The Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia is postponed to 2027 due to the ongoing conflict with the Houthis.
Source:
Arab News 
September 21
Arts and culture
Law and crime
Singapore's Land Transport Authority introduces fines of up to S$500 (US$390) for eating on public buses or placing feet on seats, while severe cleanliness or safety violations can incur penalties of up to S$5,000 (US$3,900).
Source:
AFP
Armed conflicts and attacks
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham says that the United Kingdom will offer Saudi Arabia aerial refueling in its ongoing conflict with the Houthis.
Yemeni civil war (2014–present)Houthi–Saudi Arabian conflict2026 Yemen offensivesSaudi Arabia–United Kingdom relations
Source:
The Hill
Pakistan's military launches strikes over the Afghanistan–Pakistan border in retaliation for the 2026 Kohat attack. Afghanistan's government and UNAMA report that a family of three was killed in the strikes.
Source:
Reuters
Disasters and accidents
An explosion injures three South Korean military officers during an operation inside the Demilitarized Zone, south of the military demarcation line. The Joint Chiefs of Staff says the cause remains unknown.
Source:
The Peninsula
Health and environment
New Zealand's critically endangered black robin wins Forest & Bird's Bird of the Year competition with more than 26,000 votes out of about 105,000 votes.
Source:
AFP
September 20
International relations
Iranian authorities close down a French language centre affiliated with the French embassy in Tehran under a judicial order. Prosecutors say it operated without a licence and conducted activities against Iranian culture and national security.
Source:
Reuters
Law and crime
Haiti sends 18 suspects in the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse to the United States to face federal charges related to the killing.
Source:
Reuters
Pakistani police arrest businesswoman Aleema Khan, sister of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, at her home in Lahore, Punjab, one week before his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party's planned protest march. Police and the government do not state a reason for the arrest.
Source:
Reuters
Four unauthorized miners are killed in a shooting targeting a vehicle by unidentified gunmen in Barkin Ladi, Plateau State, Nigeria.
Source:
Daily Post Nigeria
Three people are killed and another injured in a mass shooting at a shack in the Phumlani informal settlement in Lingelethu West, Philippi, on the Cape Flats, South Africa.
Source:
SABC
Armed conflicts and attacks
Qatar's foreign ministry says that they are working to resume ceasefire negotiations between Iran and the United States.
Source:
Middle East Eye
Ukrainian forces launch a massive drone attack on Moscow Oblast, Russia, with more than 1,600 long-range drones launched from Ukraine. At least two people are killed with hundreds more evacuated while Moscow Refinery is on fire following several direct hits.
Source:
Al Jazeera
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirms he ordered the attack on Moscow in response to Russian forces targeting civilians in Ukrainian cities, saying that FP-5 Flamingo cruise missiles and ballistic missiles were also used in the attack.
Source:
L'Unione Sarda
Disasters and accidents
The National Hurricane Center reports that Tropical Depression Six strengthened into Tropical Storm Fay amidst an unusually quiet Atlantic hurricane season caused by El Niño, becoming the sixth named storm of the season.
Source:
WFLA-TV
Eight people are killed and one injured in a fire at a textile factory in Guangdong Province, China.
Source:
Xinhua
Seven people are killed and 13 others injured after the explosion of a gas cylinder in Ashulia, Bangladesh.
Source:
Xinhua
Business and economy
The Statistical Center of Iran reports that the country's gross domestic product contracted 10.1% year-on-year from late March to late June, during the war, amid longstanding sanctions and currency depreciation.
Source:
The Straits Times
Politics and elections
State elections are held in Germany for the Landtag of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the Berlin House of Representatives, with an expected decline for the Chancellor Friedrich Merz's party, the CDU.
Source:
BBC News
Sports
Source:
AFP
In cycling, Belgian rider Remco Evenepoel becomes the first man to win four consecutive Road World Championship titles in the individual time trial event and equals Fabian Cancellara and Tony Martin's joint record for the most titles. Swiss rider Marlen Reusser wins the women's time trial event.
Source:
The Guardian
Health and environment
The Democratic Republic of the Congo launches vaccinations for frontline workers amdist the Ebola outbreak in the country.
Source:
Africanews
September 19
Disasters and accidents
Tropical Depression Six forms in the Atlantic Ocean near the Azores amidst an unusually quiet Atlantic hurricane season caused by El Niño.
Source:
WTSP
Indonesia accepts Malaysian assistance to combat wildfires in Kalimantan, including a Bombardier CL-415MP aircraft, three helicopters, and 52 personnel, as the fires cause transboundary haze affecting Southeast Asia.
Source:
AFP via France 24
Law and crime
South Africans hold memorial runs and protests after police find the bodies of nine women in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, over two months. Police investigate possible links between the killings, which renew public concern over violence against women.
Source:
Reuters
Armed conflicts and attacks
Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaee says that Iran has set seven conditions for resuming ceasefire negotiations with the United States.
Source:
Iran International
United States Central Command commander Brad Cooper says that oil, cargo, and liquefied natural gas shipments in the Strait of Hormuz have hit a six-month high.
Source:
Middle East Eye
Israeli airstrikes kill at least three Palestinians in Gaza, including the eldest son of the Gaza Health Ministry director-general. Israel says it targeted militants, while medics report additional deaths in Sheikh Radwan and Shuja'iyya.
Source:
Reuters
The U.S. military strikes a vessel in the Caribbean Sea, killing four people whom the Southern Command says were involved in drug trafficking.
Operation Southern SpearUnited States strikes on alleged drug traffickers during Operation Southern Spear
Source:
Reuters
A series of clashes, involving combined police and military forces and remaining wanted members of the Dawlah Islamiya and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, erupts in Tugunan, Special Geographic Area of the Bangsamoro, Philippines. Seven members from both groups are killed.
