Counter-disinformation group says social media channels connected to Pravda network helped amplify message

Accounts with links to the Russian military promoting far-right messages reached more than 500,000 people in the early days of the Ceuta migration crisis, according to an analysis done by 411, a counter-disinformation group.

Russia-linked social media accounts frequently spread destabilising narratives in Europe, often promoting far-right talking points about immigration.

But 411 and other experts suggest the scale and coordination of the disinformation that followed the Ceuta crisis is significant. Groups spreading disinformation are more organised and powerful than they were several years ago.

MBFC
Archive

Euronews condemns Belarus’ obscure and unilateral decision to designate Euronews’ digital news coverage as “extremist,” a measure which exposes Euronews’ huge audience in Belarus to legal penalties for “storing or distributing” Euronews’ pan-European content.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.blahaj.zone/post/46390565

We’ve had it 😬

Why. The hell. Is this even being considered, let alone put into practice? This could cause the next pandemic ffs

Farmers bordering Kenya's Amboseli National Park have denied using cyanide after 15 elephants died from suspected poisoning. Wildlife authorities say preliminary tests detected cyanide, but investigations are continuing to determine its source and concentration.

Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey signed a joint security agreement in Mecca on Friday, agreeing to treat an attack on any one of them as an attack against all three.

While the pact creates a framework for broader strategic cooperation, it builds on a mutual defence principle. A statement released by the Pakistan Foreign Office confirmed the scope of the treaty,

"The agreement is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggression, and stipulates that any armed attack against any one of the three States shall be regarded as an attack against them all."

cross-posted from: https://piefed.world/c/onion/p/1320101/don-t-steal-pokemon-and-naruto-japan-lodges-official-protest-with-us

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/10589288

Serhiy Tsyhipa is turning 65 on 10 August, his fifth birthday in Russian captivity. The Ukrainian journalist, writer and civic activist from Nova Kakhovka (Kherson oblast) has already paid a heavy price for speaking out against Russia’s invasion and occupation of his homeland. Publicity is needed to ensure that he does not serve Russia’s reprisal 13-year sentence to the end. Olena Tsyhipa has issued a plea for people to join her in a flashmob for her husband’s birthday. She asks that they take a selfie, or make a videoed message, holding a placard reading “65 years – 5 years stolen’ under the hashtag #FreeSergiyTsyhipa. Even if Serhiy does not receive the greetings in the Russian prison colony where he is held, they will help to draw attention to his imprisonment.

A collection of poems written by Serhiy Tsyhipa in Russian captivity was published in June under the title “Alphabet of Captivity”. In presenting the book, Olena stated: “My husband has managed to retain what is most valuable: his inner freedom of thought and power of the word. The book is an important reminder of the fate of Ukrainian civilians whom the Kremlin is illegally holding in its prison camps. It is a call to not be silent, but to remember and act.”

...

Tsyhipa disappeared on 12 March 2022 as he was heading to Tavriysk to take medicine to his mother-in-law. Oleh Baturin, a fellow journalist, who was abducted a day later, but released after eight days, was able to confirm that Tsyhipa was held by the Russians, with that almost the only information that Serhiy’s family had for the first eight months. It was the only direct information, since a video which appeared on the Internet in the middle of April essentially confirmed fears that Tsyhipa had been subjected to torture.

...

Archived

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.blahaj.zone/post/46376556

What a way to indoctrinate the mass public by proclaiming that AI is ‘for all’.

Hey, if AI is for all, here‘s a suggestion: stop putting AI models up behind a paywall or subscription.

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/10589723

• ECFR [European Council on Foreign Relations] polling suggests significant public support not only for tougher German policy on China but also for investment in renewables—tackling twin problems together.

• This public support should help persuade leaders in Berlin and across Europe. If European policymakers fail to protect its economy from weaponisation by China, governments will almost certainly pay the price at the ballot box.

• Those that pursue electrification and economic de-risking as a single package are most likely to reap the political rewards.

