Iran temporarily reopened the Strait of Hormuz amid a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that was reachedfollowing a meeting between Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors in Washington in the first direct talks between the two nations since 1993,but reclosed it a day later due to Washington's continued blockade of Iranian ports.This comes as Pakistan proposed a second round of U.S.-Iran talks ahead of the imminent expiration of their two-week ceasefire, Washington denied reports that it was seeking to extend the truce with Tehran, saying instead that talks were "ongoing and productive,"and the U.S. Senate rejected a war powers resolution to limit President Donald Trump's military authority in Iran.Meanwhile, the U.S. completed the handover of military bases in Syria, marking a full withdrawal of American forces from the country, Italy suspended its defense pact with Israel due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East,and cement maker Lafarge was convicted of financing terrorism in Syria after paying millions to jihadist groups in 2013-2014 to keep its Jalabiya plant operational.Elsewhere, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed that military robots seized Russian battlefield positions for the first time in the history of the war, the Pentagon reportedly prepared for a possible operation against Cuba amid escalating tensions,and Australia appointed its first female army chief, marking a milestone in the country’s military leadership.In other news, two suicide blasts struck Algeria in the first such attacks in over a decade,and Fiji’s military reported attempted breaches at its bases and launched security operations, citing growing regional instability.

Peru’s Rafael López Aliaga called for the annulment of the country's first-round election,which saw him neck-to-neck with Roberto Sánchez to challenge frontrunner Keiko Fujimori in the June 7 run-off, Flávio Bolsonaro emerged as the frontrunner in Brazil's presidential race, raising the likelihood of a Bolsonaro family return to power,and Benin’s finance minister won the country’s presidential election with more than 94% of the votes.Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney secured a majority government following victories in three by-elections, Israel appointed its first-ever ambassador to Somaliland after formally recognizing the country last year, South Africa named a new ambassador to the United States, filling a position that had remained vacant since March 2025,and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Jeddah to discuss economic cooperation, security, and regional stability.This comes as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva called for peace as leftist leaders convened for a major summit in Barcelona, Pope Leo XIV began a 10-day tour of Africa, covering nearly 11,200 miles across 11 cities, Berlin hosted an international conference on Sudan, bringing together world leaders and aid organizations to discuss ending the civil war,and Botswana and Oman signed energy and mining cooperation agreements to boost investment, trade, and resource development between the two countries.In other news, the U.K.'s Peter Mandelson was revealed to have failed vetting for his U.S. ambassador role, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer rejecting calls to resign,former Philippine lawmaker Zaldy Co was arrested in Prague on graft and malversation charges,and Gabon's opposition leader Alain-Claude Bilie-By-Nze was arrested on fraud and breach of trust allegations.Elsewhere, Brazil’s former spy chief was detained in Florida after being sentenced by Brazil's Supreme Court for an attempted coup,Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's wife was charged with corruption related to her activities at the Complutense University of Madrid,and Spain approved the legalization of 500,000 unauthorized migrants, in a policy shift aimed at addressing labor shortages and integrating long-term residents.In unrelated developments, Starmer reportedly considered bypassing parliament to allow ministers to mirror EU single market rules, Moldova announced it would exit the Commonwealth of Independent States next year following approval from its parliament,and India's parliament rejected a bill to redraw electoral boundaries and implement a quota for women legislators.

Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director Todd Lyons resigned, citing family reasons,Democrat Analilia Mejia won the special election in New Jersey's 11th Congressional District, defeating Republican Joe Hathaway,and former Mike Pence aide Olivia Troye announced she is running for Congress as a Democrat.Meanwhile, former Attorney General Pam Bondi was threatened with contempt of Congress over her refusal to testify in the ongoing Epstein files investigation, a fifth woman accused Rep. Eric Swalwell of sexual misconduct, adding to the list of allegations against the California Democrat,and an appeals court ruled against District Judge James Boasberg for pursuing contempt proceedings against Trump administration officials over deportation flights to El Salvador in March 2025.This comes as the House voted to extend Haitian Temporary Protected Status for roughly 350,000 immigrants through 2029, Minnesota's Ramsey County launched an investigation into whether immigration agents committed crimes during the detention of ChongLy "Scott" Thao,and an ICE agent was charged for allegedly pointing a gun at drivers, marking the first known time an agent has faced local prosecution for conduct while on duty.In other news, John Eastman was disbarred over his role in the 2020 election challenges, the Justice Department moved to void multiple Jan. 6 sedition convictions for "the interests of justice," Tulsi Gabbard referred the 2019 Trump impeachment whistleblower to the Department of Justice for review,and the Commission of Fine Arts approved Trump’s proposed 250-foot triumphal arch to be built at Memorial Circle on Columbia Island.

