Trump’s threat to annihilate Iran to UN general assembly is stunning, even for him

• Diplomats from across the globe described the current state of the world as messy and unpredictable during interviews leading up to the annual United Nations meeting. • Current and former ministers and ambassadors highlighted a stark picture of crises facing the international community and the 193 member states.

• CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a surprise official visit to Cairo to meet with President El-Sisi and the head of the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate. • The meetings focused on international maritime security and geopolitical challenges across the Middle East and the Horn of Africa.

• World leaders gathered in New York for the 81st UN General Assembly session to discuss climate change, artificial intelligence safety, and the wars between Russia-Ukraine and Iran-US. • The White House press pool will not send a camera to replace CNN for President Donald Trump's trip due to ongoing conflict between the administration and the media.

• World leaders are gathering at the United Nations to address escalating global wars and economic uncertainty. • The Middle East conflict has expanded to involve regional nations and resulted in the closure of a vital waterway.

• Prime ministers from Australia and Iceland addressed the global climate crisis ahead of a United Nations meeting. • These leaders discussed the specific environmental impacts on their nations while other world leaders avoided the issue due to inflation and war.

• The United Nations is shifting its strategy in the Sahel region toward diplomacy and humanitarian aid as the 81st UN General Assembly begins. • The UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) now operates as a special political mission focused on mediation and conflict prevention rather than a peacekeeping operation with troops.

• World leaders are gathering in New York for the 81st annual United Nations General Assembly to address widening global conflicts and a trust deficit. • Some actors are controlling fuel and food supplies to create scarcity and increase costs on a global scale.

Company to award backpay to 264,000 workers as mayor Zohran Mamdani condemns use of ‘greedy algorithms’DoorDash said it would pay $131.5m ⁠to settle a ​New York City government investigation that found the food delivery company underpaid or waited too long to pay workers.Mayor Zohran Mamdani called the settlement the city’s largest ⁠labor enforcement action. It advances the city’s longstanding effort to hold food delivery companies to a 2023 law intended to improve pay for delivery workers. Continue reading...

Polo, with sustained winds of 165mph, is churning 215 miles south of Zihuatanejo but is unlikely to directly hit MexicoA tropical storm off the south-west coast of Mexico has intensified into a category 5 monster in fewer than 24 hours, fueled by stronger than usual El Niño weather patterns in the Pacific Ocean.Hurricane Polo was sending out maximum sustained winds of 165mph (266km/h) on Tuesday as its center churned about 215 miles (346km) south of the coastal city of Zihuatanejo, in Guerrero state. Continue reading...

Parenting advocate Georgie Dent says rising childcare cost has pushed the overall burden to $36,500 a year and calls for more paid parental leaveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe cost for Australian families of raising two or more children has risen to at least $36,500 a year, according to new research, with the money needed to run a family increasing by 134% in two decades.Data released by advocacy group The Parenthood on Wednesday shows household income has only grown by 102% in the same period, with childcare costs making up 33% of the total cost of having children today. In 2003, the figure was 27%, according to the analysis by firm Connell Griffin. Continue reading...

Lian Yunzhi solves puzzle on several occasions in average time of under 4.5 seconds, according to state mediaA six-year-old Chinese girl has set a new women’s world record for solving a Rubik’s Cube in just over four seconds, state media reported.“Speedcuber” Lian Yunzhi broke the women’s 3x3 average world record twice this month at two World Cube Association certified competitions in Wuhan and Guangzhou, according to state broadcaster CCTV on Monday. Continue reading...