Minimalist News

Iran War Exposes America's Unfixed Supply Chains Authored by David Dayen via The American Prospect, One of the more fascinating sidelights of our war of choice in Iran is how it has reinforced the devastating consequences of our hollowed-out industrial base, consolidated commercial sector, and overreliance on long intermediated supply chains. Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121) fires a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile during operations in support of Operation Epic Fury, February 28, 2026. Credit: U.S. Central Command Public Affairs/Cover Images via AP Images For example, the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz carries implications for not only

Meta Plans 20% Layoffs To Divert Capital To Data Centers On Friday we noted that Meta has delayed the rollout of its latest AI model because it sucks - and may temporarily license superior models like Gemini to power the company's AI products.  Now, Meta is reportedly mulling a massive new round of layoffs that could affect more than 20% of its workforce as it accelerates spending on AI data center buildouts. The move comes as other hyperscalers consider similar workforce restructurings to redirect capital flows toward AI infrastructure. Reuters cited people familiar with the plans and said no final decision or timeline has

Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness Lower In Recent Months, Preliminary Data Show Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), The effectiveness of vaccines against influenza dropped during the 2025–2026 virus season, officials said on March 12, about two months after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stopped recommending flu vaccination for all children. An influenza vaccine in a doctor's office in Coral Gables, Fla., on Sept. 15, 2025. Joe Raedle/Getty Images Vaccine effectiveness for late 2025 and early 2026 against outpatient visits and hospitalization was pegged at 14 percent to 48 percent among children, Dr. Lisa Grohskopf, with the CDC’s Influenza

Honda Projects First Loss Since 1957 - $15.7 Billion - Thanks To EV Strategy Fail Authored by Rob Sabo via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), A reassessment of Honda Motor Co., Ltd., corporate electric vehicle (EV) strategy and planned cancellation of three EV models for the North American market could lead to losses totaling approximately $15.7 billion for its fiscal year ending March 31, the company said in a news release on March 12. A Honda SUV e: Prototype electric vehicle is displayed during a media day for the Auto Shanghai show in Shanghai, China, on April 20, 2021. Aly Song/Reuters It would be

Texas Antifa Cell Convicted On Terror Charges As Trump Targets Far-Left For years Democrats argued that "Antifa" is not a real organization; rather, they claim it is a set of ideals with no concrete membership.  This illusory definition of the movement is quite deliberate in that it is designed to protect Antifa members from being defined as terrorists or facing direct consequences for their actions.   Legal questions have been growing over the use of federal terrorism laws against leftist activists.  Democrats claim they're engaging in constitutionally protected civil protest - rationale used justify attacks on ICE agents during the execution of deportations. 

Iran Mulls Allowing Tankers Through Strait Of Hormuz If Trade Conducted In Yuan Via The Cradle Iran is considering allowing a "limited number" of oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz on the condition that the oil cargo is traded in Chinese yuan, CNN has reported. A senior Iranian official told the US news outlet that Tehran is working on a new plan to manage tanker traffic through the strategic waterway on Iran’s southern coast. via Associated Press Iran has effectively sealed off the strait, allowing only its own and Chinese ships to pass. Before the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran on

Mamdani Proposes Massive Estate Tax Exemption Cut From $7M To $750K, Among Other Tax Increases New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is urging Albany to consider a sweeping overhaul of New York’s estate tax, proposing to sharply lower the exemption threshold and dramatically increase the top rate on large inheritances. His plan would cut the exemption from more than $7 million to $750,000 while boosting the highest tax rate from 16 percent to 50 percent, Bloomberg reported.  The idea was included in a policy memo his administration recently shared with state lawmakers as they negotiate the state budget, according to NY Focus. The

Estradiol Hormone Patch Shortage Strains Pharmacies After Warning Lifted Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times, Some U.S. pharmacies are scrambling to fill estradiol transdermal patch prescriptions as demand for the menopause treatment continues to soar following the Trump administration’s decision to remove what it determined was an outdated cancer warning. “Manufacturers have been unable to provide sufficient supply of hormone replacement therapies [HRT] over the last several weeks,” CVS pharmacy spokeswoman Roslyn Guarino told The Epoch Times March 9. In November, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) started the process of removing the so-called “black box warning” from estrogen and estrogen-progesterone replacement

"Serve Your Country": Uncle Sam Seeks Investment Bankers For 'Economic Defense Unit' The Department of War is reportedly building a 30-person investment banking team, called the "Economic Defense Unit," to deploy $200 billion in private equity over three years into defense companies and, more importantly, war unicorns, as the race to secure the Western Hemisphere and counter China, Russia, and Iran intensifies in the Trump era. Seamfor reviewed a slide deck from the headhunting firm Heidrick & Struggles that says DoW is seeking to stack EDU with bankers from Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, and Bank of America. The presentation pitches bankers a

Gun Control's Endgame: No Guns For Anyone Authored by John R. Lott Jr. via RealClearPolitics, Gun control advocates do not just oppose civilian gun ownership; they also argue that guns in the hands of police make people less safe. Gabby Giffords In January, a Border Patrol agent in Portland shot and wounded two Venezuelan nationals who belonged to the violent Tren de Aragua gang after they allegedly tried to run agents over with their vehicle. In response, Kris Brown, president of Brady United, tweeted the following: “We don’t know the details behind the shootings of 2 people by a Border Patrol agent in Portland. But

Trump Claims "Many Countries" Will Send Warships As US "Bombing The Hell Out Of Shoreline" To Reopen Hormuz Summary: * US strikes on Kharg Island escalate war as Trump claims allies sending warships to Hormuz: Trump said US forces "obliterated" military targets on Kharg Island but warned Iran's critical oil infrastructure could be the. * Iran vows bigger regional retaliation: IRGC warned the UAE that US "hideouts" there are now "legitimate targets"; UAE oil port hit, and US Embassy in Baghdad catches fire after apparent drone strike. * Heavy casualties and explosions in Iran ongoing: US-Israeli strikes have killed about 1,450 people

