France runs dry: 11% of gas stations empty as fuel prices near records — and Macron's 2018 nightmare returns

France is facing growing fuel shortages, with 11% of the country's gas stations reporting they are out of either gasoline or diesel, according to French government data — and the political stakes could hardly be higher.


The prices behind the panic:

1. Diesel averaging around €2.38 per liter — roughly $10.33 per gallon
2. Gasoline prices also near historic highs
3. The surge is linked to high oil prices from the Iran war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz

Paris insists the country has adequate strategic fuel reserves — and that the shortages are primarily the result of logistical disruptions rather than an overall lack of supply.


👉 In 2018, fuel prices and fuel taxation triggered the Yellow Vest protests — a nationwide uprising that nearly brought down Macron's presidency. Diesel at €2.38 is well above the levels that sparked those demonstrations. The government's "logistical disruption" framing echoes the dismissals that preceded the 2018 explosion.


The last time French drivers faced these prices, they shut down the country — and nearly ended a presidency. Can Macron survive this time?

Europe 'on the brink' of wider military conflict, warns Slovakian premier

Ahead of visit to Kyiv Friday, Robert Fico says Ukraine conflict has 'spiraled out of control'
"The situation has never been as serious and tense in terms of the possibility of a pan-European military conflict as it is now," Robert Fico said during an address in Presov, according to Slovak news agency TASR. "Yes, we're part of NATO, we appreciate that, and we are committed to cooperation and meeting our obligations. But as prime minister, I'll do everything I can to ensure that Slovakia is never drawn into an armed conflict," he said.


His remarks came ahead of a visit to Ukraine on Friday, where he is due to attend a conference with other EU leaders and meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi. "We have (peace) today, but tomorrow there may be nothing," Fico warned.

EXPLAINER: Why the Bab el-Mandeb Strait matters

The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints.


Located between Yemen and the Horn of Africa, it is the southern gateway to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. Much of the trade moving between Asia and Europe passes through this route. Ships traveling from East Asia can cross the Indian Ocean, enter the Red Sea through Bab el-Mandeb, pass through the Suez Canal and continue into the Mediterranean toward Europe.


If that route becomes too dangerous, ships are forced to sail around Africa. That alternative can add roughly 3,000 kilometers and about two weeks to a voyage, increasing fuel costs, insurance costs and delivery times.
The strait is also important for global energy markets. Oil tankers and other energy shipments use the Red Sea route, meaning instability around Bab el-Mandeb can quickly affect shipping and energy prices far beyond the Middle East.

French Foreign Intelligence Service Delegation (DGSE) Visited Minsk In July

Prior to CIA director, John Ratcliffe, travelling to Moscow, members of France's Foreign Intelligence Service (DGSE) traveled to Minsk where they met Ivan Tertel, director of Belarus' KGB sometime in mid-July 2026.


The meeting followed up on a telephone call between French president, Emmanuel Macron and Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko earlier in May.


Macron allegedly warned against involving Belarus into the Russo-Ukrainian War and urged the Belarusian president to distance himself from Russia.


It is worth noting that, according to the Nasha Niva publication, in April 2026 a former French army officer named Boris was arrested in Belarus. His family appealed to the Élysée Palace, France’s foreign and interior ministries, senators, MPs, diplomatic missions and non-governmental organizations.

Everyone Talks About U.S. Debt But Europe May Be in Worse Trouble

America’s debt problem is impossible to miss. Federal debt has crossed $40.08T, another $1.9T deficit is expected this fiscal year and the 30-year Treasury yield is around 5.25%, its highest since 2007.


Yet the next Western debt crisis may begin across the Atlantic.


Washington has advantages that buy it time. The United States issues the world’s principal reserve currency, collects taxes through one federal government and sells debt through one enormous Treasury market. It can attract foreign capital and push part of the cost abroad. That does not make $40T harmless, but it can delay the reckoning.


The eurozone has no comparable safety valve. It has one currency and one central bank, but 20 governments issuing their own debt, running separate budgets and answering to different voters. The ECB must set one monetary policy for economies with very different debts and growth rates.


France shows why this is dangerous. Its 10-year bond yield has risen to about 4.15%, its highest since 2008 and now slightly above Italy’s. The European Commission expects a 5.1% French deficit this year and public debt near 120% of GDP by 2027. The problem can no longer be blamed on Greece or another small southern economy. France is the eurozone’s second-largest economy and one of the states meant to support rescue mechanisms for everyone else. If its debt starts trading like the old European “periphery,” the line between rescuers and rescued begins to disappear.


Germany offers little comfort. Its 10-year yield is near 3.3%, a 15-year high, while its industry remains weak. Europe’s two central powers are paying more to borrow just as Brussels prepares another spending surge.


