DAILY NEWS Stream – May 9, 2026

Austria expelled three Russian Embassy employees after authorities said they suspected the diplomats had used antenna installations on Russian diplomatic buildings in Vienna [Austria] to intercept satellite-based data from international organizations (AP)

US President Trump said He is pausing “Project Freedom,” the US effort to guide stranded vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz— just one day after its launch— to allow space for negotiations toward a potential settlement with Iran, while keeping the US naval blockade of Iranian ports in place, as senior officials including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted the ceasefire is still holding and warned that Iran must reopen the strait amid continued attacks, rising fuel prices, and hundreds of commercial ships still unable to transit (The Guardian)

The US Department of War signs agreements with seven major tech firms— including Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, Nvidia, OpenAI, Reflection AI, and SpaceX—to integrate AI [artificial intelligence] into classified military systems for faster analysis and decision-making. The effort supports targeting, logistics, and operations, advancing US defense AI strategy while raising concerns about ethics, oversight, and automated warfare risks (VTV)

Spirit Airlines ceased all operations on May 2, 2026, ending 34 years as a pioneering ultra-low-cost carrier and triggering the first major US airline liquidation in more than 25 years. The Miami [US]-based airline, which had filed for bankruptcy twice since 2024, collapsed after a proposed US$500 million federal bailout fell through when creditors rejected the terms. Soaring jet fuel prices — which doubled to over US$4 per gallon due to the ongoing Iran conflict — delivered the final blow. US Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy coordinated with major carriers including United, Delta, JetBlue, and Southwest to stabilize the fallout. The airlines are capping fares, offering rebooking assistance and discounts for stranded Spirit passengers, and providing expedited hiring plus travel benefits to the roughly 17,000 displaced Spirit employees (US Department of Transportation)

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer convenes leaders from business, health, culture, higher education, policing, and the Jewish community after a stabbing of two Jewish men and a series of arson attacks on Jewish sites— some under investigation for possible Iranian links— vowing to eradicate antisemitism as the government raised the terrorism threat level to “severe,” announced new security funding, and ordered universities to publish campus antisemitism incident data (Channel News Asia)

Cambodia has designated the fight against online scam operations as a top national priority, announcing intensified inspections of all casino sites after a coordinated raid in Sihanoukville [Cambodia] last month detained 104 foreign nationals and led to the revocation of Zhong Huawei Golden Sand International Entertainment’s license, amid criticism from human rights organization Amnesty International for the government licensing Cambodian casinos that have committed human rights abuses and the US Treasury imposing sanctions on a Cambodian senator and others for conducting large-scale online fraud victimizing Americans from casinos he owns and other sites (Inside Asian Gaming)

US President Trump marked National Small Business Week in the US by highlighting what the White House describes as a nationwide revival of small, locally owned businesses citing tax cuts, deregulation, record SBA [Small Business Administration] lending, suspended BOI [beneficial ownership information] reporting rules, and new manufacturing and supply-chain programs that the administration says have strengthened confidence among America’s 36 million small businesses (White House)

US researchers identify moderate exercise and low-dose ibuprofen [painkiller] as a possibly effective treatment for “chemo brain” [changes to cognitive function after chemotherapy like challenges in concentration and memory lapses]. These low-cost strategies could help cancer survivors restore memory and clear mental fog. More studies are needed to confirm results (SciTech Daily)

Knee pain while climbing stairs can signal underlying issues like osteoarthritis, inflammation, meniscus tears, ligament injuries, and patellofemoral syndrome, as joint pressure increases 3-5 times compared to a level surface. Experts warn that persistent swelling, stiffness, or instability requires early diagnosis via imaging. To protect knee health, doctors recommend low-impact exercise, weight management, and physical therapy, with surgery reserved for severe cases where conservative treatments fail to restore mobility (Báo Sức khỏe và Đời sống)

Drought now affects over 51% of the United States as of late April, damaging crops and draining reservoirs — with exceptional conditions in northern Florida, southern Georgia, and Colorado. Officials urge water conservation amid rising wildfire risks and hydropower shortages (Daily Mail / U.S. Drought Monitor)

Severe drought is rapidly draining reservoirs in Âu Lạc (Vietnam)’s Lâm Đồng province, including the near-depleted Lake 40 reservoir in Thuận An commune. Hundreds of hectares of crops are struggling for sufficient irrigation as temperatures reach 38°C, with up to 600 hectares at risk. Officials are coordinating emergency water transfers to mitigate damage (Tiền Phong)

Northern Japan experiences rare May snowfall as cold air sweeps across Hokkaido — the first measurable May snow in 21 years. The town of Takinoue recorded 11 centimeters of accumulation. By contrast, Tokyo [Japan] is experiencing temperatures in excess of 30 degrees Celsius (Kênh 14)

A new provincial investigation in Cao Bằng [Âu Lạc (Vietnam)] finds more than 27 hectares of land contaminated with heavy metals— primarily near mineral-processing plants, mines, and industrial sites— with pollutants such as lead, cadmium, arsenic, zinc, chromium, mercury, and nickel affecting farmland, forests, and residential areas, prompting officials to expand monitoring and develop remediation plans amid growing concerns over long-term environmental and public health risks (Lao Động)

Santiago [Chile] hosts the Chile Plant Based Congress | Expo 2026, drawing over 500 attendees as the nation’s vegan dining options grow 42% between 2023 and 2025. Startups, established firms, public officials, and consumers are present, with the event helping to drive collaboration in the plant-based industry and economic growth (Vegconomist)

