Minimalist News

DOJ Sues New Jersey Town Over Natural Gas Ban Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against Morris Township in New Jersey over its ban on natural gas and other fossil fuels in newly constructed buildings, the department said in an April 1 statement. Blue flames from a gas stove at a home in Arlington, Va., on May 3, 2023. Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images The ban “drives up energy costs for everyday American consumers and weakens our Nation’s energy dominance,” the DOJ said. “Such policies reflect a radical left effort to outlaw federally

Russian Embassy Outraged After US-Israeli Strikes Damage Orthodox Church In Tehran The Russian Embassy in Tehran has issued an angry denunciation of Wednesday US-Israeli airstrikes which damaged a Russian Orthodox Church and an adjacent nursing home.  "Two missile strikes on the morning of April 1st in the immediate vicinity of St. Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral in Tehran caused damage to the main building and outbuildings (windows and doors were blown out)," the Russian Embassy said in a statement which featured some photos of the damage. > On April 1, two strikes were conducted near the Saint-Nicholas Orthodox Church in Tehran. > > Main building, almshouse and several

Australia Considers Emergency Powers To Protect Domestic Gas Supply Authored by Tsvetana Paraskova via OilPrice.com, Australia’s government intends to consider using emergency powers to protect domestic natural gas supply in case of a shortfall on its east coast in the third quarter of 2026. The potential consideration of using such powers would be part of the steps the Albanese Government is taking to secure domestic gas supplies for Australian households and industry as the Middle East conflict disrupts global energy markets. Australian Minister for Resources, Madeleine King, has given notice of her intention to consider using powers under the Australian Domestic Gas Security Mechanism (ADGSM) to

Oracle's Dubai Data Center Reportedly Hit As Iran Expands Attack On AI Infrastructure According to Reuters national security reporter Phil Stewart on X, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has targeted a data center facility operated by Oracle in Dubai.  > IRAN'S REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS SAY THEY HAVE TARGETED ORACLE'S DATA CENTER IN DUBAI - STATE MEDIA > > — Phil Stewart (@phildstewart) April 2, 2026 Not much is known about the IRGC strike on Oracle's data center or what type of air-delivered munitions were involved. There is no word on what damage the facility sustained. Context on Oracle's data center operations in the Middle East:  > Oracle's

The Case Against Federal Reserve Independence Authored by Alexander William Salter via AmericanMind.org, IT’S ILLEGAL IN THEORY AND INEFFECTIVE IN PRACTICE. The independence of the Federal Reserve System has become a major source of public controversy. As political leaders signal dissatisfaction with monetary policy, officials and commentators rush to defend the central bank’s insulation from democratic pressure. We are told, as if it were self-evident, that central bank independence is a pillar of sound economic governance. But this confidence is misplaced. The economic case for central bank independence is far weaker than its defenders suggest. And the constitutional case is weaker still. Start with economics. The standard argument is that independent central banks deliver low

"Save Every Drop Of Fuel": South Korea Tells Citizens To Conserve, Ride Public Transit Amid Energy Shock The Gulf energy shock is now hitting Asian economies with full force. In Seoul, President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday urged citizens to "save every drop of fuel," a new sign policymakers are moving quickly into crisis mode as the U.S.-Iran conflict raises the risk of nasty fuel shortages across some of Asia's most energy- and Hormuz-dependent economies. Lee told lawmakers in a parliamentary address about the urgent need to conserve fuel. He warned that the Middle East crisis has triggered one of the worst energy

A Second Amendment Roadmap For The Next Attorney General Authored by Aidan Johnston via Gun Owners of America, President Trump campaigned on restoring robust protections for the Second Amendment. Yet more than a year into his second term, gun owners feel disillusioned, and many are planning to sit out the midterm elections. Having viewed President Trump’s election as a generational opportunity to course-correct, the stark reality is that not all that much has changed with respect to the nation’s gun laws. Gun owners’ frustration centers not on the Administration’s broader record, but on the large number of times the Department of Justice under Attorney

Inanity Of Identity Politics Exposed At Canadian NDP Convention Authored by Jonathan Turley, The recent convention of the Canadian New Democratic Party (NDP) became a microcosm of the inanity of identity politics found in forums ranging from politics to higher education. Participants were given familiar “equity cards” as literal card-carrying members of groups demanding preferred treatment. The problem is when one identity group demands preference over another. The result, as seen in Winnipeg, was calamity and quickly became comedy. Many in education have long pushed equity cards and “identity markers” to get students to define themselves by their race, disability, gender, or other criteria. Even

Houthis Confirm Coordination With Iran, Hezbollah In Several Attack Waves On Israel Amid several waves of missile strikes out of Yemen onto Israel from Tuesday into Wednesday, the Iran-aligned Houthis have made it clear they are coordinating with both Tehran and Hezbollah. Yemeni Brigadier General Yahya Saree said the Houthis have carried out several missile launch operations on "sensitive targets" in "southern occupied Palestine". The statement underscored this was conducted "in continuation of supporting and backing the fronts of Resistance" and as part of a "religious, moral, and humanitarian duty" toward allied forces in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine - specifically saying there

Luigi Mangione's State, Federal Trials Pushed Back Until Fall Authored by Chris Summers via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), Luigi Mangione, who is accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, had both his state and federal trials postponed on April 1 until the fall. Luigi Mangione is escorted into Manhattan state court in New York City on Sept. 16, 2025. Seth Wenig/AP Photo Mangione allegedly shot Thompson, 50, on Dec. 4, 2024, as he walked toward a hotel in Manhattan where UnitedHealth Group was holding its annual investor conference. Mangione, 27, has pleaded not guilty, but faces life in prison if he is convicted

Trump Admin Revamps Steel, Aluminum, Copper Tariffs; Imposes 100% Duties On Patented Drugs The Trump administration on Thursday announced a pair of tariff actions under national-security authority, maintaining core 50% duties on many imported steel, aluminum and copper products while overhauling the rules to exempt goods containing negligible amounts of those metals and imposing 100% tariffs on imported patented pharmaceuticals that do not meet new domestic production or pricing conditions. President Donald Trump pauses as he finishes speaking about the Iran war from the Cross Hall of the White House in Washington on April 1, 2026. Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty Images The pharmaceutical measure targets

