Wednesday 30th September 2026. Estonia blames Russia. Ukraine update. France school protests. Spain housing. Pope AI. Brazil betting...

0:01 Good morning. This is Send7 World News in 7 minutes. I'm Stephen Devincenzi. Today is Wednesday the 30th of September, 2026. Starting in Europe today, Estonia has said that Russia was responsible for an arson attack on a defence company in Tallinn. which supplies robotics to Ukraine. Three people were detained in Latvia and were given to Estonian authorities. Estonian government reports appear to suggest that the attackers were Latvian citizens following orders from Russia. Russia denied being responsible yesterday. However, Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Mikael wrote on social media, quote, The arson attack against Milam Robotics was ordered by Russian special services.

1:05 This is part of Russia's broader campaign across Europe to intimidate us and weaken our support for Ukraine. It will not work. Our response will be the opposite. Stronger security at home, more support for Ukraine, and greater pressure on Russia. We will not be intimidated. Speaking yesterday at NATO headquarters in Belgium, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutter also said that Russia's actions across Europe would make NATO give more support to Ukraine.

1:40 Russia continues its reckless campaign of hostile actions against NATO allies. It is trying to weaken our resolve and stop our support for Ukraine. But Russia is failing. It is failing on the battlefield in Ukraine... and that is failing to undermine our unity and support for Ukraine.

2:02 In Ukraine, Russia used hundreds of drones and missiles to hit areas across the country yesterday, with civilian deaths and injuries recorded in the north, south and east of Ukraine. In the southern city of Odessa, at least 13 dogs and cats were killed when a Russian drone hit an animal shelter yesterday. In the northern city of Sumy, a school was hit. And in the capital Kiev, a hospital was hit. In the Donetsk region, there are various reports that Ukraine has had some success in a counter-offensive recently. However, Ukrainian officials have not commented on this publicly. The 3rd Army Corps said that more than 250 Russian soldiers have surrendered in the Liman area. In France, there were mass

2:53 protests of secondary school students yesterday, with students complaining of large class sizes, shortages of teachers and long hours at school. The Education Ministry reported protests at 300 high schools, and there were reports of clashes between protesting students and police at some schools. In Spain, the government yesterday announced a range of measures around housing and rentals. Over the last week, there have been protests in Madrid after an 87-year-old woman was evicted from the house she had lived in since she was a teenager because she couldn't afford the rent.

3:38 Pope Leo has said that the risks of artificial intelligence are not fake news, speaking on a plane while traveling from France to Italy. The Pope said that warnings from the AI companies should be taken seriously.

3:55 I do think that the concerns raised by many of the experts, specialists in AI, should be taken seriously. I don't think that that is fake news, as some have said, to try and cause, whether financial or some other kind of benefit. And so we are trying to continue to promote dialogue, study, investigation, to find ways to make sure that AI does not get to a point where it could destroy humanity or remove humanity from the conversation.

4:27 America's Brazilian opposition presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro has accused President Lula da Silva of using a ban on betting as an attempt to influence voters. This weekend, Lula announced a provisional measure to ban betting both online and in person. The order must be followed immediately. However, Congress has 120 days to confirm it as a permanent law. Brazil has general elections on Sunday and the betting ban is believed to be popular with the public. At the United Nations General Assembly last week, Lula described the betting industry as transforming addiction into profit. In Peru, a private rescue organisation has been hired by the family of missing Australian hiker Jordan Yap. Yap last made contact with his family on

5:28 the 14th of September and was supposed to arrive in a hotel on the 23rd of September. In the United States, a woman is expected to be executed today in the state of Tennessee. which would be the first time that a woman has been executed in Tennessee for 200 years. Krista Pike was found guilty of murdering her classmate in 1996 when she was 18. Asia In Thailand, the death toll from floods has risen to 23. There have been reports of chaos at Bangkok's main airport, as almost all flights have been delayed. Around one in three cancelled and thousands of bags have been stranded in the airport. Many of these problems were caused by airport workers not being able to arrive to the airport. Chinese international fashion company

6:29 Shein has reported a 67% fall in quarterly profit. This caused the share price of Shein to drop by more than 10% yesterday. Analysts say that this is partly because Cheyenne relies on transporting clothes around the world, and oil prices have been particularly high this year. Africa In Ethiopia, government forces say that they have captured Alamata, a town in the Tigray region, from Tigrayan forces. This appears to be a reversal of an offensive launched by the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front last week, which marked the end of a peace deal reached in 2022. A group called the Tigray Peace Force, which is allied with the Ethiopian government, has been seen walking through Almaty carrying Ethiopian flags. Burkina

7:29 Faso has started its first ever gold refinery. President Ibrahim Traore who leads the military government, said that Burkina Faso wants to take control of the value chain of gold. Until now, gold had generally been exported for refining. And would you buy a banana that doesn't turn brown after it's been cut? In the UK, the Food Regulatory Body has approved the sale of genetically altered bananas and that keep their fresh yellow colour for a long time after they have been sliced. The company Tropic says that they are aiming to sell the bananas in the UK very soon.

8:17 That's your world news in seven minutes. This podcast is made possible by our amazing supporters who also have access to ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, transcripts, vocabulary lists, worksheets, and world news quizzes. Plus, we give 10% of our profit to highly effective charities. You can become a supporter at sense7. org. Tomorrow, you will be with Ben Mallett. Have a great day.