Southern California swelters as late-season heatwave smothers region

• Violence surged across the Middle East following the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas and the subsequent war in Gaza. • Iran expanded the conflict by mobilizing its Axis of Resistance, a network including Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and militias in Iraq and Syria.

• The United Nations released $160 million to support 12 severely underfunded humanitarian crises. • This funding focuses on improving aid for people with disabilities in conflict-affected and fragile regions.

• Gustavo de Arístegui analyzed geopolitical tensions on September 28, focusing on a foundational crisis within the UN Assembly and US-Iran relations. • The analysis notes that Iranian initiatives aim to remove secondary sanctions—penalties on non-US companies trading with Iran—without offering verifiable nuclear concessions.

• Governments, UN entities, and private sector representatives met recently to call for stronger cooperation to address a rapidly changing global information landscape. • The event was co-hosted by Brazil, the UN Secretariat, the UN development Programme, and UNESCO to discuss implementing the Global Digital Compact.

Demonstrators take to the streets of Madrid ⁠and other Spanish cities ⁠after ​new legislation fails to passTens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Madrid ⁠and other Spanish cities as they step up demands for action to tackle ⁠a mounting housing crisis ⁠after ​government measures were struck down by the opposition.Demonstrators on Saturday waved posters calling for a general strike ⁠after the measures drawn up to address mass anger over the eviction of an 87-year-old woman in ⁠Madrid, and other housing issues, were rejected in parliament on ​Friday. Continue reading...

Rhonda Jewell was sentenced to 17 years for forgetting 10-month-old Aria in car’s back seat, leading to the child’s deathA state appeals court in Florida reversed the felony murder conviction of a woman who accidentally left a baby in her car, resulting in the child’s death.In July 2023, while babysitting four children from two different families, 46-year-old Rhonda Jewell forgot 10-month-old Ariya Paige was in the back of her car, and went inside to care for the other kids. Strapped into her carseat in the Florida summer heat, Ariya died of hyperthermia before Jewell realized her mistake. Jewell was convicted the following year of third-degree felony murder, predicated on the underlying felony of leaving a child unattended in a vehicle. She was sentenced to 17 years in prison. Continue reading...

The state, which is home to many AI companies, is one of the first to roll out workplace regulations targeting the technology California’s laws aimed at protecting workers from the impacts of artificial intelligence could pave the way for broader workplace safeguards across the US as calls for regulating the technology mount. As the federal government goes hands-off on AI, California is taking the reins to address workers’ biggest fears.On Thursday, California governor Gavin Newsom signed a suite of new laws that ban bosses from relying entirely on AI to decide whether to fire workers, using it to predict employees’ emotional states or collecting neural data, meaning the information from electrical signals of someone’s brain or nerves. They also require companies to notify workers if layoffs were caused by AI and prohibit AI surveillance in workplace bathrooms. Continue reading...

President says payments, to be sent in early October, are meant to offset cost of monthly insurance premiumsDonald ⁠Trump has said the US government will send a one-time $90 payment to more than 20 million Americans enrolled in Medicare, the ⁠health insurance program for ⁠elderly people, ​to help offset the cost of their monthly medical insurance premiums.The president said on social media late on Friday that the ⁠payments would come from the Medicare Improvement Fund, which he said was given $2bn by Congress to improve the Medicare fee-for-service program. Continue reading...

The 25-year-old was the sixth man detained as counter-terrorism police investigate ‘possible foreign state involvement’A sixth man who was arrested in connection with a suspected terrorist plot at RAF Fairford has been released on bail.The 25-year-old, a dual UK-Iranian national, was arrested on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts under section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006. Continue reading...

Rahman Salehi, 34, and Salam Ahmadyan, 36, were charged with preparing attacks on city’s Jewish community, including Heaton Park synagogueTwo Iranian men identified a Manchester synagogue previously subjected to a fatal terrorist attack as a target for an alleged homemade bomb plot, a court has heard.Rahman Salehi, 34, from Salford, and Salam Ahmadyan, 36, from Liverpool were charged with preparing to commit an act of terrorism or assisting another to commit an act of terrorism on Friday. Continue reading...

Approval ratings for Tory leader and her party have crept up as she has asserted her style and authority but big challenges lie aheadA year ago, Tory MPs were braced for the prospect of yet another leadership battle to topple Kemi Badenoch as the party sunk to historic lows of 14-16% in the polls.At the time, the word “November” was uttered in hushed tones – this being the decisive month when rebels would be able to mount a challenge, Badenoch having served 12 months in office. Continue reading...