In response to an overwhelming surge of migrants crossing into Ceuta from Morocco, Spain is deploying its military forces to this North African enclave. The move comes in light of a tragic incident where at least nine people lost their lives during the dangerous crossings, leading to a heightened security initiative.

The Spanish government has announced that the Armed Forces will bolster the efforts of the Civil Guard to regain control in Ceuta, as the local administration struggles to manage the influx. Both Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska are slated to travel to Ceuta, highlighting Madrid’s urgent response to this escalating situation.

This influx represents one of the most significant waves of migrants since 2021, a time when over 8,000 individuals crossed into the Spanish territory over just two days, straining diplomatic relations between Spain and Morocco.

“The chaos is unimaginable,” remarked Rachid Sbihi, the leader of an organization representing Civil Guard officers in Ceuta, in a conversation with The Associated Press. “Precise numbers are elusive, but we’re witnessing thousands making the crossing.”

Spain’s government delegation in Ceuta said at least nine people died Thursday, though officials did not immediately explain the circumstances. According to the AP, bodies were seen floating in the water as rescue and security operations continued.

Video from the area showed large groups of migrants entering Ceuta through the Tarajal border area, with many arriving by swimming around coastal barriers separating Morocco from Spanish territory. Most appeared to be young men, though families with women and children were also among those crossing.

Spanish authorities said Morocco is cooperating with efforts to regain control of the border. Spain’s Interior Ministry said Moroccan police have intercepted numerous migrants attempting to cross and that both governments are working to return those who entered the territory illegally as quickly as possible.

Authorities have not identified a single cause for the sudden surge, though Ceuta officials have pointed to a recent Spanish Supreme Court ruling that limits the immediate return of migrants who arrive by sea without due process. Some migration advocates, however, questioned whether the ruling alone could explain the dramatic increase, arguing many migrants would likely have been unaware of the decision.

The crisis has reverberated beyond Spain. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni threatened to suspend Italy’s participation in the Schengen open-border agreement with Spain, saying the move would be necessary “to defend our borders and ensure the safety of our citizens.”

Ceuta, a small Spanish territory on Morocco’s Mediterranean coast, has long been one of Europe’s most active migration flashpoints. 

Migrants from across Africa regularly attempt to reach the enclave by swimming from Morocco or scaling the heavily fortified border fence in hopes of gaining entry into the European Union.

Spain’s Interior Ministry said nearly 3,000 migrants had entered Ceuta by land or sea this year through mid-July, before this week’s crossings dramatically increased those figures.

News Media has reached out to Spain’s Embassy in Washington, the Department of Homeland Security, the Center for Immigration Studies and the Migration Policy Institute for comment.

In a twist worthy of ancient Greek drama, a book on Greek antiquities has made its way back to an Australian public library an astounding 150 years past its due date. The tome, bearing scars from its years entombed within a bricked fireplace, was discovered water-damaged but fascinating.

The surprise return unfolded in the charming coastal town of Kiama. Local resident Ross Simmons stumbled upon the relic while renovating his home. Nestled within a tea crate that was part of a sealed-off fireplace, the book’s unlikely journey came to an end. This unexpected find was promptly returned to the Kiama Library, according to library manager Michelle Hudson.

“We’ve never witnessed anything quite this old being returned,” Hudson remarked on Thursday, her voice tinged with amazement.

Hudson noted that libraries often receive returns of items decades old when estates are cleared out, pointing out, “Usually, it’s something like 30 or 40 years overdue, but this is a whole other level.”

Ross Simmons shared with The Associated Press on Friday that he suspects the book might have been borrowed by his great-great-grandfather, John Simmons, who originally owned the house. This literary mystery adds a personal chapter to their family history.

“I’m making an assumption. He was in residence in the cottage around about that time and his children were probably too young,” Ross Simmons said.

The library opened in 1872, and the book, “Antiquities of Athens,” published in 1858, was marked as No. 506 in the library’s original collection of around 1,000 books. Hudson suspects the book was lost within a few years of the library opening.

The late return fine would be around 28,000 Australian dollars ($19,500), allowing for inflation, Hudson said. That was calculated on the British three pence-a-week overdue fee that was printed on the inside cover of the book, along with a list of rules that applied when the library opened.

