Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Getty EPA crew works to remove hazardous waste from beachfront properties destroyed in the Palisades Fire With its sun-drenched lifeguard towers, bronzed surfers and bikini-clad volleyball players, Will Rogers State Beach is one of the most recognizable stretches of sand in the world thanks to the global cult classic “Baywatch”. But now the iconic beach…

Lucy Manning Special correspondent Reuters Hamas returned the bodies of deceased child hostages Kfir and Ariel Bibas to Israel this week Kfir and Ariel Bibas were last seen on 7 October with their mother Shiri’s hands around them, holding onto her boys surrounded by gunmen and violence, trying to protect them. She couldn’t. According to…

Mali’s military government says it is investigating allegations that soldiers “coldly executed” at least 24 civilians in the north of the country on Monday. That claim was made by a separatist Tuareg rebel alliance, called Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), which is battling the Malian government in the same region. The FLA accuse Malian forces and…

A French convict who went on the run after escaping a police van in a deadly ambush has been arrested in Romania, French authorities have said. Two prison officers were killed and three others injured when a vehicle carrying Mohamed Amra was attacked by men using military-grade assault weapons in May 2024. Amra, known as…

California Governor Gavin Newsom has asked the US federal government for $40 billion (£31.6b) in funds to help rebuild areas of Los Angeles devastated by January fires. Newsom sent the request to congressional leaders in a letter on Friday. He said the funds would help both immediate and long-term recovery work. “I’m asking Congress to…

Pope Francis’s condition continues to be “critical” after suffering a “prolonged asthma-like respiratory crisis” earlier on Saturday, the Vatican has said. The pontiff is “more unwell than yesterday” and had received blood transfusions, the statement said. The Vatican said the 88-year-old was alert and in his armchair, but required a “high flow” of oxygen and…

Lucy Clarke-Billings BBC News Getty Images One person has been killed and at least two police officers seriously injured in a knife attack in the eastern French city of Mulhouse. A 37-year-old Algerian man was arrested at the scene and the prosecutor has opened a terrorist inquiry because the suspect reportedly shouted “Allahu Akbar”, or…

Wedaeli Chibelushi BBC News Getty Images Tutsis have long been advocating for better treatment in DR Congo The notorious M23 rebel group is wreaking havoc in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, seizing the region’s two biggest cities in a deadly uprising which has forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes. Central to their campaign…

Jessica Parker BBC Berlin correspondent BBC He is the man tipped to be Germany’s next leader: an antidote to Europe’s crisis of confidence, say his supporters. Friedrich Merz, 69, is a familiar face of his conservative party’s old guard. Politically, he has never come across as exhilarating. And yet he promises to provide Germany with…

Hamas has released six more hostages held in Gaza, in exchange for 602 Palestinian prisoners to be freed later on Saturday. The released hostages included four kidnapped during the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel – Tal Shoham, Omer Shem Tov, Eliya Cohen and Omer Wenkert. The two other men freed, Avera Mengistu and…