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Iran deal nears ‘final stages’

US President Donald Trump said he wanted to make a deal to end the Iran war “because I don’t want to kill people.” Iran and Oman are in the “final stages” of an agreement on a commercial route through the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran said. But dysfunction at the top of the Iranian regime is likely slowing talks: The Iranian president said on state TV Wednesday that interaction with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is “very difficult” after he was gravely wounded in a US strike; he hasn’t been seen in months. Three factions now compete for Khamenei’s approval: those favoring a deal at any cost, those wanting talks but full control of Hormuz, and hardliners opposed to dialogue altogether.

Drone bomb found at German airport

An explosives-laden drone was discovered at a German airport in one of Europe’s busiest freight terminals near Ukrainian cargo planes. “The initial evidence points firmly towards a Russian-orchestrated plot,” The Guardian’s security editor said, saying the episode marks “a dangerous escalation.” Though a faulty detonator prevented an explosion, the roughly 1.5 lb of explosive the drone carried would “do considerable damage” to an airplane. Moscow has launched several aerial excursions into NATO airspace recently — 20 drones crossed into Poland in September, and analysts believe the Kremlin was behind a surveillance campaign over military sites — as well as sabotage and cyberattacks. Russia is pressing an aggressive hybrid campaign to “exploit allied hesitation, and fracture European resolve,” wrote one commentator.

Fresh rogue AI agent incident

Meta said one of its AI models accessed the internet and hacked another organization, adding to the growing number of cases of the technology going rogue. Anthropic and OpenAI both announced similar breaches, and the UK AI Security Institute reported two models had tried to deceive humans to deploy malicious code. Meta is racing to catch up with its younger rivals — it debuted its first coding AI model Wednesday, positioning it as cheaper than other offerings — but may not have wanted all the trappings of progress. The worst may be yet to come, WIRED warned: Smaller models could soon be capable of copying themselves “like super-smart, highly aggressive viruses” that can infect other systems.

Security fears over Chinese routers

Some Chinese-made internet routers sold in the West have a cybersecurity backdoor that could allow hackers to access users’ networks, analysts warned. The “Endlessdoors” vulnerability was found in more than 20 Zbtlink models, which are believed to have sold over 100,000 units worldwide, Reuters reported. Western concern over Chinese technology is growing: The US has banned all new advanced robots and blocked most drones over security fears. In Denmark and Norway, some fear Chinese technology embedded in transport infrastructure is vulnerable to being rendered inoperable from Beijing, while the British military warned against holding sensitive conversations in civilian government cars for fear that China could eavesdrop.

US approves first mRNA flu jab

US regulators approved the first mRNA flu vaccine after a controversial and seemingly politicized review process, paving the way for more accurately targeted inoculations against the seasonal disease. Traditional vaccines take months to produce, a problem since it is difficult to predict in February which influenza virus strains will be dominant in December. mRNA jabs can be “programmed” and rolled out fast, hopefully allowing more precise targeting. But the Food and Drug Administration, overseen by vaccine critic US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, has repeatedly cancelled mRNA research projects. The FDA initially refused to review Moderna’s approval application, but changed track after a public outcry; flu killed an estimated 45,000 people in the US in 2024/25.

Türkiye crackdown ramps up

The leader of Türkiye’s main opposition party faces losing his parliamentary protection from prosecution, part of a crackdown on political opponents by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Özgür Özel is accused of bribery; lawmakers have immunity, but prosecutors want to remove it. Dozens of regional mayors and other officials opposed to Erdoğan have been arrested or jailed: Ekrem İmamoğlu, mayor of Istanbul, has been incarcerated since March 2025, and faces a 2,400-year sentence if convicted. Erdoğan’s latest term ends in 2028 and, in theory, he cannot run again — but he has circumvented such technicalities before. He is now seeking support from Türkiye’s Kurdish minority in a bid to get the supermajority required to change the constitution.

Pretoria split over land law

South Africa’s ruling coalition is suing itself over a land reform law that has caused a diplomatic rift with the US. The 2025 legislation allows the government to seize private land, sometimes without compensation. Land ownership is a racially charged issue: 30 years on from apartheid, 72% of private land is still owned by white people, who make up around 7% of the population. Washington reacted to the land reform law by freezing aid and considering refugee status for some white South Africans. The second-largest party in government, the pro-business and also traditionally white-backed Democratic Alliance, argues that the law is itself illegal. The dispute will be a major test for the governing coalition’s stability.

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$25M US bounty for cartel boss

The US announced a $25 million bounty for Juan Carlos González, a dual US-Mexican citizen who runs one of the world’s largest drug trafficking organizations. González is the stepson of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, “El Mencho,” who previously led the CJNG cartel and was killed in February by the Mexican military, aided by US intelligence. CJNG operates across Mexico, controlling businesses from avocado production to drug smuggling. The US is now upping the pressure, offering $100 million in rewards targeting the cartel. It also unsealed charges against five senior figures and restricted visas for cartel members’ relatives and associates. “This is a fight against CJNG that we are just beginning,” said a US drug agency administrator.

‘Cruel’ heat grips East Asia

Record-breaking heat in East Asia has caused thousands of hospitalizations and led Seoul to declare a “national disaster.” Extreme heat has been linked to 19 deaths in South Korea: Yangsan, in the country’s southeast, saw temperatures reach 42.5°C (108°F) on Sunday, the highest in 122 years of records. State media in North Korea urged residents to remain indoors during the day, while sweltering nights offer little relief. In Japan, recovery efforts following a deadly earthquake last month have been hampered by dangerous temperatures. Some 18,000 people were admitted with heat stroke in a week, and one woman died in her car. The national weather service coined the term kokushobi, “cruelly hot day,” for when temperatures top 40°C (104°F).

Infantino holds on at FIFA

FIFA President Gianni Infantino will not resign after a revolt over his proposal for a $20 billion commercial venture to operate the men’s soccer World Cup. The plan, which would have distributed billions of dollars among FIFA’s members, was met with a huge backlash: World leaders called for Infantino to step down, a key FIFA executive resigned, and countries threatened to boycott future tournaments. All 211 FIFA members have equal voting power, and Infantino has courted smaller nations by expanding the World Cup and offering FIFA funding, drawing accusations of corruption and clientism. Though Infantino apologized for “mistakes” with the proposal, his position is tenuous: Confederations representing 140 members oppose him, suggesting he may struggle to be reelected next year.

• Argentina’s Senate debates legal reforms on land ownership, which opponents say would reduce oversight of the country’s strategic resources.
• Burmese President Min Aung Hlaing conducts his first official visit to Thailand to conduct talks with Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.
• Pope Leo visits the Italian town of Assisi to take part in celebrations marking the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis.

Hiroshima by John Hersey. Eighty-one years ago today, an atomic bomb exploded over Japan. One year later, The New Yorker handed its entire Aug 31, 1946 issue to one 31,000-word article telling the story of six people who survived. Hersey — reporting on a clerk, a tailor’s widow, two doctors, a priest, and a pastor — gave US readers their first sense of what the new superweapon did to human bodies. Read Hiroshima in The New Yorker’s archive, or buy it as a book from your local bookstore.