World in brief: September 17, 2026

Middle East / 16 September 2026 Saudis call attack on Mecca a ‘red line’ as Yemenis deny responsibility 16 September 2026 World / 16 September 2026 Latin America accounted for 85% of environmental defender killings last year 16 September 2026 Central Africa / 16 September 2026 Police fire tear gas to break up Congo protests against constitutional changes 16 September 2026 Turkey / 16 September 2026 Police crackdown on LGBT+ protesters in Istanbul 16 September 2026 World / 16 September 2026 Germany’s Merz cancels UN trip as pressure mounts over far-right election loss 16 September 2026 Middle East / 15 September 2026 Oil prices set to soar after Saudi pipeline hit by drones 15 September 2026 ITALY: Italy extended its border checks on visitors from Spain for another 15 days on Tuesday.

The checks were imposed after more than 72,000 migrants poured into Spain’s north African territory of Ceuta from Morocco in late July.

Spain, which had responded to Rome’s sanctions with its own border checks on people coming from Italy, also extended its identical measures for another 15 days, the Spanish Foreign Ministry said.

KOREAN PENINSULA: A South Korean court ruled yesterday that North Korea should pay the South 44.6 billion won (£24 million) for blowing up a joint liaison office between the countries in 2020.

The ruling by the Seoul Central District Court was symbolic as there is no process to force the North to pay.

THE HAGUE: A European Union-backed court yesterday convicted former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci of four counts of war crimes committed during his country’s war for independence from Serbia and sentenced him to 25 years in prison.

Mr Thaci was convicted at the Hague’s Kosovo Specialist Chambers court of murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention.

Prosecutors asked for a maximum 45-year prison sentence for Mr Thaci and the other defendants, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi. They all denied the charges.

SUDAN: A gold mine collapse killed at least 67 people in Sudan, a medical group said yesterday.

The tragedy happened in al-Zara gold mine in the town of Nuhud in West Kodporan province late Tuesday. The area is controlled by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, which has been at war with the country’s military for over three years.

Immigration / 10 September 2026 Spain’s spy agency warned of Ceuta border breach, declassified files show 10 September 2026 Round-up / 26 August 2026 World in brief: August 26, 2026 26 August 2026 Features / 6 August 2026 Who opened the border at Ceuta? 6 August 2026 CARLOS MARTINEZ shows how EU, Israel and US shenanigans were used in an attempt to destabilise Spain’s mildly socialist government