#Banksy mural of a judge beating a protester is scrubbed from London court.

#LONDON — The verdict on Banksy’s artwork on a courthouse wall of a judge beating a protester was that it had to go.

Unlike the elusive artist’s other provocative works that are sometimes stolen or carefully removed and displayed in galleries or sold at auction for millions, his latest mural was being erased Wednesday from the record.

The stenciled spray-painting of a protester lying on the ground holding a blood-splattered placard while a judge in a traditional wig and black gown beats him with a gavel was scrubbed from wall of the iconic Royal Courts of Justice.

The order to remove it came from court administrators because the 143-year-old Victorian gothic revival style building is valued for its historical significance and must maintain its original character, a spokesperson said.

Metropolitan Police said officers were investigating a complaint that the work was an act of criminal damage.

Banksy’s spokesperson did not immediately return an email seeking comment.

The work appeared Monday and was quickly covered up after Banksy posted a photo of it on Instagram, his usual method of authenticating his work.

The artist, who has never publicly revealed his identity, is known for criticizing government policy on migration and war.

While the artwork didn’t make overt reference to a particular event or cause, some activists saw it as a comment on the U.K. government’s ban on the group Palestine Action, which has been proscribed as a terrorist organization.

On Saturday almost 900 people were arrested at a London protest challenging the ban.

The courthouse is home to the Court of Appeal and High Court, which have both weighed in on Palestine Action’s efforts to appeal the ban. Appellate judges initially rejected the organization’s request to appeal, but a High Court judge then allowed it to go forward, though the government is challenging that decision.

Brian Melley, The Associated Press

El Salvador seizes 1.4 tons of cocaine floating in #Pacific. El Salvador seized packages containing 1.4 tons of cocaine floating in the Pacific Ocean, President Nayib Bukele said Tuesday, calling it a strike “against international drug trafficking.”

The shipment was found approximately 1,600 kilometres (1,000 miles) southwest of El Cordoncillo at the mouth of the Jaltepeque estuary on El Salvador’s Pacific coast, he said.

The seizure comes as U.S. President Donald Trump has declared war on Latin American drug traffickers and declared cartels “terrorist” organizations.

International criminal cartels use Central America as a gateway for drug trafficking, especially cocaine, to the United States.

Trump has sent several warships towards Venezuela, accusing the government of being part of the drug trade, and ordered a missile strike on a suspected drug boat, killing 11 people.

The Salvadoran president said the floating packages were valued at US$35 million.

Between 2024 and 2025, El Salvador seized 37.2 tons of cocaine with an estimated value of US$932.4 million, Bukele added.

The US embassy in El Salvador praised the operation, emphasizing that “each successful action against criminal networks shows that there is a growing synchrony between partners with common goals.”

Washington estimates that 90 per cent of cocaine reaching the United States passes through Mexico and Central America via small planes, boats, and mini-submarines.

Three former agency leaders accuse director of politicizing #FBI. Three former senior FBI agents who were abruptly fired in August accused its director, Kash Patel, of politicizing the agency to please his superiors including U.S. President Donald Trump, in a lawsuit filed on Wednesday.

Among them is Brian Driscoll, who served as the acting FBI director during the first month of Trump’s second term, until Patel -- a close associate of the president -- took over.

The three men, with a combined 60 years of law enforcement experience, described their Aug. 8 dismissal by Patel as “illegal” and demand to be reinstated, according to the lawsuit.

They say they were punished “for their refusals to politicize the FBI,” notably by opposing the dismissal of agents whose sole offense was being considered insufficiently aligned with the priorities of the new administration, or being publicly criticized by Trump supporters.

The FBI declined to comment when contacted by AFP.

During a meeting on Aug. 5 between Driscoll and Patel, the latter said that in order to keep his job, he had to fire everyone who had worked on criminal cases against Trump, the lawsuit says.

“The FBI tried to put the President in jail and he hasn’t forgotten it,” Patel said, according to the suit.