"Make A Deal Before It's Too Late": Trump Threatens Tehran (Again) As Iran/Oman Draft Protocol To Re-Open Hormuz SUMMARY * World's most important oil price hits record high as Trump threatens Iran: "make a deal before it's too late" * Oil drops on reports of Iran-Oman coordination to reopen strait. Iran issues Israel/Gulf logistics hubs target list; IRGC targets Amazon Cloud computing center in Bahrain * US intelligence assessments say Iran is not ready to negotiate given it believes it has the strategic upper-hand, and doesn't believe Trump is 'serious' about talks: NYT * Highest bridge in Iran, connecting Tehran and Karaj, destroyed

Trump Fires Pam Bondi As Attorney General, Blanche To Be Acting AG Update (1315ET): President Donald Trump has ousted Attorney General Pam Bondi, multiple outlets report. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche is serving as acting AG in the interim. The move comes amid White House frustration with Bondi’s leadership at the Justice Department -  particularly her handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files and what Trump viewed as insufficient aggression in targeting his political opponents. Trump had privately discussed firing her and floated EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin (or Blanche) as a possible replacement. > Bondi met with Trump in the Oval Office Wednesday night ahead

Justice Jackson's Birthright Citizenship Comments Were A Total Disaster Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson turned Wednesday's Supreme Court birthright citizenship oral arguments into another demonstration of her lack of qualifications for sitting on the high court. The case centers on President Trump's executive order challenging the automatic grant of citizenship to children born on U.S. soil to non-citizen parents. It was, on paper, one of the most consequential constitutional arguments in decades. For Jackson, it became a showcase of creative — if baffling — jurisprudence. Speaking to ACLU attorney Cecillia Wang, Jackson offered an extremely bizarre take on allegiance to a nation. "I was thinking,

US Apartment Rents Post Largest Annual Decline Since 2017 In March: Report Authored by Rob Sabo via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), The national median apartment rent shook off the seasonal winter chill and inched up by 0.4 percent in March from February to $1,363, Apartment List reported. A sign is posted in front of an apartment building with available rentals in San Francisco on June 9, 2023. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images However, the median rent was down by 1.7 percent from March 2025, the largest annual decline since Apartment List began compiling records in 2017. By comparison, year-over-year growth peaked at 18 percent during

US Defense Stocks Take Epic Fury Beating, Leaving UBS Asking Why Despite the launch of Operation Epic Fury against Iran in late February, U.S. defense stocks have moved lower rather than higher, prompting a UBS analyst to pen a note to clients this week attempting to answer why the makers of missiles and tanks failed to sustain a wartime rally. Analyst Allyson Gordon asked the question: "Why Is US Defense Performance Lackluster?"  Let's start with iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF, or ITA, a basket of major U.S. defense firms. ITA caught an early bid in the first phase of Operation Epic Fury,

OpenAI Snaps Up TBPN, Slashes ChatGPT Pricing As Secondary Market Interest Fades Update (1400ET): In a surprise move, OpenAI has acquired TBPN (Technology Business Programming Network), the influential daily technology talk show and media platform hosted by John Coogan and Jordi Hays. TBPN has become one of Silicon Valley’s most-watched programs for real-time tech news, M&A rumors, high-profile executive interviews, and AI developments - often described as “SportsCenter for the tech industry.” The deal gives OpenAI a powerful owned-media channel to directly reach and engage the tech community while accelerating global conversations around AI. The show will continue unchanged: live weekdays from

Three LNG Tankers Are First To Cross Strait Of Hormuz Since War Started While a growing number of ships have been traversing the Strait of Hormuz, with Lloyd's List reporting a total of 142 vessels have transited since the start of March, but 67% of that traffic has a direct affiliation with Iran... and the figure rises to 90% when looking at traffic in recent days, as some ships have had to pay fees in yuan or cryptocurrencies before being escorted through the strait... > IRAN’S TOLL SYSTEM IS NOW LIVE IN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ > > In the last 24 hours, around 10

Gulf States Considering Network Of New Pipelines To Bypass Strait Of Hormuz One month ago, at the start of the war, we said it was surprising that UAE's oil export terminal of Fujairah was not a bigger terminal as it bypasses the Straits completely, and predicted a "major infrastructure push here after the war." > Surprising Fujairah is not a bigger oil terminal: it bypasses the straits completely. > > Expect major infrastructure push here after the war. https://t.co/Do1gK7KBDQ > > — zerohedge (@zerohedge) March 3, 2026 Couple that with the latest news that the Saudi East-West pipeline is now running at capacity of roughly

Kremlin Asks US For Ceasefire At Bushehr Nuclear Plant To Get Remaining Russian Staff Out Russia is seeking approval from the US and Israel for a ceasefire for the Bushehr nuclear ⁠power plant in Iran, RIA news agency reported Thursday. Airstrikes across the country have reportedly been on the uptick in the past some 48 hours. "The travel routes will be communicated ‌to the relevant authorities in Israel and the United States, and we will use all channels to request strict adherence to the ceasefire ⁠during the convoy’s movement," the ⁠head of Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom, Alexei Likhachev, stated. Well over 500 Russian

Tania Warner is fitted with ankle monitor and released along with seven-year-old daughter Ayla Luca after being deemed not a flight risk A Canadian woman and her seven-year-old daughter, who were held for nearly three weeks in a notorious detention center by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), were released on Thursday evening after posting a bond of $9,500. Tania Warner and her daughter Ayla Luca, originally from British Columbia, are both Canadian citizens. Warner moved to the US in 2021 when she married Edward Warner, a US citizen. “Very happy to have my family home … it’s been a whirlwind day,”

A Radio-Canada reporter noticed his maple syrup tasted odd; testing revealed it was adulterated with cane sugar An investigation by Canada’s national broadcaster has found that a major Quebec producer has been diluting its maple syrup with cane sugar and selling the fraudulent product to grocery chains. In a sting operation that involved false identities and covert recordings, journalists from Radio-Canada’s Enquête programme found that a low-cost syrup sold in major grocery store chains was heavily diluted. Continue reading...

