Hi Global Recap readers,
I first read about the story below last week, but at the time it was just a wild rumor.
And back then, there was no mention of anything nuclear.
Now, it’s gone nuclear. 👇🏼
🇨🇳 CHINA
Leaked:
Chinese Nuclear Secrets
China has just purged its top general, Central Military Commission vice-chair Zhang Youxia.
For what? Leaking nuclear secrets to US.
Who. Zhang, 75, sits at the top of China’s military command as joint vice-chair of the Central Military Commission (CMC), second only to Xi, and he is also a Politburo member with rare combat experience.
What's notable: He was kept in senior leadership beyond the usual retirement age, which signals that Xi had exceptional trust for him.
Allegations. China’s defense ministry said over the weekend that Zhang and Liu (chief of staff of the CMC’s joint staff department) were being investigated for "suspected serious violations of discipline and law."
A Liberation Army Daily editorial said the two had "seriously betrayed" the Communist party and fostered political and corruption problems that threatened the party’s absolute leadership over the military.
Zhang is accused of leaking information about China’s nuclear weapons program to the US and of taking bribes tied to high-level promotions.
Remember the alleged US intelligence assessment suggesting that corruption was so rampant that some missiles were reportedly filled with water instead of fuel? But note that there is also a counter to this alleged report.
📌 Context. The Central Military Commission is the spine of China’s command system. Xi’s corruption campaign has targeted the military since 2012, with the crackdown reaching elite units like the Rocket Force in 2023 and continuing through 2025 with multiple senior expulsions
🇬🇧 UNITED KINGDOM
50 Facial
Recognition Vans
The UK government says it will roll out live facial recognition nationwide, adding 40 new camera vans—all in the name of efficient surveillance.
Shift. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood says forces are "fighting crime in a digital age with analogue methods," and her White Paper pitches technology as the shortcut to faster response and more visible policing.
The headline hardware is 40 additional live facial recognition vans, taking the total from 10 to 50.
The vans scan faces in public spaces to flag people on police watchlists, and are also framed as a tool to find missing or vulnerable people and deter crime.
Automation. Beyond the vans, the government says every force in England and Wales will get AI tools aimed at reducing time spent on admin, so officers can spend more time on the ground.
📌 Context. Live facial recognition has existed in the UK as a limited, force-by-force tool, but this plan would scale it nationwide and tie it to broader centralization of policing.
🇬🇧 UNITED KINGDOM
Lords Ban VPNs
I know this story is a week old, but I’m including it here because the story above makes it relevant now.
Vote. On January 21, 2026, the House of Lords passed an amendment to the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill aimed at banning VPN use by UK children under 18.
It passed by 207 votes to 159.
Within 12 months of the Act passing, regulations must prohibit providing a "Relevant VPN Service" to UK children.
Peers backing it framed VPNs as tools to dodge age checks and said the ban would "protect children's wellbeing."
The proposal now heads to the Commons.
📌 Context. The Online Safety Act came into force in July 2025, pushing age checks onto sites and apps that host adult content, and VPN use reportedly surged because users could connect through another country to bypass those checks.
📊 Poll
Banning VPNs may seem like a logical way to reinforce age-verification laws, but it is not the only approach. South Korea, for example, uses real-name/ID-based age/identity check for many online services and blocks numerous adult sites. Yet, it has never banned VPNs or forced foreign websites to adopt the same checks.
Some view this as lax enforcement, while others see it as a pragmatic compromise.
🇮🇷 IRAN
Video Threats
Now we know the US Navy’s Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group has arrived in the US Central Command area of responsibility in the Middle East.
Right on cue, the Iranian regime has released a threatening video showing drones attacking the USS Abraham Lincoln, critically damaging it and leaving US personnel fearing for their lives.
But here’s the caveat: it’s AI-generated.
🇮🇱 ISRAEL
Last Hostage Remains
Finally Identified
Israel has finally identified the remains of Ran Gvili, the last Israeli hostage whose body was still in Gaza.
Confirmation. On Monday, the Israel Defense Forces said Gvili's remains had been identified and that his relatives had been notified. For months, his was the only hostage body Israel said still remained in Gaza.
Gvili was a 24-year-old police officer killed during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack, and the military says his family has been told he will be returned for burial.
Recovery. Israeli officials said Sunday they had launched a "large-scale operation" to locate the remains, amid rising pressure to move beyond the first stage of the ceasefire. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum called it closure, adding, "First to go in. Last to return."
Response. Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said the handover confirmed its commitment to the ceasefire terms, despite previously pointing to the destruction in Gaza as being the reason for struggling to locate remains under collapsed buildings.
Phase. Israel says the next step should include:
a partial reopening of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt,
negotiations over Hamas disarmament and postwar security control.
📌 Context. The ceasefire plan is structured in phases, with the first focused on exchanging hostages for Palestinian prisoners and recovering bodies, and later stages aimed at longer-term security and governance arrangements.
With the last remaining hostage body now accounted for, talks shift to the hardest questions: borders, disarmament, and who controls Gaza.
