Foreign News Archives - Page 4 of 11

Iran Strikes Israel, Gulf Nations as Oil Prices Fluctuate

March 11, 2026 by admin

Iran unleashed a wave of attacks against Israel and Gulf nations on Wednesday, including targeting a Saudi oilfield, as reports of a proposed record release of oil reserves helped calm markets and prices. The war sparked by United States-Israeli strikes on Iran has spread across the region and beyond, causing spiking energy costs, fuel rationing and even school closures. G7 leaders will meet by video conference later on Wednesday to discuss the war’s economic consequences, particularly the “energy situation,” the French presidency said. The International Energy Agency will decide on a proposal for its largest-ever oil reserve release, the Wall Street Journal reported. The United States on Tuesday said it was hitting Iranian ships capable of mining the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial passageway for oil that has been effectively closed by Iranian threats. The US military posted video footage of Iranian boats blasted apart, saying it had destroyed 16 minelayers near the strait, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil passes. “If for any reason mines were placed, and they are not removed forthwith, the military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before,” President Donald Trump wrote on social media. Trump faces mounting political risks over the surging cost of oil, months before US elections. Crude prices spiked five per cent late Tuesday before turning lower on Wednesday after the reserve release report. Trump said the US military could accompany tankers through the strait, but his administration acknowledged that a post by the energy secretary announcing a first such escort was untrue. Early on Wednesday, the UK maritime agency said a container ship off the coast of the United Arab Emirates had been hit by an “unknown projectile,” illustrating the ongoing risks to transport through the region. With an eye on jittery markets, Trump on Monday said the war would be short, although his Defence Secretary, Pete Hegseth, said Tehran would be hit by unprecedented fire on Tuesday. **’Not seeking ceasefire’** The Israeli-US attacks came weeks after Iranian authorities ruthlessly crushed mass protests, although the United States and Israel said they were not necessarily seeking to topple the Islamic republic. Iranian authorities warned against dissent at home, with the country’s police chief saying protesters would be viewed and dealt with as “enemies.” “All our forces are also ready, with their hands on the trigger, prepared to defend their revolution,” national police chief Ahmad-Reza Radan said in comments aired by IRIB. Tehran also intensified its assault on targets in the region, with the government announcing it carried out its own “most intense and heaviest” salvo, firing missiles for three hours at cities across Israel. AFP journalists heard air raid sirens and explosions in Jerusalem. Emergency services reported no immediate injuries, although Channel 12 said several people were hurt in Tel Aviv. New salvos were reported early on Wednesday, with no reports of injuries. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they also fired on Bahrain and Iraqi Kurdistan, both of which have a heavy US military presence, and also targeted a US air base in Kuwait, Iranian media said. Kuwait said it had downed eight drones, without offering further details. Drones and ballistic missiles were also intercepted elsewhere in the Gulf, including multiple drones heading to the Shaybah oilfield in Saudi Arabia, its defence ministry said. Earlier, Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a former top commander in the elite Revolutionary Guards, said in an English-language post on X: “Certainly we aren’t seeking a ceasefire.” “We believe the aggressor must be punished and taught a lesson that will deter them from attacking Iran again,” he added. Seven US military personnel have been killed and about 140 injured since the start of the war, according to the Pentagon. **Fright in Tehran** The United States and Israel launched the war on February 28 with an attack that killed Iran’s veteran leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been named his successor, though he has yet to appear in public. In Tehran, one woman in her 40s said she found some reassurance in her impression that the bombings “don’t target ordinary buildings.” “The noise of the bombings is extremely disturbing,” she said. Iran’s health ministry said on March 8 that more than 1,200 people had been killed and over 10,000 civilians injured. The conflict has spread as far as Sri Lanka, where US forces torpedoed an Iranian ship, and Australia, which said on Wednesday it had granted asylum to two more members of the Iranian women’s football team. Iraq and Lebanon, both home to Iran-backed fighters, have become proxy battlegrounds in the war. In Iraq, Iranian-linked groups said on Tuesday that five of their fighters died in strikes they blamed on the United States. In Lebanon, hundreds of people have been killed and hundreds of thousands have fled their homes following Israeli air strikes and ground operations targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah. New Israeli strikes were reported in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Wednesday, with the health ministry saying another five people had been killed in the southern town of Qana. An Israeli strike also hit a central Beirut neighbourhood on Wednesday morning, state media reported. Iran complained to the United Nations that four of its diplomats died in a strike on a seafront hotel in central Beirut on Sunday, which Israel said was aimed at “key commanders” from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards. The effects of the war are being felt globally, with the UN trade and development agency warning of rising costs for essentials such as fuel and food hitting the world’s most vulnerable people. In Egypt, which increased the cost of fuels by up to 30 per cent, mother-of-six Om Mohamed fretted about the future. “We were barely getting by as it is. I don’t know how people will manage,” she told AFP at a Cairo market. AFP

