Breaking news of Friday, 14 August 2026
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- 23:31
Chiba, death toll steady at eight: 4,000 people evacuated from Soga station
After the flash flood east of Tokyo, the death toll remains the one already published: eight dead according to prefectural and municipal authorities, one missing; the prefectural office was meanwhile maintaining a parallel official count of four confirmed deaths. In the afternoon of August 14, evacuation orders were progressively lifted in Oamishirasato, Ichihara and Inzai, while the Ground Self-Defense Force transported by bus about 4,000 people stranded at JR Soga station. At 6 a.m. local time, 7,359 people were being assisted in 359 centers. On August 13, Chiba station recorded 351 millimeters, the highest daily total since 1966 (The Watchers, Al Jazeera).
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- 20:31
UN: July deadliest month for civilians in Ukraine since start of invasion
According to a United Nations toll reported today, July 2026 was the deadliest month for civilian casualties in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022: at least 437 dead and over 2,600 wounded (Democracy Now!). The count comes from the UN’s human rights monitoring mission. The news currently stems from a single source (United Nations); no independent confirmation available.
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- 20:31
Black Sea, Kyiv proposes to Moscow to spare civilian ships: grain exports down by three quarters
Ukraine has proposed to Russia that both sides halt attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea, in order to reopen the grain corridor (Democracy Now!, Reuters relaunch). Kyiv’s Ministry of Agriculture indicates a 76% drop in shipments in the first two weeks of August compared with 2025; Bloomberg reports a -75% and expects Russian shipments below half of the five-year average. On August 12, Ukrainian drones had halted two grain terminals in Novorossiysk. Asian buyers are turning to other origins.
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- 19:01
Ukraine, Gazprom refinery hit 1,300 kilometers from the border
The Ukrainian General Staff confirms it struck a Gazprom group refinery overnight some 1,300 kilometers from the border, a facility already targeted on July 14 (The Kyiv Independent). Russian military sources, partisan and not independently verified, claim the downing of at least 51 drones over the Leningrad region and report a fire in the area of the port of Ust-Luga, an oil terminal on the Baltic (Pravda aggregator). The same Russian sources report six wounded in an attack on a passenger train in Kuteynikovo. The Ukrainian Air Force has decided to stop publishing figures on intercepted missiles.
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- 19:01
World Cup, South Africa and Ghana to intercontinental play-offs: Nigeria and Ivory Coast out
South Africa and Ghana secure the two African spots for the World Cup qualifying intercontinental play-offs; Nigeria and Ivory Coast, two of the continent’s most decorated teams, are left out (Al Jazeera). Also in Africa, the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final will be Malawi-Cameroon, after semi-final wins over Algeria and Morocco (Al Jazeera). The news currently comes from a single source (Al Jazeera); no independent confirmation available: exact results, dates and venues of the play-offs remain to be verified against CAF and FIFA statements.
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- 19:01
Etna, Catania closed until 2am on August 15: Comiso also halted
Management company Sac has extended the suspension of flights at Catania Fontanarossa until 2am on August 15 due to ash emissions from Etna: the seventh day of disruptions, with around 300 people waiting to be transferred to the terminal (Sky TG24, Adnkronos). Comiso airport also closed in the afternoon, with ash on the runway. The deadlines given vary: a morning report indicated a halt until 8pm on the 15th (Today.it). Sac describes the emergency as “the most severe in the last 20 years”: between August 6 and 12, 36% of the 1,974 scheduled flights were cancelled.
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- 13:01
Oil, Brent heads toward $88 after US announcement on Iranian ports blockade
Crude oil rose again in the early hours of Friday following the US statement that the naval blockade of Iranian ports can continue indefinitely: at 2:55 a.m. New York time, Brent was up 0.96% at $87.91 a barrel and WTI up 1.08% at $82.13 (CNBC). Both benchmarks had lost 2% on Thursday, but are closing the week up nearly 4%. Iran and Oman have not yet reached an agreement to reopen the strait (Bloomberg).
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- 13:01
Latvia, the downed drone was "probably Ukrainian": Italian Eurofighters neutralized it
A new element has emerged regarding the shootdown in the Baltic skies announced this morning. According to Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže, in a message on X, the foreign unmanned aircraft was destroyed last night over eastern Latvia “by our Italian allies”: these were Eurofighter jets engaged in the NATO air defense mission for the Baltic States, which struck over an uninhabited area after identification, in an operation coordinated by the NATO center in Uedem. The dispatch describes the drone as “probably Ukrainian” (ANSA). The news currently comes from a single source; no independent confirmation is available.
