to support independent media outlets and journalists globally.
Why it matters: Around the world, authoritarians are taking more aggressive actions to undermine the free press, especially in light of COVID-19.
In a classified briefing with senators on Tuesday, Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley directly blamed the State Department for a botched evacuation from Afghanistan, saying officials "waited too long" to order the operation out of Kabul's airport, two sources with direct knowledge of the briefing told Axios.
Why it matters: Those private remarks were far more blunt than Milley's public testimony, in which the nation's top general said the issue of whether the order should have been given earlier is an "open question that needs further exploration."
The State Department said Wednesday that it is vetting and verifying the identities of over 100 U.S. citizens and permanent residents who were evacuated from Afghanistan through a charter plane this week.
Why it matters: The founder of the nonprofit Project Dynamo, which chartered the flight out of Kabul with Human First Coalition, said U.S. Customs and Border Protection had denied the charter flight landing rights in the U.S.
The White House rejected a request from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last week, U.S. and Palestinian sources say.
Why it matters: It's unusual for a U.S. president to reject a meeting request from the Palestinians, and it could be seen as further indication of how low the Israeli-Palestinian issue is on Biden’s foreign policy priority list.
Officials from Iran and Saudi Arabia met this week in Baghdad for a fourth round of talks this year, following a months-long hiatus after the election of Iran's new president.
Why it matters: The meetings in Iraq constitute the first serious attempt at dialogue between the two regional rivals following years of tensions and rhetorical venom.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett doesn’t think Israel needs to change its “nuclear ambiguity” policy for now as a response to Iran's latest nuclear advances, two senior Israeli officials tell me.
Why it matters: Israel has never acknowledged that it has a military nuclear program, and claims it “won’t be the first country to introduce nuclear weapons to the Middle East." But a new report is sparking an unprecedented public debate among politicians and experts about whether Israel’s nuclear posture needs to change to deter Iran.
Tunisian President Kais Saied on Wednesday named Najla Bouden Romdhane as the country's first woman prime minister.
Driving the news: The announcement comes two months after Saied removed the previous prime minister, Hichem Mechichi, suspended the Parliament and assumed wide executive powers in a move critics called a coup.
China’s Evergrande is giving hedge fund managers who invest in distressed situations what they’ve craved all year: a huge company with billions in debt trading at deeply discounted levels.
Yes, but: It’s a sign of the times that in order to access one of the only large distressed opportunities, they have to stretch into one of investing’s riskiest regions.
Fumio Kishida, Japan's former foreign minister, was elected leader of the country's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on Wednesday.
Why it matters: The 64-year-old's win in the leadership election runoff means he's set to become prime minister of the world's third-largest economy, and a key U.S. ally, after a special parliamentary session on Monday, per the Washington Post.
Manny Pacquiao announced Wednesday his retirement from boxing ahead of his run for president of the Philippines next year.
The big picture: The 42-year-old, who's also a Philippines senator, said in a video posted on his Facebook page that it's "difficult for me to accept that my time as a boxer is over." Pacquiao won 12 world titles in a 72-fight career, with 62 wins. He's the only boxer ever to win titles in eight different weight divisions.
Why it matters: KCNA indicated that the North Korean military has nuclear capabilities with this missile when it referred to it as a "strategic weapon."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis took legal action on Tuesday to try to stop the Biden administration's immigration plans.
Why it matters: The Republican governor, who is running for re-election next year and is possibly eyeing a 2024 presidential bid, is picking a high-profile fight with Biden while re-upping his hardline stance on immigration.
President Biden sold his strategy for getting out of Afghanistan on uniformity of support. On Tuesday, the people in uniform contradicted him.
Driving the news: Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley and Gen. Frank McKenzie, head of U.S. Central Command, testified they recommended keeping 2,500 troops in Afghanistan to prevent the collapse of Afghan security forces.
A tweak to U.S. export restrictions is letting a prominent Chinese tech company sidestep measures designed to punish the firm over its alleged involvement in the repression of Muslims within the country, records show.
Why it matters: The artificial intelligence company SenseTime's strategy to bypass those measures shows how companies deemed national security risks — or accused of complicity in human rights abuses — can bypass U.S. restrictions.
