Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Dozens of people have been killed in an attack by an Islamic State affiliate in north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, local officials say. About 20 of the dead were worshippers taking part in a night vigil at a church in the town of Komanda when they were attacked by Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) fighters, they…

Magerram Zeynalov & Grigor Atanesian BBC News Russian Getty Images When a young peace activist was jailed for 15 years for high treason in Azerbaijan last month, his friends’ anger was directed primarily at the European Union, ahead of the government that put him behind bars. Bahruz Samadov, a 30-year-old PhD student, is facing one…

Greece is battling five major wildfires across the country, with officials evacuating residents in a hard-hit region just north of capital city Athens. The ongoing emergency comes amid a severe heatwave with temperatures forecast to reach up to 44C (111.2F) on Sunday. The BBC’s Nikos Papanikolaou is in Athens and said the number of fires…

At least 11 people have been injured in a stabbing at a Walmart supermarket in Michigan, authorities say. One suspect was in custody following the incident in Traverse City, authorities confirmed. A nearby hospital said it was treating 11 victims. “As a result, our Emergency Department is currently experiencing a higher-than-usual volume of patients,” Munson…

Cameroon’s opposition leader Maurice Kamto has been excluded from the list of candidates in the 12 October presidential election. Only 13 of the 83 names submitted to the country’s electoral body Elecam were accepted. Kamto came second in the 2018 elections amid allegations of fraud. He has not yet commented on the decision. President Paul…

Bisma Farooq Bhat BBC World Service Adil Amin Akhoon Ghulam Mohammed Zaz is Kashmir’s last traditional hand maker of the santoor instrument In the quiet, narrow lanes of Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir, a small, dimly lit workshop stands as one of the last holdouts of a vanishing craft. Inside the shop sits Ghulam Mohammed Zaz,…

Astronomer The US tech firm whose CEO and chief people officer resigned after being caught on camera embracing at a Coldplay concert has released a tongue-in-cheek promotional video featuring Gwyneth Paltrow as a “temporary spokesperson”. In the 60-second clip posted on Astronomer’s X account, Hollywood star Paltrow – who was married to Coldplay frontman Chris…

An American Airlines flight was evacuated at Denver International Airport on 26 July after it suffered “a mechanical issue” connected to a tyre during takeoff, the airline said. Social media footage shows the moment passengers used emergency slides to escape, with flames seen below the plane. One person was taken to hospital following the incident,…

Greece is battling five major wildfires across the country, with officials evacuating residents in a hard-hit region just 30km (18.6 miles) north of Athens. The smell of burning wood carried as far as central Athens, as Greece requested European Union assistance to fight the spreading blaze. The ongoing emergency comes amid a severe heatwave. Temperatures…

Donald Trump said on Saturday that he had held talks with the leaders of Cambodia and Thailand, as the two countries sought an “immediate ceasefire” following border clashes. At the beginning of a private visit to his Scottish golf courses, the US president wrote on Truth Social that both nations “have agreed to immediately meet…