Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Watch: Cars smashed and walls knocked down following Mayotte cyclone The search for survivors on the Mayotte archipelago continued on Sunday after a cyclone devastated the French Indian Ocean territory. It is feared the eventual death toll could stretch into the thousands once the damage is fully assessed and with rescue workers still working to…

Footage released by Russia’s Southern Transport Prosecutor’s Office shows a Russian oil tanker broken in half and sinking amid a heavy storm, with streaks of oil visible in the water. The Ship is one of two Russian vessels with 29 crew members on board which have been heavily damaged in the Black Sea authorities in…

Israel’s government has approved a plan to encourage the expansion of settlements in the occupied Golan Heights. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the move was necessary because a “new front” had opened up on Israel’s border with Syria after the fall of the Assad regime to an Islamist-led rebel alliance. Netanyahu said he wanted to…

Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has been discharged from hospital after undergoing emergency surgery for a brain bleed, doctors said. The 79-year-old appeared alongside his medical team at a news conference at Sírio-Libanês hospital in São Paulo. “This here is not an interview, this is simply a session to say thanks. To thank,…

Getty Images A PNG side at a trial match in Sydney in 2013 Papua New Guinea (PNG) will join Australia’s national rugby league competition, after signing a deal that obligates them to shun security ties with China. The Pacific nation has produced many stars of Australia’s National Rugby League (NRL) and has long been lobbying…

Two Russian oil tankers with 29 crew members on board have sunk in the Black Sea amid bad weather and are now leaking oil, Russian authorities have said. Video posted on Telegram by Russia’s Southern Transport Prosecutor’s Office, which the BBC has been unable to verify, appears to show one of the tankers broken in…

Seven tourists in Fiji have been sent to hospital with suspected alcohol poisoning and are reported to be in a critical condition. It is believed they drank cocktails at a resort bar on Saturday night local time and shortly afterwards, displayed nausea, vomiting and neurological symptoms. Four of the seven are Australian, with ages ranging…

Kiambu county’s Department of Health Services A sombre mood engulfed a village in Kenya’s Rift Valley last week as dozens of medical interns joined other mourners at the burial of their colleague who had taken his own life. Speaker after speaker lamented the loss of Francis Njuki, a 29-year-old trainee pharmacist, whose family told the…

Niger’s military government has suspended the BBC for three months, accusing it of spreading fake news that could destabilise social peace and demoralise troops fighting jihadists. Niger’s Minister of Communication Raliou Sidi Mohamed announced that the decision would take effect immediately. BBC programmes, including in Hausa, the most spoken language in Niger, and French, are…

A woman has been charged with threatening a health insurance company by repeating words engraved on bullet casings found at the scene of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s murder. Briana Boston, 42, is accused of saying “Delay, deny, depose, you people are next” while speaking on a recorded line with a Blue Cross Blue Shield representative…