Khamenei Killed by Israeli Strike, not US Operation – Pentagon

March 3, 2026 by admin

The Pentagon’s policy chief on Tuesday distanced the United States from the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, saying he was killed by an Israeli strike. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Elbridge Colby said the strike that killed Khamenei and other senior Iranian leaders was not part of the American military campaign. “Those are Israeli operations,” Colby said, pushing back when pressed by lawmakers about whether regime change was an objective of US action. Colby’s restrained tone contrasted with that of President Donald Trump, who has framed the conflict in sweeping and triumphant terms since the strikes began. “For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted death to America and waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder,” Trump said Saturday. In a social media post, Trump said Khamenei was “unable to avoid our Intelligence and Highly Sophisticated Tracking Systems” and that, “working closely with Israel, there was not a thing he, or the other leaders that have been killed along with him, could do.” The divergence in tone underscored broader questions about the administration’s aims in Iran. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday that Washington acted only after learning Israel was preparing to strike, suggesting the US role was reactive rather than part of a broader plan. Colby sought to narrow the scope of US objectives. “The objectives of the military campaign… are focused on addressing the ability of the Islamic Republic to project military power against us, our bases, our forces, et cetera, as well as our allies and partners in the region and beyond,” he said. He described the primary targets as Iran’s missile firepower — which he said had grown substantially — as well as its capacity to produce those weapons and elements of the Iranian navy. Those goals, he argued, were “scoped and reasonable objectives that can be attained.” Pressed by Jack Reed, the panel’s top Democrat, on how the killing of Iran’s top leader fit with those objectives, Colby reiterated that he was “talking about the goals of the American military campaign,” adding that the leadership strikes were Israeli actions. While Trump has publicly urged the Iranian people to seize an “unprecedented opportunity” to overthrow the government, Colby maintained that the US military campaign is focused on degrading Iran’s power projection capabilities — not explicitly on regime change. AFP

