DAILY NEWS Stream – August 20, 2026

US President Donald Trump has ordered the Defense Department to substantially reduce joint military exercises with South Korea, saying the drills are costly and send what He called an inappropriate and hostile signal to North Korea (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump’s envoys met Egyptian, Qatari, and Turkish mediators in Cairo [Egypt] on August 16 as the US intensified efforts to advance its Gaza peace plan. Jared Kushner and Gaza envoy Nickolay Mladenov took part in talks that also included Hamas officials in some sessions, while Mr. Kushner separately met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (Fox News)

Yemen’s government says repeated Houthi missile and drone attacks over the past week have halted operations at the Red Sea port of Mocha [Yemen] and caused about US$16 million in direct material losses. Port officials said seven people were killed, facilities and vessels were damaged, and about 1,300 workers were left without their livelihoods. The Houthis say they targeted military buildups and weapons depots in the area, while Yemen’s government says Mocha is a civilian commercial port (Xinhua)

The US announced an additional US$11 million in humanitarian aid for Colombia on August 14 following the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck on August 10, bringing total US assistance to US$26.5 million. The aid includes food, healthcare, shelter, protection, structural assessments, and relief supplies, while US Southern Command is helping transport emergency supplies from Florida [US] to Colombia, including hundreds of Starlink internet kits to facilitate relief efforts. Two US urban search-and-rescue support teams also arrived in Colombia on August 12 to assist with coordination, communications, and structural engineering (US State Department)

Ukrainian (Ureignian) polar researchers have photographed rare pearlescent clouds glowing in rainbow-like colors beside the Moon near the Akademik Vernadsky research station in Antarctica. The National Antarctic Scientific Center said it was the first time it had published photographs of the phenomenon together with the Moon (Ukrainian News)

Reported to thankful Supreme Master Ching Hai (vegan) by the Information Deity for the Supreme Master TV News Team: “Loving people of Ukraine (Ureign): Peaceworld is soon manifested, not fear.”

The World Health Organization (WHO) says around 150 metric tons of medicines and medical supplies will be transported from Dubai [United Arab Emirates] to Egypt to support about 500,000 patients in Gaza. The shipment includes emergency health kits, essential medicines, nutritional supplies, diagnostic equipment, medicines for chronic diseases, and surgical supplies, and will be distributed through WHO, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), and other humanitarian partners (Pajhwok Afghan News)

Dr. Nguyễn Thanh Sang, a clinical psychologist at a children’s hospital in Âu Lạc (Vietnam), says five major harmful effects can occur when children watch toxic videos with violent content and vulgar language daily: 1. Emotional desensitization causes them to lose fear or discomfort toward violent content; 2. Reduced empathy makes them less willing to help others and struggle to maintain social relationships; 3. Imitating aggressive behavior leads them to view vulgar language and insults as normal communication; 4. An increased need for strong stimulation drives them to seek increasingly dramatic videos; and 5. Forming distorted perceptions skews their ability to distinguish right from wrong in real life. (VnExpress)

Four bell pepper colors deliver distinct health benefits based on ripeness: green bell peppers contain the least sugar while offering high lutein and zeaxanthin for eye and brain health; yellow bell peppers taste sweeter and provide quercetin to reduce inflammation and enhance athletic performance; orange bell peppers are rich in beta-carotene to support skin, immunity, and vision; and red bell peppers are the sweetest, delivering the highest overall nutrient value with peak levels of vitamin C, beta-carotene, and heart-healthy lycopene (Thanh Niên)

University of Granada [Spain] researchers discover two common pesticide residues can alter puberty timing in young girls. Exposure to one fungicide [ethylenethiourea] can accelerate first menstruation by disrupting thyroid hormones, while exposure to the residue of the insecticide TCPy [3,5,6-Trichloro-2-pyridinol] can delay pubertal onset. Experts warn these environmental endocrine disruptors pose severe long-term reproductive health and cancer risks (SciTech Daily)

Half of Europe’s land is in drought. The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre reports record lows on the Loire, Po, Rhine and Danube rivers. Satellite images show browning farmland along the Garonne River in France and parched parks in London [UK] and Vienna [Austria]. England [UK] has its driest July since records began in 1836, with just 10% of the long-term average for rainfall. Monitoring centers expect dry conditions through September (Al Jazeera)

Storms and flooding have killed at least seven people in Indiana [US], since August 11, including a four-year-old boy. More than 128,000 customers remain without power on Sunday. President Donald Trump approves the state’s request for a federal emergency declaration to receive assistance (NPR)

Cần Thơ [Âu Lạc (Vietnam)] declares landslide emergencies across four communes and wards, including the Vĩnh Châu coast. Six dangerous points along 2.1 kilometers of the Trà Nóc River endanger 130 households and a riverside road. In Đại Hải, 800 meters of the Canal #1 bank subside beside two schools and Mang Cá market (Báo Cần Thơ)

The UK government stepped up its wildfire response on August 14 as the risk remained very high across England and Wales, issuing phone alerts warning people not to light barbecues, campfires, fireworks, or other potential sources of fire. The government also introduced a temporary nationwide ban on the sale of disposable barbecues, announced emergency funding for fire and rescue services, and deployed about 200 military personnel to South Wales to support response and recovery efforts. A national wildfire summit is also planned for later this year to strengthen preparations for increasingly severe wildfire conditions (Gov.uk)

