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Overnight News Digest [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-06-20
Welcome to the Overnight News Digest with a crew consisting of founder Magnifico, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, eeff, Magnifico, annetteboardman, Besame, jck, JeremyBloom, and doomandgloom. Alumni editors include (but not limited to) Interceptor 7, Man Oh Man (RIP), wader, Neon Vincent, palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse (RIP), ek hornbeck (RIP), rfall, ScottyUrb, Doctor RJ, BentLiberal, Oke (RIP) and jlms qkw. OND is a regular community feature on Daily Kos since 2007, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00 AM Eastern Time. Please feel free to share your articles and stories in the comments.
Pictures of the week in Africa from the BBC and the week in wildlife from The Guardian.
The BBC is running live coverage of sunrise at Stonehenge as I type (12:15 am EDT). Check it out!
The Guardian covers it in Friday’s publication:
Thousands gather at Stonehenge for summer solstice celebration Combination of weekend timing and good weather could make this year’s event one of the busiest in years Steven Morris Glen Michael Herbert, a woodcarver known as Herbie to his friends, summed up the draw of the summer solstice beautifully. “It’s a spiritual thing that people of all faiths and none can embrace,” he said. “I think it’s about feeling the wheel of the year turning, enjoying the light, appreciating nature. Most of all, coming together.”
This is a few days old, but it is something I hadn’t seen and seems appropriate for a week that started out with the “No Kings” marches. It comes from Deutsche Welle:
Dispute with the Hohenzollerns ends after almost 100 years Stefan Dege June 17, 2025 After years of wrangling, the German state and the Hohenzollerns have reached a mutually beneficial deal over a number of art items, including paintings and furniture. An almost century-long dispute in Germany is coming to an end. The House of Hohenzollern — a German noble family which the last German Emperor, Wilhelm II, also belonged to — had long laid claim to various objects housed in German museums. They had also demanded millions in compensation for expropriated palaces and inventory. The whole saga went to court — until Georg Friedrich Prince of Prussia, the great-great-grandson of the last German emperor, finally changed the aristocratic house's strategy in 2023. He withdrew the compensation claims and thus cleared the way for out-of-court negotiations. The talks began in late 2024, resulting in the newly-reached agreement.
Also from DW:
Americans more vulgar online than Brits, Aussies — study Matthew Ward Agius Almost two billion words — just under 600 of them swear words — were carefully assessed, and the United States then handed the dubious honor of being the most cursing country in the English-speaking world, at least online. For the Australian duo behind the research, it came as a surprise that the inhabitants of their own country did not lead the way, such is the stereotype that Aussies are easy-going and relaxed, in actions and words.
From the BBC:
Who were the Windrush generation? A look back at life when the Windrush generation arrived in the UK Windrush Day has been held on 22 June since 2018, to celebrate the contribution Caribbean migrants and their families have made to the UK. HMT Empire Windrush docked in Tilbury, Essex, in 1948, bringing hundreds of passengers from the Caribbean to the UK.
And from The Guardian, a story about returning to the Caribbean….
Expedition to ‘real home of the pirates of the Caribbean’ hopes to unearth ships and treasure Exploration of Bahamas seabed will be first time notorious New Providence hideout has been searched Dalya Alberge Pirates of the Caribbean is a $4.5bn swashbuckling film franchise and Blackbeard and Calico Jack Rackham are among marauding buccaneers who have captured imaginations over the centuries. But almost nothing is known about the life and times of actual pirates. Now a leading British marine archaeologist is co-directing an expedition that has been allowed for the first time to search for pirate ships off Nassau on the island of New Providence, a notorious pirate hideout 300 years ago.
From Deutsche Welle:
UNHCR reports record displacement in West and Central Africa Cai Nebe 20 hours ago Nearly 13 million people have been uprooted from their homes in West and Central Africa. The UN Refugee Agency blames migration trends and conflict for creating a "perfect storm" of mass displacement. There are about 12.7 million forcibly displaced and stateless people in West and Central Africa, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). This figure reflects a 48% increase since 2020, when the number stood at 8.6 million, underscoring a worsening forced displacement crisis.