US Sanctions Eight Nigerians Over Links to Boko Haram, Cybercrime

February 16, 2026 by admin

The United States has frozen the assets and properties of eight Nigerians accused of having links to the Islamic sect, Boko Haram, and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. This was contained in a 3,000-page document dated February 10, released by the United States Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and sighted by the correspondent on Monday. The document also identified individuals sanctioned for cybercrime-related offences and other security threats. The pronouncement comes on the heels of recent recommendations by the US Congress for visa bans and asset freezes on persons and groups accused of violations of religious freedom and persecution of Christians in Nigeria. The former Governor of Kano State, Rabiu Kwankwaso; the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria; and Miyetti Allah Kautal were recommended by United States lawmakers for visa bans and asset freezes. The OFAC document, titled “Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List,” detailed individuals of other nationalities and entities whose assets had been frozen, serving as a reference tool. It also provided notice of actions taken against Specially Designated Nationals, whose property and interests were blocked as part of counter-terrorism efforts. According to OFAC, the move forms part of its broader efforts to block the property and interests of Specially Designated Nationals and prevent financial dealings with them. “This publication of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control is designed as a reference tool providing actual notice of actions by OFAC with respect to Specially Designated Nationals and other persons (which term includes both individuals and entities) whose property is blocked, to assist the public in complying with the various sanctions programmes administered by OFAC,” the agency said. Among those listed is Salih Yusuf Adamu, also known as Salihu Yusuf, born on August 23, 1990, in Nigeria. Yusuf was identified as having ties to Boko Haram and was reported to hold a Nigerian passport. Yusuf was among six Nigerians convicted in 2022 for setting up a Boko Haram cell in the United Arab Emirates to raise funds for insurgents in Nigeria. The six men were convicted in the UAE for attempting to send $782,000 from Dubai to Nigeria. Another individual, Babestan Oluwole Ademulero, born on March 4, 1953, in Nigeria, was designated under SDNTK sanctions. He appeared under several aliases, including Wole A. Babestan and Olatunde Irewole Shofeso. Also designated was Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi, also known as Ba Idrisa. He was reportedly born between 1989 and 1994 in Maiduguri, Borno State, and was flagged under terrorism-related sanctions. Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, also referred to as Habib Yusuf, was listed with varying birth years between 1990 and 1995. He was identified as a Boko Haram leader and sanctioned under terrorism provisions. Khaled (or Khalid) Al-Barnawi, whose name appeared twice in the publication, was born in 1976 in Maiduguri, Nigeria. He was linked to Boko Haram and listed under several aliases, including Abu Hafsat and Mohammed Usman. Ibrahim Ali Alhassan, born January 31, 1981, in Nigeria, was listed with a Nigerian passport. He was reported to reside in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and was linked to Boko Haram. Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Ali Al-Mainuki, also known as Abu-Bilal Al-Minuki, was born in 1982 in Mainok, Borno State. He was identified as having ties to ISIL. Nnamdi Orson Benson, born March 21, 1987, in Nigeria, was listed under CYBER2 sanctions and was reported to hold a Nigerian passport. The inclusion of these names in the OFAC list highlights Washington’s continued focus on countering terrorism financing and cyber threats. The sanctions mean that all property and interests of these individuals within US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them. Nigerians listed under the US Treasury sanctions face asset freezes under Executive Order 13224. The United States officially designated Boko Haram a foreign terrorist organisation in 2013. According to the US State Department, the group is responsible for numerous attacks in the northern and northeastern regions of the country, as well as in the Lake Chad Basin in Cameroon, Chad, and Niger, that have killed thousands of people since 2009. The US Secretary of State determines countries that have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism. Such countries are designated under three laws: Section 1754(c) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, Section 40 of the Arms Export Control Act, and Section 620A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. In October 2025, for the second time, US President Donald Trump announced that Nigeria would be added to the US Department of State’s list of “Countries of Particular Concern.” Trump, in a post on X, explained that Nigeria would be placed on a religious freedom watchlist, alleging that Christians were facing persecution and being killed by Muslims. Nigeria was first designated as a Country of Particular Concern in 2020 under President Trump, but former President Joe Biden removed Nigeria from the list shortly after assuming office.

Ukraine Receives 1,000 Bodies from Russia in Latest Exchange

January 29, 2026 by admin

Kyiv said on Thursday that it had received from Russia 1,000 remains of people that Moscow said were Ukrainian soldiers killed fighting the Kremlin’s army. The exchange of prisoners of war and the remains of killed soldiers is one of the few remaining areas of cooperation between Kyiv and Moscow, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022. “Today, repatriation measures took place, under which 1,000 bodies of the deceased, which the Russian side claims belong to Ukrainian defenders, were returned to Ukraine,” Kyiv’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said in a statement on social media. Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky confirmed an exchange had taken place, writing on Telegram that the Russian side had received the remains of 38 killed Russian soldiers. Medinsky said the exchange was made possible as part of agreements struck between Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Istanbul earlier last year. Tens of thousands of soldiers have been killed on both sides since Russia invaded, though neither side regularly publishes data on their own casualties. AFP

