August 21, 2026
MIDDLE EAST WAR | U.S. SPACE EXPLORATION | U.S. MILITARY | U.S. MORTGAGES | U.S. UNEMPLOYMENT | INDIANA | ALABAMA | U.S. AND CUBA | U.S. AND HAITI | U.S. AND ECUADOR | AFGHANISTAN | INDONESIA AND CHINA | INDONESIA | HONG KONG | CONGO | SOMALIA | NIGERIA | CHINA | TODAY IN HISTORY
MIDDLE EAST WAR | Day 175.
- In an interview yesterday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Trump administration is evaluating an expansion of economic measures related to Iran. Bessent said the U.S. plans to impose the "toughest sanctions in history" on Iran and could also implement so-called secondary sanctions on countries around the world that do business with the Islamic Republic. Reports cite Iranian authorities as saying today that their country's response to the new U.S. measures would be "punishing and devastating." [more]
U.S. SPACE EXPLORATION | In a memorandum signed yesterday, President Donald Trump directed the heads of various government agencies to undertake measures to "establish and maintain space transportation capabilities that ensure access to the full range of orbital regimes relevant to United States interests," including by significantly increasing the number of U.S. commercial space launches and refraining from conducting U.S. government space transportation activities "that preclude, discourage, or compete with United States commercial space transportation activities, unless required by public safety or national security." [full memorandum] [White House fact sheet] [more]
U.S. MILITARY | Gen. Christopher LaNeve, the Army’s acting chief of staff, has reportedly ordered an Army unit based in Europe that was specializing in drone warfare to end its efforts to learn and use the drone technology and return to being a traditional infantry battalion. Reports cite military sources as saying the unit, a battalion of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, will conclude its drone experimentation next month and report its findings to inform force design and future experimentation. [more]
U.S. MORTGAGES | According to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac, the average interest rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage in the U.S. fell this week to 6.65% – down from 6.67% last week, but still higher than the 6.58% average at this point last year. [more]
U.S. UNEMPLOYMENT | The Labor Department reports that the number of initial filings for unemployment benefits in the U.S. fell 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 206,000 for the week ended August 15, while the number of people receiving unemployment benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, rose 18,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.799 million during the week ended August 8. [full report] [more]
INDIANA | Tens of thousands of residents of northwest Indiana, the majority of them in Lake County, remain without power for a ninth straight day today in the aftermath of a deadly August 11 storm that caused extensive damage. [more]
ALABAMA | An Alabama jury yesterday awarded $9.25 million in damages after finding that The New York Times defamed former University of Alabama basketball player Kai Spears in 2023 by incorrectly reporting that he was at the scene of a fatal shooting in Tuscaloosa. In its own reporting on the verdict, the Times said this was the first time the newspaper had lost a defamation lawsuit brought in the United States over one of its articles in more than 50 years, and a spokesman for the paper said it is reviewing its legal options following the verdict. [more]
U.S. AND CUBA | The U.S. Treasury and State Departments announced new sanctions yesterday on nine Cuban state-owned mining, metal, and construction companies and the leadership of the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez condemned the new sanctions, claiming the U.S. is pursuing a “deliberate aim of harming” the Cuban economy “to prevent the provision of basic services to the population.” [more]
U.S. AND HAITI | The U.S. deported 161 people to Haiti yesterday – the first group of deportations to the Caribbean island nation since the Trump administration won a legal battle to end Temporary Protected immigration status for some 350,000 Haitians. Reports note that the deportees were flown to the northern Haitian city of Cap-Haitien because the main international airport in Port-au-Prince is considered too dangerous. [more]
U.S. AND ECUADOR | The U.S. Treasury Department announced new sanctions yesterday on 15 people for their alleged involvement in the shipment of thousands of kilograms of cocaine per month from Ecuador, through Mexico, to the United States. Those targeted by the sanctions are allegedly part of Los Choneros and Los Lobos, two Ecuadorean gangs previously designated by the U.S. as foreign terrorist organizations. [more]
AFGHANISTAN | Two United Nations staff members detained more than a week ago by Afghanistan's ruling Taliban were released yesterday. U.N. officials say the reason for the detentions remain unclear. [more]
INDONESIA AND CHINA | Meeting today in Jakarta, the foreign ministers of Indonesia and China discussed strengthening cooperation between their countries in areas including defense, food and energy security, trade, and technology. [more]
INDONESIA | A court in Indonesia sentenced a Swiss tourist to one year in prison yesterday for violating restrictions related to, and insulting, a sacred Balinese Hindu observance known as the Day of Silence, during which people are required to stay home and are urged to remain silent and meditate. [more]
HONG KONG | Two former organizers of Hong Kong’s annual vigils in remembrance of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown were convicted by a court today of inciting others to overthrow China’s communist leadership. Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung face maximum prison terms of 10 years following the convictions. [more]
CONGO | The World Health Organization announced yesterday that the Democratic Republic of Congo will receive 70,000 doses of the Ervebo vaccine, which has been effective against Ebola virus in the past, but not specifically against the Bundibugyo virus, which is responsible for the country's current outbreak of Ebola disease. The allocation includes 20,000 doses for a clinical trial to understand the impact of the vaccine on the Bundibugyo virus, while the remaining 50,000 doses will be used for immunizing healthcare and other workers. [more]
SOMALIA | The World Food Program said this week that some 6 million people in Somalia are facing acute food insecurity amidst the U.N. agency's funding and resource levels that give it only about a tenth of those it had in 2022 when it helped avert famine in the drought- and conflict-stricken East African nation. [more]
NIGERIA | Authorities in Nigeria's northwestern Sokoto state say a river boat carrying more than 80 people capsized in the region yesterday, leaving at least 47 people dead. [more]
CHINA | In an update published today, authorities in China's southwestern Guangxi province say at least 159 people were killed, and 10 others remain missing, in the aftermath of Typhoon Maysak, which hit the region in early July. [more]
TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1944, representatives of the United States, China, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union opened the Dumbarton Oaks Conference, or, more formally, the Washington Conversations on International Peace and Security Organization, to discuss the establishment of a "general international organization" that would later become the United Nations. [more history]