Daily News Summary – 2026-09-21 – en

AfD won Mecklenburg-Vorpommern with 38.2%, while Die Linke topped Berlin for the first time since reunification. CDU fell below 5% in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, deepening Chancellor Merz's crisis.

A Venezuelan DoorDash driver was shot by an ICE agent in Austin, Texas, sparking protests. The man is in stable condition and in ICE custody, with officials demanding independent investigation.

A Dutch father was sentenced to 23 years for letting his 14-year-old son die from untreated COVID-19, relying on prayer. Four others received suspended sentences.

Tens of thousands protested across France against a bill that would give police a presumption of legitimate self-defense. Critics call it a 'licence to kill'.

The Trump administration prepares entity-wide sanctions against the International Criminal Court over its warrants against Israeli leaders. An announcement may come during the UN General Assembly.

Belgian authorities seized 450 boxes of liquid cocaine hidden in soap bottles at Antwerp port. The shipment from Colombia was bound for Croatia.

A gunman and a police officer were wounded in a shooting at a synagogue in Belleville, Ontario, during Yom Kippur. No worshippers were injured.

An international police operation led by Belgium arrested 490 suspects and seized over 150 tonnes of drugs across 34 countries.

A Belgian man was jailed for a year for honking at an unmarked police car while ignoring a lifetime driving ban.

An 82-year-old man died after a dispute over a beach bed in Vouliagmeni, Greece; a 76-year-old was arrested.

United Russia claimed 355 of 450 Duma seats in an election condemned as a sham, with opposition parties barred.

ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox suspended White House pool coverage in solidarity with CNN after President Trump banned CNN from events.

Chancellor Merz called the CDU's historic defeat in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern a heavy blow but rejected calls to resign.

A basking shark, the world's second-largest fish, swam into a Halifax marina, delighting onlookers. Experts say the shark was likely disoriented.

The 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis removed nearly 20% of global oil supplies, cutting global GDP growth significantly before a fragile reopening.

The EU AI Act's high-risk enforcement phase began on August 2, 2026, with fines up to €35 million or 7% of global turnover.

NATO's 2% defense spending deadline faces strain as Berlin and Rome struggle with fiscal gaps and the US pivots to the Indo-Pacific.