World in brief: September 20, 2026

Middle East / 18 September 2026 Hundreds of thousands join anti-US rally in Iran 18 September 2026 World / 18 September 2026 Russians begin 3 days of voting in parliamentary election 18 September 2026 North-east Africa / 18 September 2026 At least 26 killed in clashes along Sudan-South Sudan border 18 September 2026 West Africa / 18 September 2026 Dozens of suspected illegal miners die in custody in Nigeria 18 September 2026 South Asia / 18 September 2026 Bombing at mosque near police offices in Pakistan kills at least 15 18 September 2026 Round-up / 18 September 2026 World in brief: September 18, 2026 18 September 2026 VENEZUELA: Acting leader Delcy Rodriguez is to meet US President Donald Trump in New York next week.

It will be their first encounter since the US military raid on Caracas in January in which President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores were kidnapped and taken to the United States to face drug trafficking charges.

The two countries announced an agreement last month giving the US a stake in Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.

NORTH KOREA: The military launched two short-range ballistic missiles towards the sea yesterday, days after the North had threatened to bolster its nuclear deterrent capabilities.

Launched from the eastern coastal area of Wonsana, the first missile flew about 280 miles and the second one flew more than 370 miles, with both ending up in the North’s eastern waters, South Korea’s military said.

UNITED STATES: Donald Trump said on social media yesterday that the massive arch he wants to build between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery would become a “top grade military complex” able to host drones and snipers while storing ammunition.

He has already claimed that his planned new White House ballroom would be a “military complex” that is needed for national security purposes.

UNITED STATES: Reporters from CNN, MS NOW and Politico were denied access to the White House at the weekend after Donald Trump said he was barring the media organisations for publishing “fake news.”

The actions were a clear escalation of the president’s long-running efforts to restrict news coverage by journalists he finds objectionable. All three news outlets hinted at legal action.

Opinion / 9 September 2026 Venezuela under siege – what should progressives do? 9 September 2026 Whatever differences exist among international sympathisers of the Bolivarian revolution about its current trajectory, they should unite against the imperialist power that is the source of an enforced retreat, argues ROGER D HARRIS

World / 6 August 2026 World in Brief August 7 2026 6 August 2026 Features / 16 January 2026 Trump’s invasion of Venezuela is gangster capitalism 16 January 2026 International solidarity can ensure that Trump and his machine cannot prevail without a level of political and economic cost that he will not want to pay, argues CLAUDIA WEBBE