Don’t look now, but the Houthi rebels are at it again.

Driving the news: Iran-backed Yemeni Houthis conducted what appears to be their first attack on a cargo vessel sailing through the deep ocean and not in and around their stronghold near the Red Sea — stoking fears about increased capabilities from the group. 

Remember the Transformers movies? Experts from around the world are looking for ways (aside from hiring Shia LaBeouf) to keep it from becoming a reality. 

What happened: Civilian, military, and technology leaders from more than 140 countries met in Vienna yesterday to discuss how to check the growing risks associated with autonomous and AI-powered weapons. 

Now might be a good time to book that trip to Japan you’ve been dreaming of because your loonie is going to go a lot further than it used to.

What happened: The value of the Japanese yen fell to a 34-year low after the Bank of Japan said it would keep interest rates at a target of zero percent to 0.1%. 

As travel season shifts into high gear, Venice is asking visitors to cough up some extra cash before hopping on any gondolas.

What happened: Venice’s pilot for the first-of-its-kind ticketing system for day trippers began this week. For 29 high-traffic days this year, tourists visiting but not staying overnight must buy a €5 ticket to enter. 

Switzerland is famous for keeping its nose out of the business of other countries, but some citizens are worried it’s starting to pick sides. 

What happened: Swiss parliament voted against joining an international task force to enforce sanctions against Russia. The decision comes as lawmakers and citizens grapple with what it means to be a neutral country in an increasingly tense Europe.

Violence in the Middle East escalated over the weekend with an Iranian attack on Israel. 

Catch up: Iran launched more than 300 drones and missiles at targets in Israel on Saturday, 99% of which were intercepted in the air by Israel and its allies.

Saudi officials are learning that constructing a city from scratch is turning out to be a real financial headache. 

Driving the news: Saudi Arabia is scaling back its ambitions for Neom, a trillion-dollar desert development project aimed at diversifying its oil-dependent economy.

Sam Bankman-Fried might be having a rough go of it as he faces 25 years in the slammer,  but hey, at least he didn’t commit large-scale financial fraud in Vietnam. 

What happened: Real estate developer Truong My Lan has been sentenced to death by a Vietnamese court for orchestrating the country's largest-ever financial fraud. She embezzled over US$12 billion (or ~3% of Vietnam’s GDP) from the Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank.

After catching flack for not spending enough on defence, the feds fished around their proverbial couch cushions and came up with a hefty chunk of change. 

What happened: As part of Canada's first major defence policy update since 2017, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) will receive an additional $8.1 billion in federal funding over the next five years.

The Japanese royal family wants you to know that it’s not outdated and it’s actually really cool — and it has 80+ new Instagram photos to prove it.

What happened: This week, the famously private imperial family chose to start sharing their lavish life on social media for the first time by launching an Instagram account.