...

Reluctance among German decision-makers has long stopped Berlin taking a tougher economic approach towards China. When France, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Spain recently pressed the European Commission for tougher measures and faster trade defence action against China, Germany not only declined to join, it even called for stronger industrial ties with Beijing.

Yet, one thing Berlin should not worry about is voters’ disapproval should it pursue a more hawkish China policy. ECFR polling data find that Germans are the most China-sceptical out of 15 European countries surveyed. No fewer than 60% of Christian Democrat and Social Democrat supporters regard the country as an adversary or rival. In contrast, elsewhere in Europe, majorities still see China as either a “necessary partner” or even an ally. In Italy and Spain, 56% and 65% of people hold this view respectively. (Closest to the sceptical Germans are the French public; President Emmanuel Macron’s increasingly hawkish political posture vis-à-vis Beijing may have found an audience willing to listen.)

...

The China shock has hit Germany particularly hard: its manufacturing sector lost around 420,000 jobs between 2019 and 2025 and it continues to shed 10,000 jobs each month. The car industry is paying the highest costs, being squeezed out of a market increasingly dominated by Chinese manufacturers at home and abroad.

...

The mood in the European Council is shifting, and with Germany’s acquiescence. When EU leaders met in June 2026, they backed a stronger trade defence toolbox of existing measures against China. This included instruments such as the Industrial Accelerator Act’s “Buy European” provisions and limits on high-risk Chinese technology. Despite its past hesitations, Germany no longer acts as a spoiler on firmer EU action, and it has cautiously supported this new direction. Nevertheless, the combination of growing public scepticism towards China, mounting pressure on German industry and appetite for a more assertive policy on the European level creates a political mandate that German decision-makers could yet seize.

The German public’s views on the energy transition should also prove encouraging for their leaders. Voters want to see investment in renewables: 57% back what would amount to the growing electrification of the economy. Across the countries polled by ECFR, 61% of respondents say they support prioritising renewables and the clean tech sector.

...

This public support should help persuade leaders, including in Germany, that they can take action to limit emerging dependencies on China. They can accelerate the energy transition while de-risking the clean tech sector through providing support for domestic European industries, from wind to batteries.

For Berlin, and capitals across Europe, it is safer to move ahead rather than delay. Chinese economic policy is already doing irreparable damage to European industry—but European policymakers still need to protect an increasingly electrified economy from weaponisation by China. If they fail to do so, governments will almost certainly pay the price at the ballot box. Those that pursue electrification and economic de-risking as a single package are most likely to reap the political rewards.

Archived

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/69255546

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.blahaj.zone/post/46376173

Not to mention the environmental impact this will unquestionably have.

Fuck AI and stand against it.

Iran's parliament is reviewing a plan to ban ships linked to the U.S., Israel and other "hostile countries" from transiting the Strait of Hormuz until Tehran is compensated for war damage, according to Iranian state media.

The plan would impose fees of up to 7% of cargo value on commercial vessels that pass through the strait. It would also fine ships 20% of cargo if they violate Iran's conditions.

Iran on Wednesday said it was finalizing an agreement on shipping routes with Oman, a U.S. ally that sits on the other side of the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media quoted the Foreign Ministry as saying that ships would enter through the strait's northern corridor near the Iranian coast and exit through the southern corridor near the Omani coast.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/50398452

Just when you think @ZuckyZuck is finally out of ideas - to steal.

It starts to feel like even a weak LLM like MetaAI is more creative than him.

Maybe we already have created truly artificial intelligence because he is more of an SLM: a Small Language Model?

A mass prison escape unfolded in western Libya after inmates fled a jail amid fierce clashes between rival armed groups. The violence killed at least three civilians, damaged property and heightened security concerns in the country's volatile western region.

The expanding lakes have also increased encounters between people and wildlife. Crocodiles and hippos are now appearing closer to homes and communities as their natural habitats disappear.