Kenya Drought Deepens as Livestock Die, Food Crisis Worsens

January 27, 2026 by admin

In drought-hit northeastern Kenya, villagers have been forced to drag their dead livestock to distant fields for burning to keep the stench of death and scavenging hyenas away from their homes. Mandera County, along Kenya’s borders with Ethiopia and Somalia, has seen no rain since May and is now on the point of a full-blown water emergency. “I have lost all my cows and goats, and burned them here,” Bishar Maalim Mohammed, 60, a resident of Tawakal village, told AFP. In his village, where most are pastoralists relying heavily on their animals, the only remaining bull can no longer stand. He has lain in the same spot for nearly a week, severely dehydrated with bones protruding through his skin, as his owner watches helplessly. In the nearby town of Banissa, the man-made watering hole that once held 60,000 cubic metres of water is dry, leaving a barren expanse that children have turned into a playground. Herds of goats, cattle and camels must now trek up to 30 kilometres (20 miles) to the nearest watering hole at Lulis village, jostling for the remaining water that officials are rationing. “In two weeks this water will be finished… we are in a very bad state,” said local resident Aden Hussein, 40. More than two million people across 23 counties in Kenya are facing worsening food insecurity after the October–December short rains failed, with rainfall two-thirds below average. The National Drought Management Authority has placed about nine counties on alert, while Mandera County is at the “alarm” phase, one step short of an official emergency. The Famine Early Warning Systems Network recently said 20 to 25 million people in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia need humanitarian food assistance, more than half because of drought. “Our children are the next ones who are going to die,” said Maalim Mohammed in Tawakal. No milk at all At Banissa’s main hospital, an influx of severely malnourished children — some arriving from neighbouring Ethiopia — has overwhelmed the paediatric ward. During a recent visit, AFP saw eight children suffering from severe malnutrition, including a 32-month-old girl weighing just 4.5 kilograms and another child who had been readmitted after returning to a household with no food. “Children are not getting an adequate diet because of this drought…they depend on camel and goat milk, but there is now no milk at all,” said hospital nutritionist Khalid Ahmed Wethow. The hospital, which serves around 200,000 people, has only eight tins of therapeutic milk remaining in its paediatric unit, which were expected to run out this week. The unit depends on donations from organisations such as the World Food Programme, but with Western countries slashing aid budgets over the past year, it has not received any supplies in six months. The Kenyan government and aid groups such as the Red Cross have increased water-trucking efforts, food assistance and cash support, but say they cannot keep up with demand. Tried to escape In desperation, Bishar Mohamed, no relation to the first villager, travelled more than 150 kilometres with his herd of 170 goats in search of pasture. Around 100 died along the way, and the rest died after he returned home to Hawara village. “We have tried to escape in search of better places and failed,” he told AFP, standing in a field where the carcasses of his goats were piled up. “I have been moving by foot… my head is severely in pain… we are thirsty.” In nearby Jabi Bar village, enrolment at a nearby school has dropped by more than half, headteacher Ali Haji Shabure told AFP. “Only 99 children are in school; most of them have left with their parents,” Shabure said. The next rains, if they come, are not due before April. Bishara Maalim, a mother of 10 in Hawara, has only one hope for her children: “May God save them.” AFP

Hundreds Dead in Tanzania Post-Election Violence, Says Opposition

October 31, 2025 by admin

Tanzania’s main opposition said hundreds had been killed in three days of election protests, with the country still under an internet blackout on Friday and the government denying any use of “excessive force”. A security source and diplomat in Dar es Salaam both told AFP that deaths were “in the hundreds” as protests continued on Friday. President Samia Suluhu Hassan had sought to cement her position and silence critics in her party with an emphatic win in Wednesday’s election, in which her main challengers were either jailed or barred from standing. But the vote descended into chaos as crowds took to the streets of Dar es Salaam and other cities, tearing down her posters and attacking police and polling stations, leading to an internet shutdown and curfew. Foreign Minister Mahmoud Thabit Kombo said his government had “no figures” on any dead. “Currently, no excessive force has been used,” he said in an interview with Al-Jazeera. “There’s no number until now of any protesters killed.” But the main opposition party, Chadema, said casualties were very high. “As we speak, the figure for deaths in Dar (es Salaam) is around 350 and for Mwanza it is 200-plus. Added to figures from other places around the country, the overall figure is around 700,” Chadema spokesman John Kitoka told AFP. “The death toll could be much higher,” he warned, saying killings could be happening during the nighttime curfew. The security source told AFP they were hearing reports of more than 500 dead, “maybe 700-800 in the whole country”. With foreign journalists largely banned from covering the election and a communications blackout entering its third day, information from the ground has been scarce. The first toll from an international body came early Friday when the United Nations said it had “credible reports” of 10 dead, while Amnesty International said it had information of at least 100 killed. Multiple hospitals and health clinics were too afraid to talk directly to AFP. Hassan had yet to comment on the unrest, and local news sites have not been updated since Wednesday. Army chief Jacob Mkunda late Thursday called the protesters “criminals”. – Zanzibar ‘robbed’ – In Zanzibar, a tourist hotspot with its own semi-autonomous government, Hassan’s Revolution Party (Chama Cha Mapinduzi: CCM) had already been declared the winner of the local vote on Thursday. The opposition party, ACT-Wazalendo, rejected the result, saying: “They have robbed the people of Zanzibar of their voice… The only solution to deliver justice is through a fresh election.” A senior party official told AFP that ballot boxes had been stuffed, people allowed to vote multiple times without ID, and their election observers kicked out of counting rooms. At a meeting place for opposition supporters on Zanzibar, there was dismay and fear. “There has never been a credible election since 1995,” said a 70-year-old man, referring to Tanzania’s first multi-party vote. None of those interviewed gave their names. “We are afraid of speaking because they might come to our houses and pick us up,” said one. – Crackdown – Hassan has faced opposition from parts of the army and allies of her iron-fisted predecessor, John Magufuli, since she took over upon his death in 2021, analysts say. They said she wanted an emphatic victory to cement her position, and the authorities banned the main opposition party, Chadema, and put its leader on trial for treason. In the run-up to the vote, rights groups condemned a “wave of terror” in the east African nation, including a string of high-profile abductions that escalated in the final days. Much public anger has been directed at Hassan’s son, Abdul Halim Hafidh Ameir, accused of overseeing the crackdown. ACT-Wazalendo was allowed to contest the local election in Zanzibar, but its candidate was barred from competing against Hassan on the mainland. AFP

