The Suez Canal is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt that links the Mediterranean with the Red Sea, dividing Africa from Asia. Construction ran from 1859 to 1869, led by French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps, and the canal opened on 17 November 1869. It cuts about 8,900 kilometres from the sea route between the Arabian Sea and London, and it has no locks, so seawater flows through it. British and French shareholders owned the operating company until President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalised it in 1956, which led to the Suez Crisis. It was closed for eight years after the 1967 Six-Day War and reopened in 1975. Today it is one of the world's most important trade chokepoints.

Indonesian Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka handed his resignation to parliament after questions were raised about his eligibility for office and his academic credentials. Gibran is the son of former president Joko Widodo, and his resignation came as Widodo publicly backed the president, Prabowo Subianto. Gibran had been elected vice president in 2024 as Prabowo's running mate. His candidacy was made possible by a 2023 Constitutional Court ruling on the minimum age for candidates, which was itself controversial. Parliament will now consider the resignation.

Angkor, near Siem Reap in northern Cambodia, was the capital of the Khmer Empire, which ruled much of mainland Southeast Asia between roughly the 9th and 15th centuries. At its height the city spread across about 3,000 square kilometres, making it the largest pre-industrial city on Earth by area. Its growth depended on water: huge reservoirs called barays, along with canals and embankments, stored monsoon rain and carried it to rice fields. That system let farmers harvest more than once a year and fed a very large population through the dry season. The temple complex of Angkor Wat, built in the early 12th century, is the best-known monument and still stands at the heart of the park.