Your quick, casual, and sharp rundown of what’s shaping Nigeria and the world — made for the scroll generation.

Issue: Monday, December 8, 2025
Theme: Coups, Corridors & Crossing Seas

Hey there,

Welcome back to a new week and to a weekend that reminded us how thin the line is between order and chaos.

From Cotonou to Gaza, the stories were about systems under stress: a coup that nearly toppled a West African neighbour, ceasefire talks that could still collapse, migrants drowning at Europe’s doorstep, and Ukraine’s war again brushing up against nuclear risk. In the background, global markets kept one eye on the U.S. Federal Reserve, trying to guess how much cheaper money we’ll get next year.

Let’s get into it!

On Friday, Wall Street ended the week with modest gains, but the real story was underneath: traders are piling into the idea that the U.S. Federal Reserve will deliver another interest rate cut at its December meeting, and more in 2026. Softer labour and inflation data kept those expectations alive, nudging the dollar lower and pushing U.S. Treasury yields down from recent highs.

Economists and strategists spent the weekend publishing 2026 macro forecasts, arguing over where the “neutral rate” — the mysterious r-star that tells central banks whether money is tight or loose — really sits. Even if the models are abstract, the stakes are not: that invisible number will drive how aggressively the Fed can cut before it risks reigniting inflation.

Context: After two years of painful hikes, the world is trying to pivot from fighting inflation to avoiding a hard landing. Every basis point cut in Washington changes debt costs, capital flows, and currency valuations everywhere else.

👉 Why it matters to you: For Nigeria, a softer dollar and lower global yields could be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, foreign investors may start hunting again for higher returns in “riskier” markets like ours, which can ease FX shortages and make it easier for the government and big firms to borrow. On the other, if we don’t fix our own fundamentals of inflation, power, insecurity, we risk becoming a place speculators use for quick trades, not long-term bets. For you personally, this cycle will shape how expensive it is to pay school fees abroad, negotiate a dollar salary, borrow for a business, or raise a seed round. Cheaper global money helps but only if Nigeria looks investable when it arrives.

Sources: Reuters

Over the weekend, soldiers in Benin tried and failed to overthrow President Patrice Talon. Mutinous troops seized the national TV station in Cotonou, held journalists hostage, and opened fire near the presidency before loyalist forces moved in. Fourteen people have been arrested so far.

What turned the tide wasn’t just Benin’s own security forces. Nigeria confirmed that it scrambled fighter jets across the border to help retake key sites, while explosions heard in Cotonou were widely linked to joint operations. ECOWAS and the African Union quickly condemned the coup attempt and signalled that unlike in Mali, Niger, or Burkina Faso, they were ready to move fast to protect Benin’s constitutional order.

Context: Benin had previously been framed as one of West Africa’s “stable democracies.” This attempt shows how quickly that label can evaporate when economic strain, security fears, and political succession collide. It also marks a rare moment where Nigeria acted decisively, rather than watching another Sahel coup from the sidelines.

👉 Why it matters to you: For Nigerians, this is not just neighbour drama. Instability in Benin threatens trade at Seme and other borders, raises insurance risk for regional logistics, and could spill insecurity into already fragile corridors. It also tests whether ECOWAS which has been humiliated by successive coups, can still enforce any red lines. If Nigeria wants to be taken seriously as a regional power, it has to show it can protect borders, trade routes, and democratic norms at the same time. That affects everything from where manufacturers site factories to how safe it feels to drive from Lagos to Accra.

Sources: Premium Times | News.com.au

Gaza never left the headlines, but this weekend the story shifted from bombs to bargaining without ever feeling stable. Qatar’s prime minister said talks over the ceasefire and political roadmap are at a “critical moment,” warning that the truce is not yet complete because key conditions including full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and freedom of movement for civilians are still unresolved.

At the same time in Doha, Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan argued that any deal must first establish a legitimate Gaza administration and police force before pushing for Hamas’ disarmament, challenging Israel’s preferred sequencing. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking separately, claimed the “first phase” of the ceasefire plan is nearly done but doubled down on demanding Hamas disarmament and voiced continued opposition to a Palestinian state, even as he prepares to discuss later phases with Donald Trump in Washington.

Context: The ceasefire framework which was anchored in a UN Security Council resolution backed by Washington is supposed to move through phases: hostage exchanges, disarmament, Israeli drawdown, and an international stabilisation force. But each actor (Israel, Hamas, Qatar, Turkey, the U.S.) wants a different sequence and different guarantees. That’s why every “step forward” still feels one misfire away from collapse.

👉 Why it matters to you: Middle East stability is never just “their problem.” Gaza determines how comfortable global investors feel with risk, how volatile oil prices become, and how divided international institutions are which are all factors that hit Nigeria’s budget, FX flows, and diplomReuatic options. For young Nigerians, it’s also a political education in how ceasefires actually work: not as clean declarations, but as messy bargains, where sequencing, security guarantees, and who controls the police can matter more than the headline word “peace.”

Sources: The Guardian | Reuters

The Ukraine–Russia war edged back into front-page territory this weekend thanks to two worrying developments. First, Ukrainian drones hit industrial sites in Russia’s Ryazan and Voronezh regions, causing damage but no reported casualties in part of Kyiv’s strategy to stretch Russian defences and show that the war can still reach beyond the front line.

