China Commits to Cut Carbon Emissions by 2035
Drone Strike on Eilat Injures Dozens
Dozens Killed As Strikes Hit Gaza City
Drones Disrupt Four Danish Airports Overnight
Zelensky Warns UN of Expanding Russian Aggression
Trump’s Ukraine Shift Raises Pressure on Europe
Trump’s Public–Private Split At The UN
No Warning For Taiwan Flood After Barrier Lake Bursts
White House Orders Agencies To Draft Firing Plans
Italy And Spain Deploy Ships After Gaza Flotilla Attacked
On this day …..
On this day in 1789, the U.S. Congress approved the Bill of Rights.
Twelve amendments to the new Constitution were sent to the states for ratification, ten of which became the Bill of Rights. They enshrined protections for free speech, religious liberty, due process, and limits on government power.
The drafting reflected compromises between Federalists and Anti-Federalists, ensuring the Constitution’s acceptance while addressing concerns over central authority.
Ratified in 1791, the Bill of Rights remains the foundation of American civil liberties, cited in countless legal and political battles. Its passage marked a decisive step in defining the principles of the new republic.
China has pledged for the first time to reduce its carbon emissions, with President Xi Jinping announcing a target of 7% to 10% cuts by 2035. Speaking by video link to the United Nations climate summit, Xi said China would boost wind, solar and hydropower to cover more than 30% of its energy needs within the next decade and make clean vehicles the mainstream. China, the world’s largest carbon polluter, currently accounts for over 31% of global emissions.
The pledge comes as more than 100 leaders outlined climate plans ahead of November’s negotiations in Brazil. The European Union has provisionally agreed to a 66%–72% cut by 2035, while Australia confirmed its goal of reducing emissions by 62%–70%. UN officials welcomed China’s step but stressed it falls short of the Paris accord’s 1.5°C goal, with experts warning of escalating floods, fires and storms if action is delayed further.
Sources: Associated Press, ABC News
A drone launched from Yemen struck Israel’s southern resort city of Eilat on Wednesday, injuring at least 20 people, with two in serious condition. Police said the drone fell in the city centre, damaging an area near hotels. Israel’s emergency services confirmed multiple injuries from shrapnel. Officials reported that air defences failed to intercept the drone, prompting investigations into the failure.
Yemen’s Houthi group later claimed responsibility, saying the operation used multiple drones and hit targets around Eilat and Beersheba. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that attacks on Israeli cities would be met with a “painful blow,” while Defence Minister Israel Katz warned that the Houthis would “learn the hard way.”
The strike follows repeated Houthi attacks on Israel since the Gaza war began in October 2023, part of what the group describes as solidarity with Palestinians.
Sources: The Guardian, Al Jazeera
More than 80 Palestinians were killed across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, most of them in Gaza City, according to local hospitals. First responders said at least 20 women and children died when a strike hit a building and tents for displaced families near the Firas market in the Daraj neighbourhood. The Israeli army said it struck two Hamas fighters and that reported casualty numbers did not align with its information.
Israeli tanks and troops continued their advance into the heart of Gaza City. Hospitals reported receiving bodies and casualties since midnight, as residents fled or sheltered amid collapsing services and confirmed famine conditions.
Officials and witnesses described armour moving in Tel al-Hawa and Rimal, while hundreds of thousands have already left the city and hundreds of thousands remain in dire conditions.
Sources: Times of India, BBC
Unidentified drones were spotted over four Danish airports — Aalborg, Esbjerg, Sønderborg and the Skrydstrup air base — late Wednesday and into Thursday, prompting a shutdown at Aalborg that lasted several hours. Police said the devices, visible from the ground with lights, left the areas on their own. Airports at Esbjerg and Sønderborg were not closed because no flights were scheduled until morning, while Skrydstrup also reported activity.
North Jutland police said it was not possible to bring the drones down and that the operators have not been identified. Authorities are investigating widely with the intelligence service PET and the Armed Forces; the type of drones and motive remain unclear.
The incident follows an earlier closure at Copenhagen’s Kastrup airport this week. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has called that episode the “most severe attack on Danish infrastructure so far”, and said Russian involvement could not be ruled out.
Sources: France 24, BBC
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged the United Nations to act against Russia’s war, warning that failure to stop Moscow would trigger wider aggression and a dangerous arms race.
Addressing the General Assembly, he said the rapid development of drones and artificial intelligence in warfare risked creating “the most destructive arms race in human history” and called for global rules to regulate such weapons.