Palantir CEO Has Grim Prediction For Democrats Over AI Palantir CEO Alex Karp delivered an apocalyptic warning to progressives, particularly "highly educated, often female voters, who vote mostly Democrat," stating that their influence over the economy and broader society will erode as technologies such as artificial intelligence transfer power to working-class, right-leaning men. "This technology disrupts humanities-trained, largely Democratic voters, and makes their economic power less. And increases the economic power of vocationally trained, working-class, often male, working-class voters," Karp told CNBC hosts on Thursday. He continued, "And so these disruptions are gonna disrupt every aspect of our society. And to make this work, we have

Oil Could Test $200; Martin Armstrong Warns Attacking Iranian Water Supplies Could Bring Out Nukes Via Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com, Legendary financial and geopolitical cycle analyst Martin Armstrong warned in February, “This is where the volatility starts kicking in.”  What do we have?  Oil, gold and silver spiking in price, and violent exchanges between Iran, the United States and many other countries in the Middle East.  Now, water assets like desalination plants in Bahrain and Iran are being blown up.  Add the worst water shortage in decades in Iran as a backdrop to constant bombing, and you have a situation that could turn very ugly, very fast.  The water shortage is so bad that

Major UAE Fujairah Port In Flames As Iran Vows Escalation For Kharg Island Attack Upon the overnight major US attack on Iran's key oil hub of Kharg island, here's what Iran's military is threatening to do by way of response and escalation - which was also entirely predictable: > "If Iran’s oil, economic, or energy infrastructure is attacked, we will immediately destroy energy and economic infrastructure across the region belonging to companies with American shareholders or ties to the U.S." --IRGC spox > 🚨🇮🇷🇺🇸 Iranian IRGC spokesperson: > > "If Iran’s oil, economic, or energy infrastructure is attacked, we will immediately destroy energy and

When Do Protest Observers Become Lawbreaking Participants? Authored by Ben Weingarten via RealClearInvestigations, When an ICE agent shot and killed Minneapolis resident Renee Good after she allegedly obstructed immigration authorities with her vehicle, disobeyed their commands, and attempted to flee – drawing fatal fire from an officer nearly struck by the vehicle – politicians and pundits decried her death as murder. They called it particularly unjust because she was not acting as a protester but a legal observer. After federal agents arrested Don Lemon for allegedly disrupting a St. Paul church service in protest of the same Twin Cities immigration enforcement surge Good had

U.S. To Begin 86-Million-Barrel SPR Dump Next Week Via Exchange Program The speed of the energy shock rippling out from the U.S.-Iran conflict in the Middle East and the near-paralysis of the Strait of Hormuz forced the 32-member IEA last week to approve a 400-million-barrel release from Strategic Petroleum Reserves to help cushion the blow to the global economy. The bulk of that supply will come from the U.S., with the Trump administration preparing a request to exchange 86 million barrels of crude oil as soon as next Wednesday. The planned U.S. SPR release of 86 million barrels of crude, part of

The Most Expensive Science Lesson in European History Authored by James Hickman via SchiffSovereign.com, On March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck off the coast of Japan and triggered a massive tsunami that slammed into the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Three of the plant’s six reactors melted down, and it became the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl. On the other side of the world, German Chancellor Angela Merkel panicked. Her government had extended the operating lives of Germany’s 17 nuclear reactors just five months earlier. But, because of the earthquake in Japan, Merkel reversed course overnight and mothballed eight German reactors. But Merkel’s

Media Says 'Gambling' Trump Got Lucky On The Economy Democrats have been predicting doom and gloom ever since Trump returned to office, yet the economic calamity they assured us would come has yet to materialize. But rather than give Trump credit, the narrative being pushed now is that his wins are just dumb luck. (Washington Post staff illustration; photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post, iStock) That’s certainly the message of a Politico piece headlined "Trump Keeps Gambling With the Economy — And Getting Away With It.”  "President Donald Trump has spent his second term turning risky economic gambles into a way of life,” the

London Buses Must Now Be Equipped With Stab-Kits Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news, Calls for “bleed kits” to be rolled out across London’s bus network have gained traction, with the London Assembly unanimously backing a motion to install them in major bus stations and trial them on high-risk routes. These kits, designed to stem severe bleeding from deep wounds, are pitched as a lifesaver in emergencies—yet their sudden necessity speaks volumes about the city’s descent into chaos under unchecked policies. The push comes from the London Youth Assembly, highlighting how young people feel increasingly unsafe on public transport. > BBC says “deep wound” stab kits are now recommended on London

The AI Boom Is Creating A Global Memory Chip Shortage A global shortage of memory chips is emerging as demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure surges, according to a new report from Bloomberg. Large technology companies are locking in supply by signing long-term agreements and paying higher prices to guarantee access to chips years in advance. Because these deals are more profitable, chip manufacturers are increasingly directing production toward AI customers. This shift has reduced the number of chips available for other products such as laptops, smartphones, gaming consoles, and cars, pushing prices sharply upward. Memory chips play a critical role in modern computing

Rare action began peacefully but ‘degenerated into vandalism’ according to state-run newspaper Five people have been arrested in Cuba for acts of “vandalism” after a small group of protesters broke into a provincial office of the Cuban Communist party and set fire to computers and furniture. The incident, which also affected a pharmacy and another shop, took place in the town of Moron, a little more than 300 miles (500km) east of Havana. Continue reading...

Bolivian interior ministry says Sebastián Marset is being extradited to US, where he’s wanted for money laundering * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Sebastián Marset, an alleged Uruguayan drug trafficker and one of South America’s most wanted criminals, has been arrested in Bolivia. Marset, 34, is accused of trafficking tonnes of cocaine from South America to Europe, and also of having ordered the murder of a Paraguayan prosecutor who was shot dead as he honeymooned on a Colombian beach in 2022. Continue reading...