More alarming was news that Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant which is the largest in Europe and held by Russian forces, temporarily lost all off-site power overnight on December 6 after grid lines were disrupted. Emergency diesel generators prevented a meltdown, but the International Atomic Energy Agency warned that repeated power cuts increase the risk of a nuclear safety incident in a war zone.

In the background, European leaders are still arguing over how to use frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine, with complex schemes for “reparations loans” and legal workarounds intensifying ahead of EU meetings this month.

Context: Almost four years into the invasion, Ukraine is trying to prove it can still impose costs on Russia while avoiding escalation that would lose Western support. Russia, for its part, appears content to grind forward while betting that political fatigue in Washington and Brussels will slow aid. The nuclear plant is a permanent hostage in that game.

👉 Why it matters to you: A nuclear scare in Europe would hit global markets much harder than a standard battlefield update. It would spike energy prices, send investors running to safety, and push conflict premiums into everything from insurance to food imports. For Nigeria, already battling high inflation and fragile FX that kind of shock would feel like another 2022. The Ukraine war may look far, but it sits underneath your fuel price, your flight ticket, and sometimes even your data bundle.

Sources: Reuters | And More

On Saturday, at least 18 migrants drowned when their boat overturned south of the tiny Greek island of Chrysi. Two survivors were rescued, while authorities continued searching for the missing through the weekend. The route from North Africa and the Middle East into southern Europe remains one of the world’s deadliest migration corridors; UN data show tens of thousands have died or disappeared on global routes in the past decade, with the Mediterranean accounting for the largest share.

European governments continue to argue over how to share responsibility — whether via asylum “solidarity pools,” offshore processing deals, or stricter border regimes but tragedies like Chrysi keep exposing the gap between policy statements and actual rescue capacity.

Context: Migration is not just about people crossing borders; it is about failed governance, climate stress, and inequality upstream. Boats like the one that sank near Chrysi often carry people fleeing war, poverty, or climate shocks in the Sahel and Horn of Africa regions where Nigerian diplomacy, trade, and peacekeeping also operate.

👉 Why it matters to you: For young Nigerians, this is a brutal reminder of what happens when regular mobility channels are blocked and domestic opportunity is scarce. It also shapes how Nigerians are perceived abroad, as European politics harden around migration control. The more the Mediterranean is framed as a “crisis corridor,” the more difficult legal migration, work permits, and study visas can become even for those doing everything by the book.

Sources: AP News | Reuters

Quick, curious, and global — the week’s top breakthroughs shaping tomorrow.

1. An Interstellar Visitor Returns to View
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and other observatories spent the week re-observing interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, which is swinging back into view after passing behind the Sun. Discovered earlier this year, it’s only the third known object from outside our solar system to be tracked this closely, and multiple missions are racing to capture data before it disappears forever. - NASA Science

Why it matters: These campaigns drive advances in sensors, image processing, and big-data astronomy fields where remote collaborators, including African researchers and coders, can contribute without leaving home.

2. Fusion Tech Finds Real-World Uses Before Power Plants Arrive
U.S. fusion company TAE Technologies, backed by Google and Chevron, announced a joint venture with the UK Atomic Energy Authority to commercialise its neutral-beam technology which was originally designed to heat fusion plasmas for medical and industrial applications within two years. The broader fusion sector has drawn over $2.6 billion in fresh investment in the past year, including new research hubs for fusion materials. - Financial Times

Why it matters: Even before fusion lights up the grid, spin-off tech from precision beams for cancer therapy to advanced materials will create new industries. Countries that train engineers, physicists, and data scientists early will be ready when full-scale reactors move from labs to tenders.

3. AI Steps Deeper Into Weather and Hurricane Forecasting
The U.S. National Hurricane Center tested Google DeepMind–powered AI models during the latest hurricane season, finding that they could rival or beat some traditional numerical models at predicting storm tracks and rainfall. Experts now expect AI-assisted forecasting to become a staple for extreme-weather prediction, even as scientists warn about “black box” limitations and biases. - Phsy.org

Why it matters: For countries like Nigeria, juggling coastal erosion, flooding, and heat help better forecasts can shift us from reacting to disasters to planning around risk. That opens room for startups building flood maps, parametric insurance products, and smarter city planning tools powered by these models.

P.s: If you haven't already, check out DeepMind's The Thinking Game documentary on how all this came to be. It's worth watching!

This weekend was a study in crossing lines borders, red lines, and moral thresholds.

In Benin, soldiers tested the line between dissatisfaction and outright rebellion, and Nigeria chose to cross its own border in defence of constitutional order. In Gaza and Ukraine, negotiators and generals kept pushing the line between war and uneasy pause, with nuclear plants and hostages sitting in the middle. In the Mediterranean, a line on a map once again failed to protect people desperate enough to gamble their lives on a small boat. And in markets, economists spent their time trying to find an invisible line where the neutral interest rate that decides how painful or gentle the next phase of the global economy will be.

For Nigerians, the message is blunt: the world is not static. Borders can be fragile, “safe” assets can suddenly look risky, and the rules can change while we’re still catching up. But if you understand how these lines are drawn in central bank meetings, climate summits, security councils and ECOWAS sessions, you’re better placed to protect your own future, whether that’s through the skills you build, the risks you take, or the countries you try to plug into.

If you’ve read this far, you’re already doing more than most of your timeline to understand the world behind the memes.

Share this edition with someone who keeps saying “I don’t follow global news like that” and give them a head start.

See you in the next issue!
— Mr. Mo, Editor, All That Happens News