By Christian Edwards, CNN

Zalaegerszeg, Hungary (CNN) — The sign proudly announces that the roundabout near Zalaegerszeg in western Hungary was built with 500 million forints (about $1.5 million) of funds from the European Union.

The roundabout was built to service a container terminal on a new railway line that would help provide this landlocked part of central Europe with better access to the sea. Rather than having to pass through Budapest, Hungary’s capital, goods arriving from the Adriatic coast would transit quickly through the west of the country into Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland and beyond.

But there’s a problem. Years after the roundabout was built, there’s still no railway. Instead, the roundabout lies unused in a field, waiting for the Hungarian government to build the railway that would make it useful.

Critics of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán say EU-funded construction projects like these are a monument to the economic system his government has built over its 16 years in office. Orbán’s electoral success, they say, has combined relentlessly demonizing the EU – painting it as a decadent, liberal, corrupting force in Hungary – while happily accepting vast amounts of money from it.

Much of that money came from initiatives intended to help the bloc’s poorer, more recent members – many of which were once part of the Warsaw Pact – to catch up with their richer neighbors in the West. But, ahead of a pivotal parliamentary election Sunday, opponents are asking what Hungary has to show for all this investment, pointing to a string of what they cast as vanity projects, and unfinished or unnecessary construction projects.

“Orbán was the ultimate rent-seeker in the 2010s of the European Union. That was a conscious strategy,” Krisztián Orbán (no relation), the founder of Oriens, an investment firm in the region, told CNN. He also highlighted the government’s success in drawing down its allocated funding, by comparison with its neighbors, adding that Orbán “was able to bring in a humongous amount of EU money.”

The roundabout near Zalaegerszeg, first reported by the Hungarian investigative site Atlatszo, is one of tens of thousands of projects in Hungary that have received EU funding since Viktor Orbán came to power. Tibor Navracsis, the regional development minister, told Hungary’s parliament last year that the EU had financed 52,000 projects in the country during the 2014-2020 budget period.

István János Tóth, director of the Corruption Research Center Budapest, who is from Zalaegerszeg, said the roundabout was a prime example of a “white elephant” – a construction project that is expensive to build, and often to maintain, but which provides little value.

“Without the European funds, Orbán couldn’t have established this sort of system,” Tóth told CNN.

Corruption watchdog Transparency International has ranked Hungary the most corrupt country in the EU. CNN has asked Hungary’s foreign ministry and the prime minister’s office for comment. The Hungarian government typically denies allegations of corruption or accuses its opponents of being corrupt themselves.

Work on the roundabout began during the current EU budget period, which runs until 2027. Having purchased a patch of land, Metrans – a logistics company that operates in the region – was planning to build a container terminal to attach to the new railway, also scheduled for construction.

At a ceremony in 2021, Hungary’s Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó laid the foundation stone o

By Alaa Elassar, CNN

(CNN) — It has been nearly a week since she vanished at sea, and Lynette Hooker’s husband of 25 years has spent the past several days in custody in the Bahamas, where he’s been questioned in connection with her disappearance.

From the beginning, Brian Hooker has remained faithful to his original account: that his wife fell from a small dinghy as the couple traveled back to their sailboat through rough conditions in the Bahamas, and that strong currents pulled her out of his reach.

Authorities detained him Wednesday for questioning based on probable cause, Royal Bahamas Police Force Assistant Commissioner Advardo Dames told Reuters. He was taken into custody as a suspect, Dames said, though no charges have been announced.

“I am heartbroken over the recent boat accident in unpredictable seas and high winds that caused my beloved Lynette to fall from our small dinghy,” he said in a statement before his arrest, describing what he characterized as a tragic accident. “Despite desperate attempts to reach her, the winds and currents drove us further apart. We continue to search for her and that is my sole focus.”

By Friday, he was interviewed again, this time about the couple’s personal life, according to his attorney, who said investigators did not focus on potential physical evidence from the couple’s boat or devices.