Zelensky accused President Vladimir Putin of seeking to expand the conflict beyond Ukraine, citing Russian drone and aircraft incursions into NATO airspace. He argued that “stopping Russia now” would be less costly than confronting the threat of nuclear-armed drones later.
He also said international institutions were too weak to guarantee security, adding that alliance membership did not automatically ensure safety. Zelensky announced Ukraine would begin exporting weapons tested in war, pitching them as a source of modern security for allies.
Sources: Reuters, BBC
President Donald Trump has reversed course on Ukraine, declaring at the United Nations that Kyiv can and should retake occupied land from Russia. The statement came after his meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky and follows frustration at repeated Russian airspace violations. Vice President JD Vance said the change reflected “reality on the ground” rather than a new policy, while allies voiced caution given Trump’s record of sudden shifts.
Despite the rhetoric, Trump has not pledged fresh US support and instead pressed European nations to bear more of the burden. He told reporters that America will continue supplying weapons for NATO allies “to do what they want with them,” but stopped short of announcing new sanctions.
European officials welcomed the pressure on Moscow but warned Trump’s stance may change again. NATO states are continuing with existing plans to fund Ukraine’s defence and purchase US weapons.
Source: South China Morning Post, Politico
President Donald Trump delivered a combative UN address, deriding the organisation as ineffective and scolding allies for buying Russian energy. He attacked climate policies as a “hoax” and urged “very strict tariffs” on Russia unless it ends the war, adding Europeans should adopt the same measures. He also pressed for hostages in Gaza to be released and criticised migration and UN spending.
In private, his tone shifted. In a meeting with Secretary-General António Guterres, Trump said the United States was “behind the United Nations 100 percent,” even as his administration has moved to cut UN funding and withdrawn from agencies and the Paris climate accord.
European leaders avoided confrontation in public, then sought one-to-one meetings; Commission President Ursula von der Leyen later told Trump “we’re on it” after he mocked EU purchases of Russian oil and gas.
Sources: UN News, New York Times
Residents reported little or no immediate warning as the surge arrived faster than expected. Evacuation requests were not mandatory, and many elderly people were trapped at home. Premier Cho Jung-tai called an inquiry into why evacuation orders were not carried out, while emergency teams and soldiers moved in to assist.
A barrier lake above Guangfu in eastern Taiwan burst during rains from Super Typhoon Ragasa, sending a wall of water into Hualien county. Officials said 17 people were killed and 32 injured, as floodwaters washed away a bridge and swept through the town.
Authorities said the lake, created by earlier landslides, held about 91 million tonnes of water and released most of it when it overflowed. With rainfall easing and much of the water already discharged, disaster officials did not expect a repeat of Tuesday’s mass flooding, though fresh alerts prompted precautionary moves to higher ground.
Sources: BBC, Reuters
The White House has directed federal agencies to prepare mass layoff plans if Congress fails to reach a funding deal by the 30 September deadline. In a memo, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) told agencies to draft “Reduction-in-Force” notices that would go beyond standard furloughs and eliminate jobs permanently in programmes not aligned with President Donald Trump’s priorities.
The guidance marks a major departure from previous shutdowns, where most furloughed workers were later reinstated. An OMB official said statutory programmes such as Social Security, Medicare, veterans’ benefits, military operations and air traffic control would not be affected. Democrats condemned the move, calling it intimidation, while Republicans said agencies must be prepared for all outcomes.
With only days left in the fiscal year, the House passed a stopgap funding bill that failed to advance in the Senate. Without an agreement, federal operations will shut down on 1 October.
Sources: CBS News, Politico
Italy and Spain have dispatched naval vessels to assist a flotilla carrying aid to Gaza after drones attacked the convoy in international waters. The Global Sumud Flotilla, a civilian fleet of more than 50 boats, was struck overnight off the Greek island of Gavdos.
Activists reported explosions and interference, though no passengers were harmed. Italian officials said their frigate was sent to ensure the safety of citizens, while Spain confirmed it would deploy a patrol vessel to protect the group.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the attack but described the flotilla’s effort as irresponsible, urging aid be handed over in Cyprus to church authorities for distribution. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez insisted that international law be respected and citizens’ right to safe navigation upheld. Israel reiterated it would not allow vessels to breach its blockade, offering instead to transfer any supplies delivered to its ports into Gaza.