January 3 marked the return of US military intervention in Latin America. While the events unfolded between Caracas and Brooklyn, social networks had already fabricated their own reality. A fire is seen in the distance at Fort Tiuna, Venezuela's largest military complex, following a series of explosions in Caracas on January 3, 2026. Geopolitics are being reduced to videos lasting just a few minutes. Social media has surpassed traditional media, not only in the speed with which it is created and shared, but also in its ability to frame our reality. People have the illusion of knowing what is happening and why within just a few hours--or less--of major world events. But reality is more complicated.

As we look back on 2025, the world experienced a year of both remarkable achievement and profound challenge in global health. Multilateralism, science and solidarity were tested as never before, underscoring a fundamental truth: International cooperation is not optional. It is essential if we are to protect and promote health for everyone, everywhere in 2026 and beyond. Perhaps the most significant milestone was the adoption by WHO Member States of the Pandemic Agreement, a landmark step towards making the world safer from future pandemics. Alongside this, amendments to the International Health Regulations came into force, including a new "pandemic emergency" alert level designed to trigger stronger global cooperation.

The US military action in Venezuela was the right thing to do morally, Kemi Badenoch has said. The Conservative leader told the BBC that while she did not understand the legal basis for Donald Trump's operation to remove President Nicolás Maduro from the country, he was overseeing a brutal regime and she was glad he's gone. However, she added that the move did raise serious questions about the rules-based order. The UK government has so far avoided criticising the US move or saying whether it breached international law, instead arguing that Maduro was an illegitimate president. However, some Labour MPs and opposition parties including the Liberal Democrats, Green Party and SNP have called on the government to condemn Trump's actions and brand them illegal.

The US military action in Venezuela breaches international law and the UK should make clear it is unacceptable, the chair of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee has said. Dame Emily Thornberry is the most senior Labour MP so far to criticise Donald Trump's strikes on the country over the weekend, which saw President Nicolas Maduro and his wife captured. The UK government has so far refused to say whether the move was illegal, insisting it is for the Americans to lay out the legal basis for the action. But the US president's actions have been criticised by some Labour MPs, as well as the leaders of the Lib Dems, Greens and the SNP. Dame Emily told BBC Radio 4's Westminster Hour the strikes were not a legal action and she cannot think of anything that could be a proper justification.

Ukraine is preparing to present a revised peace plan to the White House, as it seeks to avoid making territorial concessions to Russia. Kyiv is set propose alternatives to the US after President Volodymyr Zelensky again ruled out surrendering land, saying he had no right to do so under Ukrainian or international law. He made the comments as he met European and Nato leaders on Monday, part of a collective push to deter the US from backing a peace deal which includes major concessions for Ukraine, and which allies fear would leave it vulnerable to a future invasion. Meanwhile, the city of Sumy in north-western Ukraine was left without power overnight after a Russian drone attack. The region's governor said more than a dozen drones had hit power infrastructure, the latest in Russia's nightly attacks.

Several legal experts have told BBC Verify that the second strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat by the US military was probably illegal, and would likely be considered an extrajudicial killing under international law. On Monday, the Trump administration confirmed that a follow-up strike on the boat - which has been criticised as a double tap - was ordered by US Navy Admiral Frank Bradley with the overall operation having been authorised by War Secretary Pete Hegseth. Nine people died in the first strike on the vessel and two survivors were left clinging to the burning wreckage when it was struck again, killing them, according to the Washington Post. A US official has said four missiles were used in the operation. The Trump administration has not denied there were survivors and has insisted the strikes on 2 September were in accordance with the law of armed conflict.

Survival International's new report illustrates the dangers they face--and their resilience. This photo of an Awa Guajá couple was taken only five days before their first contact with outsiders in 1992. Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Half of the world's remaining uncontacted Indigenous groups may disappear within a decade without concerted conservation efforts . The dire assessment is detailed in a new report published on October 27 by the nonprofit advocacy group Survival International, and is based on years of field research, interviews, and information gathering expeditions.

Can Israel survive economic isolation? Why have Spain and Italy sent ships to assist the Gaza Sumud flotilla? Italy and Spain have decided this week to dispatch naval vessels to assist the Global Sumud Flotilla on its way to break Israel's siege of Gaza. The unprecedented move to support a flotilla headed towards the Palestinian enclave comes after repeated attacks against the Sumud Flotilla, including a drone attack early on Wednesday. Israel is widely believed to be behind the attacks.

How is Russia replenishing its military? What is a'coalition of the willing'? How China forgot promises and'debts' to Ukraine How are Europe, the US pulling apart on Ukraine? 'Ukraine is only first': Zelenskyy warns against Putin's expansionist goals Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the world is in "the most destructive arms race in history" as he calls on the international community to act against Russia now, asserting in his address to the United Nations General Assembly that President Vladimir Putin wants to expand his war in Europe . "Ukraine is only the first, and now Russian drones are already flying across Europe, and Russian operations are already spreading across countries, and Putin wants to continue this war by expanding it," Zelenskyy said on Wednesday at UN headquarters in New York. Moscow has denied the claims of incursions into NATO members' airspace, accusing European powers of levying baseless accusations.

This short paper is a primer on the nature of state sovereignty and the importance of claims about it. It also aims to reveal (merely reveal) a strategy for working with vague or contradictory data about which states, in fact, are sovereign. These goals together are intended to set the stage for applied work in ontology about international affairs.