10 Things Global News - 19th August 2026
Trump claims, with no evidence, that Hormuz is open despite no ship passage, US sanctions ICC, Meta faces potential large liability in trial - Succinct, unbiased global news
Trump Claims Hormuz Is Open As Negotiations Stall (Middle East)
Israel Strikes Syrian Airbase As Turkey Tensions Rise (Conflict)
Gaza Strike Deepens Doubts Over Trump Peace Plan (Conflict)
Trump Cuts Korea Drills As Kim Outreach Resumes (Asia)
US Sanctions ICC President In Escalating Campaign (US)
Britain Rejects Russian Warning Over Drone Strikes (UK)
Ukraine Takes Drone War Deep Into Russia (Conflict)
Fedorov Calls For Wartime Elections In Ukraine (Europe)
Trump Pauses Canada Tariffs As Deal Nears (US)
Meta Trial Tests Social Media Liability (Technology)
A succinct daily briefing delivered each weekday to help you stay on top of the stories shaping the world.
President Donald Trump says the United States has no talks planned with Iran despite earlier comments from envoy Jared Kushner describing discussions as active and positive.
Trump also insisted that the Strait of Hormuz was open and operating even as in reality limited traffic continued and Iran maintained that the waterway would remain closed until American conditions were met.
The contradiction highlights a widening gap between public messaging and the negotiating reality surrounding one of the world’s most important energy corridors.
Oman and Iran say they are nearing a shipping agreement while the United States continues its naval blockade of Iranian ports. At the same time, regional tensions have intensified following a reported strike on a vessel in the strait, Houthi drone claims against a Saudi refinery and the United Arab Emirates’ decision to halt trade and financial transactions with Iran.
Sources: Associated Press, SBS
Israel carried out eight airstrikes on the Abu al-Duhur airbase near Aleppo on Tuesday, hitting the runway and storage facilities without causing casualties, according to Syrian state media. The attack appeared to be Israel’s first strike on Syrian government assets since March and drew condemnation from Turkey and criticism from U.S. envoy Tom Barrack, who called it an “unnecessary escalation”.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Syria was on the verge of breaching a security status quo by allowing Turkish troops to deploy at the base and said Israel had repeatedly warned Damascus against such a move. Turkey did not say whether its troops were present.
The strikes deepen tensions over Syria, where Turkey has become a leading ally of President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government while Israel remains deeply suspicious of the new authorities and has repeatedly targeted Syrian military sites since Bashar al-Assad was ousted in 2024.
Sources: Reuters, New York Times
An Israeli strike on a crowded seaside cafe in Gaza City killed at least seven people, including a child, and wounded 14 on Tuesday, one day after U.S. envoy Jared Kushner met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to advance President Donald Trump’s 15-point Gaza plan. Israel said Hamas commanders planning attacks on Israeli troops were targeted.
The strike sharpened doubts over the peace plan’s implementation. Donald Trump announced last month that his Board of Peace had reached an agreement with Hamas to disarm, while Israel was required to fulfil obligations under the October ceasefire, including immediately suspending attacks. Netanyahu subsequently rejected the agreement.
The dispute remains centred on sequencing. U.S. officials envisage Hamas surrendering weapons in stages as Israel gradually withdraws but Israel insists there will be no withdrawal until Hamas is disarmed. Kushner said Gaza would not be rebuilt before demilitarisation and Israel retained the right to respond to imminent threats.
Sources: New York Times, Anadolu Agency
President Donald Trump ordered the United States to substantially reduce its Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises with South Korea, citing his relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and calling the drills hostile. The annual exercise will now end on August 21, six days earlier than planned, with some live-training events cancelled, reduced or converted to simulations.
The move surprised Seoul. South Korean Foreign Affairs Minister Cho Hyun said neither his government nor U.S. officials had prior knowledge of Trump’s order before it was announced, even as both militaries said essential readiness and training objectives would be preserved.
The decision comes as Trump pushes to revive diplomacy with Kim, who has rebuffed U.S. and South Korean overtures unless demands for denuclearisation are dropped. North Korea has not publicly responded to the reduction while state media reiterated criticism of the drills and vowed to continue its right to self-defence.
Sources: NBC News, The Guardian
The United States imposed sanctions on International Criminal Court president Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye on Tuesday, escalating the Trump administration’s campaign against the Hague-based court. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the two had engaged in efforts to investigate, arrest, detain or prosecute officials whose governments had not consented to ICC jurisdiction.
The sanctions freeze any U.S. assets they may hold and effectively cut them off from the U.S. financial system. Seye is part of the prosecution team that sought an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while Akane has warned that U.S. sanctions could jeopardise the court’s existence.