Updated: Army Colonel Sworn in as Madagascar President

October 17, 2025 by admin

An Army colonel, Michael Randrianirina, was sworn in as Madagascar’s president on Friday, just days after a military power grab that sent President Andry Rajoelina fleeing. Randrianirina, who led the CAPSAT army unit that mutinied and joined anti-government protesters at the weekend, read out the presidential oath at a ceremony at the country’s top court in the capital Antananarivo, AFP journalists saw. More details later… AFP

Army Colonel Set to be Sworn in as Madagascar President

October 17, 2025 by admin

Madagascar was set on Friday to swear in an army colonel as president, just days after a military power grab that sent President Andry Rajoelina fleeing and raised international alarm about a new coup on the island. The country’s highest court was now expected to formalise the appointment of Colonel Michael Randrianirina in a ceremony at 10:00 am (0700 GMT), capping a dramatic week in which Rajoelina was impeached for desertion of duty on Tuesday, with the military stepping in. Amid international criticism, including from the United Nations, Randrianirina denied he had initiated a coup, pointing to the constitutional court’s backing of his new role. A large crowd gathered for the ceremony at the court Friday with representatives of a youth-led movement, which spearheaded protests that led to Rajoelina’s fall, rubbing shoulders with politicians. Foreign delegations, including from the United States, the European Union and the French ambassador, were also present, an AFP journalist said. The 51-year-old commander of the CAPSAT unit has pledged elections in 18 to 24 months and told local media that consultations were under way to appoint a consensus prime minister. “Madagascar has not chosen a military regime,” he told reporters Thursday. “The government belongs to civilians. The presidential council is also composed of military and civilians,” he said. Rajoelina’s camp has condemned the constitutional court’s support of the CAPSAT commander as riddled with procedural illegalities that risked destabilising the former French colony. It has insisted that Rajoelina remain the leader and was working to find solutions to the problems dogging the impoverished island, including power cuts that sparked a youth-led protest movement on September 25. Government forces were accused of a harsh crackdown on the protesters, with many reported dead or wounded, until CAPSAT announced on October 11 that it would refuse orders to shoot on them. The statement was a turning point in the uprising, with the unit hailed by the protest movement, which is now expecting a role in the new set-up. – Escape, hiding – Rajoelina’s office confirmed in a statement late Wednesday that he fled the country the same weekend CAPSAT stood behind the protesters, saying he feared for his life. He did not reveal his whereabouts. Media reports said the 51-year-old was evacuated on Sunday aboard a French military plane that took him to the French island of Reunion from where he travelled to Dubai. Madagascar is the latest of several former French colonies to have fallen under military control since 2020, after coups in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Gabon and Guinea. It is the third military transition in Madagascar since independence from France in 1960, following coups in 1972 and in 2009. The country, off Mozambique, is one of the poorest in the world, despite an abundance of natural resources and a rich biodiversity. About 80 percent of its roughly 32 million people live in poverty, according to the World Bank’s benchmark. Rajoelina’s escape is the third time a Malagasy head of state has left the country after being ousted. Didier Ratsiraka fled to France in 2002 after post-electoral violence and Marc Ravalomanana went to South Africa in 2009. The African Union and regional SADC bloc said they would send fact-finding missions to the island and called for constitutional democracy to be upheld. “The transition is now underway. We call for the full involvement of civilians in the ongoing process,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Thursday. “The mobilisation of Madagascar’s youth must be fully heard to build a sustainable, peaceful, and calm solution,” he told reporters during a visit to Nigeria. AFP

