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A Ukrainian soldier with the 61st Mechanized Brigade stands beside an unmanned ground vehicle at sunset. (Credit: 61st Mechanized Brigade)

SIGNIFICANT ACTIVITIES

Ukraine Opens Covert Front Against Russia's Mercenaries in Africa

Ukraine has quietly expanded its fight against Russia into Africa, sending drone specialists to help local forces battle the Africa Corps, Moscow's successor to the Wagner Group, CNN reported.

About 15 Ukrainian drone specialists are reportedly operating in northern Mali, where they provide training and remote support to Tuareg-led forces fighting Russia's Africa Corps. The deployment follows reports that more than 200 Ukrainian personnel were sent to western Libya to support operations against Russia. (Read More)

AI Leaders Call for Slower Development as Safety Concerns Grow

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for slower AI development, warning that rapidly advancing systems could outpace efforts to keep the technology safe and controllable. He said AI agents could become capable of taking control of the internet within six to 12 months.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and xAI founder Elon Musk supported the call, but President Donald Trump rejected it, saying the U.S. must maintain its lead over China in AI. (Read More)

Video Shows First-Ever Naval Battle Between Two Sea Drones

Ukraine’s Navy released footage showing a Ukrainian Sargan-3000 naval drone destroying a Russian unmanned boat in the Black Sea, in what Kyiv described as the first-ever battle between two uncrewed surface vessels.

The Sargan-3000 is a highly maneuverable multipurpose naval drone capable of strike missions. Naval News identified the Russian drone boat as Zefir, an Orcan-type drone designed for explosive attacks. (Read More)

StreamCaster NEXUS: Tactical Networking at Mission Speed

Built for the dismounted operator, StreamCaster NEXUS seamlessly pairs the ultra-slim SM5200 MANET radio with Samsung's mission-ready EUD to deliver real-time situational awareness in a snag-free Juggernaut chest mount.

ATAK Optimized: Seamlessly run mission apps and manage network configurations with the bespoke StreamScape ATAK plug-in.
Mission Ready: Multiple I/O connectors, Dual PTT, RoIP, and Nett Warrior unified power options.
Spectrum Dominance 2.0: Explore LPI/LPD, Anti-Jam, and Advanced Threat Protection capabilities engineered for contested EW environments.

Minimize Weight, Maximize Operator Freedom with StreamCaster NEXUS.

LEARN MORE →

QUICK UPDATES

CONFLICT UPDATES

➤ Chinese firms allegedly supplied Iran with satellite imagery of a U.S. air base in Jordan before a July missile strike there killed three American troops, U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal. The Chinese embassy in Washington did not directly address the allegation but said cooperation between China and Iran complied with international law. (Read More)

➤ A train carrying former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and former CIA Director David Petraeus may have been targeted in a Russian drone strike near the Poland-Ukraine border, Ukrainian Railways said. The train was hit by the attack, but no casualties were reported. (Read More)

➤ Myanmar anti-junta fighters attacked Tada-U Air Base with FPV drones, with footage showing one drone striking a Russian-made Yak-130 jet. Resistance groups claimed four aircraft were damaged, while Myanmar’s military said all six drones were intercepted without causing damage. (Read More)

SECURITY UPDATES

➤ A passenger train derailed near Cléon in Normandy, France, on Friday, injuring 44 people. French investigators suspect sabotage after finding a rail fragment estimated to weigh between 550 and 660 pounds on the track. The investigation is ongoing. (Read More)

➤ U.S. officials secretly flew a diplomat from Britain to the U.S. after child abuse images were allegedly found on his devices, according to The Sun. The removal has angered British politicians, who questioned whether U.S. authorities had legal authority to seize the official in the U.K. (Read More)

➤ Florida’s Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles confirmed it suffered a data breach, making it the second organization holding Americans’ driver’s license information to be hacked this month after IDscan. The agency said the attack has been contained but did not disclose what information was stolen. (Read More)

TECHNOLOGY UPDATES

➤ Nuclear microreactor startup Antares has won a $161 million U.S. Space Force contract to develop nuclear power systems for future spacecraft. The effort aims to restore U.S. nuclear reactor operations in space, which last occurred in 1965. (Read More)

➤ New images of China’s suspected WZ-X stealth drone revealed design features similar to the U.S. B-2 bomber. Its capabilities and mission remain unconfirmed, but analysts believe it could conduct ISR missions deep inside heavily defended airspace, potentially serving a role closer to the U.S. RQ-170 or RQ-180. (Read More)

➤ Polish defense firm WB Group has unveiled Warmate 30, also known as Gladius 2, a jet-powered loitering munition designed to strike targets up to 155 miles away. The drone can reach 280 mph, cruise above 93 mph, and carry a 30-kilogram warhead. (Read More)

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SPECIAL CATEGORY

➤ Beijing has banned residents from owning or storing drones within the city, its strictest move yet following earlier bans on drone sales and unauthorized flights. The latest restrictions were announced months after a small aircraft crashed into Beijing’s tallest building, killing the pilot and injuring 13 people.

➤ A senior New York sheriff’s investigator was arrested for allegedly using Flock Safety’s police license-plate camera network to conduct more than 4,000 unauthorized searches to stalk her ex-girlfriend and four others over two years. She was suspended and charged with official misconduct and falsifying business records.

➤ The National Security Agency will undergo its first major internal restructuring in at least a decade, creating five new organizations focused on AI, China, cybersecurity, combat support and global intelligence. The restructuring is expected to begin by mid-October, with the NSA aiming for full operating capacity by mid-January.

On this day in history: On September 14th, 1982, a bomb destroyed the Phalange party headquarters in East Beirut, killing Lebanese president-elect Bachir Gemayel and 23 others.

SENTIMENT COLLECTION

Do you think Governments can really regulate AI?

Yes

Unsure

Saturday’s Results:

Should the U.S. join a Saudi military campaign against the Houthis?

Yes (65.1%)
No (29.5%)
Unsure (5.4%)

n=779

Have your own question that you'd like polled? Email us at editor@sofx.com.

HALO: Fielded, Resilient Communications for Drone Dominance

Elsight’s HALO multilink connectivity platform enables resilient, beyond-line-of-sight (BLOS) operations in GNSS-denied and electronically contested environments by fusing diverse communication paths into a single, self-healing network.

This ensures uninterrupted command, control, and real-time data flow for ISR, targeting, and autonomous swarm coordination, capabilities central to the Drone Dominance program. Halo’s low SWaP profile supports Group 1–3 UAS as well as larger platforms, extending mission endurance without sacrificing payload capacity. By delivering consistent connectivity where traditional links fail, HALO enhances operational tempo, survivability, and mission success across distributed, multi-domain operations.

Learn more about Halo →

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About SOFX: We are an independent media and communications technology company reporting on the conflicts, security, and technology issues impacting your lives and businesses. SOFX was founded by former special operations & intelligence professionals, not career journalists or Big Tech / Big Media.

Have feedback for us? We want to hear any and all comments you may have. Contact us at editor@sofx.com.

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