25Feb/26

Leaked $1bn US-Zambia Health Deal Sparks Outrage Over Data and Mining Demands

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25 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ —  A leaked draft of a $1bn health financing agreement between the US and Zambia has provoked widespread backlash and accusations of “shameless exploitation”. Under the proposed memorandum of understanding, Washington would provide health funding in exchange for severe and unprecedented conditions that advocates argue are vastly worse than deals struck with other African nations. Continue reading →

25Feb/26

Analyzing Zambia’s Progress: An Interview with Hakainde Hichilema

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Zambia’s Strategic Evolution: From Landlocked to Land-Linked Economic Powerhouse

25 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ —  This is an analysis of John McDermott, The Economist chief Africa correspondent
interview with Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema (often referred to as “HH”) ahead of the country’s upcoming August elections,. Hichilema is urging voters to “stay the course,” arguing that his administration has made significant strides in repairing the damage left by his predecessor, Edgar Lungu. He highlights several achievements, including securing a debt restructuring deal, delivering free education, enacting liberal reforms in power and agriculture, and initiating major infrastructure projects like the Lobito Corridor and Tazara railway renovations to transform Zambia into a “land-linked” nation. He also aims for the country to reach 1 million tonnes of copper production this year. Continue reading →

25Feb/26

The Documentary the DOJ Hopes You Never Stream: Unmasking the Evidence American Media Ignored

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25 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ —  The Borowitz Report  details allegations of sexual misconduct by Donald Trump involving teenagers and children, referencing claims found within the Epstein files and a 2018 BBC Panorama documentary. The author asserts that the Department of Justice has attempted to suppress evidence, such as withholding interviews with a woman who alleged Trump abused her when she was 13. The BBC documentary, which has never aired in the US, features on-camera testimonies from women who encountered Trump as teen models, including Barbara Pilling. It also highlights instances where Trump bragged about invading pageant dressing rooms to ogle naked girls, including contestants as young as 15 at the Miss Teen USA pageant. Asserting that the FCC is aligned with Trump, the author urges readers to bypass traditional broadcasting by sharing the documentary clips online. Continue reading →

25Feb/26

Action Advocacy Law Firm Achieves Rare Student Loan Debt Discharge Without Litigation

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25 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ —  In January 2026, Connecticut attorney Dave Falvey of Action Advocacy, PC successfully helped a client discharge over $240,000 in federal student loan debt through the bankruptcy process. Notably, this debt relief was achieved without a trial or contested hearing, relying instead on the submission of a sworn attestation and supporting documentation. The bankruptcy court approved the discharge based entirely on the legal sufficiency of the record provided. While this case highlights a successful outcome, Falvey emphasized that discharging student debt remains difficult and is a highly fact-specific inquiry. A borrower’s eligibility for this streamlined, attestation-based approach depends heavily on the type of loan involved, their individual circumstances, and available documentation, meaning only a limited number of borrowers may qualify.

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25Feb/26

Pentagon Ultimatum: Anthropic Faces Blacklist and Federal Compulsion if AI Guardrails Aren’t Dropped by Friday

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25 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ —  The U.S. Department of Defense has issued a strict ultimatum to the artificial intelligence company Anthropic, demanding that it remove its self-imposed ethical guardrails for military use by 5:01 PM on Friday, February 27, 2026. During a tense meeting at the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei that the military requires unrestricted access to the company’s flagship AI model, Claude, for “all lawful purposes”. Continue reading →

25Feb/26

The Watchers Exposed: How a Single Platform Connects ChatGPT Selfies to Federal Intelligence Reports

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Your Chatbot is Filing Reports to the Treasury: The Hidden Architecture of AI Surveillance

25 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ —  Security researchers have uncovered that Persona, the identity verification company used by OpenAI to screen users, operates a massive biometric surveillance and financial reporting platform for federal agencies using the exact same codebase. The discovery was made through passive reconnaissance when researchers found an unprotected 53-megabyte file containing the platform’s entire original TypeScript source code left openly accessible on a FedRAMP-authorized government endpoint.

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25Feb/26

New UK ETA Scheme Grounds Dual British Nationals Traveling on Foreign Passports

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25 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ —  As of February 25, 2026, the UK has fully implemented strict pre-departure checks under the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme. Because British citizens are legally ineligible to apply for an ETA, dual nationals can no longer use their non-British passports to board flights, ferries, or trains bound for the UK.
When attempting to check in with a foreign passport, the airline’s system will flag the traveler as “not cleared to fly”. Facing fines of up to £10,000 per passenger for non-compliance, carriers are strictly denying boarding to individuals who lack valid proof of their Right of Abode.
To travel to the UK, dual citizens—including children born abroad—must now present one of the following: a valid British passport, an Irish passport, or a Certificate of Entitlement (CoE). The CoE, which costs £589, is transitioning to a digital eVisa format linked to a UKVI account. In limited circumstances, carriers may use their discretion to accept British passports that expired after 1989, or stranded travelers may need to apply for an Emergency Travel Document to return home.

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25Feb/26

Stop Guessing Your Prompts: 4 Game-Changing Lessons from the Vertex AI Prompt Optimizer

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Maximizing AI Accuracy: Automating Workflows with the Vertex AI Prompt Optimizer

23 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ — The  Vertex AI Prompt Optimizer is a tool designed to refine AI instructions automatically using ground truth data. By comparing initial outputs against high-quality examples, the system iteratively adjusts system prompts to achieve greater accuracy and consistency. The author illustrates this process through a Firebase case study, where the tool was used to transform rough video scripts into professional YouTube descriptions. Although the optimization process requires an upfront investment in time and tokens, it significantly reduces the need for manual human intervention. Ultimately, the source highlights how data-driven optimization can replace trial-and-error prompting with a more reliable, automated workflow. Continue reading →

24Feb/26

The Neurobiology of Heartache: The Shared Brain Pathways of Love Addiction, Childhood Trauma, and Prolonged Grief

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24 Feb. 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ — This research explores the profound intersections between intense romantic love, debilitating grief, and clinical addiction. By examining these human experiences through psychological, neurobiological, and sociological lenses, a unified framework emerges: both obsessive love and prolonged grief are dysregulations of the brain’s fundamental reward and attachment systems. Continue reading →

24Feb/26

From Companions to Liabilities: Suicides Linked to AI Chatbots Spark a Legal and Regulatory Reckoning

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The 2026 AI Reckoning: 5 Takeaways That Are Redefining the Future of the Internet

Feb. 24, 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ – This report details how OpenAI internally questioned whether to alert authorities regarding the disturbing chat logs of a teenager who later committed a mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, Canada. Although the suspect’s account was terminated months before the attack due to violent content, the company ultimately decided her behavior did not meet the specific threshold for an emergency police referral at that time. Beyond her interactions with artificial intelligence, the perpetrator had established a concerning digital history through violent simulations on Roblox and firearms-related posts on social media. The situation has reignited a broader debate concerning the ethical responsibilities of tech companies in monitoring user data to prevent real-world tragedies. Currently, the organization is cooperating with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as investigators review the digital warning signs that preceded the event. Continue reading →