The Rest of the World Report | September 9, 2026 — Morning Edition

Weekday morning and evening editions. Saturdays once. Good news on Sundays. All sources labeled.WHAT NYC KNEW New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani released more than 170,000 pages of previously sealed 9/11 records Tuesday, three days before the 25th anniversary of the attacks. The release settles a multi-year legal battle with 9/11 Health Watch and is backed by $34 million in city funding for a permanent public portal, now live at nyc.gov/sept11docs. Mamdani said the city owes families, survivors, and first responders nothing less than transparency and accountability.The documents themselves are damning. An unsigned May 2002 cleanup memo instructs officials to avoid the word “risk” in public communications. The memo says doing so would preserve what it calls “public confidence.” A separate document, known as the Harding Memo, was sent to then-Deputy Mayor Robert Harding within weeks of the attacks. It cites a Law Department estimate of roughly 35,000 potential plaintiffs, with about 10,000 expected to actually file claims, and outlines legislative options specifically aimed at limiting the city’s legal liability. The memo warned that judges and juries would likely be biased toward plaintiffs, resulting in substantial damage awards.Rep. Jerry Nadler, who represented Lower Manhattan at the time, spoke at Tuesday’s announcement. “I was screaming at the top of my lungs to protect our communities, my constituents,” he said. He said officials, including EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman and Mayor Giuliani, denied his warnings, insisting the air was safe. Nadler’s office separately alleges that on the same day Whitman publicly reassured New Yorkers about air quality, the EPA internally held test results showing higher-than-acceptable levels of asbestos. Whitman, in a statement Tuesday, defended her handling of the crisis, saying her comments “were based entirely on the analysis done by EPA scientists” and that the agency pursued “as much transparency as possible” at the time. She has previously apologized for saying the air was safe.The human toll is difficult to overstate. Mamdani said more people have now died from 9/11-related illnesses than were killed in the attacks themselves. More than 140,000 people, from all 50 states, are currently enrolled in the federal World Trade Center Health Program. These records trace back to decisions made under Mayor Giuliani’s administration in 2001 and 2002, when the city publicly maintained Ground Zero was safe. Reps. Dan Goldman and Nadler have formally requested the underlying documents since at least 2023. The Adams administration repeatedly refused to release them.The release lands amid a separate, ongoing controversy. A petition opposing Mamdani’s attendance at Friday’s anniversary ceremony, started by 9/11 widower Giovanni Galante, has drawn significant support. It cites Mamdani’s refusal to condemn “globalize the intifada” rhetoric and his appointment of chief counsel Ramzi Kassem, who previously represented a man convicted in a 2002 al-Qaeda tanker bombing plot. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer have publicly defended Mamdani’s right to attend. Mamdani has said he intends to be there.🇺🇸 What American readers need to know: A city government spent 25 years fighting to keep records secret that show officials knew the air around Ground Zero was dangerous while telling the public it was safe. More people have died from that decision than died on the day itself. Sources: NYC Mayor’s Office (primary source — official release details, portal information, Mamdani’s statement); CNN (US — Whitman’s statement, Harding Memo, health program figures); amNewYork (US — Nadler’s allegation about EPA’s withheld test results); The Hill (US — “lied” framing, budget figures); Time (US — Galante petition details, Kassem background); San.com (US — Nadler’s direct quote, WTC Health Program enrollment figure)THE BAHRAIN BASE Iran struck the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain on February 28, the opening exchange of the war, and the two sides have never agreed on what actually happened since. CENTCOM’s initial position was that damage was “minimal” and had “not impacted operations,” with no combat casualties. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard eventually claimed, in July, that it had destroyed the headquarters entirely. Neither claim has held up as the full picture.Satellite imagery reviewed by multiple outlets by late June showed what several analyses described as extensive damage, directly contradicting CENTCOM’s original “minimal” framing. One detailed assessment found damage to command facilities, troop housing, logistics compounds, and military satellite communication systems used for real-time coordination across the Fifth Fleet’s area of operations. Those systems were, by this account, temporarily disrupted, forcing reliance on backup networks during active combat. That is a real and serious degradation. It is not the same as the base being destroyed, which is what Iran’s own state media has claimed since July.The pattern has continued into this month. Satellite imagery dated September 2 shows a fresh burn mark on a warehouse inside the base that was not present in imagery from August 31, first flagged by the open-source account @EGYOSINT. Bahrain’s own government said that day its air defenses intercepted and destroyed the incoming Iranian drones, which leaves open whether the September 2 damage came from a direct hit or from falling debris. No outlet has been able to independently confirm which.What is clear is that this is not a closed question from February. It is an active, ongoing pattern, and both sides have strong incentives to describe it inaccurately. CENTCOM has a documented history, across this war, of minimizing damage that later evidence contradicts. Iran’s state media has an equally documented history of claiming victories that independent reporting does not support. Neither claim about Bahrain, taken alone, should be treated as settled.