Pope Leo visits secular France as surge of converts jolts a flagging faith; Iran says it has given Trump administration new...
News and markets
- Global headlines: Pope Leo visits secular France as surge of converts jolts a flagging faith (TikTok-savvy priests and candlelight Masses ending with recruiters sharing QR codes are helping the unbaptized connect with their grandparents’ faith); Iran says it has given Trump administration new proposal for peace talks (The proposal would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restart talks over an end to the broader war within seven days, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said); and U.S. pledges an additional $267 million to contain fast-spreading Ebola (The aid adds to $887 million already provided, the State Department said, and will help build treatment units, safely bury bodies and expand programs to contain the spread).
- Markets leaned lower, with 4 of 7 tracked indexes down; Nikkei 225 up 1.30% was the largest move.
- Benchmarks tracked: S&P 500, NASDAQ Composite, Euronext 100 Index, and Public Joint-Stock Company Moscow Exchange MICEX-RTS plus 3 more indexes.
Hacker News and Product Hunt
- Hacker News: F-Droid 2.0 (After more than a year of hard work, we are thrilled to announce the launch of F-Droid 2.0, a complete redesign of the official F-Droid...); Show HN: Make cursed fonts like Times New Bastard (A type foundry for bastard web fonts); and Show HN: Whiteboard (YC W26) – An open-source IDE for thoughtful software design (open-source canvas for thoughtful software design. Contribute to devdotfast/whiteboard development by creating an account on GitHub).
- Product Hunt features Aks.ai (Your personal companion for guided self-reflection), Quiver GTM (Run developer marketing like an engineering system), and Forkest (Turn your GitHub contributions into a pixel-art garden).
Global Headlines
Top stories across selected outlets, presented in a fast daily brief format.
Pope Leo visits secular France as surge of converts jolts a flagging faith
TikTok-savvy priests and candlelight Masses ending with recruiters sharing QR codes are helping the unbaptized connect with their grandparents’ faith.
Iran says it has given Trump administration new proposal for peace talks
The proposal would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restart talks over an end to the broader war within seven days, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said.
U.S. pledges an additional $267 million to contain fast-spreading Ebola
The aid adds to $887 million already provided, the State Department said, and will help build treatment units, safely bury bodies and expand programs to contain the spread.
An unabashed Netanyahu assails critics in U.N. speech as election nears
Israel’s leader delivered a blistering defense of his country, appealing to voters back home and condemning critics including New York mayor Zohran Mamdani.
With Netanyahu at the U.N., Mamdani plants an olive tree with Palestinians
The Israeli prime minister, in his address to the U.N. General Assembly, called Mamdani "the antisemitic mayor of New York."
Saudi, Turkish and Pakistani military chiefs to hold urgent talks on Yemen
Saudi, Turkish, Pakistani army chiefs invoke Mecca pact for urgent talks over Houthi attacks.
At least 41 die as boat capsizes in DRC’s Lake Tanganyika
Forty-nine passengers have been rescued and a search is under way for the missing.
Brazil’s Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro still essentially tied in new poll
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is up two points, but that's still within the poll's margin of error.
Trump praises US-China friendship at state dinner with Xi Jinping
The two superpowers seek greater dialogue despite differences over issues such as Iran, Taiwan, AI and trade.
Argentina’s poverty rises to 32 percent under Milei with more pain forecast
A 4.1-percentage-point rise in poverty in the first half of 2026 could be bad news for Milei's re-election bid.
Trump's state dinner for Xi features sea bass and a long list of tech titans
A tech-heavy guest list, the fashion choices of those on it, who sat where and what was on the menu marked the softer — often and glitzier — details of diplomacy as Donald Trump threw a Thursday night state dinner honoring China's leader Xi Jinping.
Man shot during 2024 Trump campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, has died
James Copenhaver, one of three campaign rally attendees shot in 2024 during an assassination attempt on then-candidate Donald Trump, has died in Pittsburgh, his lawyer said Thursday. He was 76.
Long agenda, short meeting: Trump and Xi meet
All Things Considered host Mary Louise Kelly talks with White House correspondent Emily Feng about the Trump/Xi summit.
In one of their last votes before November, Senate GOP blocks effort to end Iran war
The vote on a war powers resolution introduced by Democrats came at a moment when some Republicans have begun to distance themselves from President Trump over the ongoing conflict.
RFK Jr.'s ethics filing reveals book deals worth millions of dollars
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s annual financial disclosure reveals he has received two lucrative book advances and free flights from a friend while in office.
Legacy of flying tigers lives on
For those living Flying Tigers — a group of volunteer US pilots who came to China as early as 1941 to help fight against the invading Japanese troops — traveling back to China for this year's events marking the 85th anniversary of their great deeds is demanding due to their advanced age.
Guterres calls for unity in UNGA address
UNITED NATIONS — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pleaded for "a world built on interdependence" in his address on Tuesday to a yearly gathering of world leaders convening to face a formidable menu of challenges — from climate change and war to inequality and artificial intelligence.
Inside an Indiana soybean farm: How important is the Chinese market?
Over the past several years, from tariff hikes to China-US leaders' summits, trade relations between the two countries have been rocky — and soybeans have repeatedly become a focal point in bilateral trade talks. But what does the Chinese market really mean for the US soybean industry?