Oscar, Ana and their children fled violence for safety in the US. Now Oscar, afraid and alone, is back in Honduras – ‘at the mercy of God and his will’ As soon as Oscar’s deportation flight landed at the La Lima airport in Honduras, he put on his baseball cap. On the airport shuttle toward the terminal, he pulled his cap even lower – trying to obscure his face at various police checkpoints. His parents picked him up in a car, and drove him to a lodging they had arranged for him – miles away from his family home. He has hardly

Negotiations aimed to ‘find solutions to the bilateral differences’ between the countries, Miguel Díaz-Canel said Cuban officials have held talks with the US government, the country’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, confirmed on Friday, amid growing pain inflicted by a punishing US fuel blockade and frequent power failures. “These talks have been aimed at finding solutions through dialogue to the bilateral differences we have between the two nations,” Díaz-Canel said in a prerecorded statement to senior Communist officials. Continue reading...

Joey Pete of Sunchild First Nation said king seemed ‘committed to learning’ after meeting Indigenous leaders King Charles has expressed concern over a simmering separatist movement in western Canada, according to Indigenous leaders who met the head of state at Buckingham Palace. Members of the Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations travelled to London from their territories in the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan to raise the alarm over the secessionist movement, arguing that it ignores key agreements signed between First Nations and the crown nearly 150 years ago. Continue reading...

The move, which lowers fees to 25%, is a breakthrough for Chinese developers Tencent and ByteDance * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Apple announced late on Thursday it would lower the commission fees collected in its App Store in mainland China. The move follows pressure from regulators in the tech company’s second-largest market, as well as global scrutiny of its payment requirements. Fees for in-app purchases and paid transactions will be lowered to 25% from 30% starting on Sunday, Apple said in a statement on its blog for developers. Continue reading...

In China, one social media trend hangs on the idea that a life in the US is always one step from disaster, while another in the US has gen Z revelling in Chinese lifestyle hacks Across two online worlds that are normally splintered, over the last few months there has been a mirroring of sorts. On TikTok and Instagram, young people are diving into the joys of Chinese culture – from drinking hot water to playing mahjong – all under the banner of “Chinamaxxing”. On the Chinese internet, however, the US is losing its decades-long grip on soft power, and is

Viral video of girl being shoved by fellow pedestrian has reignited debate over butsukari – with experts blaming stress and gender dynamics It starts out as a heartwarming clip. A young girl, clearly delighted to be in Tokyo, beams as she makes a peace sign to the camera. Seconds later, she is shoved to the ground from behind by a woman wearing a surgical mask. The assailant doesn’t skip a beat, striding out of shot of the clip filmed by the girl’s mother. This was no accidental clash of shoulders in a crowded place, but one of the most visible examples of

From fuel caps to four-day work weeks, the Middle East conflict has left the world’s top crude oil importing region desperate to shore up supplies Donald Trump has scrambled in recent days to reassure the world that the economic impact of his war on Iran can be contained. Sure, one of the most important waterways in global trade has, in effect, been shut for almost two weeks – but it might reopen before long. In the meantime, US oil-related sanctions on “some countries” will be lifted. And besides, the entire conflict could be over soon. Continue reading...

New legislation will require schools to use Mandarin by default, taking priority over minority ethnic languages such as Tibetan, Uyghur and Mongolian China’s National People’s Congress (NPC), the state legislature, will vote on Thursday on a suite of new laws agreed at this year’s annual two sessions gathering, including a piece of legislation that will diminish the role of minority ethnic languages in the education system. NPC delegates are expected to approve a new ethnic unity law, along with a new environmental code and the 15th five-year plan, the economic planning document for 2026-2030. Delegates have spent the last week debating Beijing’s

This blog is now closed. * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Barnaby Joyce says he disagrees with his leader, Pauline Hanson, over inflammatory comments about Muslims but says parties criticising her haven’t learned the lesson of One Nation’s rise. Hanson was censured in the Senate this month for suggesting there are no “good” Muslims. I don’t want to give pastoral care, but I think attacking Pauline today does not work like people thought it might have worked 15 years ago. [People] see Pauline as having the courage to stand behind her convictions on certain issues. I’ll make it very

Exclusive: Queensland Performing Arts Centre board nominated Oodgeroo as preferred name in 2024 but it was not one of four options put to public vote by LNP * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A Queensland government minister intervened to ensure that a new theatre would not be named after the Aboriginal poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal, overriding the theatre’s board, according to documents obtained under right to information laws. The late artist’s name is also set to be stripped from a state electorate, in draft electoral boundaries released

Economists predict RBA will raise interest rates this week and in May – days before treasurer unveils budget * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Households can expect significant additional cost-of-living pressures because of the war in the Middle East, with Jim Chalmers confirming that the government expects inflation to rise beyond 4.5% in Australia. But the treasurer said he did not expect the economy to fall into recession because of the war sparked by US and Israeli bombings in Iran. Continue reading...

Underquoting and ‘dummy bidding’ will attract fines of $110,000 in bid to create a ‘fair property market’ * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The New South Wales government will introduce new laws this week to force property sellers to publish a price guide on all advertising, and impose a fivefold increase to fines for underquoting real estate agents. The government says the draft laws, first flagged last year, are aimed at cracking down on agents providing misleading price estimates on property listings, a practice often used

Royal trip includes stops in Canberra, Melbourne and Hobart and aims to deepen trade ties * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Denmark’s King Frederik and Queen Mary have ended the first leg of their Australian visit with a sunrise trek to a famous Uluru watering hole. The royal couple walked to Muṯitjulu waterhole in Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa national park with traditional owners on Sunday morning. The culturally significant site is one of the few permanent water sources around the sandstone monolith and a regular attraction for visiting

Ballots in 35,000 villages, towns and cities will be closely watched for signals about party strategies and alliances France has begun voting in the first round of municipal elections, seen as crucial a test of the political temperature before next year’s presidential election. The vote for mayors and councillors in 35,000 villages, towns and cities across France is focused on local issues including security, housing and refuse collection and is very different from national elections. Continue reading...

