Tuesday 25 August 2026

U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) director John Ratcliffe visits Moscow, Russia, on an unscheduled military flight to meet with Russian intelligence officials, marking the first known visit by a U.S. CIA director to Russia since 2021.

The Wall Street Journal reports Ratcliffe's visit was to formally warn Russia against attacking NATO after military intelligence suggested Russia is preparing for a "limited assault" on a NATO member state.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi and Omani foreign minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi say that Iran and Oman have discussed a proposal to establish a temporary joint shipping route for ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

The Wall Street Journal reports that U.S. president Trump launched Operation Epic Fury in February despite warnings from U.S. vice president JD Vance and then-intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard.

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces announce they have officially dissolved and completed a merger with the Syrian army following the end of the civil war in 2024.

The Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet say that they have struck five Hamas weapons storage systems and a launch site in Gaza, including in mosques.

Around 27 people, including four children, are reported to be killed by Sudan People's Liberation Movement–North (SPLM-N) militants in the South Kordofan areas of Kadugli and Abu Hitan.

United States president Donald Trump and the navy say that all mines have been cleared from the Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. military launches a strike against a vessel in the Caribbean Sea allegedly carrying drug smugglers, killing four people.

Sudan’s social welfare ministry reports that 224 cases of child sexual violence have been documented since the conflict.

The Israel Defense Forces take control of the UNRWA's vocational training centre in Qalandia, East Jerusalem, West Bank, and begin removing the United Nations agency under legislation banning its operations in Israel.

The Grand Council of Aargau votes 78–54 to ban Islamic hijabs for girls aged under 16 in the Swiss canton of Aargau. The motion was sponsored by the Radical-Liberal Party.

Latvia's cabinet ministry announces that the country will ban imported goods from Belarus and Russia starting September 1.

South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Company reaches a deal to end a month of walkouts by workers.

Brazil's national data protection authority fines TikTok R$153.7 million (US$29.9 million) for inadequate child-safety measures and orders its developer, ByteDance, to delete improperly collected data and strengthen protections for users under 16.

The toll from the earthquake in Flores, Indonesia, ten days ago, increases to 103 people dead and 1,666 injured.

The death toll for the earthquakes in Venezuela this June exceeds past 6,500, with a total of 6,509 deaths reported.

At least 40 people are injured and over 300 homes are damaged in a tornado in Pomas, Occitania, France.