World News

European nations are preparing a post-war naval coalition to secure the Strait of Hormuz, potentially excluding the United States, according to a The Wall Street Journal exclusive.

Hungary’s election winner, Péter Magyar, said Monday his government could be formed within weeks and re-establish relations with the European Union, including introducing the euro currency in 2031, after he ousted longtime pro-Russia strongman Viktor Orbán in the largest victory since the collapse of communism in 1989.

Iran executed at least 1,639 people in 2025, marking the highest number of executions since 1989, according to a joint report by the Norway-based organization Iran Human Rights and the Paris-based Together Against the Death Penalty.

U.S. President Donald Trump warned that China could face steep economic consequences if it is found to be supplying weapons to Iran, escalating tensions as conflict in the Middle East continues to reverberate globally.

A blockade on Iranian ports is set to go into effect at 10 a.m. eastern Monday as President Donald Trump attempts to turn up the heat on the Iranian regime after the latest round of peace talks were unsuccessful.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has ruled the country continuously since returning to power in 2010, has admitted defeat in Sunday’s parliamentary election and congratulated his rival Péter Magyar.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced Sunday that the United States will begin a sweeping naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, following failed negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has proposed extending the Orthodox Easter ceasefire with Russia, which also saw the exchange of hundreds of prisoners of war.

Hungarians prepared to vote Sunday in what could be the country’s most important election in a generation, potentially ending nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s tenure, after hundreds of thousands watched a marathon “regime change” concert in the heart of Budapest.

U.S. President Donald Trump declared in a Truth Social post that U.S. military forces will remain deployed in and around Iran until a “real agreement” is fully honored, signaling continued pressure on Tehran despite a temporary pause in hostilities.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine during Orthodox Easter, raising cautious hopes for a brief pause in fighting, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the United States of ignoring evidence of Moscow’s military cooperation with Iran.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte tried to prevent his military alliance from falling apart Thursday telling an audience he understood U.S. President Donald J. Trump’s disappointment with some allies who declined to support the American-Israeli war effort against Iran.

Talks at the White House between NATO chief Mark Rutte and U.S. President Donald J. Trump were expected to be overshadowed by concerns about the future role of the United States in the military alliance.

Hungary’s government offered support, mainly through intelligence, to Iran less than two weeks after Israel carried out pager detonations in September 2024 against the Hezbollah group, a report revealed Wednesday.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said all U.S. military objectives in Iran had been achieved, signaling what he described as a successful outcome of the conflict.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance said a fragile ceasefire with Iran could hold if Tehran follows through on commitments to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while warning the situation remains uncertain.

Azerbaijan’s Supreme Court has upheld a nine-year prison sentence against Farid Mehralizade, a journalist with U.S.-backed Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), rejecting his appeal in a case condemned by critics as unjust and seen as a test of press freedom in the former Soviet republic.

President Donald Trump announced a major development in U.S.–Iran relations on Wednesday, stating in a Truth Social post that Iran has undergone what he called a “very productive Regime Change,” opening the door to direct cooperation with the United States.

U.S. President Donald J. Trump said Tuesday he had agreed on a two-week ceasefire with Iran that would include Israel, though the Jewish nation continued intercepting missiles fired by Iran-backed forces.

Iran has stepped up executions of people involved in protests against the country’s Islamic rulers, including a teenage musician who has become a symbol of human suffering in the Islamic Republic, as rights groups warn that thousands of detainees face the risk of death, injury, or execution.