Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest person and the country’s biggest political donor, said Saturday that he would create a new political party, an enormous and challenging undertaking that would test the billionaire’s newfound influence on American politics.

Musk, once a close ally of President Donald Trump’s who in recent weeks has repeatedly bickered with him, had not filed paperwork as of Saturday evening for the new party, though he added in a separate post that the America Party would be active in elections “next year.” Any new party would be required to be disclosed to the Federal Election Commission.

Pope appoints head of child protection board

Pope Leo XIV signaled commitment to continuing the fight against clergy sexual abuse by appointing France’s Bishop Thibault Verny to head the Vatican’s child protection advisory commission on Saturday.

Verny, 59, replaces American Cardinal Sean O’Malley, the retired archbishop of Boston. O’Malley was the founding president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, an advisory group Pope Francis established in 2014 to advise the church on best practices to fight abuse and protect children.

Paris’ Seine river re-opens to swimming

Parisians and tourists swam in the Seine river on Saturday, after authorities in the French capital lifted a ban that stood for over a century.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo, French Sports Minister Marie Barsacq and other prominent faces celebrated the reopening of the famous river to bathing.

Three outdoor pools have been set up: one opposite L’île aux Cygnes (Swan Island) near the Eiffel Tower, one near Notre-Dame Cathedral and one opposite the national library.

The pools are accessible free of charge throughout the summer.

Boxer’s arrest causes unease in hometown

The arrest of Julio César Chávez Jr., son of Mexican boxing legend Julio César Chávez, for overstaying his visa in the U.S. and lying on a green card application shook Sinaloa state’s capital.

But it was the way that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security also revealed an active Mexican warrant for his arrest and alleged ties to arms and drug trafficking and the Sinaloa Cartel that made him an uncomfortable subject.

In Culiacan, Chávez’s hometown, the news has sparked quiet concern. Locals revere his father, Julio César Chávez, as a national hero but discussions about his son’s alleged cartel links remain muted.

Seven injured after boat explosion in Georgia

Seven people were left injured after a fiery boat explosion on Lake Lanier, a notorious body of water in Georgia where hundreds of others have perished, according to authorities.

Of those hurt, five were hospitalized, including a child who was airlifted to a nearby medical facility following the blast.

The incident occurred Friday, with first responders racing to the so-called cursed lake, located 60 miles north of Atlanta, around 7 p.m., according to 11 Alive.

Police said the 23-foot cabin cruiser was heading for the Margaritaville resort at Lake Lanier Islands when it suddenly exploded.

Video from the scene shows flames as high as five feet tall overwhelming the boat, sending thick plumes of black smoke over the nearby shoreline.

None of the victims have been identified and their exact conditions were not provided. They range in age from 5 to 45 years old, many of them suffering severe burns.

Canada’s Carney facing pushback on building

“Build, baby, build.” Canada’s spin on the mantra has been a nationalist rallying cry of Prime Minister Mark Carney: Build “Canada strong.” Build a Canada less dependent on the United States.

That means to build, and quickly, projects of national interest that could include oil pipelines, nuclear facilities, mines, power grids, ports, roads and railways — all of it to create a stronger domestic economy and increase trade with countries other than the United States.

But building any enormous infrastructure would most likely require doing so on the ancestral lands of Canada’s Indigenous groups, who have denounced the government’s vision even before the first shovels have hit the dirt.

Prostests in Mexico against soaring prices

Protests in Mexico City against a surge in tourism and rising prices turned violent Friday night, damaging more than a dozen businesses and drawing condemnation from officials.

The demonstration reflected the growing frustrations of many of the capital’s residents, who have watched rents skyrocket and old neighborhoods turn into swanky developments as the city has become a major tourist destination and a base for many so-called digital nomads.

The protest also prompted criticism from some officials, who denounced the violence and what they said were the protests’ nativist bent.

United Kingdom renews relations with Syria

U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy traveled to Damascus to renew diplomatic relations with Syria on Saturday, eight months after the overthrow of former President Bashar Assad.

It marks the first visit in 14 years by a U.K. government minister to the Arab nation, which is trying to rebuild its battered economy after Assad was toppled by a group headed by Ahmad Al-Sharaa, who has taken charge.

The U.K. removed the Syrian central bank and 23 other entities from a list of sanctioned institutions in March in recognition of the country’s new administration, following the collapse of Assad’s brutal regime. Western governments are rolling back a decade of sanctions on the country, which has been devastated by almost 14 years of conflict.

Unnerved Jews facing violence in Australia

Australia’s Jewish community was on edge Saturday after two violent episodes the previous night in Melbourne, one at a synagogue and one at an Israeli restaurant, the latest flare-up after earlier spates of attacks against Jewish institutions in the country.

Police in Victoria, where Melbourne is located, said they were investigating the two separate events, which took place around 8 p.m. Friday about a mile apart.

In one, a man poured flammable liquid on the front door of a synagogue in East Melbourne with about 20 people inside and set it aflame before fleeing the scene, according to Victoria Police. Everyone inside was able to evacuate through a rear exit, and firefighters extinguished the blaze, which was contained to the front entrance, police said. There were no injuries and no reports of any arrests.

Around the same time, a group of about 20 protesters near the center of the city shouted “offensive chants” at diners at a restaurant, police said.

Local media reported that tables were overturned and objects were thrown at the restaurant, resulting in a broken window.

Plane crash in Austria kills everyone on board

A small plane that took off from neighboring Germany crashed in the Austrian Alps on Saturday, killing all four people on board, authorities said.

The propeller plane crashed near Wald im Pinzgau, in Salzburg province, at 12:45 p.m. local time and apparently burst into flames. Police said three men and a woman, believed to be German, were killed, the Austria Press Agency reported.

The plane had taken off for a round-trip flight from an airfield near Munich.

— From news services