But Hudson said the library’s records of borrowers in the 1870s had been lost. “Unfortunately, we have a missing link. There’s nothing in the book that tells us who the last borrower was,” Hudson said.

Library rules in the 1870s stated that a book had to be returned and an overdue debt paid before another book could be borrowed. “Maybe that’s why they never returned it to us,” Hudson said.

Antiquated rules of the day included that up to three books could be borrowed by households in which at least six members were “known to be able to read.” Proof of reading ability is no longer required to use today’s library.

In the 1870s, books were not lent to people who arrived at the library in a “state of intoxication.” Library users are now asked to leave if their behavior impacts others, but the rules are not specific about intoxication.

Ross Simmons said he had no idea why his English immigrant ancestor, who had also served as an alderman in Kiama’s municipal government, would not have returned the book.

He said he hadn’t been concerned by the prosect of being held liable by an angry librarian for his family’s debt.

“I’ve spent a lifetime dealing with irate customers and being irate with customers himself. Just stick to your guns and say do your worst,” the 77-year-old said.

The returned book will be displayed in the library’s local history collection.

“We’re not going to allow it to go back out again. We don’t want to wait another 150 years for this book to be returned,” Hudson said.

In a dramatic turn of events for the entertainment industry, a film producer has launched a $105 million lawsuit against Netflix. The legal action claims the streaming giant lost a hard drive containing a copy of an unreleased Nicolas Cage film, significantly hindering the producer’s ability to sell the movie.

Simon Afram, along with his company Op-Fortitude, detailed these allegations in a legal complaint filed last Thursday in California. As reported by the Daily Mail, Afram asserts that the hard drive, holding an unencrypted master version of the movie “Fortitude,” mysteriously vanished post-delivery to Netflix’s facilities.

The lawsuit outlines Netflix’s initial interest in reviewing the film, which was first expressed in December 2025 following the receipt of promotional materials. Amer’s legal team notes that the streaming service had requested a master copy of the film, devoid of encryption, by June of this year.

According to Afram’s claims, associate producer Daniel Haido personally delivered the unencrypted master copy of “Fortitude” to Netflix’s Los Angeles office on June 15, intending it purely for evaluation purposes.

The court document further explains that Netflix officials were given strict instructions to “ensure that it is deleted after the screening,” stipulating the handling protocol for the film’s sensitive content.

The Daily Mail has reached out to representatives for Netflix and Afram’s attorneys for comment. 

A spokesperson for Netflix told the Daily Mail in a statement on Thursday: ‘Netflix disputes any claim that it bears the risk of loss for a film delivered without the proper industry-standard safeguards.

‘While we do not own the rights to Fortitude, we take content security seriously and have taken extra measures to support the filmmaker and his team. This includes conducting a thorough investigation and offering to monitor known piracy sites for any unauthorized distribution or sale.’

In a June 25 email, a Netflix executive allegedly informed Haido that the hard drive containing the movie had disappeared after ‘someone stole a good amount of drives from our office desks this past week,’ according to the filing. 

Afram’s legal team said in the filing that ‘the film’s value depended in significant part on its exclusivity as an unreleased, first-to-market work,’ and ‘by losing control . . . Netflix destroyed that exclusivity and materially, if not completely, impaired the film’s marketability.

‘It is not fathomable that a sophisticated buyer would invest tens of millions of dollars to acquire the film – and tens of millions more to market it – while facing the constant risk that it could appear online to be viewed widely for free at any time,’ the complaint added.

Sources at Netflix told the Daily Mail that ‘it is standard practice for these films to be shared either via a secure password-protected link, or as a Digital Cinema Package (DCP) that is secured with what is known as a Key Delivery Message (KDM).’

‘These measures limit access and protect against unauthorized use or loss,’ they continued. ‘Unfortunately, the Fortitude producers elected to share an unencrypted DCP with us for screening.’

Lawyers for Afram claimed in the legal complaint that he had been operating in accordance with instructions from the streamer, as Netflix allegedly wrote, ‘If the DCP is encrypted, please have the keys open from the time the asset lands through EOD on 6/16.’

Netflix sources said that upon learning ‘that the DCP was missing,’ the company ‘notified appropriate parties including our internal security team and the Fortitude team.’

In the complaint, Afram said that the motion picture cost $45 million and took more than seven years to put together.

