SocietyThe New South Wales premier apologized for wrongly saying an 18-year-old missing hiker had been found alive. Her body was recovered more than a week after her disappearance from dense bushland in a remote national park near Sydney.
Reuters
WorldCatch up with the most important stories from Europe and beyond in Euronews’ midday bulletin for 21 August 2026, covering world, business, entertainment, politics, culture and travel.
World5:38Malaysia, Canada and six European nations have denounced Israel’s intended enlargement of settlements in the occupied West Bank. They warn that the E1 scheme could split the territory and make Palestinian statehood and a two-state solution harder to achieve.
TechSimon McGarr says cybersecurity is no longer simply about whether governments have adequate technical defences. Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping the risks, putting capabilities once associated with states or sophisticated criminal organisations within reach of much smaller actors.
SocietyThe program discusses a father who allegedly pulled and pushed an elderly street vendor after his young daughter was patted on the head, sparking debate over children’s personal boundaries. It also covers Chinatown’s decision to replace major Mid-Autumn street decorations and a market with a community lantern activity, and mentions a lawsuit accusing Meta of deliberately making children addicted.
PoliticsThe first 20 migrants deported from the United States have arrived in Liberia under a new deal described as “entirely humanitarian”. Authorities in Monrovia said Liberia would accept up to 1,200 foreign nationals deported from the US over a year.
CultureThe episode examines RushTok, the stream of social videos showing freshman women rushing sororities at large Southern state universities. It asks what the online obsession reveals about the South, the internet and America.
CNN
WorldPresident Donald Trump is increasing economic pressure on Iran. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that countries and businesses supporting Tehran could face consequences.
Fox News
CultureA dilapidated 200-year-old building on Senegal’s Saint-Louis island reflects its little-known role in the transatlantic slave trade. Although tens of thousands of Africans passed through the island, signs of that history are quickly and quietly disappearing.
World5:06France, Germany, Britain and Italy on Thursday condemned Israel’s plans to open construction tenders for the “E1” residential project in the occupied West Bank. Hundreds of thousands of Israelis live among millions of Palestinians on land captured in the 1967 war. Nearly all countries and several UN bodies deem the settlements contrary to international law, a position Israel disputes on historical and biblical grounds.
WorldLee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung, former organisers of Hong Kong’s annual vigils commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, were convicted Friday by government-approved judges of inciting others to overthrow China’s communist leadership. They were charged under a China-imposed national security law in 2021.
SocietyHeatwaves have badly affected much of France’s agricultural sector, but the high temperatures are proving ideal for salt harvesting in the famous marshes of Guérande in western France. The summer harvest there is expected to be particularly abundant.
PoliticsPakistan’s government said former Prime Minister Imran Khan was taken back to jail early Friday, hours after being brought to a hospital for court-ordered medical checks. The Supreme Court had directed that he be taken to Islamabad’s Shifa International Hospital within 48 hours after his lawyers raised concerns about his health.
WorldHeavy El Niño-linked rain caused flooding in Peru on Wednesday, disrupting travel to the ancient Inca citadel of Machu Picchu. Landslides closed roads and homes were flooded in Lima. Authorities ordered the Inca Trail, a major tourist route, closed until Saturday because waterways overflowed and debris accumulated, local media reported.
PoliticsNatalie Harp is a near-constant presence beside US President Donald Trump, but the ultra-loyal aide had largely avoided public attention until recently. She was reportedly among a small group who secretly left Air Force One with Trump in Turkey after a security threat. A Democratic Senate hopeful then mentioned her, sparking an online uproar and angering the White House.
HealthMerck and Moderna said a personalised cancer treatment reduced the recurrence of melanoma tumours in a late-stage trial. Experts called the result a breakthrough, marking the first positive outcome for an mRNA cancer drug in a large, late-stage clinical study.
PoliticsActivists and opponents of Tunisian President Kais Saied protested in Tunis on Thursday, demanding his departure and a return to democracy. Hundreds denounced “one-man rule” and what they called a drift toward dictatorship, while urging the release of jailed opposition figures, activists and journalists.
PoliticsThousands of people have protested in Tunisia’s capital for a second consecutive month, calling for a return to democracy. Pressure on President Kais Saied is growing amid anger over power and water cuts and deteriorating public services.
WorldMexico’s navy rescued 15 Cuban migrants who had spent days adrift at sea. For decades, Cubans seeking to leave the communist-run island have risked their lives in flimsy boats to cross the treacherous Florida Straits to the United States or travel across the Caribbean to Mexico.
SocietyThe remains of two Wehrmacht soldiers and a Second World War motorcycle were recovered from the Danube in Budapest. Experts are now working to identify the soldiers through their military identity tags, a painstaking process of putting names to the remains.
CultureJohannes Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring” will be displayed in Osaka for five weeks. The Mauritshuis in the Netherlands has lent the masterpiece while it undergoes renovation, marking the painting’s first international trip in more than a decade.
CultureQuito, Ecuador, is hosting the Middle of the World International Hot Air Balloon Festival for the fifth consecutive year, with around 20 balloons flying over the city.
The Associated Press
OtherLaura Ingraham, Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity and Greg Gutfeld offer Fox News viewers their latest takes on the day’s top stories.
Fox News
EconomyLow water levels on the Rhine put supply chains under pressure. Special low-water vessels are designed to carry goods when the river is extremely shallow, but their limited numbers raise questions about how effective this solution can be.