“He was overwhelmed, he was upset, and he kept reiterating that ‘I need to know what’s happening with the search of my wife,’” his attorney, Terrel Butler, said Friday, saying earlier that her client “appears completely heartbroken and deeply distressed,” and the trauma of his wife’s disappearance and detention as a suspect has left him in an “extremely fragile state.”

Brian Hooker’s detention period was extended through Monday evening after being questioned again Friday, his attorney said. Police have not said why they requested the extension.

The attorney has pushed back on growing public speculation, arguing that without finding Lynette, conclusions about foul play are premature.

The couple had spent the past decade sailing together, charting a life across open water — learning to scuba dive, chasing marine life and finding meaning in the quiet, in-between moments at sea. The pair were navigating the Bahamas on their yacht, “Soulmate,” when Lynette Hooker disappeared.

But with Lynette Hooker still missing — and her heartbroken daughter now raising questions and concerns about the relationship behind that life — the story has grown heavier.

A concerned daughter raises questions

In the days after her stepfather was taken into custody, Lynette Hooker’s daughter described her mother’s marriage as “rocky,” saying while they cared for one another, their relationship sometimes turned volatile.

“I just want to know the truth. I don’t want him to be in trouble. I just hope this was a freak accident, but I don’t want it to just be swept under the rug,” Karli Aylesworth told CNN on Thursday.

The 28-year-old said her mother had previously confided that Brian Hooker choked her — an allegation CNN has not independently confirmed with law enforcement. His attorney has said he denies the claims.

During police questioning Friday, Brian Hooker “was confronted with the allegations from his stepdaughter,” but he continues to dispute her account, Butler said.

In 2015, Lynette Hooker was placed in custody in Michigan on suspicion of “assault & battery/simple assault,” according to a Kentwood police report.

Brian Hooker told an officer he had been assaulted by his wife, who struck him multiple times, according to the report, which said he was found with a swollen, bloody nose.

Lynette Hooker, who an officer said was “highly intoxicated,” told police she had been “struck in the forehead by her husband Brian” as well, though no v

By Natasha Bertrand, Haley Britzky, Zachary Cohen, CNN

(CNN) — US intelligence indicates that China is preparing to deliver new air defense systems to Iran within the next few weeks, according to three people familiar with recent intelligence assessments.

It would be a provocative move considering Beijing said it helped broker the fragile ceasefire agreement that paused the war between Iran and the US earlier this week. President Donald Trump is also set to visit China early next month for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The intelligence also underscores how Iran may be using the ceasefire as an opportunity to replenish certain weapons systems with the help of key foreign partners.

Two of the sources told CNN there are indications that Beijing is working to route the shipments through third countries to mask their true origin.

The systems Beijing is preparing to transfer are shoulder-fired anti-air missile systems known as MANPADs, the sources said, which posed an asymmetric threat to low-flying US military aircraft throughout the course of the five-week war and could again if the ceasefire falls apart.

A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington said, “China has never provided weapons to any party to the conflict; the information in question is untrue.”

“As a responsible major country, China consistently fulfills its international obligations. We urge the U.S. side to refrain from making baseless allegations, maliciously drawing connections, and engaging in sensationalism; we hope that relevant parties will do more to help de-escalate tensions.”

Earlier this week, an embassy spokesperson told CNN that since the US-Israel-Iran war began Beijing had “been working to help bring about a ceasefire and end to the conflict.”

Trump indicated during a press conference on Monday that the F-15 fighter jet shot down over Iran last week was hit by a “handheld shoulder missile, [a] heat-seeking missile,” and Iran said it had used a “new” air defense system to hit the jet without providing more details. It’s unclear if that system was Chinese manufactured.

Shipping MANPADS to Iran would mark an escalation in China’s support for the country since the US and Israel launched their joint military campaign in February.

Chinese companies have continued to sell the Iranians sanctioned dual-use technology that enables the Iran to keep building weapons and enhance its navigation systems, sources said, but the Chinese government directly transferring weapons systems would mark a new level of assistance.

