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By Tim Lister, Kareem Khadder and Nechirvan Mando, CNN A social media video has surfaced, allegedly showing a warehouse in Syria stacked with captagon, an illicit drug that had transformed the country into a narco-state under former President Bashar al-Assad's rule. The large warehouse was reportedly located at the headquarters of a military division near Damascus that was commanded by Assad's brother Maher. CNN is unable immediately to verify the location. A voice commenting over the video says that it is "one of the largest warehouse facilities of captagon manufacturing of pills". Piles of pills are seen on the floor along with drug-making equipment. If confirmed, the discovery would support claims by the United States and others that the Assad regime had been involved in actively expor...

By political reporter Tom Crowley for the ABC The tax, which could also apply to Apple and Microsoft, would be applied to the platforms' Australian revenue. Photo: Victor Okhrimets / 123RF Facebook, Google and TikTok will be forced to fund Australian journalism, even if they do not host it, under a federal government plan to impose a new tax aimed at encouraging the tech platforms to establish funding agreements with news organisations. The tax, which could also apply to Apple and Microsoft, would be applied to the platforms' Australian revenue, but can be reduced to zero if they sign agreements similar to those Google and Meta (the owner of Facebook) signed in 2021, including with the ABC. The expiration of those agreements, and Meta's threat not to renew them, made the government r...

By Dietrich Knauth for Reuters Alex Jones declared bankruptcy in 2022 after being forced to pay over $1bn to the families of Sandy Hook shooting victims, whom he defamed. Photo: AFP A US bankruptcy judge has stopped the parody news site the Onion from buying conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' Infowars website, ruling that a bankruptcy auction did not result in the best possible bids. Christopher Lopez rejected Jones' claims that the auction was plagued by "collusion" at the end of a two-day hearing in Houston. But he said the court-appointed bankruptcy trustee who ran the auction made "a good-faith error" by quickly asking for final offers for Infowars instead of encouraging more back-and-forth bidding between the Onion and a company affiliated with Jones' supplement-selling businesses,...

By Simon Lewis and Matt Spetalnick for Reuters US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has visited the Middle East several times this year, hoping to broker a truce in the Israel-Gaza conflict. Photo: AFP / Pool US President Joe Biden's top aides are heading to the Middle East seeking to advance efforts to reach an elusive Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal and help ensure a smooth transition in Syria following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was set to visit Jordan and Turkey, while US national security adviser Jake Sullivan planned stops in Israel, Qatar and Egypt in coming days, US officials said. The high-level tours could help shape Biden's legacy in the turbulent Middle East in the final weeks of his term before former President Donald Trump return...