Trump has repeatedly blamed the criminal proceedings against him on the alleged weaponization of the Justice Department by his Democratic predecessor Joe Biden’s administration.

“Our predecessors turned the Department of Justice into the Department of Injustice,” Trump said during a speech at the department earlier this year. “I stand before you today to declare that those days are over, and they are never going to come back.”

President Cyril Ramaphosa and Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen face a formal complaint by the MK Party, alleging serious ethical misconduct during their official visit to the White House in May.

#Canada sending $2.6M in humanitarian, refugee aid after months of Pakistan flooding.

Pakistan has been grappling since June with floods and heavy monsoon rains that have affected roughly four million people and killed more than 900.

Randeep Sarai, secretary of state for international development, says Canada is sending $2 million to the UN Refugee Agency in Pakistan, which primarily supports Afghan refugees but has also been providing emergency relief.

He says $350,000 will be sent to Save the Children Canada to provide emergency shelter, water and hygiene services.

The remaining $250,000 will support the Pakistan Red Crescent Society’s relief work.

Pakistan has experienced a rise in large-scale natural disasters that environmental experts have linked to climate change, including floods in 2022 that led Canada to announce $58 million in aid.

More than 60 containers fall off ship in Long Beach port. LOS ANGELES — More than 60 containers toppled off a cargo ship Tuesday morning in the Port of Long Beach, tumbling overboard and floating in the water.

The shipping containers fell off a vessel named the Mississippi shortly before 9 a.m., and no injuries have been reported, according to Port of Long Beach spokesperson Art Marroquin.

About 67 containers were in the water, the U.S. Coast Guard said on the social platform X.

Long Beach, about 20 miles (32 kilometres) south of Los Angeles, is one of the busiest seaports in the country, with 40% of all shipping containers in the United States coming through it or the Los Angeles port.

Some of the containers appeared to have fallen on the STAX 2, an anti-pollution vessel attached to the side of the Mississippi that captures emissions. When empty, a container can weigh between two to four metric tons (2.2 to 4.4 tons) depending on the size.

The Pier G container terminal, one of six at the port, temporarily stopped unloading and loading ships as authorities worked to secure the containers.

The Mississippi sails under the flag of Portugal and arrived in Long Beach after departing Aug. 26 from the Yantian port in Shenzhen, China, according to vessel #tracking websites.

Jaimie Ding, The Associated Press

#Syria has “strongly condemned” Israeli attacks on several sites in and around Homs city in the west of the country and around the coastal city of Latakia.

Kim Jong Un oversees test of new rocket engine for #ICBMs, North Korea says.

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea said Tuesday that leader Kim Jong Un supervised a test of a new rocket engine designed for intercontinental ballistic missiles, the latest step in his effort to build an arsenal that poses a viable threat to the continental United States.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said Monday’s event marked the ninth and final ground test of the solid-fuel rocket engine built with carbon fiber and capable of producing 1,971 kilonewtons of thrust, more powerful than past models. The report came a week after Kim visited the research institute that developed the engine, which North Korea then said will be used for future ICBMs, including a system called Hwasong-20.

North Korea in recent years has flight-tested a variety of ICBMs that demonstrated potential range to reach the U.S. mainland, including those with built-in solid propellants that are easier to move and conceal and can be prepared for launch more quickly than the North’s previous liquid-fuel missiles.

Kim has called for further advancements in North Korea’s long-range weapons, including the development of multi-warhead systems that would improve their chances of defeating missile defenses. All of North Korea’s ICBM tests so far have been conducted at steeper-than-normal trajectories to avoid neighboring territories, and experts say the country may not yet have perfected the technology needed to ensure its warheads survive the harsh conditions of atmospheric re-entry.

KCNA said Kim expressed satisfaction after Monday’s test, calling the “eye-opening” development of the new rocket engine a “significant change” in his effort to expand North Korea’s nuclear forces.

