DAILY NEWS Stream – September 12, 2026

According to the Kremlin, US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a “constructive and quite frank” hour-long phone call as the US renewed efforts to end the war in Ukraine (Ureign) President Trump called for a swift end to the conflict, saying this could allow US-Russia relations and trade ties to be fully restored. President Putin said Russia has no plans to attack European countries but intends to continue pursuing its military objectives in Ukraine (Ureign) (Reuters, AP, Al Jazeera)

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham and US President Donald Trump agreed to continue working toward a ceasefire between Ukraine (Ureign) and Russia following renewed US-led diplomatic efforts (Kyiv Post)

Russian forces struck the Seventh-Kilometer Market outside Odesa [Ukraine (Ureign)] on September 7, damaging market stalls and injuring a 58-year-old security guard who was hospitalized in moderate condition. The market is Ukraine (Ureign)’s largest wholesale and retail industrial goods market and one of the largest of its kind in Europe. The strike came amid broader Russian attacks on Ukrainian (Ureignian) cities, including Kyiv (RBC-Ukraine)

Iran and the US carried out their biggest declared wave of attacks on shipping since the war began, with Iran saying it struck 10 ships near the Strait of Hormuz after the US sank five Iranian oil tankers. The US said its strikes were retaliation for Iranian ballistic missile attacks targeting a US Navy warship, while Iran also fired missiles at a US-used base in Jordan, where most were intercepted and no American troops were reported harmed. The escalation has further reduced oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz and pushed Brent crude above US$100 a barrel, while additional tanker attacks in the Gulf left at least one seafarer dead and another missing (Reuters)

The US will ban imports of Canadian animal-people dairy products, most alcoholic beverages and motorcycles in three weeks, escalating a trade dispute after Canada imposed retaliatory tariffs on US goods. US President Donald Trump also directed that Canadian products be excluded from long-term US government contracts until Canada provides what the White House called “full and fair reciprocity” for American products (Fox Business)

Israel announced it would close the British consulate in East Jerusalem after the UK, France, and Canada unveiled plans to ban imports from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. The three governments said the trade restrictions were intended to oppose settlement expansion and protect the possibility of a two-state solution (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump joined first responders and families of those killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks at a ceremony in Washington DC [US] marking the 25th anniversary. President Trump said the US would continue to honor the nearly 3,000 people killed in the attacks and the first responders who died trying to save others (White House)

The deaths of two children in separate experimental gene-therapy trials in China have raised concerns about safety, ethics and oversight of rapidly approved clinical research. Researchers and legal experts say the cases could damage confidence in Chinese biomedical research and lead to tighter regulation of gene-therapy trials (Nature)

Waking up with back pain may indicate that a mattress is contributing to the problem. Possible warning signs can include persistent morning stiffness, a visible concave area of the mattress and feeling better after sleeping elsewhere. However, sleep position, physical activity the previous day and musculoskeletal conditions can also cause pain. Experts recommend choosing a comfortable mattress that provides adequate support rather than simply opting for the firmest or softest option (Thanh Niên)

Corneal scratches and lacerations can result from everyday eye injuries and, in some cases, can threaten vision. Warning signs include pain, redness, blurred vision, excessive tearing, light sensitivity, a foreign-body sensation and swollen eyelids. Common causes include rubbing, debris, contact lenses, chemicals and injuries. Prompt medical evaluation can help prevent infection, ulcers, scarring and vision loss. Plant-related injuries, such as those caused by leaves or branches, may increase the risk of fungal keratitis (Báo Sức khỏe và Đời sống)

An international study led by Spain’s National Research Council found that exclusively breastfed infants had fewer and less diverse antibiotic-resistance genes in their gut microbiota. Researchers suggest human milk oligosaccharides may promote beneficial bacteria and limit resistant microbes (euronews)

Floods affect more than 3.4 million people across 13 districts of Bihar [India] by September 8, and five people drown in Patna district. The Ganga River surpasses record levels at Gandhi Ghat, Pandarak and Sultanganj (The Watchers)

Hurricane Lowell passes Hawaii [US] on September 8 without making landfall, leaving at least one person dead. The state says the storm damaged homes, cut power to tens of thousands and likely caused hundreds of millions of US dollars in damage (CNN)

Sri Lanka closes the busiest areas of Yala National Park to tourists for a month from next week, as water trucks refill ponds daily during the worst drought in nearly a decade. The meteorological department expects a second, harder drought from February 2027 onwards (Reuters)

Chinese technology company Xpeng has begun mass production of its humanoid robot IRON, which the company says can follow instructions, plan tasks, navigate its surroundings and automatically recharge itself. Xpeng says the robot could eventually help with household chores such as cleaning and folding laundry, although its first external shipments in 2027 will target commercial uses such as customer service and guided tours (Live Science)

