World News

The United States is withdrawing all of its roughly 1,000 troops from Syria, ending a decade-long military campaign against the Islamic State, according to a Wall Street Journal exclusive citing American officials.

Satellite imagery reviewed by analysts indicates Iran has advanced fortification work at several sensitive military and nuclear-linked sites, including the Parchin military complex and the Isfahan Nuclear Technology Center, according to a Reuters report. The developments come as Washington seeks a negotiated nuclear agreement with Tehran while warning that military options remain on the table if diplomacy fails.

A military confrontation between the United States and Iran could erupt within days and develop into a sustained, multi-week campaign, according to multiple sources cited Wednesday, even as diplomatic talks continue between Washington and Tehran.

Tensions over oil deliveries to Central and Eastern Europe escalated Tuesday after Croatia cautioned against supplying Russian crude to Hungary and Slovakia amid a widening dispute over halted pipeline flows.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance said Tuesday that the second round of nuclear negotiations with Tehran yielded “some progress,” but cautioned that Iran has yet to acknowledge or work through key American red lines set by President Donald Trump.

The United States has surged more than 50 fighter jets to the Middle East over the past 24 hours, according to open-source flight tracking data and confirmation from a U.S. official, as Washington and Tehran conduct a second round of nuclear negotiations in Geneva, Switzerland.

U.S. Southern Command announced strikes on three suspected drug boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean.

Russia said Tuesday that its air defenses shot down more than 150 Ukrainian drones overnight, as delegations from Kyiv and Moscow gathered in Geneva for U.S.-backed peace talks aimed at ending Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II.

A decision by Elon Musk’s SpaceX to block Russia’s unauthorized use of Starlink may prove to be more than a tactical disruption — it could mark a turning point in the war. Ukrainian commanders and Western intelligence officials told the New York Post that the move has already dealt Moscow a significant operational setback, potentially accelerating conditions that could push the conflict toward its end.

Iran launched live-fire naval exercises in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, signaling heightened military readiness in one of the world’s most strategically vital waterways as nuclear negotiations with the United States resumed in Europe.

The United States and Hungary have concluded 17 agreements covering nuclear energy, oil, and natural gas cooperation as Budapest faces pressure to reduce its reliance on cheap Russian energy.

Christian rights activists have condemned Chinese and Hong Kong authorities after Catholic publisher and democracy advocate Jimmy Lai was sentenced to 20 years in prison under Hong Kong’s sweeping National Security Law.

Western leaders sought to project unity at the 2026 Munich Security Conference despite tensions over U.S. interest in acquiring Greenland, differences on ending the war in Ukraine, and questions surrounding the future of transatlantic cooperation.

The Pentagon is deploying the Navy’s largest and most advanced aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, to the Middle East as the United States intensifies preparations for potential military action against Iran.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said over the weekend that Hungary should fear the European Union more than Russia, pledging to dismantle what he called Brussels’ “oppressive machinery” ahead of heated parliamentary elections in April.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has pledged to deepen cooperation with a group of four Central and Eastern European nations, including Hungary and Slovakia, despite concerns over their leaders’ perceived authoritarian style and refusal to provide military aid to war-torn Ukraine.

Bulgarian President Iliana Yotova has appointed a senior central bank official as interim prime minister in a bid to steady the European Union nation after years of chronic political instability.

Deutsche Bank, Germany’s largest bank, continued providing banking services to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein years after his 2008 conviction and months before his 2019 arrest, according to U.S. Justice Department documents released Thursday.

Hungary’s main opposition leader, 44-year-old Péter Magyar, said Thursday that he has become the target of what he described as a “Russian-style smear campaign” after he was secretly filmed during a consensual sexual encounter with a former girlfriend in 2024.

The Trump administration has finalized a sweeping reciprocal trade agreement with Taiwan, confirming a 15 percent U.S. tariff rate on Taiwanese imports while securing broad new market access and purchase commitments for American goods.