In 2023, what were thought to be Nazar Daletskyi’s remains were buried in his home village and his mother, Nataliia, visited the grave every week. Three years later, he spoke to her on the phone Nazar Daletskyi was declared dead in May 2023. The DNA match left no room for doubt, officials told his mother, Nataliia. A Ukrainian soldier who volunteered for the front in the early weeks of the war, Nazar had become one more casualty of Russia’s invasion. Nazar’s remains were laid to rest in the cemetery of his home village. In the months after the funeral, Nataliia visited the

Alexandre Dumas was wowed by it and Burt Lancaster starred there. Now the Cirque d’Hiver has a new spectacle For more than 170 years the Cirque d’Hiver, the world’s oldest circus, has been the scene of many a breathtaking act. In 1859, gymnast Jules Léotard – whose name would become synonymous with the one-piece – captivated audiences by launching himself from one swinging trapeze to another without a safety net for the first time in public. Continue reading...

Habermas’s political consensus-building theory argued formation of public opinion vital for democracies to survive The influential German philosopher and sociologist Jürgen Habermas has died at the age of 96, his publisher has said. Habermas, a towering figure in the intellectual history of postwar Germany, is best known for his theory of political consensus-building. Widely considered one of most influential philosophers of the 20th century, he also helped to shape the discourse around European integration and the formation of the EU. Continue reading...

EU citizens with post-Brexit settlement status in UK will not have to present British passport to airlines British dual nationals who are EU citizens with post-Brexit settlement status in the UK will not have to use a British passport to return to the UK, the Home Office has said in a significant U-turn on its controversial dual national border rules. The change, which critics say was “hidden away” on a government webpage, comes weeks after controversy erupted over the new rules that came into effect on 25 February. They require British dual nationals to present a British passport or certificate of entitlement,

IDF also issues evacuation orders in several Beirut neighbourhoods * How have you been affected by the latest Middle East events? Iraq’s football team will travel to Mexico for a 2026 World Cup playoff match despite calls for it to be postponed due to the Middle East war, the country’s football association has announced. “The national team will depart at the end of the week to Mexico via a private plane,” said Iraq football association president Adnan Dirjal in a statement, adding they had contacted Fifa to help facilitate the trip during the conflict in the region that has hampered flights. Continue reading...

* Bahrain circuit only 20 miles from targeted US base * Races unlikely to be replaced because of logistics Formula One has cancelled the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia grands prix because of the war in the Middle East. The races were due to take place on 12 April in Bahrain and 19 April in Saudi Arabia but the sport was approaching the point at which a decision on cancellation needed to be made to prevent more freight being sent to Bahrain. Continue reading...

US president calls on China, France, Japan and the UK to send vessels after US strikes Kharg Island oil facilities * Middle East crisis – live updates Iran threatened on Saturday to further escalate the war raging in the Middle East by targeting any facility in the region with US ties, after Donald Trump predicted “many countries” would send warships to support a US bid to reopen by force the strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway closed to virtually all maritime traffic by Tehran since the beginning of the war. Iran has responded to the joint US-Israeli offensive, which is entering its

The facility was attacked on Friday night, bringing the toll of medical staff to 31 killed in past 12 days * Middle East crisis – live updates Israel killed 12 medical workers in a strike on a medical centre in south Lebanon on Friday night, bringing the toll of healthcare staff killed in the country by Israel to 31 over the past 12 days. A primary healthcare facility in the town of Burj Qalaouiyah was hit by an Israeli strike late on Friday, setting it ablaze and causing the structure to collapse on top of the staff inside. The strike killed doctors,

Closure of strait of Hormuz puts pressure on region’s economies amid growing resentment about conflict started by US and Israel * Middle East crisis – live updates An eerie quiet hangs over Ras Al Khaimah’s industrial port. Usually a thriving maritime hub of the United Arab Emirates, now ships stand docked and silent. Not far out along the hazy horizon, a backlog of hundreds of tankers have lined up in recent days, halted along a waterway flooded with danger. Any vessel heading past Ras Al Khaimah out to the Arabian Sea must traverse the world’s most treacherous strip of water for shipping

Under new Taliban laws, a husband is allowed to beat his wife as long as it is not done with ‘obscene force’, which the woman must prove in court The shocking level of physical violence against women permitted under the Taliban’s new laws has been revealed this week by the case of a woman in northern Afghanistan, who said she was beaten with a cable wire by her husband and told by a judge: “You want a divorce just because of that? … A little anger and a few beatings won’t kill you.” Farzana* said her husband was quick-tempered and often resorted

Shah’s Rastriya Swatantra party secures thumping victory in first poll since gen Z protests that toppled government Balendra Shah, the rapper turned politician and popular figurehead of a gen Z revolution, looks set to become Nepal’s next prime minister after his party won by an unprecedented margin. Shah, known widely as Balen, and his Rastriya Swatantra party (RSP) secured a rare landslide victory in the first election since youth-led protests during which dozens were killed and the former government was toppled. Continue reading...

‘Stopgap measure’ designed to keep oil flowing into global market as Middle East crisis disrupts crude shipments * Business live – latest updates The US has temporarily allowed India to buy Russian oil currently stuck at sea in an effort to keep global supplies flowing and temper further price increases. The US treasury has issued a 30-day waiver allowing India to buy Russian oil, having previously imposed heavy sanctions related to the war in Ukraine. Continue reading...

Urgent request to dock is submitted by vessel after US submarine sank Iranian warship in same area on Tuesday * Middle East crisis – live updates Sri Lanka has evacuated 208 crew members from an Iranian navy vessel that made an emergency request to dock, a day after a US submarine strike sank another Iranian frigate, killing more than 80 people on board. Sri Lanka’s president, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, on Thursday confirmed that the country’s navy would take over Iranian military support ship IRIS Bushehr and allow it to dock at the north-eastern port of Trincomalee. Continue reading...

