Renfe Series 103 train at Madrid Atocha (2011). Same model as the one in the Urda crash; not the specific train and not photographed on 28 October 2026. Falk2 / CC BY-SA 3.0 / Wikimedia Commons

Spain’s AITAT puts Urda high-speed crash toll at 69 as investigation continues

Spain’s independent rail accident authority said on 29 October that a collision near Urda two days earlier had killed 69 people, with the figure expected to change. The Autoridad Administrativa Independiente para la Investigación Técnica de Accidentes e Incidentes Ferroviarios, Marítimos y de Aviación Civil (AITAT) issued its first technical note after the first 24…

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Abha, Saudi Arabia, photographed 9 November 2011 by Basheer Olakara. Licensed CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons. One of four cities Saudi officials said were hit on 8 September 2026; this is a city view, not a photo of the strikes.

Houthi Strikes on Southern Saudi Arabia Injure 73 and Disrupt Energy Facilities

Yemen’s Houthi forces launched ballistic missiles and drones at targets in southern Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, injuring 73 people, including women and children, and causing fires that temporarily halted operations at some energy facilities, according to Saudi officials. The attacks struck the cities of Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jazan and Najran, the Saudi-led coalition fighting in…

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The Trishuli River in 2019, before the 2026 flash flood. Bijay Chaurasia Photography, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Miracle in the Mud: Two Workers Rescued Alive After 9 Days Trapped in Nepal Flood Tunnel

In the early hours of Friday, September 4, 2026, cheers erupted near Nepal’s Upper Trishuli 3A hydropower station as rescuers hauled two mud-caked men into daylight. Sanjay Sah, a 30-year-old mechanical foreman, and Kabir Maharjan, a 45-year-old mechanical supervisor, had spent nine days trapped deep inside a tunnel after a glacial collapse unleashed a deadly…

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Overhead view of a Clippers basketball game at Staples Center, with the jumbotron reading “CLIPPERS WIN.”

NBA Fines Clippers $30 Million and Strips Five First-Round Picks After Salary-Cap Inquiry

The National Basketball Association announced on September 2 that the Los Angeles Clippers violated salary-cap circumvention rules in the league’s collective bargaining agreement and imposed penalties on the franchise, owner Steve Ballmer, two team executives, and forward Kawhi Leonard. According to the NBA, a summary report prepared by the law firm Wachtell Lipton found that…

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Mayor Zohran Mamdani signs an order. Credit: NYC Mayor’s Office, CC BY 4.0.

New York City Bans Generative AI for Public School Students Through Eighth Grade

New York City will bar student use of generative artificial intelligence from 2-K through eighth grade for the 2026–27 school year, Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels announced on September 2. City officials said the one-year moratorium affects nearly 600,000 public school students, about two-thirds of enrollment. Reuters and CNN described it as…

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