Author: NCIJ NETWNCIJ NETWORK

The International Criminal Court and the rule of law it undergirds are in trouble. Former ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has warned of a “deep erosion of international justice” taking place. Many ICC judges and other senior officials have been sanctioned by Russia and the United States. After an unduly prolonged investigation, the court’s chief prosecutor has been removed over sexual misconduct allegations. The ICC has long been criticized for doing too little too slowly, picking on the weak and giving a pass to the powerful. More generally, efforts to secure accountability for crimes in Gaza and Ukraine have confronted pushback.…

The mayor of Bordeaux has said he is bracing for “all eventualities”, as one of many wildfires raging in France is now 15km (nine miles) from the south-western city.”We are preparing to accommodate a large number of people should further evacuations be ordered,” said Thomas Cazenave. Firefighters in the Gironde region were facing an “unprecedented” situation battling a fire that “has a life of its own”, said Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez.Some 220,000 people have been evacuated in France and more than 100,000 in Spain, where fires are burning “uncontrolled” west of Madrid.Another intense heatwave on Tuesday could further hamper firefighting…

A former advisor to a Labour MP has admitted claiming fraudulent expenses on the Parliamentary travel booking system. Matthew Torbitt worked for Bury South MP Christian Wakeford when, between August 2022 and September 2024, he claimed rail tickets that were “not for Parliamentary purposes”, Thames Magistrates’ Court heard. He also admitted making a false claim for travel and accommodation expenses on 2 October 2024. Torbitt, 35, has most recently worked as a political commentator and regularly appears on programmes including GB News, LBC, Sky News, BBC Newsnight, and Times Radio.Prosecutor Maisha Mannan told the court the claims totalled more than…

The prime minister, Andy Burnham, has said the adult social care system in England is broken and needs fixing. This is a view commonly shared by policymakers across the political spectrum, though there are sharper differences on how to pay for reform to what is widely seen as an outdated, fragile system held together by “sticking plasters and glue” and propped up by an army of unpaid carers.Burnham previously headed an earlier unsuccessful legislative attempt to reform English adult social care while secretary of state for health in 2010 (it was brought low by Tory claims it would be funded…

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the worldThey are the tariffs that refuse to die. Anyone who thought the US president’s signature trade policy might be in tatters when the US Supreme Court ruled in February that last year’s so-called liberation day tariffs were illegal has had to think again. New duties of between 10 and 12.5 per cent on 60 trading partners announced last Thursday demonstrate that the president is not done with his policy, but is moving it into a new phase. The administration is…

Amazon filed an application with the Federal Communications Commission for a license to operate a new network of 5,105 satellites that would provide service to mobile phones, with plans to start launching them in 2028. The move comes several months after Amazon acquired the satellite operations of Globalstar, which provides emergency connectivity to Apple iPhones and internet-of-Things devices. The filing revealed the company’s plans to leverage Globalstar’s radio spectrum to expand these offerings and integrate them with Leo, Amazon’s broadband internet satellite network. That sets up more competition with SpaceX, which has dominated both the satellite internet and satellite-to-mobile services…

In this tutorial, we build an advanced workflow around Anthropic’s financial-services repository and reproduce its skill-driven architecture in pure Python. We begin by installing the required libraries, cloning the repository, and programmatically mapping its agents, vertical plugins, partner integrations, managed-agent cookbooks, and financial analysis skills. We then parse the repository’s SKILL.md files into a searchable registry and construct a reusable SkillAgent that injects selected financial playbooks into the Anthropic Messages API while supporting an iterative tool-use loop for Python calculations and file generation. Using this architecture, we execute a synthetic discounted cash flow valuation, generate a WACC and terminal-growth sensitivity…

Swati KhandelwalJul 27, 2026Botnet / IoT Security Dysphoria, an Internet of Things (IoT) botnet line tracked by CNCERT and XLab, has adopted blockchain-based name services and infected-device relays after a March law-enforcement operation against JackSkid infrastructure. The researchers say the design makes the botnet harder to disrupt. CNCERT, China’s national computer emergency response team, and XLab, the threat-intelligence lab of Chinese firm Qi’anxin, put its population above 200,000 bots. Their telemetry logged 4,401 confirmed active devices inside China between July 14 and 20 and a single-day peak of 239,000 bots abroad. None of the counts has been independently reproduced. The…

Perpetual futures have spent years as one of crypto’s most popular trading products, especially for investors outside the United States. Now that the contracts are entering regulated American markets, Wall Street is trying to decide whether they are a passing retail craze or a lasting threat to traditional futures.The early numbers have been hard to ignore.Kalshi’s perpetual futures topped $1 billion in trading volume within a week of launch in June, making them the company’s biggest product debut since prediction markets. The exchange has since sought regulatory approval to offer perpetual futures tied to gold and silver, a sign that…

Why do some dreams feel so vivid that they seem almost real, while others unfold as confusing fragments that are difficult to remember or understand? New research suggests the answer may depend on a combination of personality, sleep quality, mental habits, and major events unfolding in the outside world. A study led by researchers at the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca found that dreams are not simply random collections of images and thoughts. Instead, they appear to be shaped by both individual differences and shared experiences, including major social disruptions such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Thousands of Dream Reports…