Central American country to receive up to 25 migrants a day expelled as part of Trump’s immigration crackdown * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox The Costa Rican government has agreed to receive up to 25 deported migrants a week from the United States, the latest deal in the Trump administration’s unprecedented efforts to deport scores of people to “third countries”. With the new agreement, Costa Rica seeks a closer alliance with Donald Trump’s government, which has been securing cooperation from other Central American countries in accepting deportees from other nations who have

US moves towards reestablishing working relations between two countries after abducting President Nicolás Maduro The US has lifted sanctions on Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, in the latest step towards normalising relations between the two countries after US forces abducted her predecessor, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife. The couple were taken to New York after their abduction in January to face charges of alleged drug trafficking, to which both have pleaded not guilty. Continue reading...

Lewis’s son Avi Lewis was elected leader of progressive New Democratic party a day before his father’s death Stephen Lewis, the Canadian diplomat, politician and human rights advocate, who spent decades tirelessly working to focus global attention on the HIV/Aids epidemic, has died of cancer. Lewis, who served as the Canadian ambassador to the United Nations, as well as the head of Ontario’s New Democratic party (NDP), was 88. Continue reading...

From farms in New Zealand to factories in Delhi, the effects of the oil crisis triggered by the Iran war are rippling across Asia Continue reading...

Quake with epicentre west-north-west of Ternate island shakes cities and prompts regional tsunami warning One person has been killed after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia’s Ternate island, damaging buildings and triggering small tsunami waves. The quake, which had a depth of 35km, occurred on Thursday at 6.48am local time, according to the United States Geological Survey. Its epicentre was 127km (79 miles) west-north-west of Ternate, an island in Indonesia’s North Maluku province. Continue reading...

Agreement comes after Wellington halted millions in aid to its former colony after Cook Islands formed strategic partnership with Beijing New Zealand and the Cook Islands have signed a defence and security declaration, ending a year-long diplomatic row that erupted after the Cook Islands struck strategic agreements with China. The Cook Islands was a dependent New Zealand colony from 1901-65 but has since operated as a self-governing nation in “free association” with New Zealand. Its roughly 17,000 citizens hold New Zealand citizenship. There are obligations between the two nations to regularly consult on matters of defence and security. Continue reading...

Distressed riders who were stranded for hours say Apollo Go customer service agents offered ‘useless platitudes’ A “system malfunction” has caused several self-driving robotaxis to stall in the middle of the road in China, police have confirmed, after distressed riders were stranded for hours. Local authorities in the central Chinese city of Wuhan said they began receiving calls “one after another” on Tuesday night from riders reporting that autonomous vehicles operated by the Chinese internet company Baidu had frozen. Continue reading...

South Korea will delay the shutdown of coal-fired plants, while the Philippines also plans to boost the output of its coal-burning plants Governments across Asia are ramping up their use of coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, as they try to cover huge energy shortfalls triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran. The move has triggered warnings from climate experts who point to coal’s devastating environmental impact, and say the energy crisis should be a wake up call for governments to invest in renewables, which can offer a more stable supply that is not exposed to price shocks. Continue reading...

Health minister Mark Butler says federal government is ‘not negotiating’ when it comes to removing price protections on common medications * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Australia will not cave in to pressure from pharmaceutical giants and the Trump administration by removing consumer price protections on common medications, the health minister, Mark Butler says. Donald Trump imposed a new 100% tariff on branded pharmaceuticals imported into the US overnight, Australian time, trying to force manufacturers to agree to drug-pricing deals or commit to making their products domestically. Continue reading...

Bureau of Meteorology says a blend of fine days and showers expected for most capital cities over the coming days * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Many Australians can expect mild temperatures and a chance of showers over the Easter weekend, while meteorologists predict a cyclone will form in the Coral Sea from Saturday evening. The Bureau of Meteorology has forecast a blend of fine days and showers for most capital cities over the coming days. Continue reading...

Police say they found a ballistic-style vest, several notebooks and literature they allege contained extremist references Two New South Wales teenagers have been charged with allegedly possessing violent extremist material after police searched one of their homes and found a ballistic-style vest, several notebooks and literature they allege contained extremist references. The Australian federal police and NSW police released a statement on Friday morning confirming the boys, aged 15 and 16 and both from Moree in northern NSW, had been charged with possession of alleged extremist material after a joint counterterrorism investigation. Continue reading...

Visa ban makes Iranian-Australian feel her adopted country is a ‘home that doesn’t support you’ * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Hedieh Jamshidian feared the window to see her mother, living in Tehran under waves of airstrikes, was closing. The Australian government had just announced it could block some visa holders from entering the country. So, Jamshidian, a 32-year-old Iranian Australian, decided to act quickly. Within a week she bought her mother, who held a three-month tourist visa, a ticket to Sydney. Continue reading...

Department says it’s received 834 requests for a review of tool’s assessments since it launched in November * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast There appears to be no legal barrier for a human to override a controversial algorithm that determines financial support for elderly Australians, a Senate inquiry has heard, despite government assessors being banned from doing so. The Integrated Assessment Tool (IAT), introduced in November as part of aged care Support at Home reforms, is used to assess eligibility and assign funding levels for aged care services. Continue reading...

