Russia contacts relatives of Ukrainian prisoners of war through social media, demanding they gather intelligence or conduct espionage in exchange for favorable treatment of captives, according to Ukrainian officials and families.

The EU is moving toward banning social media for children under 13, with supervised “mini accounts” for ages 13-15, according to European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen.

Eight German state CDU leaders publicly back Chancellor Friedrich Merz amid mounting speculation about his political viability, as the far-right AfD surges in recent elections.

The US met Houthi leaders and decided against supporting Saudi Arabia’s military operations in Yemen, after the Iran-backed group reaffirmed its 2025 ceasefire commitment and pledged not to target American shipping.

Researchers have engineered mice with millions of human brain cells to create better models for studying neurodegenerative diseases, raising both scientific opportunities and ethical questions about future applications.

Charlie Kirk’s family filed a legal notice alleging Utah Valley University and state officials made “stunning failures” in security that led to the conservative activist’s 2025 assassination during a campus event.

Sweden’s far-right Sweden Democrats lost support in this week’s election, slipping from second to third place, potentially allowing the centre-left Social Democrats to return to power.

Rachida Dati, a former French culture minister, went on trial in Paris on corruption charges related to €900,000 in payments from Renault-Nissan while serving as a European parliament member.

Nearly one in five lawmakers from the 119th Congress will not return next year due to record retirements, resignations, and primary defeats, with 99 seats guaranteed to have different members.