A Debt of Dignity

🧠 Vocabulary challenge​
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Which of these is the meaning of the word 'complicity'?

(A) Difficult to understand, complex

(B) Obligatory, required

(C) Following rules or requests

(D) Involved in a crime or wrongdoing of others

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(answer at bottom of email)

3 big stories…

1. Spain and France wildfires.

Wildfires have overwhelmed firefighters in France and Spain, with over 300,000 people needing to be evacuated. There were also significant fires in Greece, Italy, the UK and Turkiye. More information in Wednesday's and Thursday's episodes.

2. NATO airspace violations

Last weekend, Romania said that it had shot down three Russian drones over three days. Yesterday morning, a Russian cruise missile exploded in Poland, leaving a crater 10 metres wide. The missile hit Poland during a bombardment of Ukraine, including the city of Lviv which is close to Poland.

3. FIFA privatisation, UEFA boycott

The world's football governing body, FIFA, announced plans to partially privatise itself and its tournaments. In response to this, UEFA, Europe's football governing body, said that its 55 members would boycott all tournaments, including the World Cup, if this plan goes ahead.

… and one you might have missed.

India has banned the use of the term "energy drink". Brands like Red Bull and Monster, which make drinks with high caffeine and taurine content, as well as other ingredients that are supposed to make people alert or active, have 90 days to remove the term "energy drink" from their packaging. Sales of these drinks have boomed in India over the last few years.

🔍 Find the synonym​
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Somewhere in the "3 big stories... and one you might have missed" sections above, find a synonym for the word "surged".

Statistic of the week

Wildfires in France and Spain are spreading faster than ever before. These graphs show the area burnt throughout the year in France and Spain, since 2006. Despite being only half way through the summer, 2026 is already the year in which the largest area has burnt in any year in France. In Spain, fires this year are burning at a faster rate than last year, which was the year in which the biggest area had burnt.*

🌍 World news question​
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This week, over 1,500 migrants crossed from Morocco into one of Spain's enclaves in north Africa. What is it called? (It is not Melilla - it is the other one)

Quote of the week:

— US President Donald Trump, announcing his intention to run for a "fourth" term during a speech at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. He might be joking.

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Stephen’s view

Last week, I wrote a positive "Stephen's view" section to try to compensate for some negative ones in previous weeks.

I summarised that part of the reason why the news is often bad news is that bad news happens quickly (an earthquake, a shooting, etc.), whereas good news generally happens slowly (improvements in living conditions, medical advancements, etc.).

However, as I was writing last week, I realised that there is another reason why I often end up reporting on people who have died in episodes of SEND7 - I feel a debt of dignity to them.

I feel like I owe it to them to mention them. I feel like if I replace the story of their death for a different, perhaps 'lighter' story, I am being unfair to these people, whose stories deserve to be told.

Luckily, I never struggle to find something positive to say in an episode as well.

Have a great weekend.
Stephen

P.S. burnt and burned are interchangeable; however, burnt is more common in the UK, especially as an adjective, and burned is more common in the US.

P.P.S. Click 'reply' and tell me what you'd like me to write about!

ANSWERS​
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(don't look until you've answered all three questions!)

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🧠 VOCABULARY CHALLENGE : (D) complicity means "involved in a crime or wrongdoing of others".

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🔍 Find the synonym : A synonym for "surged" is "boomed" (in the one you might have missed paragraph)

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🌍 World news question : Ceuta. Ceuta and Melilla are the two Spanish cities on the North African coast, surrounded by Morocco.

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