The Hindu Morning Digest: February 9, 2026

FBI concluded Jeffrey Epstein wasn’t running sex trafficking ring for powerful men, files show

The Federal Bureau of Investigation pored over Jeffrey Epstein’s bank records and emails. It searched his homes. It spent years interviewing his victims and examining his connections to some of the world’s most influential people. But while investigators collected ample proof that Epstein sexually abused underage girls, they found scant evidence the well-connected financier led a sex trafficking ring serving powerful men, an Associated Press review of internal Justice Department records shows. An examination of Epstein’s financial records, including payments he made to entities linked to influential figures in academia, finance and global diplomacy, found no connection to criminal activity, said another internal memo in 2019.

India and Canada agree to shared work plan to guide bilateral cooperation on national security

In a first since Canada accused India of being involved in the Hardeep Singh Nijjar killing in 2023, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval visited Ottawa on February 7, 2026. Mr. Doval met his Canadian counterpart, Nathalie Drouin, Deputy Clerk and National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Canadian PM. The visit was part of a bilateral security dialogue between the two sides. The visit by Mr. Doval was ahead of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to India in March. The two sides acknowledged the progress on initiatives aimed at supporting the safety and security of their countries and citizens. They agreed to a shared work plan to guide bilateral cooperation on national security and law enforcement issues and to enable practical collaboration on respective priorities.

Japanese PM Takaichi’s party secures supermajority in lower house in landslide victory

The governing party of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi secured a two-thirds supermajority in a key parliamentary election on Sunday (February 8, 2026), Japanese media reported, citing preliminary results, earning a landslide victory thanks to her popularity. Ms. Takaichi, in a televised interview with public television network NHK following her sweeping victory, said she is now ready to pursue policies that would make Japan strong and prosperous. NHK, citing results of vote counts, said Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party, or LDP, alone secured 316 seats by early on Monday (February 9, 2026), comfortably surpassing a 261-seat absolute majority in the 465-member lower house.

India-Greece defence ties in focus as Ministers meet in New Delhi

With a focus on enhancing defence cooperation, Greek Defence Minister Nikos Dendias and Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will hold a bilateral meeting on Monday (February 9, 2026) at the Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi. The discussions are expected to focus on enhancing cooperation in the defence sector, a senior Defence official said. Speaking at the India-EU Forum 2026 on Saturday (February 7, 2026), Mr. Dendias described India as an indispensable partner for Europe, highlighting New Delhi’s growing strategic and economic importance for the European Union and Greece in particular.

Stabbed Indian students stable, recovering in Russia; consular visit in Ufa case

Four Indian medical students who were injured in a stabbing spree by a juvenile in a Russian university are “stable and recovering well,” the Indian mission said here on Sunday (February 8, 2026). These four Indians were among at least six people injured in the stabbing attack on Saturday at the State Medical University in Ufa, about 1,200 km east of the Russian capital, in the Bashkortostan Republic. Indian consular officials from Kazan on Sunday visited the four students at the hospital where they were taken after the stabbing incident.

Manipur district issued prohibitory orders over Kuki-Naga tension

Administration of Manipur’s Ukhrul district on Sunday (February 8, 2026) imposed prohibitory orders in the Litan area of the district “until further notice”, following tension between Naga and Kuki-Zo villagers over an assault case. District Magistrate Asish Das said the restrictions, under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, were imposed on apprehension of breach of peace and public tranquillity in the area. The restrictions came into force from 7 p.m. on Sunday (February 8, 2026). The district administration also requisitioned the services of the Army and paramilitary forces, including the Assam Rifles, as a preventive measure.

Iran sentences Nobel peace laureate Mohammadi to six years in prison: lawyer

An Iranian court sentenced Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi to a six-year prison term, her lawyer told AFP on Sunday (February 8, 2026). “She has been sentenced to six years in prison for gathering and collusion to commit crimes,” lawyer Mostafa Nili said, adding that she had also received a two-year ban on leaving the country. Ms. Mohammadi was also handed a one-and-a-half-year prison sentence for propaganda activities and is to be exiled for two years to the city of Khosf in the eastern province of South Khorasan, the lawyer stated. Under Iranian law, jail sentences run concurrently. Mr. Nili expressed hope that, due to Ms. Mohammadi’s health issues, she could be temporarily “released on bail to receive treatment”.

British PM Keir Starmer’s Chief of Staff resigns over envoy linked to Epstein

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Chief of Staff, Morgan McSweeney, resigned on Sunday (February 8, 2026), taking “full responsibility” for advising Mr. Starmer to appoint Peter Mandelson as Britain’s envoy to Washington. Mr. Mandelson was sacked in September after the extent of his links to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein became publicly known. A tranche of Epstein-related documents released on January 30, revealed further details of the association between Epstein and Mr. Mandelson. Mr. Mandelson has denied wrongdoing. “The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself,” Mr. McSweeney wrote. However, he also said that he did not oversee the due diligence process, as he called for that process to be overhauled.

Israel’s security cabinet approves measures to strengthen control over West Bank

Israel’s security cabinet on Sunday (February 8, 2026) approved measures that aim to deepen Israeli control over the occupied West Bank and weaken the already limited powers of the Palestinian Authority. The office of far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in a statement announced the decisions that would make it easier for Jewish settlers to force Palestinians to give up land, adding that “we will continue to bury the idea of a Palestinian state.” Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in a statement, called the decision “dangerous” and an “open Israeli attempt to legalise settlement expansion” and land confiscation. He called for the United States and the U.N. Security Council to intervene immediately.

Partial shutdown in Balochistan, lukewarm response in other provinces to Opposition’s protest in Pakistan

Balochistan witnessed a partial standstill on Sunday (February 8, 2026) while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh provinces threw a mixed response to a protest call by Pakistan’s opposition to mark the anniversary of what they called “a rigged February 8, 2024 general election”. The complete shutter down and traffic strike call was given by Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz-e-Aain Pakistan (TTAP), a united front of all opposition political parties, including incarcerated former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). After the February 8, 2024 general election, Mr. Khan had called the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) ‘mandate thieves’, alleging that they rigged the polls to steal his party’s seats by manipulating results to come to power.

T20 World Cup 2026 | England scrapes past Nepal in yet another final-over thriller

More than 17,000 spectators — a vast majority draped in Nepal’s red and blue — packed the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday (February 8, 2026). When Lokesh Bam failed to find the boundary off the final two deliveries, a palpable sense of ‘so near, yet so far’ swept through the stands and across television screens worldwide as the Englishmen held their nerve to scrape home in their Men’s T20 World Cup opener. With Nepal needing 10 off the last over, England medium pacer Sam Curran kept his composure to concede just five, restricting Nepal to 180 for six — four runs short of England’s 184 for seven. Had Lokesh (39 n.o., 20b, 4×4, 2×6) managed to connect cleanly even once against Curran’s clever variations, Nepal would have pulled off the first upset of the tournament.

Published – February 09, 2026 07:09 am IST