Armed conflicts and attacks
Kivu conflict
Mass looting and sporadic gunfire is reported in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, as M23 rebels advance into the city. Mobs loot several facilities, including a World Food Programme depot. (BBC News)
The Congolese military withdraws from Bukavu heading south towards Tanganyika Province. (AP)
General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Chief of the Ugandan military, claiming to act with the authority of his father, President Yoweri Museveni, threatens to invade the Democratic Republic of the Congo and take control of Bunia, the capital of Ituri Province, unless local forces surrender their weapons within 24 hours. Kainerugaba alleges that the Hema people are being killed. (Reuters)
Gaza war
Hamas releases three Israeli hostages in exchange for the Israeli government releasing 369 Palestinian prisoners, most without criminal charges or convictions, as part of the first stage of the 2025 ceasefire. (Al Jazeera) (AP)
2025 Munich car attack
A 37-year-old woman and her two-year-old child die as a result of injuries sustained in a vehicle-ramming attack in Munich, Germany, on Thursday. (Stern)
2025 Villach stabbing attack
A 14-year-old boy is killed and five other people are injured in a mass stabbing on a street in Villach, Carinthia, Austria. A 23-year-old man, an Islamic State member, is arrested. (AP) (DW)
Business and economy
Democratic Republic of the Congo–Rwanda conflict
Congolese Foreign Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner calls on Western sporting firms such as the National Basketball Association, Formula One, and Arsenal F.C. to cut sponsorship deals with Rwanda amid the conflict in Kivu. (ESPN)