US President Donald Trump’s administration has launched a 24-hour streaming channel, “Trump TV”, after major American television networks suspended their shared coverage of presidential events amid a growing dispute over access to the White House.

The White House announced the launch on Monday, describing the platform as “TRUMP TV: The Essentials Station” and saying it would provide viewers with past presidential moments, major announcements and the latest content from the administration.

The stream is available through the White House website and its official YouTube channel.

The development followed the decision by ABC, CBS, Fox News and NBC to suspend their participation in the White House television pool after CNN was prevented from carrying out its scheduled pool duties.

CNN, MS NOW and Politico had earlier sued the Trump administration after being barred from the White House grounds, arguing that the restrictions violated their constitutional rights.

The administration has defended the ban, with Trump accusing the affected outlets of publishing what he calls “fake news”.

The television pool normally allows participating networks to rotate responsibility for recording and distributing footage of the President to broadcasters across the United States and other parts of the world.

CNN was scheduled to handle the pool coverage on Monday but was prevented from doing so.

The other networks subsequently declined to provide a replacement, creating an unusual gap in shared television coverage of Trump’s official activities. The decision also affected coverage of the President’s inauguration of a new helipad at the White House on Monday.

Reaffirming Nigeria-France Ties

French President Emmanuel Macron received Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a private dinner at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Thursday night, in a high-level engagement underscoring the enduring bilateral relationship between the two countries.

The dinner, held on September 17, 2026, was disclosed on Friday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy. In a post on X, Onanuga stated that the meeting reflected “the enduring relationship between Nigeria and France and their shared commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation.” Photographs released from the evening showed Tinubu with Macron and France’s First Lady, Brigitte Macron, in a cordial setting at the presidential palace.

President Tinubu is currently in Europe on a three-week annual leave. He departed Abuja on August 30, 2026, first spending time in London before proceeding to Paris. The private dinner took place during the Paris leg of his vacation and marks another personal interaction between the two leaders.

In related comments, Tinubu described the evening as a pleasure and said the conversation reaffirmed the strong friendship between Nigeria and France as well as their shared commitment to deepening cooperation and building a mutually beneficial partnership. He thanked Macron for his warm hospitality and friendship.

Nigeria and France have maintained active diplomatic and economic engagement in recent years, covering areas such as trade, investment, energy, security cooperation, infrastructure, and critical minerals. The private dinner continues a pattern of direct leader-level contacts that both sides have used to advance practical cooperation beyond formal state visits.

No detailed official readout of specific discussion topics or new agreements was immediately released by either the Élysée Palace or the Nigerian presidency. Such informal encounters have previously helped lay groundwork for subsequent formal engagements between Abuja and Paris.

Nearly five million people have been affected by severe flooding in the eastern Indian state of Bihar, where swollen rivers including the Ganga and its tributaries have inundated vast areas following heavy monsoon rains and inflows from Nepal.

As of mid-September 2026, Bihar’s Disaster Management Department reported that around 49 to 50 lakh (4.9 to 5 million) people across 15 districts— including Patna, Bhagalpur, Saran, Vaishali, Begusarai, and others—were impacted in hundreds of gram panchayats. Several major rivers remained above danger levels at multiple gauge stations, with agricultural land submerged and villages cut off.

Authorities have distributed food packets, polythene sheets, fodder for livestock, and medical supplies, while operating community kitchens, relief camps, and nearly 1,800 boats for evacuations and transport. Local officials described ongoing challenges in accessing clean water, food, and milk for children in the worst-hit areas. Some reports noted at least a handful of drowning deaths earlier in the crisis, though the full toll continued to be assessed.

Flooding has also hit other states. In West Bengal, the death toll from recent floods climbed toward 100 even as water levels began receding in some areas, with hundreds of thousands affected and large tracts of farmland under water. Uttar Pradesh reported hundreds of thousands impacted across more than two dozen districts, with thousands evacuated and relief camps established.

The India Meteorological Department has warned of continued rain and thunderstorms in northern and central regions, keeping flood risks elevated. State governments and central agencies are coordinating large-scale relief and monitoring river levels as the monsoon remains active.