Plan for three nuns who escaped from care home last year to go to Rome thought to be positive sign of Vatican’s decision Three nuns who escaped from a care home to return to their convent in a castle close to Salzburg where they had spent most of their lives are a step closer to being able to stay there, sources close to them say. Sisters Bernadette, Regina and Rita, who are in their early to late eighties, broke into their convent home in Elsbethen last September with the help of former pupils of the Catholic school at which they had taught

‘Ukraine has expertise concerning sea waterways, and the defence and reopening of maritime traffic,’ says president. What we know on day 1,500 Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered on Thursday to provide Ukraine’s expertise in dealing with freedom of navigation in the Black Sea to those countries considering how to keep the strait of Hormuz open amid the conflict in the Middle East. The Ukraine president, speaking in his nightly video address, said the foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, had taken part in a virtual meeting devoted to reopening the strait of Hormuz, attended by about 40 countries. “Ukraine has relevant expertise concerning sea waterways,

Speaking in South Korea, the French president defended the transatlantic alliance and called for return to peace * Middle East crisis – live updates Emmanuel Macron has sharply criticised Donald Trump’s inconsistent and often contradictory pronouncements on the Iran war and Nato, saying if “you want to be serious” it was better not to come out with something different every day. “There is too much talk … and it’s all over the place,” the French president said on Thursday during a state visit to South Korea. “We all need stability, calm, a return to peace – this isn’t a show!” Continue reading...

Prosecutors unveil artefact linked to lost Dacian civilisation after it was stolen from Dutch museum last year A priceless ancient gold helmet from Romania that was stolen last year from a museum in the Netherlands, has been recovered as part of a plea deal reached with the suspects. Under the guard of balaclava-wearing police, prosecutors unveiled the 2,500-year-old Coțofenești helmet, which is considered a cultural icon of Romania, during a news conference on Thursday in the eastern Dutch city of Assen. Continue reading...

Brent crude rises 8% as US president vows to hit Iran ‘extremely hard’ over coming weeks * Business live – latest updates Oil prices have soared after Donald Trump vowed in a televised speech to hit Iran “extremely hard” over the coming weeks, knocking hopes of a near-term end to the conflict in the Middle East. Brent crude prices jumped by as much as 8% on Thursday to $109.74 a barrel, reversing Wednesday’s drop when hopes of a de-escalation in the Iran war pushed the international benchmark below the $100-a-barrel mark at one point. Continue reading...

People leaving Iran for Turkey tell of impact of bombs and internet blackouts, while others are travelling the other way to be closer to relatives in peril He could not help but splutter out a laugh at the question. Amir, whose name has been changed for his safety, had just crossed the Kapıköy border point in eastern Turkey, a mountain pass between snow-topped peaks that is one of the few gateways to the west from Iran. Until a few weeks ago, this was a busy place, popular among Iranian daytrippers coming across to Turkey to do some shopping in the lively city

This blog is now closed. You can read about the latest major development in the conflict here. Trump has claimed that Iran was “right at the doorstep” of gaining a nuclear weapon. Earlier on Wednesday the president said he did not care about Iran’s stock of highly enriched uranium (HEU), arguing it was deep underground and could be monitored by satellite. From the very beginning my campaign for president in 2015, I said I would never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon. This regime has been chanting death to America, death to Israel. Continue reading...

Attorneys for Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian-born US green card holder, say he was targeted for criticizing Israel * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox The president of Wisconsin’s largest mosque was detained by federal immigration agents, drawing accusations from local officials and religious leaders that the arrest was motivated by his statements against Israel. Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian-born legal permanent resident of the United States, was taken into custody by nearly a dozen US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on Monday in Milwaukee after he left his home, according to the Islamic

Eight people reported killed in attack on newly completed suspension bridge after strike splits structure in half * Middle East crisis – live updates Donald Trump claimed responsibility for destroying Iran’s largest bridge, a day after he threatened to bomb the country “back to the stone ages” if a deal to end the five-week-long war he started was not reached. The US president shared footage of part of the newly built 136 metre-high $400m B1 suspension bridge between Tehran and Karaj collapsing dramatically on to the causeway below amid a rising plume of black smoke. Continue reading...

Yvette Cooper hosts virtual summit of more than 40 countries to consider coordinated action in face of closure of vital shipping lane * Middle East crisis live – latest updates More than 40 countries gathered to discuss “every possible diplomatic, economic and coordinated measure” to pressurise Iran into reopening the strait of Hormuz, the UK foreign secretary has said. After chairing a virtual summit on Thursday, Yvette Cooper said coordinated action was needed as Iran’s “reckless strikes” on international shipping and efforts to “hijack the global economy” were hitting nations from across the globe “who played no part in this conflict”. Continue reading...

At least 77 people killed in anti-corruption youth uprising in September, which began over a brief social media ban Nepal’s former prime minister KP Sharma Oli was arrested early on Saturday morning over his alleged role in the deaths of dozens of people who took part in the gen Z protest that toppled his government last year. Police detained the three-time former prime minister at his residence in the capital Kathmandu, and also arrested his former home affairs minister Ramesh Lekhak. Continue reading...

Balendra Shah, 35, is a symbol of change in country whose government was toppled last year in youth-led uprising Nepal’s rapper turned politician Balendra Shah, who is about to be sworn in as prime minister, has issued his first post-election message in the form of a rap urging unity. Hours before the release he swore an oath as a newly elected lawmaker, and he is due to become the Himalayan republic’s new prime minister on Friday. Continue reading...

Marco Rubio welcomes release of Dennis Coyle, who was detained in January last year for violating unspecified laws Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities have released the American academic Dennis Coyle after holding him for over a year, with the foreign ministry saying the release came on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday that marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. A statement from the ministry said the academic researcher had been released in Kabul on Tuesday, following an appeal from his family and after Afghanistan’s supreme court “considered his previous imprisonment sufficient”. Continue reading...

From a shop owner in India to a community worker in New South Wales, rising fuel prices are forcing people to ration oil usage * Middle East crisis – live updates Alagesan, 35, needs liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to run his roadside drink and snack shop in Coimbatore, India, but with the fuel shortage since the US-Israel attacks on Iran, he worries his business could fold. “I am far away from the Middle East, but my life is affected,” he said. “The gas cylinder is not available because of the war. I don’t know what to do.” Continue reading...