Early results may be released from Friday after first election since gen z protests forced Nepal’s then-PM to quit Nearly six months after a wave of unprecedented gen Z-led protests forced Nepal’s then prime minister to quit, people have voted in a general election that is shaping up to be a high-stakes showdown between the entrenched old guard and a powerful youth movement. “The voting process has been concluded peacefully and enthusiastically,” said the chief election commissioner, Ram Prasad Bhandari. It appeared the turnout was only about 60%, according to initial estimates, the lowest in more than two decades. Continue reading...

Advisers say to ‘assume the cameras are always rolling’ as exchanges can be decoded in seconds and posted online Royals and celebrities are being warned by their representatives and advisers to watch what they say when they are out of the house – or palace – as a lip-reading phenomenon means videos can be posted online and translated in seconds. Prince William was recently embroiled after a video of him speaking to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was translated by an expert lip-reader who was working as part of a forthcoming Channel 5 documentary, Lip-Reading the Royals. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Robin Birley closes in on Sunshine State venue as wealthy Britons flock to area around Donald Trump A London private members’ club owner is closing in on a deal for a venue in Palm Beach, in the hopes of creating a rival to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago and to take advantage of an influx of wealthy British people to the Florida region. Robin Birley is understood to be close to securing a property for his latest club, part financed by the billionaire Reuben brothers, who in 2024 were named the third-richest family in the UK by the Sunday Times Rich List. Continue reading...

Energy secretary says ‘any options’ to get crucial shipping lanes reopened are being looked at by the government * Middle East crisis – live updates Britain is considering sending ships and mine-hunting drones to the Middle East in an attempt to reopen the strait of Hormuz, Ed Miliband has said. The energy secretary confirmed on Sunday that ministers were talking to their allies about how the UK could help secure the vital waterway after the US president, Donald Trump, urged Britain and other countries to deploy ships to the region. Continue reading...

Alford, who also appeared in Grange Hill, was jailed for eight and a half years in January for sexually assaulting two girls An investigation has been launched into the death of the actor John Alford after he died in prison two months into a sentence for sexually assaulting two teenage girls. Alford, 54, was jailed for eight and a half years in January after he was found guilty of the assaults, which occurred during a party at a friend’s home. Continue reading...

If costs stay high for the next three months, US owner Peter Huntsman says he will close the site on Teesside The American owner of one of Britain’s last major chemicals plants has said he will close the site if energy prices remain at their current levels for the next three months. Peter Huntsman, whose family built Huntsman Corporation into a global chemicals empire, said the recent jump in gas prices fuelled by the Iran conflict was “another nail in the coffin” for European heavy industry. Continue reading...

Records show DHS tech incubator spending large sums on partnerships that would expand surveillance capabilities Hacked data from the Department of Homeland Security’s technology incubator shows it funding a variety of companies that would expand its surveillance capabilities with artificial intelligence, the Guardian can reveal. The projects at the Office of Industry Partnership (OIP) include automated surveillance in airports; adapters allowing agents to use phones for biometric scanning; and an AI platform that ingests all 911 call data nationally and builds “geospatial heat maps” to “predict incident trends”, which appears to be a form of predictive policing. Continue reading...

The bill continues a cycle of abortion restrictions repeatedly blocked by the state supreme court * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Wyoming’s Republican-dominated legislature passed a six-week abortion ban this week, prompting a new lawsuit and some lawmakers to call it “an insult to voters and our institution”. Mark Gordon, Wyoming’s governor, signed the bill while simultaneously warning of its constitutional hurdles, noting that prior abortion bans were struck down by the state’s all Republican-appointed supreme court this January. Almost immediately, an identical set of plaintiffs filed suit against the new bill. Continue

‘Of course there’s going to be retaliation,’ says one expert. ‘It may be that this is what Trump’s interested in’ For decades, the US and its allies have painted Iran as the world’s biggest sponsor of state terrorism – invoking its Islamic rulers’ supposed revolutionary fanaticism and determined support for militant proxies. Now a long-standing but mainly latent threat is coalescing, with the war waged on the country by the US and Israel, to raise the risk of an attack on American soil to levels unseen since the murderous al-Qaida assaults of 11 September 2001, experts say. Continue reading...

Experts query ‘mix-up of priorities’ as president plays golf, posts old pictures and repeats details of Bill Maher feud More than two weeks into the US-Israel war on Iran, and the conflict appears at risk of spiraling out of control. Back home, Donald Trump’s behavior also appears chaotic. A foreign conflict typically brings somber reflection from leaders: in Trump’s case, it has brought a stream of behavior that has defied norms and raised eyebrows over his state of mind. Continue reading...

Niko Bray, who obtained pilot’s license in January 2025, shares story after averting disaster on busy Jupiter road A teenage pilot who made an emergency airplane landing on a busy Florida road while averting disaster entirely says “you just execute” when thrust into such life-or-death situations. “It can happen … so fast,” 19-year-old Niko Bray said in an interview with the Florida news outlet WSVN, nearly a week after authorities say he landed the small airplane he was flying on a six-lane thoroughfare in the community of Jupiter because of an emergency in the skies. Continue reading...

The American flag was raised on Saturday over the US embassy in Venezuela for the first time since 2019, a move that highlighted the recent shift in relations between the two countries since then President Nicolas Maduro was captured by American troops in January. Though the flag is now waving, the building is undergoing renovations and it remains unclear when it will fully reopen. The move comes after several statements from US President Donald Trump in support of Maduro’s successor, acting...

Jurgen Habermas, best known for his theory of political consensus-building, shaped the discourse of post-war ⁠Germany more than any other popular intellectual. He died on Saturday, aged 96, in Starnberg, ⁠Germany, the publisher Suhrkamp said. Over the course of seven decades, his public interventions – from searing critiques of fascist thought in the 1950s to more recent warnings against resurgent militarism and nationalism in Germany – steered the country at critical junctions. Not only his...