Impeached Madagascar President Confirms Fleeing Country After Coup

October 16, 2025 by admin

Madagascar’s ousted president confirmed for the first time that he had fled the country, issuing a statement after a military-led power grab prompted by weeks of demonstrations that have plunged the island nation into crisis. President Andry Rajoelina left between October 11 and 12 after “explicit and extremely serious threats were made against the life of the Head of State,” the presidency said in a statement late Wednesday. The threats had come when he was due to travel abroad for a mission, the statement sent to AFP said. Media reports indicated the 51-year-old leader was evacuated on Sunday aboard a French military plane. On Monday, he said he had taken refuge in a “safe place” without giving further details. Rajoelina, who first came to power after a military-backed coup in 2009, accused the National Assembly of colluding with the military to remove him from office. The military officers who seized power said their leader, Colonel Michael Randrianirina, would be sworn in as new president on Friday. The youth-led Gen Z movement that initiated the protests on September 25 over the lack of water and energy welcomed Randrianirina’s intervention. The international community voiced alarm, with the United Nations censuring what it called an “unconstitutional” takeover and the African Union announcing Wednesday it was suspending Madagascar “with immediate effect”. Madagascar is the latest of several former French colonies to have fallen under military control since 2020, after coups in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Gabon and Guinea. AFP

EU Demands Snapchat, YouTube Explain Child Protection Measures

October 10, 2025 by admin

The EU on Friday demanded digital giants, including Snapchat and YouTube, explain how they are protecting children from online harm, as member states explore restricting minors’ access to social media at a European level. The European Union has stringent rules regulating the digital space, including what children should be able to see, but there is increasing concern that more needs to be done to tackle the issue. Inspired by Australia’s social media ban for under-16s, Brussels is analysing whether such a measure could work in the 27-country bloc after several states, including France and Spain, pushed for limits on minors’ access to platforms. Europe’s biggest weapon for ensuring platforms tackle illegal content and keep children safe online is the Digital Services Act, which has sparked censorship claims from the US tech sector and retaliation threats from President Donald Trump. Now, as part of “investigative actions” under the DSA, the European Commission has sent a request for information to Snapchat about what steps it is taking to prevent access for children under 13. The commission has also asked Apple’s App Store and the Google Play marketplace to provide details on measures taken to prevent children downloading illegal or harmful apps — for example, those with gambling services or sexual content. The EU wants to know in particular how Apple and Google stop children downloading tools to create non-consensual sexualised content — so-called “nudify apps” — as well as how they apply apps’ age ratings. “Privacy, security and safety have to be ensured, and this is not always the case, and that’s why the commission is tightening the enforcement of our rules,” tech chief Henna Virkkunen said before EU ministers met in Denmark. A request for information can lead to probes and even fines, but does not in itself suggest the law has been broken, nor is it a move towards punishment. – Winds of change – Regarding Snapchat, Brussels wants to know how the messaging app stops users from buying drugs and vapes, a claim echoed by Danish Digital Minister Caroline Stage Olsen on Friday. It also wants YouTube to provide details on its recommender system, “following reporting of harmful content being disseminated to minors”, the commission said. The demands are not the first under the DSA. The EU is also probing Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, as well as TikTok, over fears they are not doing enough to combat the addictive nature of their platforms for children. In a parallel push on child protection, EU telecoms ministers will Friday discuss age verification on social media and what steps they can take to make the world online safer for minors. They are expected to agree on a joint statement backing EU chief Ursula von der Leyen’s plans to study a potential bloc-wide digital majority age, according to a draft document seen by AFP. Von der Leyen has voiced personal support for such a move, and said last month she would establish an experts’ panel “to assess what steps make sense” at the EU level. Denmark, in charge of the rotating six-month EU presidency, has been pushing the bloc to take more collective action through new rules. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Tuesday that Denmark planned to introduce a ban on social media for children under the age of 15. France already has a law requiring parental consent for social media users under the age of 15. AFP