Burkina Faso: Al-Qaeda Affiliate Claims 200 Soldiers Killed in Major Attack
The Sahelian Islamist group and al-Qaeda affiliate Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) claimed to have killed 200 soldiers in an attack on an army base in northern Burkina Faso this week, the U.S.-based SITE Intelligence Group said on Thursday.
Satellite images from the day of the attack, which also targeted a police station and a market, show traces of fire and smoke over the base in Djibo, burn marks on a nearby prison and smoke over a hospital and a market, with JNIM fighters blocking access to the base after the assault.
The attack, which earlier reports suggest also targeted other towns in the country's north, occurred as Burkina Faso's interim president, Ibrahim Traoré, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss increased cooperation with the military government that came to power in 2022.
Narrative A
Foreign powers are just as involved in the terrorism that Burkina Faso is fighting as they are in the numerous assassination attempts on President Traoré. Traoré only became a threat to Western interests by systematically cutting their influence in his country, and turning to Russia while introducing sweeping reforms. The growing popularity of the young charismatic leader with his anti-imperialist and anti-neocolonialist stance speaks for itself, and it is to be hoped that Traoré will not suffer the same fate as his idol, Thomas Sankara.
Narrative B
This attack exposes the failure of Burkina Faso's military junta to improve security despite promises made when seizing power. Moreover, the regime's counterinsurgency strategy backfired by systematically encouraging state-sanctioned violence against civilians, particularly ethnic Fulanis, which has fueled militant recruitment and allowed JNIM to position itself as a protector of targeted communities. It is not foreign powers that make a coup likely, but Traoré's increasingly autocratic and irresponsible policies.
Nerd narrative
There is a 35% chance that Burkina Faso will experience a civil war before 2036, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Albania Declines Starmer's Migrant Return Hub Plan Proposal
U.K. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced plans for overseas "return hubs" during his first official visit to Albania, proposing to send rejected asylum seekers who have exhausted all legal appeals to third countries for processing before deportation.
The announcement came as Channel crossings since January 2025 exceeded 12,000, putting the year on track for record numbers, while the U.K. government reported a 95% reduction in Albanian small boat arrivals over the past three years.
The U.K. government confirmed that formal discussions are ongoing with multiple European partners about return hubs, though officials declined to specify which countries are involved in the negotiations.
Left narrative
Starmer’s proposed migrant return deals are both ineffective and immoral. Outsourcing responsibility for asylum seekers to poorer nations echoes the cruelty of Rwanda-style gimmicks Labour once condemned. It dehumanises people fleeing hardship and treats migration as a problem to be exported, not a humanitarian duty to uphold. Starmer's continued pandering to Farage and Reform will be his ultimate downfall.
Right narrative
Starmer's Albanian debacle exposes the hollowness at the heart of his immigration strategy. He scrapped Rwanda with moral fanfare, only to chase a weaker, vaguer scheme under a new name. His so-called “return hubs” lack teeth, credibility, or partners following Albania's humiliating rebuff. It’s posturing without results, proving he has neither the conviction nor the competence to control British borders.
Pro-government narrative
Starmer’s proactive approach to illegal migration is delivering results. His Albania visit strengthens vital partnerships and expands joint enforcement, successfully cutting small boat crossings. Meanwhile, his return hub proposal is a fair, firm solution ensuring swift, lawful removals while freeing up resources for supporting genuine refugees and protecting British borders.
Nerd narrative
There is a 60% chance that the U.K. will have a Labour Prime Minister on Jan. 1, 2030, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Trump Secures $2T in Gulf Deals During Middle East Tour
U.S. President Donald Trump this week concluded a four-day Gulf tour after securing deals worth over $2 trillion, including a $200 billion agreement with the UAE, $600 billion investment commitment from Saudi Arabia, and Qatar's $200 billion Boeing aircraft purchase agreement.
The UAE committed to a landmark $1.4 trillion investment framework in the U.S. over 10 years, with immediate deals including Etihad Airways' $14.5 billion purchase of 28 Boeing aircraft and a major AI technology partnership.
A significant component of the UAE agreements involves artificial intelligence cooperation, including the construction of a 5GW AI campus in Abu Dhabi, set to be the largest outside the U.S., with access to advanced AI chips previously restricted.
Pro-Trump narrative
The massive Gulf deals represent a triumph of American economic diplomacy, creating thousands of high-paying jobs and strengthening critical strategic partnerships in the Middle East. These agreements will secure America's position as the region's preferred partner in advanced technologies, particularly in AI and defense, while providing unprecedented market access for U.S. companies.
