Author: NCIJ NETWNCIJ NETWORK

Claim: In August 2026, 300 military officers and generals resigned from the U.S. Department of Defense. Rating: In August 2026, multiple social media posts claimed 300 military officers and generals had resigned from the U.S. Department of Defense.  The posts circulating on X, Facebook, and Threads claimed this was the “largest wave of resignations in U.S. history” and “could lead to an almost complete change in the American system.”  Snopes readers contacted us to investigate the claim, versions of which had circulated online for more than a year. For example, a February 2025 Reddit post read, “MILITARY REVOLT! 300 Generals…

Iran has turned its ability to restrict commercial passage through the Strait of Hormuz into a potent economic weapon in the war imposed by the United States and Israel.IMF PortWatch shows that in the seven days ending August 2, an average of only about four ships per day passed through the strait, compared with about 90 during the corresponding week of 2025. Estimated transit volume fell from 3.5 million to about 143,000 metric tonnes per day. Both indicators declined by approximately 96 percent.This was not a temporary collapse in traffic but a sustained disruption. Since February 28, both vessel traffic and estimated tonnage…

Speaking to BBC Breakfast on Friday, former Det Sup Blaik, who led the Thames Valley Police investigation, pointed to remarks by the judge who sentenced PC Harper’s killers. Mr Justice Edis referred to their case of manslaughter as being “very close to a case of murder in its seriousness”.The former officer called for prisoners who were judged to have had a high level of culpability for a manslaughter offence to be excluded from the scheme.Allowing them to walk free would “undermine” the judicial process and impact police morale, Blaik said, before urging the government to have a “long, hard think”…

TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is built around one question: How do you build an enduring company in the AI era? Our programming and speaker lineup reflect that, based on the feedback we’ve gotten from the community and the reality on the ground. Last year at Disrupt, we spoke with founders about their experiences and discovered the results of their attendance firsthand. One founder saw a 3x oversubscription rate after their confirmation for Startup Battlefield and more than 100 investor inbounds helping fuel conversations about a future fundraising round. Another founder had nearly 30 back-to-back conversations with investors who flocked to them…

The updated Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) represents a critical evolution in the Department of War (DoW) strategy to secure the Defense Industrial Base (DIB). It is more than a regulatory hurdle. It is a direct response to a rapidly changing and increasingly hostile threat landscape faced by the DIB. Updated CMMC guidance issued in 2025 simplifies the prior framework, focusing on the most essential security practices aligned with National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication (SP) 800-171. Its fundamental purpose remains unchanged: to protect sensitive, unclassified defense information — specifically Federal Contract Information (FCI) and Controlled Unclassified…

Morning Minute is a daily newsletter written by Tyler Warner. The analysis and opinions expressed are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Decrypt.GM!Today’s top news: Crypto majors are slightly green; BTC at $65k Clarity Act vote officially delayed until after August recess, 13% chance to pass BTC ETFs see another $138M in net inflows, now $750M+ on week Robinhood Chain hits new ATH in active addresses after Cashcat gets listed on Robinhood US New NFT mint Mancer triples on debut, token runs 11x to $8M 🦊 MetaMask Hands AI Agents a Wallet, With Guardrails and a “Beast Mode”MetaMask…

A wildfire came within meters of an orangutan rehabilitation center in Indonesian Borneo, forcing emergency firefighting efforts to protect more than 60 rescued orangutans.The close call comes as a strengthening El Niño fuels fires across Indonesian Borneo, where prolonged drought and expanding land clearing are driving orangutans from their forest habitat.Conservationists warn that repeated fire seasons are undermining years of rehabilitation and habitat restoration work while increasing conflict between displaced orangutans and local communities.With fires spreading into Key Biodiversity Areas, experts say better fire prevention and stronger support for frontline conservation efforts are urgently needed.See All Key Ideas …

McDermott Energy Solutions (UK), a subsidiary of the U.S. offshore engineering and construction player McDermott, has secured a letter of intent (LOI) for a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) project with ExxonMobil Moçambique, a subsidiary of the American energy giant ExxonMobil, on behalf of partners in a deepwater block off the coast of Mozambique. Illustration; Source: McDermott McDermott Energy Solutions, a subsidiary of McDermott and a majority shareholder in the SMDC joint venture with Saipem, Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd., and China Petroleum Engineering & Construction Corporation (CPECC), has been awarded by ExxonMobil Moçambique, on behalf of the Area…

Reading Time: < 1 minute Wisconsin Watch partners with Gigafact to produce Fact Briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims. Yes. Wisconsin’s voter list from the state elections commission is available to the public — and to foreign countries — for a $12,500 fee. In a primetime speech on July 16, 2026, President Donald Trump said voter data had been “bought, stolen or hacked by China” in 18 states following the 2020 election. Wisconsin’s voter list is not known to have been hacked, and state election officials say election systems are secure. …

US-backed political transition talks between Venezuela’s interim government and opposition representatives began Thursday in Caracas, an AFP photographer in attendance observed. The talks are taking place seven months after US forces seized president Nicolas Maduro and as interim leader Delcy Rodriguez governs under Washington’s watchful eye. Read moreTrump’s risky gamble: Can the US ‘run’ Venezuela after Maduro’s capture? Venezuelans are hopeful the dialogue will eventually pave the way for holding elections in the crisis-hit South American country. Notably absent from the talks is opposition favorite and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado, who lives in exile and was not invited…