The movie’s storyline is inspired by a World War II mission conducted by Allied forces, Operation Fortitude, which involved ‘double agents in cooperation with the British Army and Allied Nations who set a trap against Adolf Hitler and his army,’ according to the court filing.

Fortitude, which was directed by Simon West, also stars Oscar winner Sir Ben Kingsley, Ron Perlman, Matthew Goode, Michael Sheen, Art Malik, Jordi Mollà, and Lukas Haas.

The man convicted for the brutal attack on author Salman Rushdie during an event in western New York has been found guilty of attempting to execute a decades-old fatwa issued by Iran’s government. The attack on the esteemed British author serves as a chilling reminder of the enduring shadow cast by this fatwa.

Hadi Matar, 28, was already serving a 25-year prison term after being convicted of attempted murder last year for his 2022 knife assault. This vicious incident left Rushdie severely injured, resulting in blindness in one eye and significant nerve damage.

A swift verdict from a federal jury in Buffalo on Wednesday concluded that Matar was guilty of all charges. The charges include attempting to offer material support to the Iran-affiliated Hezbollah, committing an act of international terrorism, and providing material assistance to terrorists, as reported by Reuters.

Matar now faces the potential of a life sentence, with sentencing scheduled for November 3, marking a significant conclusion to this high-profile case.

Federal prosecutors argued that Matar had been enraged by Rushdie’s 1988 novel “The Satanic Verses,” which portrayed a fictionalized version of Muhammad that many Muslims saw as blasphemous.

A year later, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa, or a religious edict, urging Muslims across the world to kill Rushdie. Iran’s government later backed away from the fatwa, only for Khomeini’s successor, Ali Khamenei, to reaffirm it in 2017, Reuters reported, citing the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors said Matar, who was born in the U.S. but has Lebanese citizenship, spent more than a year studying the fatwa before attempting to fulfill it. He had also turned to Islam after a visit to the Middle East years before the eventual attack.

On August 12, 2022, Rushdie was speaking at the Chautauqua Institution in Mayville, New York, when Matar rushed onstage and repeatedly stabbed the Indian-born author in the head, neck, torso and left hand.

Matar’s federal trial weighed whether he had committed an act of terrorism by attacking Rushdie.

Although prosecutors acknowledged that Matar never contacted anyone in Hezbollah, they argued that without the fatwa, he never would have been motivated to try to kill Rushdie, The New York Times reported.

Prosecutors presented Matar’s notes to the jury, which referenced “Jihad” and the “need to kill him ASAP,” according to the Times.

Matar’s defense attorney, Nathaniel L. Barone II, argued that his client acted independently and was not being controlled by Hezbollah.

Prosecutors countered by showing evidence of Matar’s devotion to Hezbollah, which included a photo of him wearing a Hezbollah shirt while making a salute, an essay he wrote that praised the terrorist group and a video he created using remarks from a former leader of Hezbollah, the Times reported.

Timothy Lynch, a federal prosecutor, said in his closing statement that Matar “wanted to be forever revered as a Hezbollah martyr,” according to the Times.

Rushdie, who testified at the trial, has previously described the attack as something that took him back to the “distant past,” when he spent a decade in hiding after the fatwa was issued.

“I saw the man in black running towards me, down the right-hand side of the seating area: black clothes, black face mask – he was coming in hard and low, a squat missile,” Rushdie told “60 Minutes” host Anderson Cooper in April 2024. “I confess, I had sometimes imagined my assassin rising up in some public forum or other and coming for me in this way.”

In a tragic attempt to reach safety, at least 18 migrants have lost their lives trying to enter Ceuta, a Spanish territory adjacent to Morocco. This incident prompted a military response from Spain after an unprecedented number of people breached the border and flooded the small exclave.

Amidst the turmoil, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is set to visit Ceuta alongside Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska, with their arrival anticipated on Friday morning.

Describing the harrowing scene, Rachid Sbihi, head of a local worker’s association for Civil Guard officers, termed the situation as a “serious humanitarian crisis.”

“Even now, migrants continue to cross the border,” he commented, noting that the reinforcements currently present are focused on aiding the injured and handling other humanitarian tasks.