Iran reportedly carried out a record 1,639 executions in 2025, marking a 68% increase from the year prior,and El Salvador approved life sentences for minors as young as 12 convicted of serious crimes such as homicide, terrorism and rape.Meanwhile, the U.S. Congress approved a 10-day extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which authorizes the government to collect communications from noncitizens located abroad,and Tennessee passed the Charlie Kirk Free Speech Campus Act, requiring public colleges and universities to adopt freedom of speech statements "identical or substantially similar" to the University of Chicago's.

Two separate school shootings in Turkey left four people deadand 16 people injured, triggering renewed debate over security, police probed a bomb threat made against the home of Pope Leo XIV’s brother,and a Ghanaian footballer was shot dead during a robbery on his team's bus.Meanwhile, Harvey Weinstein’s third rape trial began jury selection in New York after a retrial last year ended in a split verdict,alleged Irish crime boss Daniel Kinahan was arrested in Dubai under a warrant issued by Irish courts,and controversial American live streamer Johnny Somali was sentenced to six months in a South Korean prison after being convicted of obstruction of business and distributing fabricated sexual video content.

Live Nation-Ticketmaster was found guilty of operating an illegal monopoly, ending a trial that lasted six weeks, a judge dismissed Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, ruling the claims lacked sufficient legal merit,and Starmer met with several tech executives to discuss stronger child online safety measures.Meanwhile, Amazon acquired satellite company Globalstar in an $11.57 billion deal, more than 1,000 Hollywood stars signed an open letter opposing Paramount Skydance's proposed $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery,and the U.K. government approved the $779.8 million sale of The Telegraph to German publisher Axel Springer.This comes as the BBC announced plans to cut up to 2,000 jobs in what would be the broadcaster's largest round of redundancies in nearly 15 years, Snap moved to terminate 1,000 jobs, citing rapid advancements in AI as a key factor in the restructuring,and wool sneaker brand Allbirds announced a pivot to AI, rebranding itself as "NewBird..

The International Monetary Fund cut its global growth forecast from 3.3% to 3.1% and warned of rising recession risks,International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol warned that Europe has around six weeks left of remaining jet fuel amid disruptions from the ongoing Middle East conflict,and the U.S. prepared the first phase of its tariff refund system, allowing importers to more easily claim back duties paid under recent trade policies.Meanwhile, Trump threatened to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell if he doesn't leave his post when his term expires in May,New York Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed a new tax on second homes valued at $5 million or more,and U.S. home sales fell to a nine-month low to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million in March.

Trump nominated Erica Schwartz to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, marking his third nominee to a post that has been vacant since August,Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appeared before Congress in his first Capitol Hill testimony since September,and Trump ordered the Food and Drug Administration to expedite reviews of certain psychedelic drugs for treating mental illnesses such as PTSD and traumatic brain injuries.Meanwhile, a Danish study found no link between prenatal Tylenol use and autism, contradicting a 2025 U.S. review of 46 earlier studies suggesting a possible association, a study estimated that fatty liver disease affects 1.3 billion people worldwide, making it one of the most widespread chronic health conditions globally,and a review found that anti-amyloid Alzheimer’s drugs offer only "trivial" benefits, questioning their clinical value for most patients.

A new study suggested that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation is weakening faster than previously thought, with projections estimating a 42% to 58% slowdown by the end of the century.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met with White House officials for talks described by both sides as "productive,"and Anthropic agreed to give U.K. banks access to Mythos amid concerns from finance ministers about its potential risks.

World Aquatics lifted restrictions on Russia and Belarus, allowing both countries to compete under their national flags again after sanctions imposed following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,18-year-old Australian athlete Gout Gout broke the 200-meter world under-20 record, finishing in 19.67 seconds with a legal tailwind of 1.7 meters per second,and Brazilian Basketball legend Oscar Schmidt died after battling a brain tumor for 15 years.