Early Thursday afternoon, AlertsUSA subscribers were notified via SMS messages to their mobile devices that Charlie Kirk, the 31-year-old conservative commentator, pundit, and co-founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot while speaking before thousands at an outdoor event at Utah Valley University in Orem. Kirk was participating in a “Prove Me Wrong” segment, engaging with students, when he was struck in the neck by a single bullet. The attack was captured in graphic videos that were spread on social media.

Surveillance footage shows an individual fleeing the roof of a building 200 yards from the event immediately after the shot. Investigators later found a high-powered, bolt-action hunting rifle wrapped in a towel in a wooded area near the campus.

Several rounds of ammunition, including a spent casing, were recovered, some engraved with provocative political and sexual messages. Among the inscriptions were phrases like “Hey fascist, Catch!” and “Bella Ciao,” a reference to an anti-fascist folk song dedicated to the partisans of the Italian resistance.

On Friday, Utah authorities announced that Tyler James Robinson, age 22, of Washington County, was arrested in connection with the shooting. Utah Governor Spencer Cox said Robinson allegedly confessed or “implied” his involvement to a family member and was subsequently turned over to law enforcement.

Robinson faces initial state charges, including aggravated murder, obstruction of justice, and weapons violations. If convicted of aggravated murder, he could face the death penalty. In Utah, this sentence may be carried out by lethal injection or firing squad.

This assassination has drawn widespread condemnation across the political spectrum. Unfortunately it has also sparked widespread cheers and calls for further violence from the radical left on social media platforms such as TikTok, X, and Instagram. In addition, graffiti is appearing on college and university campuses calling for attacks on others with conservative Christian views similar to those of Charlie Kirk.

Caution and vigilance are urged.

From Vouchers to Visas: China's Innovative Plan for AI Dominance

While international attention often centers on China’s latest foundation models or its constrained access to high-end artificial intelligence (AI) chips, these headlines obscure the broader architecture of China’s AI strategy. China is pursuing a dual-track approach that combines frontier model development with a coordinated effort to promote widespread diffusion of AI technologies across sectors.

Rather than focusing merely on technological breakthroughs, China’s approach emphasizes integration: ensuring that AI capabilities are not only developed, but also deployed across the real economy. Understanding this policy model and the mechanisms that support it is essential to evaluating China’s long-term trajectory in global AI competition.

~ READ MORE HERE (FPRI) ~

The Strategy of Coercion by Salvo

Russia unleashed its largest aerial barrage of the war over the weekend of September 7–8, striking Kyiv and multiple regions across Ukraine in an unprecedented display of firepower. More than 800 munitions—primarily Shahed drones supported by a smaller number of cruise and ballistic missiles—were launched in coordinated waves, overwhelming air defense systems and inflicting widespread damage. The attack killed at least four civilians and set ablaze Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers building, marking the first time Russia directly targeted the government’s seat of power. This strike, exceeding even the massive May assault in scope, highlights Moscow’s continued reliance on a punishment campaign and using massed drone-missile saturation to coerce Ukraine and test Western resolve.

~ READ MORE HERE (CSIS) ~

Data Centers on the 21st Century Battlefield

The most decisive infrastructure of the twenty-first century isn’t an aircraft carrier floating in the Pacific or buried in a missile silo. It hums quietly inside the walls of a data center.

These sprawling facilities now anchor military power, economic clout, and geopolitical leverage. But they were never designed for an era defined by great-power competition, cyber sabotage, and the relentless demands of AI. Their enormous energy footprint and physical vulnerability leave them both indispensable and exposed.

~ READ MORE HERE (War on the Rocks) ~

These are the approximate positions of the U.S. Navy’s deployed carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups based on U.S. Navy briefings, public data provided by the U.S. Naval Institute, and open source reporting.

PUBLIC HEALTH

Pfizer vaccines contained DNA levels far exceeding FDA/WHO guidelines
Vaccinated kids had 453% more neurodevelopmental disorders
Trump announces crackdown on pharmaceutical advertising

AMERICAS

FBI arrests Chicago man over threats to ICE, ‘known political figures’
Feds arrest hundreds of Sinaloa Cartel members in nationwide crackdown
2 students wounded in shooting at Evergreen High School in Colorado
Experts warn of online radicalization risks after CO school shooting
GBU-57 MOP replacement prototypes just ordered
Claim: Video shows direct hit on glowing UFO with U.S. Hellfire missile
ICE launches Operation Midway Blitz in Chicago
Texas bans Sharia Law after Muslims attempt to ban alcohol and pork
Venezuela to boost troops to tackle drug trafficking as US moves into region
FAA extends ban on US commercial flights to Haiti’s capital due to gangs
Cuba says power slowly returning after nationwide blackout
FBI releases 2021-2024 Special Report on gang activity

EUROPE

Poland seals eastern border & deploys 40K troops as wargames begin
NATO on tenterhooks as Russia starts war games in Belarus
German terror suspect sentenced to life in prison
Met police arrest almost 900 people at Palestine Action protest
NATO launches 'Eastern Sentry' on eastern flank after drone incursion
Russian drone incursion in Poland prompts NATO leaders to take stock
Satellite images appear to show secretive base in Belarus
Police probe anarchists’ claim of being behind Berlin blackout
Russian glide bomb attack in eastern Ukraine kills 24
Tbilisi on edge after clashes between activists, ruling party supporters

MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA

Rubio to visit Israel amid tensions among US Middle East allies
Iran says enriched uranium stockpile buried under bombed sites
Iran, IAEA announce agreement on resuming nuclear inspections
Iran and France are close to agreeing to an exchange of prisoners
UN assembly votes overwhelmingly to back two-state solution to Israel
Israeli drone strike south of Beirut wounds Hezbollah member
Israeli military evacuation order triggers panic in Gaza City
Mali's army acts to secure strategic trade routes after jihadist blockade
As fighting escalates, kidnappings of aid workers surge in South Sudan
Congo army accused of opening fire on protesters killing 3
Islamic State group escalates attacks on Niger civilians

ASIA / OCEANIA

China’s newest aircraft carrier sails through Taiwan Strait for the first time
China condemns sailing of Canadian, Australian warships in Taiwan Strait
Hegseth tells China in first call that US is not seeking conflict
Taiwan updates security handbook wary of China threat
In US, Taiwan minister warns of 'domino effect' if China takes island
Japan defense force sights China's Fujian aircraft carrier for 1st time
US and Japan begin exercises including missiles that China calls a threat
Philippines says Chinese ‘malign influence activities’ continue at high pace
Philippines slams China's plan for nature reserve in disputed shoal
Rubio: US stands with Philippines against China’s plan in S. China Sea