With no proper refuge, countless migrants, including many children without parental guidance, are left to fend for themselves. Many were seen sleeping on sidewalks and in parks, while others wandered the streets, displaying the chaotic nature of the crisis, he explained.

Among the 18 who died, many drowned but some were also killed in the stampede to cross the breakwater fence at Tarajal beach, Sbihi said.

Video footage on Thursday showed crowds of people, mainly Moroccans, walking around the breakwaters at Tarajal beach onto local roads.

While most appeared to be young men, there were also families with women and small children.

“Viva España!” some shouted to a freelance photographer working for the AP.

It was not immediately clear what prompted so many migrants to cross to Ceuta.

Amid controversy, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is championing a new law aimed at enhancing transparency in food delivery services. This initiative is stirring debate as critics warn it could lead to increased food prices due to its demand that delivery platforms cease concealing tipping options for couriers.

This legislative push follows a directive established by Mamdani’s administration, which is seeking to enforce a measure passed last year under his Democratic predecessor, Eric Adams, who did not finalize it with his signature.

Allegations against UberEats and DoorDash by the city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) cite these companies for obscuring tipping buttons and setting a default tip at a mere 10 percent.

Mayor Mamdani has asserted that such practices have dramatically reduced the gratuities earned by delivery workers, slashing tips by as much as 79 percent.

Emphasizing the impact of the new policy, he highlighted that within just the first half of this year, the reform has returned $104 million to the pockets of delivery workforce members.

He added: ‘This is only the beginning.’

Many online saw this as not just Mamdani embracing the excesses of the left but abandoning his so-called affordability agenda.

‘Is Zohran Mamdani really bragging about making Uber Eats and DoorDash more expensive for New Yorkers? I guess his “affordability” agenda doesn’t extend to New Yorkers who order in take out,’ wrote one critic. 

Columnist Jonathan Levine added: ‘All the millionaires and billionaires using UberEats and DoorDash now going to pay more! Hurray!’

‘Great idea! Everyone loves being forced by apps to pay higher tips. This will definitely boost Mamdani’s approval ratings,’ added entrepreneur Rajat Suri.

‘Maybe DoorDash and UberEats can insert a “compelled by Mayor Mamdani” tooltip into the tip section to fairly attribute this brainwave.’

One critic slammed Mamdani for bloviating over a law that he had nothing to do with passing.

‘Hey Zohran Mamdani: Nice try! You even take credit for laws you didn’t pass. The NYC Council enacted these delivery-app laws in 2025 before you became mayor. Customers still aren’t required to tip and they can leave $0 if they choose,’ wrote Sam E. Antar. 

‘Apparently rewriting history is easier than writing legislation.’ 

Mamdani did respond to claims he was stealing credit from Adams for the law in a statement to Fox News.  

‘A law is only as good as its implementation,’ a spokesperson said. 

‘We have been intentional about enforcing the laws on the books so that we are putting money back into the pockets of working New Yorkers.’ 

Technically, the rules were finally put into practice on January 26, weeks after Mamdani took office. 

The city argues that the law was necessary after DoorDash and Uber Eats hid tipping menus when the city enacted a minimum wage law for delivery workers.  

‘DCWP estimates those changes cost workers an estimated $550 million in tips,’ the city claimed.

Apps can now offer 10 percent, a custom tip or the option to leave none. 

The city said that in the four weeks before the law was implemented, delivery workers were earning an average of $1.18 per delivery.

That increased to $2.29 per delivery, nearly double, in the four weeks after the law was implemented. 

They also claimed that the new law had ‘no measurable impact’ on the number of orders placed via the apps. 

The minimum wage law and the tipping laws have allegedly increased earnings for delivery workers by $2billion in the past three years.   

‘We changed the law, enforced it, and it’s working: $104 million has gone back into the pockets of the workers who keep this city fed, rain or shine. New York will not allow billion-dollar tech companies to boost their profits by taking money from working people,’ Mamdani added. 

Mamdani’s first year has seen mixed results, as his initial friendship with President Donald Trump has faded amid the mayor’s criticisms of Israel and threats to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

A poll released Thursday by CNN showed 30 percent of the country viewing Mamdani favorably, as opposed to 35 percent unfavorable.

While that was an overall negative, it was still a better approval rating than many Democrat and Republican lawmakers, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Mike Johnson and Chuck Schumer.