At least 400 killed in Pakistan’s strike on drug rehab centre, Taliban say, with families searching unmarked mass graves Sohrab Faqiri spent Eid, the Muslim festival to mark the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, looking for the grave of his brother, killed in a massive Pakistan airstrike on Kabul this week. Pakistan’s bombardment campaign, on what it says is terrorist and military infrastructure in neighbouring Afghanistan, appeared to have gone catastrophically wrong. A rehabilitation centre for drug addicts was hit on Monday night, according to the United Nations and the Afghan authorities. The UN’s preliminary death toll is 143 people,

Episodes from William Hartnell era are from mostly lost 12-part adventure called The Daleks’ Master Plan Two episodes of Doctor Who from the William Hartnell era, which have not been seen since 1965, have been released after being discovered in a private film collection. The two episodes, released on Friday and starring Peter Purves as the Doctor’s companion, are parts one and three of a mostly lost 12-part adventure called The Daleks’ Master Plan, written by the Dalek creator Terry Nation and broadcast as part of the third series of Doctor Who in November 1965. Continue reading...

Document shows partial felling last year, which led to legal action against Toby Carvery, was done by Ground Control A mystery contractor who chainsawed an ancient oak in north London for the Toby Carvery restaurant chain has been identified by the Guardian, prompting more questions about the incident. The unauthorised partial felling of the 500-year-old oak a year ago on Friday in Whitewebbs Park, Enfield, prompted widespread public outrage and questions in parliament. Continue reading...

Unite accuses authority of trying to ‘break’ industrial action as waste dispute enters second year Unite has accused Birmingham city council of trying to “break” the bin strikes after analysis showed the council had doubled spending on agency staff since the start of the year-long industrial action. Birmingham’s bin workers have taken part in an all-out strike since March last year over proposed pay cuts and role changes. The dispute has left residents without a fully functioning waste collection service and has led to towering waste and overflowing bins on the streets. Continue reading...

People receive rehab only three to four days a week in hospital – and one to two days once they are discharged, data suggests The NHS is failing stroke patients and limiting their chances of recovery because of a shortage of rehabilitation care staff, health leaders have said. More people are surviving strokes than ever before in the UK. But their hopes of getting better are being dashed because of a lack of physiotherapists and other specialist staff, according to the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and the Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Neurology. Continue reading...

Ryan Bridge is co-founder of Raise the Colours, which has been criticised for anti-immigrant rhetoric The leader of a flag campaign group has been arrested on suspicion of causing religiously and racially aggravated harassment. Ryan Bridge is the co-founder of Raise the Colours, which has put up hundreds of union and Saint George flags across England and attracted criticism for spreading anti-immigrant rhetoric. He was arrested on Tuesday and released on police bail the following day. Continue reading...

Iranian foreign minister criticises security council vote on military protection for shipping in the strait a ‘provocative action’ * Full report: Trump warns Tehran ‘more to follow’ after strike destroys Iran’s largest bridge Here are some images on the newswires of the bridge in Iran that was targeted by US airstrikes: Donald Trump warned last night that the US military “hasn’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran”, as he threatened bridges would be targeted next, “then electric power plants”. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed. * Trump fires Pam Bondi as attorney general * Sign up for Breaking News US email alerts During its brief pro forma session today, the US House took no action on the funding bill to end the historic DHS shutdown, after Senate-passed legislation was sent to the lower chamber earlier today. The House’s next procedural meeting will be on Monday, meaning the lapse in funding for several subagencies will continue until at least next week. However, Republican House speaker Mike Johnson may even wait until lawmakers return from a two-week recess to ensure the measure, that

Drone-maker backed by Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr tries to win contracts with Gulf countries protected by US A drone-maker backed by Donald Trump’s two oldest sons is trying to sell to Gulf countries while they are under attack by Iran and dependent on the US military led by their father. The sales drive by Florida-based Powerus – which announced a deal last month to bring aboard Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr – positions the company to potentially benefit from a war that their father began. Continue reading...

California House members tour Otay Mesa center, which has faced allegations of poor conditions and sexual assaults Two California lawmakers conducted an oversight visit Thursday at ICE’s Otay Mesa detention center, an immigrant detention facility that has faced allegations of overcrowding, poor conditions and sexual assaults. The visit had been previously scheduled. But congressman Mike Levin, a Democrat, told the Guardian he planned to conduct more unannounced visits following a federal court ruling that struck down the Trump administration’s policy of forcing members of Congress to announce oversight visits seven days in advance. Continue reading...

Defense secretary signs memo letting members request permission to carry firearms on military installations Defense secretary Pete Hegseth signed a memo on Thursday that would allow military service members to request permission to carry their personal firearms on military installations such as bases, naval yards and recruitment centers, claiming the new policy will allow soldiers and other military personnel to defend themselves in case of an attack. While the full text of the memo has yet to be made public, it appears to loosen the current policy that allows for personnel to get permission to have their weapons on base on a

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US President Donald Trump said on Thursday the tallest bridge in Iran had been destroyed, hours after threatening to bomb the country “back to the Stone Ages”. Ghodratollah Seif, the deputy governor of Alborz province, where the B1 bridge is located, said the strike had killed eight people and wounded 95 others, according to state TV and Fars news agency. Due to reporting restrictions, Agence France-Presse is not able to access the sites of strikes nor to independently verify tolls in...

After crashing his SUV last week in Florida, Tiger Woods took out his phone and told a deputy, “I was just talking to the president,” according to body camera footage released Thursday showing Woods’ arrest on a DUI charge. The phone conversation was not captured on video, but Woods could be heard saying, “Thank you so much,” as he hung up and the deputy approached. It was not clear if Woods was referring to US President Donald Trump, whose former daughter-in-law, Vanessa Trump, is dating...

Four Artemis astronauts were zooming towards the moon on Thursday after a major engine firing, a milestone that commits Nasa to the first crewed lunar fly-by in more than half a century. With enough thrust to accelerate a stationary car to highway driving speed in less than three seconds, the Orion capsule engine blasted the astronauts on their trajectory towards the moon, which they now will loop as part of the 10-day Artemis II mission. “Human beings have left Earth orbit” for the first time...