An accompanying story also from DW:
World Refugee Day: 9 charts that explain displacement Rodrigo Menegat Schuinski 18 hours ago A record number of people were forcibly displaced in 2024, according to the UN. These charts show where many of them come from — and where many will likely end up. By the end of 2024, about 123 million people worldwide had been displaced from their homes by conflict, persecution or other significant threats to their well-being. This is according to the most recent report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the UN agency tasked with supporting forcibly displaced people. The report, released in June, tracks people already recognized as refugees, those still seeking to have their asylum requests approved abroad and those displaced within their countries of origin.
From Phys.org:
Analysis casts doubt on ancient drying of northern Africa's climate, raising new questions about early human evolution by Kevin Stacey, Brown University A study led by researchers from Brown University finds that rainfall patterns across northern Africa remained largely stable between 3.5 and 2.5 million years ago—a pivotal period in Earth's climate history when the Northern Hemisphere cooled and places like Greenland became permanently glaciated. The new findings, published in Science Advances, challenge long-held interpretations of the climate history of northern Africa, which had suggested that the region dried out considerably during this period. The timing coincides with the appearance of the first known member of the genus Homo in the fossil record, leading to speculation that this drying may have played a significant evolutionary role near the dawn of the human lineage.
From the BBC:
Zambian ex-president to be buried in South Africa after funeral row Dingindaba Jonah Buyoya & Wycliffe Muia The family of Zambia's former President Edgar Lungu says he will be buried in South Africa in a private ceremony following a row with the government over the funeral arrangements. Late on Thursday, President Hakainde Hichilema cut short a period of national mourning after Lungu's family refused to allow his body to be repatriated from South Africa as planned. His funeral had been set for Sunday in Zambia's capital, Lusaka.
From UPR:
North American bass are invading South Africa's waters Ryan Helcoski By The largemouth bass is a carnivorous freshwater fish native to North America. The largest species of black bass, it is highly prized among anglers, though it is also quite infamously invasive outside of its native range. “In the park, we don't have a big problem with large mouth or any of the bass species, but in South Africa in general, they are a bit of a problem. They are everywhere, actually,” said Dumisani Khosa, a freshwater ecologist at Kruger National Park, who explains the history of invasions in South Africa by American bass.
From The Guardian:
Rampaging raccoons: how the American mammals took over a German city – and are heading across Europe Many in Kassel have embraced the animal but the EU classes it as an invasive species and ecologists are divided about what to do next Patrick Greenfield in Kassel In Kassel, everyone has a story about raccoons. Some struggle with a family of them that moved into their roof and simply will not leave. Others recount how a picnic in the park turned into an ambush as gangs of the black and white animals, known in Germany as Waschbären, raided the food. Almost everyone seems to have a neighbour who feeds them, to the annoyance of the entire street. “We are the raccoon city. They are everywhere,” says Lars, a Kassel resident, as he tends his allotment by Karlsaue park in the fading light.
From The Guardian:
Canada poised to pass infrastructure bill despite pushback from Indigenous people Bill prioritizes ‘nation-building’ pipelines and mines, causing concern that sped-up approvals will override constitutional rights Leyland Cecco Canada’s Liberal government is poised to pass controversial legislation on Friday that aims to kick-start “nation building” infrastructure projects but has received widespread pushback from Indigenous communities over fears it tramples on their constitutional rights. On its final day of sitting before breaking for summer, parliament is expected to vote on Bill C-5. The legislation promised by Mark Carney, the prime minister, during the federal election, is meant to strengthen Canada’s economy amid a trade war launched by Donald Trump.