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- 13:01
Japan, flash flooding east of Tokyo: death toll rises to eight
The toll from the record rainfall that fell overnight on Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo, continues to rise: from the five dead and one missing reported in the first morning dispatch (AP via U.S. News), the figure climbed to eight dead in the 12:28 update from local authorities (Voice of Emirates). Roads and dozens of homes flooded, thousands of people stranded, power outages, transport at a standstill. The Japan Meteorological Agency has downgraded the maximum alert level in more than a dozen municipalities, but forecasts further rain during the day. The search for the missing continues.
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- 08:31
Latvia, Nato jets shoot down a drone: Finland closes parts of the Gulf
In the early hours of Friday, Latvian armed forces announced on X that a drone that had entered national airspace was shot down by jets from the Nato air defence mission; the alert, activated Thursday evening for the southeastern areas along the border with Russia and Belarus, was lifted less than an hour later (Global Banking & Finance Review, source Reuters). No details were provided on the aircraft’s origin. At 21:14 Finland had, as a precaution, restricted air and sea traffic in an area of the eastern Gulf of Finland (FXStreet). The governor of Russia’s Leningrad region reports 15 drones shot down overnight.
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- 08:31
Iran, Washington: naval blockade could last "indefinitely"
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, speaking Thursday in Panama, said the US Navy can maintain the blockade of Iran by rotating ships in and out of the area (RTE, Reuters source). Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced new measures “next week”, presented as the greatest economic isolation ever applied to a country (The Spokesman-Review). Tehran, in a message cited by Reuters, reiterates that Hormuz remains closed until the removal of sanctions and the unfreezing of assets take place. On Tuesday, August 11, 8 ships transited; Brent at $87.16 at 01:30 GMT.
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- 05:01
Heat waves, seven Italian cities under red alert today
The Ministry of Health bulletin for Friday, August 14 indicates seven Italian cities under red alert, the maximum warning level, down from previous days: the season’s fourth heat wave is beginning to weaken after nearly three weeks of intense heat. Weather trends indicate the wave will end starting in the North between August 17 and 18, with a risk of severe thunderstorms (Meteo.it). The news currently comes from a single source, which cites the ministerial bulletin; no independent confirmation available.
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- 05:01
Gaza, Israeli strike in Khan Younis: first casualty in over a week
An Israeli air strike killed a Palestinian man on Thursday, August 13, in the western part of Khan Younis, in the southern Strip: according to Palestinian medics cited by Reuters, the strike hit two people on a motorcycle, the second is wounded. It is the first casualty in over a week (Il Sole 24 Ore). The army has reduced targeted attacks under US pressure; Board of Peace officials are calling for their suspension to facilitate the agreement. In the north, in Beit Lahiya, a drone struck a man identified by the army as a Hamas commander (Radio Bullets).
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- 05:01
Athletics, Derkach gold in triple jump: Italy reaches nine European titles
Dariya Derkach won the European title in the triple jump in Birmingham with 14.60, Italy’s sixth gold medal on the fourth day of the 2026 European Championships across athletics, swimming and artistic gymnastics (OA Sport). Italy’s overall tally reported in the evening stands at 9 golds, 9 silvers and 13 bronzes: Italy second in the medal table behind Great Britain, with Germany third (Sky Sport). Today, the fifth day, Nadia Battocletti returns to competition.
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- 02:01
Swimming, Sara Curtis wins European gold in 50m backstroke with second world record in two days
At the European Championships in Paris, Italy’s Sara Curtis won the 50m backstroke final on Thursday evening in 26.56, lowering the world record she herself had set on Wednesday in the semifinal with 26.63 (Il Sole 24 Ore). The previous record belonged to Australia’s Kaylee McKeown (26.86, Budapest 2023). Silver went to France’s Mary Ambre Moluh (27.06), bronze to Britain’s Lauren Cox (27.15). It is Italy’s first European gold in the event. “The European title was the very first goal, the record a dream,” the athlete said (Olympics.com).
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- 02:01
Hormuz, two Adnoc ships attacked: UAE accuses Revolutionary Guards
Adnoc confirmed in the early hours of Friday that two of its ships were attacked Thursday evening in the Strait of Hormuz: no injuries reported, situation declared under control (The National, Oman Observer). The Emirati foreign ministry called it “an act of piracy by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps” and denounced the violation of UN Resolution 2817 on freedom of navigation; Bahrain also condemned the attack. At the time of publication, Iran had not claimed responsibility. According to Adnoc’s August 7 tally, 15 ships have been hit since the start of the war, with one sailor killed and 20 wounded (Al Jazeera).
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