Democratic narrative
These deals raise serious concerns about potential conflicts of interest, particularly regarding the Qatari aircraft gift, and could compromise U.S. national security interests by providing advanced AI technology access to Gulf states. There are also concerns about the implications of lifting Syrian sanctions and the broader impact on regional power dynamics.
Nerd narrative
There's a 65% chance that controlled AI chips will be smuggled into China through any of the following countries before 2026, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Ex-FBI Boss Investigated Over Instagram Post Alleged to Be Trump Death Threat
The U.S. Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are investigating former FBI director James Comey — fired in 2017 — for a now-deleted Instagram post that some alleged was a death threat against 47th U.S. President Donald Trump.
Comey posted a picture of a seashell formation depicting the numbers "86 47" with a caption describing it as "[c]ool." In the U.S., "86" can mean to throw something or someone out, and is sparingly used to mean "to kill" according to some dictionaries.
After removing the post, Comey said he assumed the numbers were "a political message," adding: "I didn't realize some folks associate those numbers with violence." He claimed the alleged implication, "never occurred" to him and stated his opposition to "violence of any kind."
Democratic narrative
James Comey has faced constant persecution and Conservative uproar for simply doing his job. Comey had no idea that the numbers he posted could have had a more sinister meaning and the content was removed as soon as it came to his attention. That's the end of the matter.
Republican narrative
As head of the FBI, the notion that James Comey "didn't realize" what the numbers he posted meant is ludicrous. Comey has had Trump in his crosshairs since entering office, and even tried to get him thrown out with fabricated collusion allegations. It is right that this serious matter is investigated further.
BBC: Iran Weaponizes Crime Syndicates for Global Operations
The BBC News, citing recent Western intelligence reports, alleged on Thursday that Iran has been recruiting individuals from global criminal circles for attacks abroad. The report pointed to recent cases, including the March conviction in New York of two men linked to the Soviet-time "Thieves-in-law" gang for plotting to kill an Iranian-American activist.
This follows a British intelligence report published in October last year that alleged that since January 2022, there had been 20 Iranian-backed plots targeting U.K. citizens, adding that Iranian state actors are increasingly utilizing criminal networks ranging from international drug traffickers to local criminals as proxies. Iran has previously denied such claims.
Swedish and Israeli investigators have also linked attacks on Israeli embassies in Stockholm and Copenhagen to the Swedish Foxtrot crime syndicate, which Israeli intelligence agency Mossad says works on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) — a claim backed by the U.S. and U.K. In a recent report, Iran International alleged that Foxtrot's leader, Rawa Majid, currently resides in Iran under the protection of the IRGC. Iran denies any ties to the group.
Pro-establishment narrative
These underground networks are dangerously sophisticated, allowing Iran to evade sanctions via drug trafficking and launch attacks in the West, particularly against dissidents and Israeli embassies. To end their impunity, enabled by Tehran's proxy strategy, these groups must be designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations to disrupt Iran's global terror operations threatening U.S. and European security.
Establishment-critical narrative
The U.S. has long outpaced Iran in criminal gang ties, from WWII Mafia deals to Contra-era cartels, fueling global unrest. Regarding Iran specifically, it was an illegal U.S.-U.K. coup in 1953 that ousted Iran's democratic government, sowing distrust that shapes its defiance today. U.S. and Israeli regime-change threats continue today, which shows Tehran's actions are defensive, not just aggressive.
Nerd narrative
There is a 33% chance that Iran will experience a successful coup d'etat before 2040, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Russia-Ukraine Delegations Meet for First Time Since 2022
Negotiating teams from Russia and Ukraine met in Istanbul on Friday — marking the first time that officials from the countries have had face-to-face dialogue since previous peace talks broke down in the first months of the conflict.
Talks got underway a day after originally scheduled after Russia's delegation arrived in Istanbul on Thursday, but Ukraine's delegation remained in Ankara with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Ukrainian leader held the team back after Russian President Vladimir Putin declined a challenge from Zelenskyy to attend the talks in person.
After emerging from a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan late on Thursday, Zelenskyy alleged Putin's absence showed a lack of seriousness but said he released the negotiating team to Istanbul out of respect to U.S. President Donald Trump and the Turkish leader.
Pro-Russia narrative
Ukraine's negotiating team only seems interested in achieving a day ceasefire without wanting to address the root issues of the conflict. This is concerning, as a long-term solution is all that will be acceptable to the Russian side of the equation.
