Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

The Islamic police in the northern Nigerian state of Kano have arrested Muslims seen eating and drinking publicly, as well as those selling food at the start of Ramadan, when Muslims are supposed to fast from dawn until dusk. The deputy commander of the Hisbah, Mujahid Aminudeen, told the BBC that 20 people had been…

An elderly man has been killed and four other people have been wounded in what police say was a terrorist stabbing attack in the northern Israeli city of Haifa. It happened at the HaMifratz Central train and bus station, and the attacker was shot dead at the scene by security guards, police said. The victim…

The mother of a six-year-old girl who disappeared more than a year ago in South Africa has gone on trial accused of organising her kidnapping. Kelly Smith, her boyfriend Jacquen Appollis and their friend Steveno van Rhyn were arrested after Smith’s daughter, Joshlin, went missing from outside her home in Saldanha Bay, near Cape Town,…

BBC As a Ryanair flight from London approached Vilnius, Lithuania, on 17 January, its descent was suddenly aborted. Just minutes from touching down, the aircraft’s essential Global Positioning System (GPS) suffered an unexplained interference, triggering an emergency diversion. The Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 had already descended to around 850ft (259m) when the disruption occurred. Instead…

The Thales missile factory in Belfast is to supply 5,000 air defence missiles to Ukraine, the Prime Minister has announced. The deal is worth up to £1.6bn and will involve recruiting 200 additional staff. Thales is a French-owned company which one of Europe’s biggest arms manufacturers. The order is for lightweight multirole missiles (LMMs) which…

Mixue Ice Cream and Tea may be unfamiliar to many of us but the Chinese firm has more outlets than McDonald’s and Starbucks. On Monday, the bubble tea chain’s shares jumped by 40% as they started trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company raised $444m (£352m) in the financial hub’s biggest initial public…

Anora sweeps the Oscars with five awards including best picture and best actress for star Mikey Madison. In one of the most unpredictable races in years, Adrien Brody wins best actor for The Brutalist, Zoe Saldaña gets best supporting actress for Emilia Pérez, and Kieran Culkin is named best supporting actor. Video produced by: Jack…

EPA UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced a four-point plan to work with Ukraine to end the war and defend the country from Russia. The UK, France and other countries will step up their efforts in a “coalition of the willing” and seek to involve the US in their support for Ukraine, he said.…

Australian Red Cross Lifeblood James Harrison with his grandson, Trey, in an earlier picture One of the world’s most prolific blood donors – whose plasma saved the lives of more than 2 million babies – has died. James Harrison died in his sleep at a nursing home in New South Wales, Australia on 17 February,…

Despite growing international pressure, the Democratic Republic of Congo is standing firm on its decision not to have direct talks with the M23 rebel group that has made major advances in the east of the country in recent months. Last week, the UK government added to calls for the group to be part of an…