Turkey expressed deep concern on Saturday over Israel’s ongoing strikes on Lebanon, voicing fears it could commit “a new genocide” under the guise of fighting Iran-backed Hezbollah. “We are frankly concerned [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu is moving toward a new genocide under the pretext of fighting Hezbollah,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told a news conference. “The international community must act as soon as possible in the face of the crimes that Israel continues to...

US President Donald Trump on Saturday urged other nations, including China, to deploy ships to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil supplies disrupted by the war in the Middle East. “Many Countries, especially those who are affected by Iran’s attempted closure of the Hormuz Strait, will be sending War Ships, in conjunction with the United States of America, to keep the Strait open and safe,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. “Hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea,...

Israel said the war against Iran was entering its “decisive phase” on Saturday, as explosions rocked cities across the Middle East, with strikes on the US embassy in Baghdad and a major Emirati energy facility. Washington’s embassy in Iraq was hit by a drone, security sources said, the second time it had been targeted since February 28, when the United States and Israel attacked Iran and plunged the Gulf into a conflict that has sent shock waves through the global economy. Millions have been...

UN chief Antonio Guterres has said that diplomatic channels remain open to end the war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah and urged the international community to support Lebanon. “There is no military solution, only diplomacy, dialogue and full implementation of the UN Charter and Security Council resolutions. The diplomatic avenues are available, including through my special coordinator for Lebanon ... and through key member states,” he said on Saturday during a visit to Beirut. Lebanon...

Anti-government protesters attacked a ⁠Communist party office in northern Cuba early on Saturday, a ⁠state-run newspaper reported, in a rare outburst of public dissent triggered by worsening blackouts that have been exacerbated by a US oil blockade. A rally against power cuts and food shortages appeared to begin peacefully in the city of Moron late on Friday then turned violent in the early hours of Saturday morning, Invasor newspaper said. Videos on social media showed a large fire and ‌people...

The British government is looking to provide “targeted” support for ⁠poorer households to offset the impact of ⁠surging energy costs due to the conflict ⁠in the Middle East, finance minister Rachel Reeves has said. In an interview published on Saturday, Reeves told the Times newspaper the government was looking at options to help those vulnerable to sharp rises in energy prices, especially those who relied on heating oil, but ruled out universal help for all households, saying it would be...

Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on Saturday called on Iran to refrain from targeting neighbouring countries, while affirming Tehran’s right to defend itself against Israel and the United States. In a rare appeal, Hamas also urged the international community to take steps to end the war that has gripped the Middle East since it began on February 28. “While affirming the right of the Islamic Republic of Iran to respond to this aggression by all available means in accordance with international...

Stranded for two weeks at the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas as drones and missiles set ships ablaze nearby, 26-year-old seafarer Ambuj says he has not been home for six months and cannot wait to see his family. Ambuj, who asked Reuters not to use his second name for security reasons, is one of about 23,000 Indians working on merchant, harbour and offshore vessels across ‌the wider Gulf region, which is bearing the brunt of the war between Iran and the United States and Israel. Hundreds of tankers...

Fatima Nazha slept on the streets for two days after she and her family fled their home in Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli mass evacuation order. All of the schools the government turned into shelters were full, and the family could not afford a hotel or a flat, so she and her husband eventually moved into a tent in the country’s biggest stadium while their children and grandchildren found shelter near the southern coastal city of Sidon. In just 10 days, more than 800,000 people...

War in the Middle East is again producing an oil shock, as was the case in past years. For the chief perpetrator of the new shock – the United States – this will be a multi-front war where the financial impact could hit the country harder than import price shocks. The US is a debtor nation on a grand scale, running as it does both current account and budget deficits and therefore being highly dependent upon foreign capital inflows. Will the Trump administration’s antics – widely perceived as...

When the alert arrives on his phone, Yashwant Deshmukh knows exactly what to do. The Dubai-based political analyst moves away from the windows, waits for the second message confirming the missile has been intercepted, and then goes back to work. “It has become a drill,” he said. For the roughly 9 million Indians living and working across the Gulf, the war on Iran has shattered one of the region’s most durable illusions: that cities like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Manama would remain apart from...

Palestinian actor Motaz Malhees said a travel ban imposed by Donald Trump’s administration is preventing him from attending Sunday’s Academy Awards, whose nominees include a movie in which he has a starring role. The Voice ‌of Hind Rajab, a film about a five-year-old Palestinian girl killed by Israeli forces in Gaza in 2024, has been Oscar-nominated for best international feature film. Malhees, who plays the role of a call centre operator attempting to help her, said he cannot attend the Academy...

The US military has started moving at least one amphibious assault ship and more than 2,000 Marines from Japan to the Middle East as the US-Israeli war against Iran continues, according to US media reports. With the war about to enter its third week and US President Donald Trump vowing to ramp up military action against Iran, The Wall Street Journal and Fox News said on Friday the military was sending the Okinawa-based 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit to the region. The assault ship Tripoli,...

Two prominent Chinese business leaders have pledged to double down on outbound investment – including in the Middle East and Latin America – even as geopolitical risks intensify following the outbreak of the US-Israeli war with Iran and Washington’s increasing interventions in the western hemisphere. Li Dongsheng, founder and chairman of Chinese electronics giant TCL, said the recent crisis in the Middle East had only a temporary impact on the company’s operations there and that the overall...

Explosions rocked Iraq’s capital Baghdad on Saturday after two strikes targeted the powerful Iran-backed group Kataeb Hezbollah, killing two members including a “key figure”, security sources said. The strikes are the first in the heart of Baghdad to kill Iran-backed fighters since the start of the Middle East war on February 28, which has not spared Iraq, long a proxy battleground between the US and Iran. “At 2.15am, a missile struck a house that was being used by Kataeb Hezbollah,” said a...

Meta is planning sweeping lay-offs that could affect 20 per cent or more of the company, three sources familiar with the matter said, as it seeks to offset costly artificial intelligence infrastructure bets and prepare for greater efficiency brought about by AI-assisted workers. No date has been set for the cuts and the magnitude has not been finalised, the people said. Top executives have recently signalled the plans to other senior leaders at Meta and told them to begin planning how to pare...