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has asked the Army’s top uniformed officer to step down, the Pentagon said on Thursday without giving a reason for the departure as the United States wages a war against Iran. General Randy George “will be retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately”, said Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s top spokesman. George has held the post of Army chief of staff, which typically runs for four years, since August 2023 under the Biden...

In a leafy Tehran park on Thursday, Iranians gathered for picnics on the final day of the Persian new year holidays, shrugging off US President Donald Trump’s threats to bomb Iran “back to the Stone Ages”. The country has been at war for more than a month and Trump – who launched the conflict alongside Israel on February 28 – has vowed to strike Iran hard for another “two or three weeks”. Powerful blasts shook the Iranian capital on Thursday. Still, hundreds of families sat out under mild,...

After avoiding much of the churn, firings and senior official turnover that marked his first term, US President Donald Trump on Thursday added to the string of high-profile departures in recent days, as bad news heaped more pressure on the White House. The administration announced that US Attorney General Pam Bondi was leaving to be replaced by her deputy, Todd Blanche, in an acting capacity. “We love Pam,” Trump wrote on social media. “She will be transitioning to a much-needed and important...

Four children were stabbed to death on Thursday at a kindergarten in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, police said. The male suspect, in his thirties, gained access by posing as a parent before attacking children aged around two and three with a knife, police said. “We confirm a tragic incident at the Ggaba Early Childhood Development Program school in Makindye Division, Kampala City, where a male suspect brutally stabbed and killed four juveniles,” police spokeswoman Racheal Kawala said. The suspect...

A UK-led meeting of some 40 countries on the Strait of Hormuz crisis wrapped up on Thursday with a demand for the “immediate and unconditional” reopening of the vital shipping route but no immediate breakthrough. “Iran is trying to hold the global economy hostage in the Strait of Hormuz. They must not prevail,” British foreign minister Yvette Cooper said in a statement. “To that effect, partners today called for the immediate and unconditional reopening of the Strait and respect for the...

We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering global relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Iran’s exiled prince Reza Pahlavi plans to flip the script on Beijing Allies of exiled Iranian royal Reza Pahlavi signalled a potential reset in Tehran’s ties with China and Russia, as the 65-year-old increasingly positioned himself as a central figure in Iran’s political future – a claim that...

Stocks slumped and oil prices soared on Thursday after President Donald Trump vowed the US will continue to attack Iran and failed to offer a clear timetable for ending the conflict in the Middle East. The S&P 500 fell 1.1 per cent, with three out of every four stocks in the benchmark index losing ground. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 545 points, or 1.2 per cent, as of 9.52am Eastern. The Nasdaq composite fell 1.6 per cent. Major indexes throughout Europe and Asia also fell. The broad...

The suspected leader of an isolated forest community on the Mediterranean island of Sicily has been arrested on suspicion of aiding and abetting child abuse, Italian news agencies ANSA and Adnkronos reported on Thursday. The suspect is a man of German-Indian origin. He is said to have led a community of 15 people, including two children, who lived in a forest near Cefalu on Sicily’s northern coast. The two children, aged 7 and 11, were reportedly not vaccinated, did not attend school and had to...

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that a military operation to liberate the Strait of Hormuz is “unrealistic”, while lamenting Donald Trump’s differing daily statements on the Iran war and Nato. “There are those who advocate for the liberation of the Strait of Hormuz by force through a military operation, a position sometimes expressed by the United States,” Macron said during a visit to South Korea. “I say sometimes because it has varied, it is never the option we have chosen...

A month into the Iran war, Washington still says it expects to achieve its objectives in weeks, not months. That may prove optimistic. The terms on offer from the United States and Iran barely overlap, and markets remain unconvinced a durable settlement is close. But one fact is clear: the war’s most consequential effects may be felt not only in the Middle East but across East Asia. It would be a mistake to see this as only an oil story. It is also about hierarchy. In East Asia, the war is...

US President Donald Trump tried to sell the war on Iran to sceptical Americans in a televised address, saying that the conflict was “nearing completion” and that there was no need to worry about the closure of the Strait of Hormuz to shipping. The US would hit Iran “extremely hard over the next two to three weeks”, Trump said on Wednesday from the White House. “We’re going to bring them back to the Stone Ages,” he said. He didn’t give a specific deadline for the end of operations during the...

Violence by extremist Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank has reached unprecedented levels since the start of the war with Iran, with NGOs and opposition figures denouncing an environment of impunity. While so-called “Jewish terrorism” has drawn widespread condemnation both in Israel and abroad, little has been done to curb it. Assaults by violent settlers against Palestinians have been carried out for years, often to the indifference of mainstream Israeli...

Students across Russia are being offered large financial incentives ⁠to join drone units fighting in Ukraine as operators and engineers, while companies in Russia’s central Ryazan region have been given quotas to sign up workers for the army, documents show. The recruitment effort, which comes as Russian forces continue to grind forwards on the battlefield in Ukraine and as US-brokered peace talks are on ice due to the Iran war, suggests Moscow is diversifying its push to replenish its army’s...

Andrew Tilton, chief Asia-Pacific economist at Goldman Sachs, speaks to the South China Morning Post about the long-term future of China’s economy after the “two sessions” in Beijing and ahead of an expected Xi-Trump summit – all during an oil crisis sparked by the US-Israel war against Iran. SCMP Plus readers get early access to articles in the Open Questions series. What impact will the oil shock arising from the Iran war have on the growth of Asian economies this year? Asia is greatly...

More than 200 years after being sunk by Admiral Horatio Nelson and the British fleet, a Danish warship has been discovered on the seabed of Copenhagen Harbour by marine archaeologists. Working in thick sediment and almost zero visibility 15 metres (49 feet) beneath the waves, divers have been working against the clock to unearth the 19th century wreck of the Dannebroge before it becomes a construction site in a new housing district being built off the Danish coast. Denmark’s Viking Ship Museum,...