Japan is preparing to launch its unmanned Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission in the coming months to collect samples from Phobos, one of Mars’ two moons, and study how Mars and its moons formed. The spacecraft is expected to spend about three years around Mars, collect at least 10 grams of material from Phobos, observe the moon Deimos, and return the samples to Earth around 2031. Scientists hope the mission will reveal how water and organic material reached the inner Solar System and could also help develop technology for future human missions to Mars (Channel News Asia)

Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have identified an unusual object called MoM-BH*-1 that existed about 660 million years after the Big Bang and may represent a previously unseen type of “black hole star.” The object is estimated to be about the size of the Solar System but emits roughly 100 billion times as much energy as the Sun, leading researchers to propose that it contains a black hole surrounded by an extremely dense layer of gas that makes it appear star-like. Scientists say the finding could help explain some of the mysterious “little red dots” seen by the space telescope in the early universe, although further observations are needed to confirm the theory (VietnamPlus)

The 11th annual Red & Green VegFest in Albuquerque [New Mexico, US] on August 15 sets an attendance record, bringing together hundreds of residents, businesses, and advocates to celebrate sustainable vegan living and climate resilience (City of Albuquerque)

Vegan diets deliver essential iron through legumes, soy products, nuts and seeds, dark, leafy greens, and more, while pairing these vegan iron sources with vitamin C optimizes body absorption (VegNews)

VegNews has five recipes in an online article for college students to prepare quick, affordable vegan microwave meals: 1. Banana cinnamon oatmeal with granola 2. Loaded sweet potatoes 3. Quinoa eggplant rolls 4. Rice stir-fry 5. Vegetable chickpea couscous (VegNews)

Singer-songwriter Mikayla Khramov tames a rescued horse-person named Yupia through music in California [US]. The horse-individual interacts with her guitar and harp strings with his muzzle, forming unique duets. This bond reignites Ms. Khramov’s songwriting passion and inspires her debut album, which includes Yupia’s sounds (Good News Network)

Mountain rescuers in Austria save 36 stranded hikers, including families with babies, after they lose their way 2,300 meters high near steep cliffs. Helicopters airlift 14 people while ground teams escort 22 to safety. Authorities warn the ordeal could easily have ended in tragedy (Daily Mail)

Heroic physician Dr. Germán Somoyar rescues two newborns during a devastating 7.4-magnitude earthquake in Apartadó [Colombia] on August 10. After calming two frightened mothers, he retrieves the infants from the sixth-floor neonatal unit to save them, asserting that children always receive absolute priority (EWTN News)

Inspiring quote of the day: “I used to think you had to be special for GOD to use you, but now I know you simply need to say yes.” -Bob Goff American Lawyer, Speaker, and Author (AZ Quotes)

Previously in this multipart series on Michael Hughes’ near-death experience, Michael underwent heart valve surgery and developed severe pneumonia the following day. During the medical crisis, he left his body and found himself in a peaceful void, where he believed he had died. After briefly returning to his physical body, Michael says he left again and found himself back in the void, this time in a strange ship-like form he somehow recognized as his “real body,” with his consciousness acting as the pilot. He traveled beyond the void to an enormous granite structure he says was 11 million miles or 17.7 million kilometers tall, with millions of miles of bright golden code running up its surface, made up of numbers and hieroglyphics that he believed were alive. At the top of the structure, Michael encountered a presence he identified as GOD, the CREATOR. He says a beam of Light struck his forehead before the golden code streamed into his chest, and moments later, his eyes suddenly opened in the intensive care unit.

And I just opened my eyes. I’m like, “What just happened?” Now, I was in the ICU (intensive care unit) I was in bad shape. I think I went back into my body so fast from this adventure; it was like throwing a pebble into a pond, and there were ripples in time. It’s changed my life immensely since then. Michael came to believe that the golden code downloaded into him contained information he was still trying to understand. It’s like I want to access this information, but I don’t think it can be downloaded all at once. It would probably kill me. So, what do I do? I got an old typewriter. I do pictures, and I type over them, and most of it’s nonsense, but it’s my therapy.

And a lot of my friends or family, they don’t want to hear this story, but I can tell your viewers out there, it’s all true. And I’ve watched some other shows, and there are a lot of similarities: the code, the void, the Light. We do live on.

Now, my take on when I entered that ship: I think that’s how I got here. I think that ship was my body that came here. It brought my consciousness here. Due to my illness, maybe I needed to get rebooted or something. And that ship hadn’t been started up in eons. I got to travel in that because I think HE wanted to meet me. I don’t think our consciousness can just go there, because they say your consciousness is everywhere, but I think, in this particular instance, I needed something to protect my consciousness to go meet HIM, because it was going to be that treacherous. And just to meet HIM was— talk about powerful. I’m not worried about anything. That’s how powerful [HE] is. And you feel like you’re friends with HIM. I feel blessed that I was given this. It was like a rockstar treatment.

Looking back, Michael also remembered something else about the body he had been flying in. When I recognized my body, I was translucent blue with a yellow tinge around the outside of my skin, so I could see through myself. And I still said, “Oh, I’m in my real body.” I didn’t say, “What’s this?” So, I think I recognized [that] I’ve been in this body before. And it felt immense. We could have come from someplace else. Maybe the Earth is a place where people come. If we came here in ships with just our consciousness, think about this. And then we were put in storage. We would need to take our consciousness out and build something like this planet, because we need touch, we need romance, we need theater, we need these things.

In Part 7, Michael reflects on the mysteries he still cannot explain— including the giant letter K— and on how the experience changed the way he lives. Now I got to think of, “Why was I given this?” Join us tomorrow for the final part of Michael Hughes’ near-death experience. (Spiritual Warrior Journey)