South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok and US President Donald Trump discussed the possible reopening of talks between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in a meeting in Washington, Yonhap news agency reported on Saturday. Kim told Trump he was the only Western leader to have had dialogue with North Korea’s Kim and was currently the only person who could resolve issues on the Korean peninsula, Yonhap quoted Kim as telling reporters in Washington. “President Trump said he was curious if...

For years, the West’s answer to Chinese dominance of critical minerals was to rally around Washington. Now, some of its most important allies are reaching a different conclusion: that depending too heavily on the United States carries its own risks. Japan, France and Canada have all been exploring how to build supply chains for rare earths and other critical minerals that answer to neither Beijing nor Washington. Senior officials from the three Group of Seven economies are working on...

No oil infrastructure was damaged in US strikes on Kharg Island, Iranian media reported on Saturday after President Donald Trump said US bombardment of the island had destroyed military targets. Trump said on Friday that the United ‌States had carried out strikes against “every military target” on Iran’s export hub. “For reasons ⁠of decency, I have ‌chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil ‌Infrastructure on the ⁠Island,” ⁠Trump said in a social media post. “However, should Iran, or anyone ‌else, ‌do...

A declining superpower and an aspiring regional hegemon make a deadly combination. The warmongering duo of the United States and Israel have now given the world an illegal and potentially catastrophic war in Iran. It’s a tragic irony that both countries have a culture of extreme self-righteousness, with a constant army of apologists telling others they must stand up to evil wherever it exists because if they don’t, it will come for them one day. Well, that day is here, but guess who’s committing...

A federal judge on Friday quashed US Justice Department subpoenas issued to the Federal Reserve in January, a severe blow to an investigation that has already attracted strong criticism on Capitol Hill. Judge James Boasberg said that a “mountain of evidence suggests” that the purpose of the subpoenas was simply to pressure the Fed to cut its key interest rate, as US President Donald Trump has repeatedly demanded. Fed Chair Jerome Powell revealed the investigation on January 11, prompting Senator...

An alleged cocaine boss with a US$2 million bounty on his head was captured by Bolivian forces as the Andean nation renews cooperation with the US after decades of hostility. Dozens of antinarcotics police raided two houses in Santa Cruz in the early hours of Friday, with snipers positioned on nearby rooftops. Their target, Uruguayan citizen Sebastian Enrique Marset Cabrera, was immediately put on a plane to be transferred to the US by the Drug Enforcement Administration. Bolivia’s President...

A photograph of Britain’s former prince Andrew and veteran politician Peter Mandelson sitting in bathrobes alongside late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was unearthed on Friday in previously published documents. The image is believed to be the first known photograph of the two men with Epstein. They are both currently engulfed in scandal in the UK over their ties to their mutual friend. The undated photograph, first reported by ITV News, shows King Charles’ disgraced brother and Britain’s former...

Iran ⁠has allowed two Indian-flagged liquefied ⁠petroleum gas carriers to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, ⁠four sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, a rare exception to the Iranian blockade that has disrupted global energy supplies. The Indian-flagged LPG tanker Shivalik crossed the Strait under escort from the Indian Navy, said two of the sources, and the second vessel, Nanda Devi, was expected to clear in the ‌next few hours. Since the United States and Israel launched a...

Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro has pneumonia and is receiving treatment in an intensive care unit, a hospital in the capital, Brasilia, said on Friday. Earlier in the day, Bolsonaro’s eldest son, Flavio, said on social media that his father was being transferred from prison to the hospital after waking up with chills and vomiting. “I ask for prayers that it not be anything serious,” Flavio wrote. He has said he would run for president this year, and recent polls show him and President...

The Trump administration has sought to minimise the impact of the Strait of Hormuz’s effective closure while offering few details on how it might restore oil flows through the strategic waterway. “There’s nothing to be afraid of,” US President Donald Trump said in an interview with Fox News aired on Friday, urging oil tankers to “show some guts.” Trump said Washington was still considering escorting ships through the strait but did not indicate whether a decision had been made. “We would do it...

Long before the US and Israel ⁠attacked Iran, the Islamic Republic had devised its own weapon: holding the world’s main ⁠oil lifeline hostage to offset its foes’ military superiority, three regional sources familiar with Iranian planning said. For decades, Iran has signalled that if pushed into a confrontation, it would restrict tanker traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint where its adversaries are most exposed because disruptions there reverberate instantly through global energy...

The US economy grew at a significantly slower pace than initially estimated for the final months of 2025, government data showed on Friday, a major downgrade that comes as fallout from war in the Middle East looms. US gross domestic product rose at an annual rate of 0.7 per cent in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said. This was sharply down from its earlier estimated 1.4 per cent over the October to December period. It also indicates that the world’s biggest economy was on a weaker...

Ships near the Strait of Hormuz are broadcasting Chinese affiliations in an apparent bid to avoid attack, at a time when Iran’s new supreme leader vows to keep the strategic waterway closed. The crews of at least 11 vessels sitting in the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf had their transponders set to announce Chinese links on Friday afternoon, according to Kpler’s MarineTraffic data platform. The broadcasts were a defensive measure, said Cui Shoujun, director of the Institute of International...

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on Friday that his government has held recent talks with the US, marking the first time the Caribbean country confirms such speculation. He said the talks “were aimed at finding solutions through dialogue to the bilateral differences between our two nations. International factors facilitated these exchanges”. He did not elaborate on those factors. Diaz-Canel said no petroleum shipments have arrived on the island in the past three months, which he blamed on...

The US-Israeli attacks on Iran have profound implications for the global governance order. For America, the world’s mightiest power, to attack another nation without congressional or UN approval condemns the rules-based order to the dustbin of history. Governance is about checks and balance by rules, self-restraint or simply a humble appreciation that waging “forever wars” often ends up in self-destruction. War is such an extreme and costly measure it should only be undertaken after careful...

UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has accused Russia and Iran of attempting to “hijack the global economy” as Tehran continued to blockade a major oil shipping route. Iran’s new supreme leader has vowed to continue attacking shipping in the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for ongoing US-Israeli strikes on his country. The blockade has seen oil prices jump to around US$100 per barrel, threatening higher inflation across the globe. Speaking to the media during a visit to Saudi Arabia, the UK...

Japan’s unilateral decision to release oil from its emergency stockpiles highlights its vulnerability to prolonged supply disruptions and may leave it more exposed to economic pressure from China amid tense bilateral relations, according to analysts. Tokyo announced earlier this week that it planned to release a total of 80 million barrels starting March 16, marking the first time it would independently tap its national reserves. The decision came ahead of a coordinated response by the...

Spare a thought for the iceberg A23a which, after an extraordinary 40-year life voyaging around the southern Atlantic Ocean, is this month expected to die unnoticed close to the island of South Georgia, a mess of “brash ice, small icebergs and bergy bits”. A23a was one of the largest “megabergs” to be spawned in our lifetimes. When it broke away from the Filchner Ice Shelf into the Weddell Sea in Western Antarctica in 1986, it covered an area of around 4,000 sq km – about the size of Hong Kong...

Nasa cleared its moon rocket on Thursday for an April launch with four astronauts after completing the latest round of repairs. The 98-metre (322-foot) rocket will roll out of the hangar and back to the pad next week at Florida’s Kennedy Space Centre, leading to a launch attempt as early as April 1. It will mark humanity’s first trip to the moon in more than 50 years. The timing is interesting. From the end of March, US President Donald Trump is slated to visit China and meet with President Xi...

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Why have China’s arms imports plummeted 72% over the past 5 years? Beijing’s arms imports have nose-dived by nearly three-quarters over the past five years, as it has replaced overseas weapons purchases with domestic technology,...

The United States has imposed sanctions on two companies and six individuals for their roles in operations that used information technology workers in foreign countries to raise money for North Korea. The Treasury Department said the schemes, orchestrated by the North Korean government, had systematically defrauded US businesses and generated revenue to fund North Korea’s weapons programmes, including nearly US$800 million in 2024. The department also accused workers associated with North Korea...

California Governor Gavin Newsom said there was no imminent threat to the state, despite a warning from the FBI that Iran could send drones to the west coast in retaliation for war. Newsom said drone issues “have always been top of mind”. “We’ve been aware of that information. … It’s all about a posture of preparedness for worst-case scenarios,” the governor said on Wednesday. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recently warned police departments about Iran and a possible California...

All six crew ⁠members aboard a US military refuelling ⁠aircraft that crashed in western Iraq are confirmed to have been killed, the US military said on Friday. A US military refuelling aircraft crashed in western Iraq on Thursday, in an incident the military said involved another aircraft but ‌was not the result of hostile or friendly fire. The deaths add to the seven US service members who have already been killed as part of US operations against Iran which began on February 28. “The...

Serbia’s president confirmed late on Thursday that his country possesses Chinese supersonic surface-attack cruise missiles, after photos of the weapons attached to Serbian fighter jets leaked online. Photos, which began circulating on social media and defence blogs earlier this week, showed missiles believed to be Chinese-made CM-400AKG cruise missiles attached to Serbia’s Russian-made MiG-29 planes. “We have things we do not show,” President Aleksandar Vucic told Serbia’s national broadcaster...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday issued ⁠a veiled threat to kill Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei even as he acknowledged that Israel’s joint air war with the US may not lead to a collapse of Tehran’s clerical government. Holding his first press conference since the start of the war, ‌the Israeli leader said that Iran was “no longer the same” after nearly two weeks of bombardment and that Tehran had suffered blows to its elite Revolutionary Guards Corps and Basij...

The war in Iran is not just another Middle Eastern crisis. It is a window into what world politics looks like when rules are weakest and power is most concentrated. Washington has spoken in the language of surrender and coercion, European governments have called for restraint and respect for international law, and Asian powers have scrambled to keep energy flows moving through a Strait of Hormuz that has nearly ground to a halt. What this reveals is not a functioning rules-based order. It is a...

ROTC (Reserve Officers’ Training Corps) students in an Old Dominion University classroom subdued and killed the shooter who killed one person and wounded two others, the FBI announced on Thursday. Dominique Evans, special agent in charge of the FBI’s (Federal Bureau of Investigation) Norfolk field office, said at a news conference that the suspect identified by authorities as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh shouted “Allahu akbar” before the shooting. Then the ROTC students stopped him, showing “extreme...

As the president’s immigration policies squeeze an already tight supply of farm labor, the Trump administration is making it cheaper to hire foreign farmworkers.

Buffalo’s Arakan Rohingya community was rattled after a disabled man’s death. “Our worry comes from future incidents that may happen,” one resident said.

The latest clash between the two countries illustrates the depths to which relations have sunk and the struggle to forge a new path forward.

Brandon Herrera, a Republican candidate for Congress, built a large online fan base as a “guntuber.”

It will be a tight race for best picture and actor, while the In Memoriam segment looks to be supersized this year.

A seven-page document, mailed by an elusive figure, has set off a court battle over the estate of Tony Hsieh, the former chief executive of Zappos.

Moms donating their breast milk to strangers, dads taking someone else’s kids to school: Minnesotans showed a basic human impulse to look out for their neighbors.

James Fishback has managed to bring the paranoid, transgressive, meme-drunk spirit of the right-wing internet into the real world.

The old Portal Bridge disrupted rail commutes in New Jersey for decades, frequently getting stuck when it swung to let boat traffic pass. Now a new bridge is open to the public.

Fewer cities are bidding for Olympics, and those that are can’t always accommodate every event. The Milan-Cortina Games were the most sprawling Olympics in history.

The famous strip club is a symbol of the authentic city to many people in Atlanta. But others wondered whether the N.B.A. should be promoting it.