Pro-Ukraine narrative
Talks with Russia concluded just as expected, with them making a number of unreasonable and unexpected demands, many of which are non-starters for Ukraine.
Nerd narrative
There's a 50% chance there will be a bilateral ceasefire or peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine by February 2026, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Papua New Guinea Declares Polio Emergency as Virus Resurfaces After 25 Years
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a polio outbreak in Papua New Guinea after detecting the poliovirus Type 2 strain in two children during routine screening in Lae, the country's second-largest city, with additional virus traces found in wastewater samples from both Lae and Port Moresby.
Papua New Guinea, which was certified polio-free in 2000, currently has less than 50% of its population immunized against the disease, making it particularly vulnerable to rapid transmission of the highly infectious virus that primarily affects children under five years old.
Genetic testing has revealed that the detected polio strain is linked to the virus currently circulating in neighboring Indonesia, raising concerns about cross-border transmission and regional spread of the disease.
Narrative A
The situation represents a critical public health emergency that threatens not just Papua New Guinea but the entire region. With less than half of the population immunized, the virus could spread rapidly through communities and across borders, potentially undermining decades of global polio eradication efforts. The detection of the virus in healthy children indicates that undetected transmission may already be occurring widely.
Narrative B
The outbreak is serious but entirely manageable through proven intervention methods. Papua New Guinea successfully contained a similar outbreak in 2018, and the health system has the experience and capability to respond effectively. With proper vaccination campaigns and international support already in place, the country can quickly regain its polio-free status.
Nerd narrative
There is a 50% chance that Polio will be eradicated by August 2038, according to the WHO.
Custom CRISPR Gene Therapy Saves Baby With Rare Disease
KJ Muldoon of Clifton Heights, Pennsylvania, who was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder called severe CPS1 deficiency, which affects one in a million infants at two days old, has shown significant improvement after receiving a personalized CRISPR gene editing treatment at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
The medical team, led by Dr. Kiran Musunuru and Dr. Rebecca Ahrens-Nicklas, developed a customized base editing therapy within six months to correct KJ's specific genetic mutation that prevents his body from properly processing ammonia, which can be toxic to the brain.
The experimental treatment, delivered through lipid nanoparticles to KJ's liver cells, involved three doses administered between February and April. He is the first to receive a personalized CRISPR therapy designed for a single individual.
Techno-optimist narrative
This groundbreaking achievement highlights the remarkable potential of personalized gene editing to revolutionize medicine. The swift development time and successful implementation prove that custom genetic treatments can be both feasible and practical, potentially offering hope to millions affected by rare genetic disorders who currently have no viable treatment options.
Techno-skeptic narrative
The experimental nature of this treatment raises significant concerns about long-term safety and efficacy. Without comprehensive long-term studies, the risks of unintended genetic changes remain unknown, and the high cost of personalized treatments could create accessibility barriers for many patients who need them.
Nerd narrative
There's a 50% chance that at least 40 gene-edited babies will have been born worldwide by the end of 2029, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
xAI: Unauthorized Change Made Grok Push South Africa Genocide Claims
Elon Musk's xAI, the company behind Grok, Thursday acknowledged that an unauthorized modification was made to the chatbot's system prompt, directing it to provide specific responses about a political topic, which violated the company's "internal policies and core values."
This comes after Grok on Wednesday, at approximately 3:15 a.m. PST, began inserting unprompted claims about "white genocide" in South Africa into responses to unrelated user queries — ranging from sports questions to entertainment topics — on the X platform.
The chatbot's responses consistently referenced controversial claims about violence against white farmers in South Africa and the "Kill the Boer" song, even when users asked about entirely unrelated topics, including HBO's name change and baseball statistics.
Right narrative
At this point in the development of chatbots, the complicated relationship between automation and human engineering is still being hashed out. Obviously, Grok went a little off the rails, but — despite claims to the contrary by bitter rivals — xAI has been transparent about correcting the error and implementing policies to prevent this type of thing from happening again.
Left narrative
Regardless of xAI's excuses and proposed measures to prevent this from happening again, it's hard to believe this took place without Elon Musk's blessing and that similar incidents won't take place in the future. The billionaire was previously caught deleting posts debunking his "white genocide" theories. This is disappointing, coming from someone with so much worldwide influence and someone who is close to the Trump administration.
Nerd narrative
There's a 50% chance that a humanoid robot will be created that the general public judges as indistinguishable from humans in August 2047, according to the Metaculus prediction community.