From the Associated Press:
Panama suspends constitutional protections in the northwest after destructive protests ALMA SOLÍS and JUAN ZAMORANO Byand PANAMA CITY (AP) — Panama suspended constitutional protections, including the rights to assemble and of free movement, for five days in its northwestern Bocas del Toro province Friday after two months of protests and road blockades turned more destructive the previous night. Presidential Minister Juan Carlos Orillac said in a news conference that the move would allow the government to reestablish order and “rescue the province” from “radical groups.”
From DW (link is to a video):
Pakistan: Extreme heat puts outdoor workers at risk Ali Kaifee in Islamabad June 19, 2025 Day laborers on construction sites in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, toil in the open, even as temperatures soar past 45 degrees Celsius. The intense heat brings headaches, dizziness and dehydration, but staying home often means no pay.
From Indian Express:
Interpol guidelines to DNA matching: The painstaking work to find Ahmedabad plane crash victims’ families some closure With most victims charred beyond recognition, including 12 people at the crash site, confirming their identities correctly has been a formidable task. A crowd near the entrance of the 1,200-bed Ahmedabad Civil Hospital on June 15 piqued Rohit Patel’s curiosity. Moments later, Rohit, a grizzled man in a cerulean shirt who had been perched outside the mortuary complex since June 12, followed the crowd, squeezing into a gap behind a table. At this table, three Gujarat officials were giving updates on the identification status of the June 12 air crash victims. Minutes after take-off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhai Patel International Airport, a London-bound Air India flight with 242 people went down, its tail striking the first-floor mess at B J Medical College and Hospital, located a kilometre away, killing 241 onboard and at least 19 people on the ground.
From DW (link includes a video):
What's fueling right-wing extremism in young German men? Enno Hinz Germany has seen a jump in politically-motivated crimes. But what is feeding right-wing radicalization in young men? One of them shared his story with DW. Cliff grew up isolated - and was pulled into far-right ideology online. While he never became physically violent, other young men do. A way out of hate But Cliff made it out: Today, he's openly queer, in love with a trans man, and fighting against the hatred he once spread. His story reveals how toxic masculinity and digital radicalization are fueling extremism and hate among young men - showing the way out.
From The Atlantic:
The Vatican Knows an ‘Industrial Revolution’ When It Sees One To update Catholic teaching for the age of AI, Pope Leo should revisit the 19th century. By Charles C. Camosy and Mariele Courtois The pope didn’t take long to explain why he picked the name Leo. Two days after his election, he cited his inspiration: the preceding Pope Leo, who led the Church while the West confronted the social and economic disruptions of the Industrial Revolution. The world now faces “another industrial revolution,” Leo XIV said last month, spurred not by mechanized manufacturing but by artificial intelligence. In particular, he noted the challenges that AI poses to “human dignity, justice, and labor,” three concerns that his 19th-century namesake prioritized as he responded to the technological transformations of his time. In 1891, Leo XIII published Rerum Novarum, a moral and intellectual framework that addressed the growing inequality, materialism, and exploitation ushered in by the Industrial Revolution. The current pope has signaled that AI’s arrival demands a similar intervention; if the earlier Leo’s tenure is any indication, it could be the most ambitious and enduring project of Leo XIV’s papacy. Rerum Novarum will be a guiding influence.
From The Guardian:
All babies in England to get DNA test to assess risk of diseases within 10 years Newborns will have whole genome sequencing to enable personalised healthcare that predicts and prevents illness Nadeem Badshah Every baby in England is to have a DNA screening to avoid fatal diseases and receive personalised healthcare as part of the government’s £650m investment in DNA technology, it has been reported. Within a decade, every newborn will undergo whole genome sequencing, which assesses the risk of hundreds of diseases and is expected to form part of the government’s 10-year plan for the health service.
From the BBC:
MPs back assisted dying bill in historic Commons vote Kate Whannel, Jennifer McKiernan In an historic vote, MPs have approved a bill which would pave the way for huge social change by giving terminally ill adults in England and Wales the right to end their own lives. The Terminally Ill Adults Bill, which was backed by 314 votes to 291, will now go to the House of Lords for further scrutiny.
From the BBC:
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