The NATO alliance is facing “difficult questions,” said Politico, following incursions by Russian drones and fighter jets into the airspace of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Poland and Romania in recent weeks. Unidentified drone sightings have also disrupted airports in Denmark, but Moscow “insists it has done nothing wrong.” Poland has shot down some of the drones that flew over its skies, and several other NATO nations are warning they are “ready to shoot down Russian aircraft entering their airspace.” 

What did the commentators say?
The central question is whether it was Russia’s deliberate intention to breach NATO airspace. There’s “no consensus view” on this among member states after speaking to “a dozen senior U.S. and Western military, intelligence and diplomatic” officials, said CNN. That puts the alliance in an “uncomfortable position.” 

There’s a “fundamental difference” between Moscow’s and NATO’s rules of engagement, Charly Salonius-Pasternak, of Helsinki’s Nordic West Office think tank, said to Politico. Russia thinks they are “in a military conflict” with the West, but “we do not see it that way.” 

NATO’s parameters do not require the immediate use of force in response to an assumed incursion during peacetime. And nobody would “start World War III because of this,” said Ukrainian military analyst Mykola Bielieskov. 

What next?
NATO’s response to Russia’s “reckless acts will continue to be robust,” said the North Atlantic Council. The option of “shooting down a Russian jet that’s intruding on our airspace is on the table,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday. On the sidelines of this week’s U.N. General Assembly in New York, President Donald Trump said he believed it was an option that NATO countries should take. 

But even shooting down Russian drones could be a challenge, said Yasir Atalan at Foreign Policy. The West will find it hard to do so at a “sustainable cost.” The price of scrambling fighter jets or deploying expensive missiles is far higher than what Russia is spending on each drone. NATO countries will need to follow Ukraine in finding “cheaper options, such as interceptor drones and energy lasers,” if they hope to withstand “large-scale drone attacks.”

More than 250 suspected cybercriminals and digital scammers have been arrested across 14 different African nations in a mass operation conducted across the continent by Interpol, the international investigative agency announced today. The arrests, executed in late July through early August, come during a “sharp rise in digital-enabled crime.” Interpol analysts identified nearly 1,500 victims of the targeted cybercrime operations, with estimated financial losses nearing $3 million.

‘Deepest human vulnerabilities’
Interpol’s continent-wide operation identified “IP addresses, digital infrastructure, domains and social media profiles” associated with “members of the scam syndicates,” said the BBC. These organizations “extract money from victims in romance scams” as well as through “so-called sextortion” schemes wherein targets are “blackmailed using explicit imagery.” Romance and sextortion scammers “deliberately exploit” some of the “deepest human vulnerabilities, such as trust and emotional attachment,” said Dmitry Volkov, the CEO of cybersecurity firm Group-IB, which partnered with Interpol. 

The probe comes on the heels of Operation Serengeti 2.0, which disrupted thousands of “malicious infrastructures” this summer, said Interpol. It recovered nearly $100 million from victims targeted by ransomware and other online scams.

Interpol claims that the sweeping scale of these operations “illustrates both the scope of cybercrime in Africa” and the “critical role of international collaboration in tackling it,” said Business Insider. Of the nations involved, Ghana “accounted for the largest haul” of the crackdown, with nearly 70 arrests and hundreds of devices seized during the operation. In Senegal, 22 suspects were arrested for “operating a network that impersonated celebrities on social media and dating platforms,” while authorities in Côte d’Ivoire “dismantled a sextortion ring” with more than 809 victims.

‘Pillar of stability, peace’
The focus on cybercrime crackdowns across Africa comes as more Interpol partner nations raise the alarm about digital criminals operating within their borders. For a majority of those nations, “cyber-related offenses” account for a “medium-to-high share of all crimes, rising to 30% in Western and Eastern Africa,” said Interpol.

Cybersecurity has become a “fundamental pillar of stability, peace and sustainable development in Africa,” said Jalel Chelba, the executive director of the African Union Mechanism for Police Cooperation. Protection against cybercrime assures “digital sovereignty of states, the resilience of our institutions, citizen trust, and the proper functioning of our economies.”

Hezbollah supporters gather in an abandoned building in Beirut, Lebanon, to mark the first anniversary of Hassan Nasrallah’s killing. The party’s leader was assassinated in September 2024 when an Israeli airstrike targeted Hezbollah’s headquarters.
Anwar Amro / Getty Images

Autumn is the perfect time for a road trip. Roll down those windows, let in that cooler air and soak up the views of fiery foliage and falling leaves.

Covered Bridge Loop Trail, Indiana
Covered bridges add charm to country roads, and Indiana has plenty dotting the landscape. The 216-mile Covered Bridge Loop crosses through six foliage-filled counties, with stops at nine historic bridges. And if that’s not enough to scratch your itch, head to Parke County in western Indiana, known as the Covered Bridge Capital of the World. This rustic region is home to 31 covered bridges that were primarily “built in the 1800s and still in use,” said Midwest Living.

Green Mountain Byway, Vermont
Once autumn hits, the Green Mountains “erupt in color,” and some of the most “picturesque” sights can be seen from the Green Mountain Byway, said Travel and Leisure. On the journey through towns like Waterbury and Stowe, the road passes farmland and “rolling hills interrupted by church steeples,” guaranteeing a bucolic drive.

Needles Highway, South Dakota
The Needles Highway has enough twists, turns and surprises to rival any roller coaster. This “jaw-dropping” drive starts in Custer State Park, and while it is only 14 miles, the highway is not “meant to be traveled quickly,” said Thrillist. Instead, go slowly through the narrow openings and snap photos of your car “barely clearing the granite walls.”