The ICC said the measures undermine the rule of law. The Netherlands and Japan also criticised the move, while Rubio has said Washington will intensify efforts against the court, including encouraging other countries to withdraw.
Sources: Reuters, South China Morning Post
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British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the UK would continue to support Ukraine “100%” after Moscow warned of consequences following confirmation that British-made drones had been used in recent Ukrainian strikes inside Russia. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow had the right to regard Britain’s direct involvement in strikes on Russian territory as participation in the war.
The latest warning follows intensified Ukrainian long-range attacks on Moscow and other Russian regions, including strikes on oil refineries and Wildberries logistics sites. A British military source confirmed that UK-supplied drones had been used in recent attacks, while Russia’s embassy in London warned of unspecified consequences.
Burnham said Britain was helping Ukraine defend itself and would remain alongside Kyiv. Moscow has previously accused British specialists of involvement in attacks on Russian territory and said Britain’s role would be taken into account in its response.
Sources: BBC, Reuters
Ukraine has intensified its long-range drone campaign against Russia, launching almost 800 drones in one of its largest attacks of the war and striking targets including a Wildberries logistics warehouse outside Moscow. Ukrainian crews are using domestically produced FP-1 drones capable of flying more than 1,000 miles to hit military, industrial and logistical sites far from the front.
Kyiv says the aim is to bring the war’s consequences home to the Russian public and push President Vladimir Putin towards negotiations. The campaign has forced Russia to spread air defences over a wider area, disrupted airports, contributed to fuel shortages and damaged morale, while neither side is making significant battlefield progress.
The escalation is unfolding alongside continued Russian strikes on Ukraine. A missile attack on Pechenihy in the Kharkiv region killed 10 civilians and wounded 17, underscoring the expanding long-range aerial duel between the two countries.
Sources: PBS, Associated Press
Ukraine’s former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov called for wartime elections on Tuesday, hours after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy nominated Yevhen Khmara as his permanent successor. Fedorov said Ukraine should devise a legal, safe and realistic mechanism to restore elections despite the war, arguing that democracy could not be postponed indefinitely.
His intervention followed a month of protests triggered by his dismissal and came after Khmara’s nomination effectively ruled out Fedorov’s return to the defence ministry. Fedorov had rejected other senior government roles and previously said he would only return to lead defence.
Ukraine has not held national elections since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 and elections are prohibited under martial law. Fedorov did not call for an immediate vote or set a timetable but linked elections to political accountability, public trust and the conduct of the war.
Sources: Euronews, CNN
US President Donald Trump paused planned 50% tariffs on nearly $20bn of Canadian imports for three days, saying Canada and the United States had a deal subject to finalising documents. The duties had been due to take effect less than two hours later and would have covered goods including wine, dairy, cement, clothing and hockey equipment.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said substantial progress had been made but important work remained. Negotiations have focused on issues including US tariffs on Canadian autos, provincial bans on American liquor and Canadian dairy access.
Trump also said a final agreement could revive the Keystone XL pipeline, while the US Trade Representative said the deal would include market access, economic security commitments and digital trade alignment. Businesses on both sides had warned that higher tariffs would damage both economies and disrupt supply chains.
Sources: BBC, The Guardian
Opening statements began on Tuesday in a federal trial against Meta, with California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey accusing the Facebook and Instagram parent of deliberately designing products to addict children, misleading the public about risks and collecting data from children under 13 without parental consent.
Deputy California Attorney General Megan O’Neill said Meta designed its platforms to hook users, keep them engaged and harvest their data. Meta rejected the claims as unsubstantiated and said research showed no clear link between adolescent social media use and reduced wellbeing.
The four states are seeking product changes and roughly $200bn in penalties. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will decide the case, with an eight-person jury serving in an advisory role. Former Meta safety engineer Arturo Bejar began testifying after opening arguments, while Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram chief Adam Mosseri are also expected to appear.
Sources: Al Jazeera, NPR
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On this day …
On this day in 1839, the French government announced the daguerreotype process and made the new photographic technology available to the public. Developed by Louis Daguerre, the method allowed images to be permanently recorded on specially prepared metal plates.
Photography transformed the way societies documented people, places and events. Images could now preserve historical moments with a level of detail that written descriptions and paintings could not always provide.
Over time, photography reshaped journalism, science, art and public memory.
Nearly two centuries later, photography remains one of the most influential technologies ever introduced, even as digital tools continue to redefine how images are created and shared.
Has any technology changed the relationship between memory and evidence more profoundly than photography?