UN General Assembly begins general debate
UNITED NATIONS -- The General Debate of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly opened at the UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday.
Hopes raised in US for new traction of ties
President Xi Jinping left Beijing for Washington on Wednesday as people from various circles in the United States expressed expectations that the visit would give strong impetus to building stable, sound and sustainable bilateral relations.
Bihar CM faces criticism from RJD for 'revealing identity' of girl molested in Jamui
Bihar CM faces RJD backlash for allegedly revealing a molestation victim's identity; post removed, sparking privacy and POCSO concerns.
Azamgarh shooting: Injured boy dies taking toll to 5; two sisters discharged, to be adopted by SSP
Five dead in Azamgarh shooting; SSP adopts two sisters, hospitalized child dies; father and triple-homicide incident details.
Election Commission row LIVE: EC faces fresh credibility crisis amid new allegations against CEC
Follow The Hindu’s live coverage of the controversy surrounding the Election Commission and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Abhijeet Dipke asks Opposition parties to stop participating in ‘rigged’ elections
Dipke urges opposition to quit contesting rigged elections, arguing participation legitimizes unfair polls and threatens democracy.
Kedarnath generates 50.30 tonnes of waste in 5 months, 2.5 times more than last year
Kedarnath generated 50.30 tonnes of waste in five months, over 2.5 times last year, raising alarms about Himalayan environmental impact.
Trump to wrap up Xi summit with a tour of US archives
Reuters: Trump to wrap up Xi summit with a tour of US archives.
Pakistan thwarts border attack, several Taliban dead, security sources say
Reuters: Pakistan thwarts border attack, several Taliban dead, security sources say.
What is 'Taiwan independence' and is Taiwan already independent?
Reuters: What is 'Taiwan independence' and is Taiwan already independent?.
Allies unite behind Saudi Arabia as Houthis step up attacks
Reuters: Allies unite behind Saudi Arabia as Houthis step up attacks.
Gold heads for weekly loss as stronger dollar, Fed rate outlook weighs
Reuters: Gold heads for weekly loss as stronger dollar, Fed rate outlook weighs.
Market Snapshot
Latest completed sessions across the selected benchmark indexes.
| Index | Region | Session Date | Value | Change | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
S&P 500 | US | 2026-09-25 | 7704.13 | -1.90 (-0.02%) | Down |
NASDAQ Composite | US | 2026-09-25 | 26939.37 | 3.34 (0.01%) | Up |
Euronext 100 Index | Europe | 2026-09-25 | 1889.88 | -7.55 (-0.40%) | Down |
Public Joint-Stock Company Moscow Exchange MICEX-RTS | Europe | 2026-09-25 | 85.20 | -0.11 (-0.13%) | Down |
HANG SENG INDEX | Asia | 2026-09-25 | 24452.55 | -308.58 (-1.25%) | Down |
Nikkei 225 | Asia | 2026-09-25 | 66364.20 | 850.21 (1.30%) | Up |
S&P BSE SENSEX | India | 2026-09-25 | 73699.96 | 119.42 (0.16%) | Up |
Hacker News
Ten notable links from the last day in the Hacker News ecosystem.
F-Droid 2.0
After more than a year of hard work, we are thrilled to announce the launch of F-Droid 2.0, a complete redesign of the official F-Droid app and the largest a...
Show HN: Make cursed fonts like Times New Bastard
A type foundry for bastard web fonts.
Show HN: Whiteboard (YC W26) – An open-source IDE for thoughtful software design
open-source canvas for thoughtful software design. Contribute to devdotfast/whiteboard development by creating an account on GitHub.
Why is the liver so weirdly regenerative?
dynomight.substack.com: Why is the liver so weirdly regenerative?.
Toyota is taking the Corolla electric
Toyota is preparing to introduce the electric version of its best-selling car of all time, the Corolla. When is Toyota...
Using LLMs to trace alchemical knowledge and decode 17th century letters
resobscura.substack.com: Using LLMs to trace alchemical knowledge and decode 17th century letters.
Goodbye Google
This has not been an easy decision. I love my colleagues and my work environment, and being paid handsomely to solve fun puzzles has been amazing. But my team’s goal is ultimately to make AI much cheaper and lower-latency, and I don’t think that’s good for people right now: I firmly believe AI progress is currently far too rapid (and I have doubts about the destination too). It’s practically impossible for me to move to a different Google project that wouldn’t accelerate AI (partly due to my ties to New Zealand, where Google prefers not to do engineering), so my hands are tied.
Google’s Project Suncatcher to put ML infrastructure in space
Learn about Project Suncatcher, how we’re testing hardware survival for space, designing cooling systems for AI chips, and more.
Two-tier encryption in the UK
Alice and Bill have identical Apple devices. Only one gets Apple’s strongest iCloud protection.
Opus 5.5 is good at explainer videos
Paste a URL or a prompt. Get a launch video, written and rendered by Opus 5.5 on an OpenComputer serverless agent. No video model.
Product Hunt
Featured products from the latest public Product Hunt listings.
Source Notes
Generation details, data coverage, and any partial-source warnings for this edition.