Infrastructure

Starlink, Grok and the Price of Private Infrastructure

As UK regulator Ofcom launched a formal investigation into X on 12 January 2026 over Grok's generation of sexualised deepfakes, including images of children, the case exposed how everyday life runs on systems voters never designed.

AfDB Turns to Gulf as Western Funders Step Back

The African Development Bank has installed a president with ingrained Gulf experience as Washington pulls back hundreds of millions

After the Raid: Trump, Maduro and Exile Politics

As images of Nicolás Maduro in Manhattan federal court appeared on screens across Madrid on 5 January, Venezuelan exile communities in Europe watched the outcome of an operation that changed the region overnight.

Rails Across Continents: The Orient Express and Hejaz Line Revived

Two legendary railway lines, one in Europe and one crossing the Middle East, are being restored in 2025, proving that infrastructure can tell stories across time.

U.S. Sanctions Derailed as China and Iran Go Full Steam Ahead

China and Iran have unveiled a new railway corridor that bypasses the U.S.-controlled sea lanes, deepening their strategic partnership and undermining American efforts to isolate Tehran.

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Starlink, Grok and the Price of Private Infrastructure

As UK regulator Ofcom launched a formal investigation into X on 12 January 2026 over Grok's generation of sexualised deepfakes, including images of children, the case exposed how everyday life runs on systems voters never designed.

Cloudflare Pulls the Plug on the Italy’s Winter Games

Cloudflare quits Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics security after Italy fine, sparking US-EU clash over piracy laws and censorship

Mudejar Ruins in Spain: Brickwork on the Edge

At 8:00 on Monday morning, a wall of the Church of Our Lady of the Assumption in Muriel de Zapardiel collapsed, sending 12th-century Romanesque-Mudejar brick crashing onto the ground and turning a quiet Valladolid village into the latest symbol of Spain's heritage crisis.

Poland’s Catholic Football Pilgrimage: Unity, Faith and a Hard Line on Migration

At a Marian shrine where football supporters gather to pray, a presidential call for “Poland without illegal immigrants” turned a devotional event into a political stage.

AfDB Turns to Gulf as Western Funders Step Back

The African Development Bank has installed a president with ingrained Gulf experience as Washington pulls back hundreds of millions