The United States on Wednesday lifted sanctions on Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodriguez, according to an Office of Foreign Assets Control entry on the Treasury Department website. The newly announced sanctions relief is the latest US recognition of Rodriguez as a legitimate authority in Venezuela ever since the US military captured her predecessor, Nicolas Maduro, and his wife on January 3 in Venezuela’s capital, Caracas. The pair have since been taken to New York to face drug...

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday declared the US‑Israel war against Iran had delivered “decisive, overwhelming victories”, even as he signalled that key military objectives were still “nearing completion” and that further strikes could inflict heavy damage on targets in the country. “We are going to hit them extremely hard. Over the next two to three weeks, we are going to bring them back to the Stone Ages, where they belong. In the meantime, discussions are ongoing,” he said in a...

Four astronauts blasted off from ⁠Florida on Wednesday on Nasa’s Artemis II mission, a high-stakes voyage around the moon that marks the United States’ boldest step yet toward returning humans to the lunar surface later this decade in a race with China. Nasa’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, topped with its Orion crew capsule, roared to life just before sunset at the agency’s Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying its debut crew - three US astronauts and a Canadian astronaut...

Utah officials announced on Wednesday that they were ⁠closing a five-decade-old ⁠case after finding “definitive proof” that American ⁠serial killer Ted Bundy killed a 17-year-old Utah girl. The girl, Laura Ann Aime, went missing on the night of October 31, 1974, after leaving a party alone to make a purchase from a convenience store, the ‌Utah County Sheriff’s Office said. Her body was found by two college students on Thanksgiving Day that year, according to authorities, who added that her body...

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian criticised the US war against his country in an open letter to the people of the United States on Wednesday, calling it an absurd operation that is costly for their nation. “Today, the world stands at a crossroads,” the president wrote in his message. “Continuing along the path of confrontation is more costly and futile than ever before.” While Iran had seen many aggressors throughout its history, “All that remains of them are tarnished names in history, while...

⁠The Russian defence ministry said on Wednesday that its ⁠forces had taken full control of the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine, suggesting they had wrested control of a small sliver of land which had remained beyond their reach since 2022. Reuters could not independently verify the ‌battlefield report and a Ukrainian military spokesman said there had been no battlefield changes in the area in the last six months. More than 99 per cent of Luhansk, one of four Ukrainian regions Russia claimed as...

With one of the world’s highest benchmark interest rates among major economies, Brazilian importers who buy from China are turning to a state-owned Chinese credit insurer to sustain trade flows that reached US$158 billion in 2024. Facing working capital lines that cost upwards of two per cent a month, equivalent to roughly 27 per cent a year according to market calculations, mid-sized importers are securing deferred payment terms directly from Chinese suppliers through credit limits backed by...

We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering Latin American relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. As Trump ramps up pressure on Cuba, China has ‘very limited options’ As Washington stepped up rhetoric and pressure on Cuba after the start of its campaign in Iran, Beijing found itself torn between geopolitical reality and ideological affinity. Read the full story here. 2. US threats...

France suspects a pro-Iranian group known as HAYI to be behind a foiled attack on Bank of America’s Paris offices, its anti-terrorism prosecutor said on Wednesday, while stressing the link has not yet been formally established. HAYI, which stands for Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiyya, or ‌Movement of the Companions of the Right Hand of Islam, had posted a video on social media on March 23 targeting Jewish interests and communities in France and Europe, the prosecutor’s office said in a...

The BBC defended on Wednesday its handling of a DJ sacked years after he was the subject of a police investigation into allegations of sexual offences against a teenage boy. The controversy surrounding former radio host Scott Mills, 53, is the latest involving a high-profile presenter to roil the publicly funded broadcaster. London’s Metropolitan Police said this week that it questioned Mills in 2018 over allegations of “serious sexual offences” against a boy under the age of 16. The case was...

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday claimed that Iran’s leader wanted a ceasefire, in a social media post that Tehran called “false and baseless”. Trump claimed that “Iran’s New Regime President” was seeking a ceasefire, which he said would happen only once the Strait of Hormuz was “open, free, clear”. It was not immediately clear who Trump was referring to in Iran, which still has the same president. The US president, who is scheduled to address the nation later in the day, had earlier said...

The United States attacked Iran without consulting its European allies. President Donald Trump assumed the operation would be a quick win, over before anyone had to take a position. Instead, Washington answered a question Western governments had long avoided. After years of pushing Nato towards confrontation with China, would the transatlantic alliance fight a war it had not chosen together? The answer was no. Iran and Taiwan are different cases. One sits on Europe’s wider periphery and carries...

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed on Wednesday to design a road map for critical minerals supply as they seek to deepen cooperation in the sector amid China’s dominance of global rare earths. The two leaders also affirmed that Japan and France will maintain close communication in support of efforts to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East and establish a high-level dialogue on artificial intelligence, Takaichi said at a joint press appearance...

The risks of environmental calamity in the Strait of Hormuz are mounting with each passing week of the Iran conflict, conservationists have warned, as giant tankers filled with fuel are trapped in a small area and Iran continues to fire missiles and drones at Gulf oil assets. The potential for catastrophe in the waterway was sharpened on Monday when a Kuwaiti crude tanker was set ablaze at Dubai Port in an Iranian attack that damaged its hull, sparking warnings of a possible oil spill. The...

Lawmakers in the United States have urged the administration of US President Donald Trump to take action against China’s alleged sanctioned oil imports by blacklisting port operators and blocking complex settlement networks. Despite Washington’s temporary easing of sanctions on Russian and Iranian oil to relieve price pressures from the US-Israeli war in Iran, the “House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party” has released a 41-page...

US President Donald Trump said attacks on Iran could stop within two or three weeks even without an agreement, leaving a question mark over the reopening of the vital Strait of Hormuz. “We’ll be leaving very soon,” US President Donald Trump told reporters in the White House on Tuesday. “Iran doesn’t have to make a deal.” The president was scheduled to address the nation and “provide an important update on Iran” at 9pm New York time on Wednesday (9am on Thursday in Hong Kong). Brent crude held...