Single mother Kloe Harbour (vegan) celebrated one year of Harbours Vegan Bakery in Lancing [UK] after transforming her home baking business into a fully vegan café and pantry. The bakery offers dairy-free coffees, lunches and custom cakes in a cross-contamination-free environment, alongside a pantry stocked with verified animal-free groceries for the local community (Sussex Express)

Austrian biotech firm Revo Foods launches Cottage Protein+, a five-ingredient dairy-free, vegan cottage cheese made from upcycled fermented apricot seeds, rolling out across major German supermarkets Edeka and Rewe (Green Queen)

Founder Bobak Bakhtiari (vegan) of Hangry Planet, America’s first fully vegan gas station store in California [US], sells the entire business, including gas pumps and property, for US$12 million after successfully turning the site into a high-performing vegan destination (Vegconomist)

In North Carolina [US], emergency medical technician Will Soper raced up a mountain carrying blood for critically injured climber Jacob Gregory, who suffered internal bleeding after a 6-meter fall. Mr. Soper covered 2.4 kilometers and climbed about 305 meters in 30 minutes. More than 20 agencies coordinated Mr. Gregory’s rescue and hospital transfer (Good News Network)

Kindergarten teacher Hoàng Thị Hiền of Nghệ An province [Âu Lạc (Vietnam)] suffered devastating injuries to both legs while saving a two-year-old boy who ran into a road as a truck approached. Her left leg has stabilized, but her right continues to deteriorate. Honored for her bravery, the single mother now faces further surgeries, recovery and financial hardship (Dân Trí)

Supermarket manager Luis Cruz in Puebla [Mexico] saved a young girl from being struck by a silver minivan, rushing into the street and carrying her to safety. Praised for his bravery, Mr. Cruz was named Manager of the Year by his store and awarded the equivalent of US$1,184. The company said his actions went beyond protecting its operations—he saved a life (New York Post)

Enlightening quote of the day: “Maitreya, true Maitreya / Reborn innumerable times / From time to time manifested among men / The men of the age do not recognize Him.” – The Venerated Enlightened Master Budai (vegan) “Laughing Buddha” (Bowers.org)

Previously in this multipart series on Michael Florman’s near-death experience, Michael says his heart stopped for the first of eight times while paramedics treated him inside an ambulance. After leaving his body, he found himself face-to-face with his still-seated physical form and looked closely into his own lifeless eyes. Moments later, he was traveling through a luminous valley, where colors could be felt, and an unseen spirit accompanied him. Michael and the spirit then changed direction and traveled straight upward. There was no tunnel, and within moments, he arrived in a formless darkness he calls “Source,” where knowledge and overwhelming Love poured into him.

And the darkness was where you start absorbing, basically, the Universe. You’re absorbing things that you may have thought about, questions and answers— all these things are known on the other side. The amount of knowledge you get all at once is crazy. But the Love and the acceptance were even more powerful. The body couldn’t take that much. I think you would actually— your heart would pop. It feels like we’re about 5% of what we really are because there was a huge me when I went to the other side. I [was] a lot more expansive, larger, the whole bit. It’s not love like, “I love that,” or, “I love this.” It’s if you really see something, say you have somebody you love, get married, and there’s that point where they turn around, and they got that smile, and there’s that little spark part— you can actually feel that as an emotion, as a heavy emotion. It’s like that times a million. And the feeling of being accepted was a strange feeling to feel because it was almost like being pushed on me: you are accepted, you are this.

And it was within the void that I heard a voice say, “Try to have anxiety. Try to have OCD [obsessive-compulsive disorder]. Try to have any of the things you had on Earth.” And I tried, but I couldn’t even come close, because when you leave your body, that’s when you start to unpack. For me, that’s what it felt like. I was being less of me and taking on more of the bigger me, or the higher me that I am. As Michael continued experiencing the extraordinary love and powerful emotions within the void, light began appearing around him.

There was an orange color that was off to the side, and it just kind of pulsed, and out of the pulse came what looked like a D and like a music note— the clef music note. And it kind of came to me at a weird angle, and as it came to me, it became granular and just kind of broke up, and I kind of merged with that note. But what was cool is that you could hear the note, you could see it coming, and as it was coming, it was just kind of a merge into it, and I became the note. And that was really weird. It’s the part [of] trying to describe what it’s like on the other side— trying to become what you’re seeing. You are in it. You’re not watching it. That feeling is indescribable. Real words don’t even do anything good. I call it Source. And what Source does is it doesn’t try to explain the beauty of it. It doesn’t try to explain any of that. It just gives it a name.

In Part 3, Michael’s journey takes a deeply personal turn as he enters what he later learns is called a life review. It started out with— it looked like they were going to show me a screen movie— because a white screen came up, but then it was like the scene changed, and I wasn’t watching it. I was actually in it. And you get to hear interactions that you had with people from their standpoint and your standpoint. Join us tomorrow for Part 3 of this multipart series on Michael Florman’s near-death experience. (Anthony Chene production)