🇺🇸 What American readers need to know: The headquarters commanding US naval operations across a fifth of the world’s oil shipping routes has been struck at least twice since February. Real damage has occurred that neither side wants to fully admit to. Your government says it barely mattered. Iran says the whole base is gone. The truth, based on what can actually be verified, sits somewhere in between. Nobody in charge of telling you has an incentive to say so honestly. Sources: Military.com (US — February 28 strike details, CENTCOM’s initial statement); Ynetnews (Israel — June satellite imagery findings); Defence Security Asia (Malaysia, defense-focused — detailed damage assessment, communications disruption); Middle East Monitor (UK-based, pro-Palestinian editorial lean — IRGC’s destruction claim); The Defense News (defense-focused outlet — September 2 satellite imagery, Bahrain’s interception statement)KENYA’S TRADER CRACKDOWN Kenyan President William Ruto ordered authorities last week to shut down small-scale businesses operated by foreign nationals, saying that kind of work should be reserved for Kenyans. Traders were given until this week to comply, and the deadline has produced real fear inside migrant communities across the country. In Kibera, one of Nairobi’s largest informal settlements, foreign-run stalls and shops now face closure. Burundian nationals have been seen queuing outside their embassy in Nairobi seeking travel documents. James Mogaka, who manages a matatu terminal in the city, said many of the minibus taxis that keep Nairobi moving are owned or operated by foreign nationals now caught by the order.The move carries a real irony. In August, Tanzania announced its own ban on foreign-run small businesses, barring foreign nationals from 15 sectors including mobile money, tour guiding, and small-scale mining. Kenya’s own trade minister objected publicly at the time, calling Tanzania’s move a violation of East African Community agreements guaranteeing free movement of people and trade among its member states, and warning it would “hurt” both countries’ economies. Kenya is now taking a similar step against the same population of small traders it had just finished defending.🇺🇸 What American readers need to know: A month after Kenya criticized its neighbor for restricting foreign traders, it’s doing largely the same thing, leaving migrant shopkeepers and transit workers across Nairobi uncertain whether their livelihoods survive the week. Sources: NPR (US — Ruto’s order, Kibera reporting, Mogaka quote); AllAfrica (Africa-focused wire — Tanzania’s ban, Kenya’s prior objection, trade minister’s statement)ALSO DEVELOPING:New Hampshire: Chris Pappas and John Sununu won decisive Senate primary victories Tuesday, setting up the general election for the state’s open seat. Pappas defeated progressive challenger Karishma Manzur 62.5% to 35.4%; Sununu defeated Scott Brown 69.1% to 25.6%, with Trump’s endorsement. Pappas immediately tied Sununu to Trump in his victory speech; Sununu called Pappas “not an independent voice for New Hampshire.” One recent UNH poll had Sununu narrowly leading the general matchup, though most forecasters still favor Democrats to hold the seat. Sources: NBC News, New Hampshire Bulletin, NHPR.A HUMAN THREAD Archaeologists at Chan Chan, the ancient capital of the pre-Inca Chimú civilization in northern Peru, have uncovered an almost fully intact funerary platform containing the remains of at least 38 people and an array of high-status burial goods. The main chamber had remained sealed for nearly 600 years. Chan Chan has been comparatively understudied given its scale and importance, and this find offers researchers a genuinely rare, detailed look at how the Chimú elite were buried and honored. Source: AP via Yahoo NewsNUMBERS AT PUBLICATION 🇮🇷 Iran: 3,684 killed 🇱🇧 Lebanon: 4,346 killed, 12,301 wounded 🇮🇱 Israel: 1,200+ killed, ~5,400 wounded (includes 472 killed, 3,004 wounded in Gaza) 🇺🇸 US military: 18 killed, 756 wounded 🇵🇸 Gaza: 1,344 killed, 4,464 wounded since the October 10, 2025 “ceasefire” 🇵🇸 West Bank: 316 killed (incl. 73 children), 5,641 wounded (incl. 915 children), since January 2025 🛢️ Brent crude: $100.20/barrel (OilPrice.com) ⛽ US gas: $4.23/gallon (AAA) Sources: HRANA (Iran), Lebanon MOPH, INSS (Israel), DCAS (US, disputed), OCHA and Gaza Health Ministry (Gaza), OCHA (West Bank). All figures carried forward from last night’s edition except Brent and gas, both updated to reflect today’s prices. Gas rose 8 cents overnight amid the Iran-linked tanker escalation and rising Brent prices.“Whenever the people are well informed, they can be trusted with their own government.” — Thomas Jefferson, 1789 Get full access to The Rest of the World Report at www.restoftheworldreport.com/subscribe