Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Ian Youngs Culture reporter BBC/Amjad Al Fayoumi/Hoyo Films The BBC has added a message at the start of the programme about the identity of Abdullah Al-Yazouri’s father The culture secretary has said she will raise concerns with BBC bosses about a documentary on Gaza that was narrated by the son of a Hamas official. The…

Argentina’s President Javier Milei gifted Elon Musk a chainsaw during the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington DC on Thursday. Waving the chainsaw above his head on stage, Musk told attendees it was “the chainsaw for bureaucracy”. The chainsaw was engraved with ‘Viva la libertad, carajo’, Spanish for ‘Long live liberty, damn it’. Milei…

EPA Party chairman Lo Kin-hei addressed reporters at a late night press conference on Tuesday The leaders of Hong Kong’s Democratic Party have announced plans to dissolve what was once the city’s largest opposition group. Members will soon vote on the final decision on whether to shut down the 31-year-old party, chairman Lo Kin-hei said.…

A notorious gang leader has died after he was shot inside a courthouse in Sri Lanka by a gunman disguised as a lawyer, say police. Police say the gunman used a revolver which was smuggled in a hollowed-out book by a female suspect, who remains at large. Gang leader Sanjeewa Kumara Samararathne had been escorted…

Canada has beaten the United States after the two countries battled it out on the rink in a championship game that proved to be about more than just ice hockey. The 4 Nations Face Off final ended 3-2 in overtime. On any ordinary day, this fixture would have been a significant one for the two…

Mountain police in Italy have urged tourists not to get too close to Mount Etna’s lava flows, as people flock to the area following the volcano’s latest eruption. Restrictions in force require people to stay a minimum distance 500 metres from the lava flow and to visit only if accompanied by guides. Skiing nearby is…

João da Silva Business reporter CCTV A meeting between Chinese president Xi Jinping and some of the country’s foremost business leaders this week has fuelled excitement and speculation, after Alibaba founder Jack Ma was pictured at the event. The charismatic and colourful Mr Ma, who was one of China’s most prominent businessmen, had withdrawn from…

Getty Images A political tidal wave is crashing across Germany. That’s what the hard-right nationalist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party firmly believes. It is labelled “radical”, “racist” and “anti-democratic” by opponents. Germany’s domestic intelligence service says the party is “anti-constitutional”. But if polls are right, the AfD will become Germany’s second largest political force after…

BBC Eye Investigations BBC World Service BBC An Indian pharmaceutical company is manufacturing unlicensed, highly addictive opioids and exporting them illegally to West Africa where they are driving a major public health crisis in countries including Ghana, Nigeria, and Cote D’Ivoire, a BBC Eye investigation has revealed. Aveo Pharmaceuticals, based in Mumbai, makes a range…

One of four bodies returned from Gaza to Israel on Thursday is not hostage Shiri Bibas, as claimed by Hamas, the Israeli military said. The news that Shiri Bibas, 33, and her two sons, Ariel and Kfir, who would now be aged five and two, were dead triggered an outpouring of grief in Israel. The…