Source:
The Philippine Star
International relations
The U.S. treasury department lifts the sanctions against Eritrea's ruling party previously imposed by former U.S. president Joe Biden's administration.
Source:
AP
Chilean Michelle Bachelet announces that she is withdrawing from the race to become UN Secretary-General after losing support, and that in the latest informal poll, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan is reported in the lead.
Source:
Reuters
Sports
Source:
Reuters
In women's basketball, Atlanta Dream player Angel Reese becomes the first player in Women's National Basketball Association history to reach 500 rebounds in a single season.
Source:
Bleacher Report
In rugby union, hosts Japan win their fourth Pacific Nations Cup title after defeating the defending champions Fiji 20–15 in the final at Chichibunomiya Stadium in Tokyo.
Source:
AFP via RFI
Politics and elections
Russian election commission chairperson Ella Pamfilova reports cyberattacks targeting Russia's online voting system during the second day of the parliamentary election and says they are repelled. The Minkomsvyaz separately reports thwarting a sabotage attempt on Far Eastern communication lines.
Source:
ABC News Australia
Marat Kambolov is declared the winner of the presidential elections in the partially recognized South Ossetia.
Source:
Reuters
United States president Donald Trump's executive office denies journalists from CNN, MS NOW, and access to the White House and confiscates or disables their press passes, citing their coverage of his administration.
Source:
Philippine Daily Inquirer
September 18
Disasters and accidents
Millions of people are left without electricity in Cuba as a result of a collapse of the country's energy power grid.
Source:
AP
Armed conflicts and attacks
The IRNA reports that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has hit the Togo-flagged oil tanker as it attempted to pass the Strait of Hormuz.
Source:
Al Jazeera
A suicide car bombing outside a mosque located inside a police station in Kohat District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, kills at least 31 people, including 16 policemen, and injures at least 100 more. The Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group claims responsibility.
Source:
AFP
At least 100 Malian soldiers are reported to have been killed in a attack on the Dioura central army base in Mali over the past weeks.
Source:
Arab News
The Sudanese Armed Forces says that they have killed several Rapid Support Forces militants in Sudan's Blue Nile state. The country's defence ministry also confirms the attacks.
Source:
Radio Tamazuj
International relations
Denmark and the United States reach a deal allowing the U.S. to expand its military presence in Greenland and granting permanent basing, overflight, and access rights, while barring non-NATO countries from establishing bases and restricting sensitive investments on the island.
Source:
Reuters
U.S. president Donald Trump signs the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which authorises and expands statutory sanctions, tariffs, and prohibitions on Russia and extends existing sanctions on Iran until 2031.
International sanctions during the Russian invasion of UkraineUnited States and the Russo-Ukrainian warUnited States sanctions against Iran
Source:
Kyiv Indepedent
Polish prime minister Donald Tusk announces that Poland has joined the Anti-Ballistic Missile Coalition to develop a joint anti-ballistic missile defence system with some other European countries.
Source:
Firstpost
Politics and elections
Russians begin voting to elect 450 seats of the State Duma over a period of three days following Ukrainian attacks upon oil infrastructure. The elections are also held under strict control during the Russo-Ukrainian war, combined with an ongoing crackdown on anti-war opposition and the anti-war party Yabloko being disqualified from running.
Source:
AP
The Senate of Bolivia ratifies an agreement to take a US$1.9 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund amid a deep economic crisis in the country, with trade unions threatening renewed protests in response.
Source:
AP
Health and environment
Zealand Pharma's drug Zeydovio receives approval by the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use to treat short bowel syndrome.
Source:
Reuters
Business and economy
The Bank of Japan raises its benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points to 1.25%, the highest level since 1995, citing inflation pressures from rising energy costs and a weak yen, and signals further increases.
Source:
AFP via France 24
Russia places the local assets of Auchan and Nestlé under temporary administration, transferring their control to Russian firm L.E.V. Management, headed by interior minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev. The government cites the companies' origins in countries it designates as "unfriendly" amid broader seizures of foreign-owned businesses.
Source:
CNN
Science and technology
The U.S. Defense Department releases a sixth batch of classified files related to unidentified flying objects, including videos of several orbs flying over Washington, D.C. in 1952 and orbs flying near Tremonton, Utah, also in 1952.
Source:
CBC News
Law and crime
King Sultan Ibrahim of Malaysia grants former prime minister Najib Razak a conditional pardon, allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest until August 23, 2028, following his corruption conviction linked to 1MDB.
Source:
Reuters
Spanish police begin moving more than 3,000 migrants from beaches in Ceuta to temporary accommodation at the port. The operation prompts crowding and clashes, with officers firing warning shots and several people sustaining injuries.
Source:
News.Az
Three students, including the perpetrator, are killed and eight others are injured in a mass shooting at a secondary school in Banga, South Cotabato, Philippines.
Source:
AA
Pakistan's medical regulator orders Afghan students enrolled in medical and dental programs to leave their colleges and return to Afghanistan. Dozens challenge the directive in court, while a Lahore judge temporarily suspends expulsions in Punjab.
Source:
AFP via France 24
Protests erupt in Minna, Niger State, Nigeria, after 37 miners died yesterday in custody of the Security and Civil Defence Corps following raids on suspected illegal mines. Niger state governor Mohammed Umar Bago imposes a curfew.
Source:
Reuters
Russia designates filmmaker Andrey Zvyagintsev a foreign agent, subjecting him to financial restrictions, reporting requirements, and mandatory labels on published material. Zvyagintsev, who lives abroad, has criticized the Russo-Ukrainian war and president Vladimir Putin.
Source:
Reuters