Trump is expected to meet with Xi next month in Beijing, and the White House said on Wednesday that high-level talks had taken place between the US and China as Iran ceasefire negotiations played out earlier this week.

One of the sources familiar with the intelligence said China sees no real strategic value in overtly entering the conflict and trying to protect Iran against the US and Israel, which they know would be unwinnable. Instead, Beijing is trying to position itself as a continued friend to Iran — whose oil it heavily depends upon — while remaining outwardly neutral so they can maintain deniability after the war is over.

Sources said the Chinese could also make the argument that air defense systems are defensive rather than offensive in nature, differentiating their support from that of Russia. Moscow has been providing support to the Iranian regime throughout the course of the war in the form of intelligence sharing that has helped Iran proactively target US troops and assets in the Middle East, CNN has reported.

Iran has long had established military and econo

Por Erick E. Beltran, CNN en Español

Carín León sigue sumando hitos a su carrera. El artista se convertirá en el primer mexicano en encabezar un festival musical en Tokio cuando se presente en el Summer Sonic Festival 2026.

De acuerdo con un comunicado de su equipo, el cantante iniciará su paso por Japón el 14 de agosto en Osaka y, un día después, el 15 de agosto, se presentará en Tokio, donde además será cabeza de cartel y curador del escenario Mountain/Beach Stage, eligiendo a los artistas que participarán durante la jornada.

El festival, que celebra su edición número 25, se llevará a cabo de manera simultánea en Tokio y Osaka, con más de 100 actos internacionales. En el cartel figuran artistas como The Strokes, Alex Warren y Pentatonix, entre otros.

Este logro se suma a una serie de hitos en la carrera del cantante. En septiembre, León se convertirá en el primer artista latino en presentarse en la Sphere de Las Vegas, con una residencia de conciertos programada para los días 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 12 y 13 de ese mes.

Antes, el 28 de junio, el artista también hará historia al convertirse en el primer acto artístico en presentarse en el Nu Stadium de Miami, como parte de su gira por Norteamérica 2026.

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CARRIZO PLAIN NATIONAL MONUMENT, Calif. (KEYT) - A gathering was held Friday morning to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Carrizo Plain National Monument designation.

In January 2001 during his final days in office, President Bill Clinton officially proclaimed the vast wilderness in remote Eastern San Luis Obispo County as a national monument, helping ensure the site remains as nearly untouched as it has for thousands of years prior.

"This is one of the truly last great places in California," said Scott Butterfield, The Nature Conservancy Land Program Lead Scientist. "When the Nature Conservancy and partners, including the Bureau of Land Management and California Department of Fish and Wildlife came up with a plan to protect, connect, restore and steward this landscape for 40 years ago, I don't think anybody could have thought that we'd be this successful."

Spanning 250,000 acres, the Carrizo Plain is an important ecological and historical site that is managed jointly by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), California Department of Fish and Wildlife and The Land Conservancy.

Sometimes referred to as "California's Serengeti," the Carrizo Plain is California's largest native grassland and is home to the highest concentration of threatened and endangered species in the state.

"This area here is significant because it's one of the last remnants, of the ecosystem that that was here thousands of years ago," said Gabe Garcia, BLM Central California District Land Manager. "Many of these these areas have been converted to farmland. Many of them are now big cities, so this is the last remnant and kind of a conduit to the past."

Garcia, who grew up only about 40 miles away from the National Monument in Buttonwillow, further explained why the National Monument designation has been so important to the area.

"There's just more significance put on these places to protect them and conserve them for the ways that they've been used historically, out here," said Garcia. "It's a historically, an area that was used, in recent times, as a ranching area, so some of that is still prevalent, but before then, it was a very culturally significant place for our Native American,\ community. It's a place where multiple tribes would meet. They would trade and there's a lot of things that would happen here from a religious perspective for those groups and so we continue those traditions here\ on the monument, working through our Native American Advisory Council. There's a number of research projects that go on with local, universities, who come out and do population research. We do re