German politician resigns after mother-in-law linked to deadly shooting

Aruba and Curaçao have each received new commanders for their respective military units, marking a leadership transition within the Dutch Caribbean defense structure. Major Glenn Werleman has been appointed to lead the Aruban Military (ARUMIL), taking command of the island's local military contingent. A corresponding appointment has also been made for the Curaçaoan military unit, though specific details about that commander were not fully detailed in the excerpt. These appointments are part of the broader Netherlands Armed Forces presence in the Caribbean, which plays a role in regional security, disaster relief, and coast guard operations. Leadership transitions in the military units of the autonomous Caribbean islands are significant for operational continuity and interisland defense coordination. The new commanders will be responsible for maintaining readiness and executing the missions assigned to their respective island units.

The United Nations General Assembly has passed a resolution calling on member states to transition away from the widely used Mercator projection world map, which significantly distorts the relative sizes of continents — most notably making Africa appear far smaller than it actually is. The Mercator projection, developed in the 16th century for maritime navigation, inflates the size of landmasses closer to the poles, such as Europe and North America, while shrinking those near the equator, including Africa and South America. In reality, Africa is roughly 14 times larger than Greenland, though on Mercator maps they appear similar in size. The UN resolution reflects growing concern that such distortions perpetuate geographic misconceptions and carry broader implications for how the world perceives the relative importance of different regions. Member states are being encouraged to adopt alternative projections, such as the Gall-Peters or AuthaGraph maps, which more accurately represent true landmass proportions. The move is seen as part of a wider push within international institutions to address Eurocentric biases embedded in commonly used tools and reference materials. No binding mandate was issued, but the resolution signals a significant shift in global cartographic standards.

A drone attack struck the headquarters of Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) on Friday, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky, who announced the incident on X. Zelensky stated the attack was specifically aimed at Oleksandr Poklad, the head of the SBU. The strike represents a targeted escalation by Russian forces against senior Ukrainian security leadership rather than general infrastructure. Such precision targeting of intelligence command figures signals an intensifying effort to disrupt Ukraine's security apparatus. The incident underscores the ongoing danger faced by top Ukrainian officials even within the country's capital. No immediate details were available regarding casualties or the extent of structural damage to the building.