Kim has stepped up testing activities since the collapse of nuclear talks with the U.S. in 2019 under President Donald Trump ’s first term, demonstrating weapons of various ranges designed to strike U.S. allies in Asia and the U.S. mainland. Analysts say Kim’s nuclear push is aimed at eventually pressuring Washington to accept the idea of the North as a nuclear power and to negotiate economic and security concessions from a position of strength.

Kim is also trying to bolster his leverage by strengthening his cooperation with traditional allies Russia and China, in an emerging partnership aimed at undercutting U.S. influence.

Kim has sent thousands of troops and large quantities of military equipment to Russia to help fuel President Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine. He visited Beijing last week, sharing the spotlight with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Putin at a massive military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and China’s fight against Japanese aggression. Experts say Kim’s rare foreign trip was likely intended to boost his leverage ahead of a potential resumption of talks with the United States.

In a separate report, #KCNA said Xi sent a letter to Kim on North Korea’s founding anniversary, which fell on Tuesday, and called for strengthened “strategic communication” between the countries.

Kim Tong-hyung, The Associated Press

VIDEO: Suspects accused of US$60,000 wedding gift theft arrested. The two men alleged to have stolen about $60,000 in wedding gifts in Glendale last week have been arrested, according to authorities.

The Glendale Police Department announced the arrests on Saturday morning, following an investigation lasting about a week. Video surfaced on Sept. 1 from the wedding of Nadeen and George Farahat, where, as guests were celebrating and dancing, a man could be seen grabbing a box and running away from the reception area.

That box, which the couple says was locked and secured, contained about $60,000 in cash and checks made out to the newlyweds.

Now, police say they found the man who did it, and his getaway driver.

Armean Shirehjini was arrested at his Sherman Oaks home on Friday afternoon while authorities executed a search warrant at his home, Glendale police said. He’s the primary suspect in the theft, while another man, alleged getaway driver Andranik Avetisyan, was also arrested. Neither has a criminal history, police said.

During the execution of search warrants at each of their homes, police found large amounts of cash and checks made out to the Farahats. Authorities also seized firearms and narcotics, they said.

“When we did arrest these males, they were found with several guns, lots of narcotics,” said GPD Sergeant Jose Barajas. “Not good guys from what it seems. So, we’re happy to take them off the street.”

Police also said that they found an all black outfit similar to what one of the suspects wore at the Farahats wedding while stealing the gift box.

The investigation remains ongoing, police said. The exact nature of their potential charges remains unclear.

They said they’re unsure of any connection between the suspects and the victims.

“We don’t know of any connection. We don’t know if the couple was specifically targeted,” Barajas said. “Like I said there’s various banquet halls throughout Glendale, weddings every single weekend. So they could’ve just looked at the venue itself and picked that one and this just happened to be the couple that was picked.”

No additional details were immediately made available as investigators continue searching for a motive in the crime.

The Farahat Family shared a statement with CBS News Los Angeles after they learned of the arrests.

“While this incident was deeply upsetting, we are grateful that is has brought out the kindness and solidarity of the entire community,” the statement said. “This was meant to be one of the happiest days of our lives, and despite what happened, we continue to hold on to the joy of celebrating with our loved ones.”

Last #Colombian soldiers freed from guerrilla-controlled zone. The remaining 45 soldiers from a group detained in guerrilla-controlled southwestern Colombia were freed on Monday, a Defense Ministry spokesman told AFP.

The troops had been seized Sunday while on an operation in the Cauca region, a drug-producing hotspot and bastion of a renegade faction of the defunct FARC guerrilla army. An initial batch of 27 were freed Sunday.

Colombian soldiers and police officers are often detained in areas controlled by armed groups.

According to the government, such detentions are often carried out by locals acting on the orders of armed groups in areas where there is little state presence.

In June, 57 soldiers were detained in the same region before being released days later following military intervention.

In late August, 33 soldiers were held captive for three days in a southeastern rural community, home to leftist guerrillas.

Colombia has been enduring rising violence from dissident groups who rejected a 2016 peace agreement with FARC after a six-decade insurgency.