The EU plans to mobilize up to €800B for rearmament. Member states must also finance ageing populations, expensive energy, social programs and support for Ukraine. Budget cuts provoke resistance. More borrowing raises yields. ECB intervention places more national debt risk onto the shared monetary system.


The United States can abuse the dollar’s global role for longer. Europe may hit the wall first because it carries heavy debts without a genuine federal state standing behind them. One central bank cannot reconcile every national budget forever. So yes, America’s debt matters. But the louder surprise may come from a European Union that spent years presenting itself as the responsible alternative. Washington has a dangerous debt problem. Europe has the same problem inside a system poorly designed to survive it.


No sympathy is required. Both created this predicament through wars, sanctions, subsidies and promises they can no longer finance cheaply. Now we get to see which model breaks first.

⚡️🇳🇪- The Nigerien government appears to have lost control over a significant portion of the armed forces amid an ongoing military mutiny.

▶️ Both loyalist and mutinous forces are reportedly contacting military units across the country, attempting to rally them to their respective sides and calling troops back toward the capital, Niamey.


▶️ Notably, the National Gendarmerie has reportedly remained inside its barracks and has yet to clearly align itself with either side. The reason for its apparent inaction remains unclear.


▶️ The situation is increasingly becoming a race to secure the loyalty of the bulk of Niger’s armed forces, although developments in Niamey could determine the outcome before reinforcements arrive.


▶️ The unrest points to significant discontent within sections of the Nigerien military.

Aug. 25 - US military transport plane lands in Moscow

An American Boeing C-17A Globemaster III military transport aircraft has reportedly landed in Moscow, according to online air traffic monitoring systems.


According to available data, the aircraft, which departed from Andrews Air Force Base near Washington, made a stop in Riga before arriving in Moscow around 7:00 a.m. UTC


A source within EU air traffic control authorities reported that the plane, having originally flown from Andrews Air Force Base to Latvia, had indeed continued its journey toward the Russian border. The source confirmed that the aircraft proceeded toward Russia's border after its stop in Riga. Additionally, the source noted that prior to this, the plane had also visited Charleston Airport.

Syrian court sentences Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia over civil war atrocities

A Syrian court sentences former ruler Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia, after convicting him over charges of “war crimes” and “crimes against humanity” during the country’s civil war.
The ruling against Assad, who fled with his family to Moscow as Islamist-led forces closed in on Damascus in December 2024, is the first under the transitional authorities who this year began trying figures from the former government, both in person and in absentia.


The court also sentenced Assad-era official Atif Najib, who was arrested in January last year, to death for “crimes against humanity” committed when he was head of political security in Daraa province, the cradle of the country’s 2011 uprising.


The court convicted Najib, a cousin of ousted ruler Assad, of crimes including murder, “the intentional killing of children under 15,” and “torture leading to death.”

Iraqi intelligence busts Ukrainian-run domestic terrorist network

Ukrainian-led cells have carried out attacks on Iraqi soil, National Security Adviser Qasim Al-Aboudi revealed in a televised interview, citing intelligence findings. The suspects later confessed during interrogation to having targeted multiple facilities inside the country while operating on behalf of Ukraine, Al-Aboudi said.


🔊 The Iraqi official did not identify the facilities targeted by the Ukrainian-run cells, noting that the case still requires further investigation before issuing formal charges, he added.
Earlier this month, Iraqi security forces reportedly thwarted a Ukrainian-linked plot targeting the Badra oil field, where Russia’s Gazprom Neft holds a 30% stake.


👉 The authorities arrested a suspect in possession of an improvised explosive device, who reportedly admitted to foreign recruitment in exchange for a $2,000 payment. Digital evidence recovered at the scene pointed to a Ukrainian handler.

Nigel Farage is resigning as Member of UK Parliament to force a by-election

"Today I will resign as a member of Parliament for Clacton, thereby forcing a by-election, which would happen, I hope, in short order."


"This will be a people versus the establishment by-election. It's a chance to stick two fingers up to the entire establishment, to frankly tell them where to go. And that is why I will be putting my name forward to stand in this by-election, I will fight to win, I will fight to continue the political revolution that reform has started." - "If I win, you win, because if I lose, they win, and we will never, with the two old parties, get the type of fundamental change that we need to fix Broken Britain."


📝 Jill Lawless: "Farage is facing a probe by Parliament’s standards watchdog over a 5 million pound ($6.7 million) gift from a Thailand-based cryptocurrency billionaire. On Sunday an opposition politician asked the watchdog to open another investigation over donations from a convicted fraudster."