At a petrol station in the Washington suburbs, drivers confronted the harsh domestic repercussions of the war on Iran, as spiking fuel prices hit household budgets hard. Jeanne Williams, 83, had just driven 160km from Richmond, Virginia, where she was visiting her elder sister. “That is horrible,” she said, stunned by the prices visible on the Liberty petrol station’s LED board. “I’m not angry. I’m just bewildered, confused, unhappy,” she said. “Because we didn’t ask for the war.” On Tuesday,...

Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz has thrown the global economic system into turmoil, yet Israel, which launched attacks on Tehran alongside the United States, has emerged as a rare exception. Since Israel and its US ally started the Middle East war on February 28, economies from Asia to Europe and the US have come under pressure from surging oil and natural gas prices that have driven up fuel and electricity costs. Israel, however, has remained largely insulated from the shock. Central...

Amid ongoing talks between the Trump administration and Cuban leaders, Sandro Castro, the controversial grandson of Fidel Castro, told a major US television news network that most Cubans on the island want to embrace capitalism and that the country’s hand-picked president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, has done a poor job. His statements to CNN’s Havana correspondent, Patrick Oppmann, echoed earlier calls by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for a change of leadership in Havana, and seem to suggest that...

Pakistan is hoping that its role in building a diplomatic off-ramp from the US-Israel war on Iran will enable it to become a key actor in the Middle East after the conflict ends, analysts say. If Islamabad can deliver without being sucked into the maelstrom, it can capitalise on its position as peacemaker by signing defence deals with Gulf monarchies and attracting investment from them to strengthen its weak economy. This will help finance Pakistan’s military expansion for its envisioned new...

China and Pakistan unveiled a joint five-point plan on Tuesday to restore peace in the Persian Gulf after five weeks of US-Israeli bombardment of Iran. China, Pakistan five-point initiative for restoring peace in the Middle East by scmp

Why didn’t China develop its own scientific and industrial revolutions when it made so many discoveries and advances over millennia? That is often called “Needham’s question”, named after the historian of Chinese science and tech Joseph Needham. Why didn’t China develop capitalism during the Song dynasty when it was so close to achieving a breakthrough with trade, commerce, currency and semi-industrialisation, and an emerging merchant class? The Hungarian-French sinologist Etienne Balazs, among...

A ⁠Russian An-26 ⁠military transport plane ⁠crashed into a cliff in Crimea, killing 29 people on board, due to a possible technical malfunction, Russia’s defence ministry said early on Wednesday, according to news agencies. Tass news agency, quoting the ministry, said communication with the aircraft was lost at about 6pm local time on Tuesday on a planned flight over Crimea. The peninsula, covered in sweeping mountains leading down to the coast of the Black Sea, was annexed by Russia from...

Global oil supplies are expected to be hit twice as hard this month as in March, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday, underlining the urgent need to resolve the conflict ‌over Iran that US President Donald Trump said could end soon. While Trump signalled he could wind down the war within weeks even without a deal, he also scaled up threats to pull the United States out of the Nato defence alliance if European states did not help stop Iran blocking the Strait of Hormuz. “I was never...

Almost three years ago, New York City joined governments across the country in banning TikTok from its phones over security concerns about the Chinese social media site. On Tuesday, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a bona fide social media star, took to the app to announce a reversal: “TikTok, we’re back.” The city will now allow agencies to start posting again on the short-form social media site as long as departments follow a set of security precautions, according to a memo from city cybersecurity...

As with any conflict, the war in Iran has driven people to choose sides and adopt partisan positions. This includes the view that, despite the acts of aggression by the US and Israel, the Islamic Republic somehow “deserves” the attacks due to years of regional instability caused by its Axis of Resistance. This is not to suggest that the Iranian regime has always been a victim. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ transgressions through the Quds Force have been well documented. But let’s be...

Shanghai’s many layers of architecture, culture and politics have made it a difficult fit for the Communist Party’s preferred narrative of Chinese victimhood and Western sins.

Senior Army officers reacted with anger and frustration to news of Gen. Randy George’s dismissal, characterizing it as the latest blow to the service.

The board had been expected to vote to approve the project last month, but it was delayed after about 32,000 mostly negative comments rolled in from across the country.

President Trump has been talking about the emergency facility beneath what was once the East Wing, details of which are usually kept secret, as he tries to justify his renovation.

The House speaker first panned, then endorsed, then punted on, then pitched and now is delaying a bill to reopen the Homeland Security Department, showing his vulnerability in the face of party rifts.

U Min Aung Hlaing’s elevation to the civilian post is the conclusion of elections in the country, which were stage managed by the military.

Some women with complex chronic illnesses are using chatbots to search for diagnoses or relief from their symptoms.

OpenAI said the deal would help it “create a space for a real, constructive conversation about the changes A.I. creates.”

A federal judge tossed the actress’s sexual harassment claims against Justin Baldoni in a split decision that sets the stage for a contentious trial.

The stars of the new film, “The Drama,” debate the pros and cons of dredging up the past.

Zendaya and Robert Pattinson play a couple upended when one confesses to coming close to committing a horrific crime.

For more than three years, Giorgia Meloni’s leadership of Italy has seemed unshakable. Now she suddenly seems vulnerable.

The core of Mr. Trump’s dissatisfaction with the attorney general was apparently her failure to serve his need for revenge against his enemies.

President Trump is “on a bit of a firing spree,” Jimmy Fallon said on “The Tonight Show” on Thursday, adding, “Ironically, the only staffer who has immunity is RFK Jr.”

The Cuban government said the releases were a humanitarian gesture during Holy Week. It was not clear if they were related to ongoing negotiations between Cuba and the United States.

With Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey, she was one of three prominent researchers of great apes who were sometimes called the “trimates.”

The change follows weeks of complaints from a grandson of the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup inventor and other vocal consumers.