The global vegan dairy market is projected to reach US$28 billion in value by 2030. Manufacturers are using advanced enzyme technologies to improve taste and texture, meeting rising consumer demand for high-protein, clean-label alternatives (Food Business News)

Super Munchies produces vegan snacks in India, including chocolate bars, fruit and vegetable chips, and nuts, and prioritizes clean-label ingredients and local farming. The company has expanded to the US and three European countries, while supporting sustainable agriculture and providing employment opportunities for local women (News Karnataka)

In Karachi [Pakistan], Syed Faisal operates a nightly “One-Man Ambulance” for stray animal-people. Since 2019, he has rescued over 500 injured animal friends using his motorbike, providing medical care to them (Arab News)

In Saskatchewan, Canada, Rebel Towing owner Clint Gottinger spots a moose-person trapped in ice and immediately prioritizes the rescue though he had two calls to respond to. He uses his truck and rope to lift the animal-citizen out with neighbors’ help. Back home, he warms and monitors it until recovery. The moose-resident stands and leaves the next morning. Customers accept the delay as the story spreads as a humane act (Good News Network)

Home building charity Habitat for Humanity launches the 40th Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project in Atlanta [Georgia, US], marking the non-profit’s 50th anniversary. Over 1,000 volunteers are building 10 new homes and finishing the interior of 14 townhomes from May 4-8, honoring the late US President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter’s legacy by expanding affordable housing through this massive community-driven effort (Habitat for Humanity)

Enlightening quote of the day: “Seclusion is the soul’s ideal preparation for reaching God. It is in the state of solitude that the soul contemplates on the attributes of God.” – The Venerated Enlightened Master and Sufi Poet Rābiʿa al-ʿAdawiyya al-Qaysiyya (vegan) (The Sayings and Teachings of the Great Mystics of Islam)

Previously, in Part 1 of 3 of Bridget Cook-Burch’s near-death experience, Bridget’s life as a struggling college student unraveled into a medical crisis. What she first thought was the flu led to emergency surgery, sepsis [life-threatening reaction to infection], and an antibiotic reaction that was making her worse instead of better. By 2:00 am, Bridget heard nurses say she would not make it until morning.

In that shared hospital room, Bridget’s roommate told her she was dying. After watching the same roommate receive a blessing that seemed to release her pain, Bridget entered what she called “Mack truck surrender” and asked if she could receive a blessing too. Now, in Part 2, the blessing gives way to a hospital room encounter filled with Light.

And so, I fell asleep for a little bit, and then, when I woke up, it was the most extraordinary real thing that [I had] ever experienced. There was all this Light in the room, like this blinding white Light. And it wasn’t just Light; it had an emotion attached to it. I felt so much love, and there was a figure in front of me and another one in the back corner, but this figure in front of me — and I knew Him right away, like I knew Him — and He was Jesus. And He was looking at me with such unconditional Love, like I had never experienced in my life.

And the crazy thing to me was, like, what I could see in His eyes, but also what was happening in the room around me and to my own body. Like, everything vibrated with His Love. It was so intense. Like, I could feel my skin vibrating. I could feel the metal tray table at my hospital bed. The metal was vibrating. Everything was vibrating with His Love. It was the most incredible feeling, energy, emotion that I had ever experienced. And it changed me. And He told me I was being given a second chance at life. And there was such Compassion and Love in His eyes. And it was like He didn’t care about the debt that I was in. He didn’t care about the failing grades. He didn’t care about my strewn-about relationships. What He cared about was me.

And I didn’t even know what to do. There was one point when I left my body, and I can’t tell you time, space — all I knew was that I was looking down on my body on the bed and looking at Him loving me, and then I went back into my body. But there was so much expansiveness. There was so much knowledge. There were universes and complexities and colors and all kinds of things. And then, when I’m looking at Him in my body, and He’s looking at me, I saw all of that in His eyes. I saw it the first time I saw Him, and I knew Him. I just didn’t recognize what that all was and recognized, this is my Creator. This is everything.

When Bridget woke again, a nurse came in with several intravenous antibiotics. Bridget somehow knew which medication was killing her. And I looked at her, and I said, “Hey, I can have any one of these, but I can’t have this one.” And she goes, “What are you talking about?” She said, “This is the only thing keeping you alive. We thought we were going to lose you.” I said, “No, I can’t have this.” And she’s like, “How do you know?” I said, “I don’t know, but I know I can’t have this.” And she goes off to tell the doctor that I’m loop-de-loo and just absolutely crazy. But he came in to talk with me, and fortunately for me, he asked a lot of questions, and he’d had other patients who’d had near-death experiences, and he told the nurse, “Well, she’s on all the rest of these. Let’s just take her off this one and see what happens.” And I walked out of that hospital in the next 24 hours on my own power. It was so undeniable. It was such a gift.

Coming back wasn’t only physical. Two striking gifts followed Bridget into her recovered life. What did happen was two really cool things. I could look into the eyes of any person that I came across, and I could see love there. It was like I could see them through God’s eyes, and it was just extraordinary. People that I would have been afraid of, people that I might have judged just on appearance, people that were too powerful, or they came from a much different background, or whatever it might be, I might have been afraid of in the past, and I wasn’t afraid at all. And then the other cool thing was to be able to look into the mirror and, for the very first time in my life, to see love there.

In Part 3, Bridget describes a later encounter with Lord Jesus Christ (vegetarian), when He revealed the hidden burden she had carried after her near-death experience. And then He said, “You told yourself that there must have been something worth saving, and you’ve been setting about to prove that ever since.” Join us tomorrow for Part 3 of 3 of Bridget Cook-Burch’s near-death experience. (Living God’s Light)