World News

Ukrainian officials say at least three people were killed in overnight Russian drone and bomb attacks in eastern Ukraine as fighting intensifies. Elsewhere, the top aide of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was attacked outside his home in Lithuania amid growing fears of Russian operations in Europe. The reported Russian attacks come a day after Moscow acknowledged that Ukraine-backed paramilitary groups had entered Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin suffered several defeats Tuesday with Kyiv-backed paramilitary groups entering Russia while a Russian military transport plane crashed, killing several people.

China, Iran, and Russia have begun a massive joint naval exercise in the Gulf of Oman, adding to Western concerns about heightened military tensions in the region.

European authorities have disrupted several terrorism plots, some involving suspects masquerading as refugees, raising concerns about the number of increasing threats from extremists, some of which are motivated by Israel’s war against Hamas, according to the Wall Street Journal.

A new report by United Nations investigators reveals that Iran’s rogue Islamic regime has murdered, tortured, and raped women, men and children connected to the nationwide mass protests triggered by the 2022 death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman who had been arrested for wearing her hijab incorrectly, the New York Times reports. The UN Human Rights Council is set to review the report this week.

The Dutch leader of the anti-Islam Party for Freedom (PVV) said Monday that he met Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, a day after pro-Palestine protesters disturbed the opening of the National Holocaust Museum in Amsterdam.

Ukraine and allies have criticized Pope Francis for saying that Kyiv should have the “courage” to negotiate an end to the war with Russia amid reports of more deaths and destruction.

Portugal faced a political earthquake Monday after the leader of its center-right Democratic Alliance, Luis Montenegro, claimed victory and the far right surged in early parliamentary elections that could end nearly a decade of Socialist rule.

Dutch King Willem-Alexander has defied calls from more than 200 mosques to stay away from the opening of a Holocaust museum in Amsterdam alongside Israel’s president on Sunday, despite mounting anti-Israel protests and related security concerns.

On Sunday, the U.S. military announced that it carried out an operation in Haiti to evacuate select staff from the country due to rising violence while also deploying extra forces to enhance the security around the U.S. Embassy in the capital city of Port-au-Prince.

There was uncertainty Sunday about American forces believed to be in Yemen after the country’s Houthi rebels targeted U.S. vessels in the Red Sea, prompting an international response.

Dutch riot police clashed with protesters opposing Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s presence at the opening ceremony of the National Holocaust Museum in Amsterdam, which the Netherlands’ King Willem-Alexander inaugurated.

The European Central Bank (ECB) kept interest rates at the highest level in its two-and-a-half-decade history despite policymakers claiming progress in their battle against high inflation and other economic headwinds.

Hungary’s controversial Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was to meet former U.S. President Donald J. Trump, who he views as a close ally in his battle against Western criticism over his perceived authoritarian style.

Sweden became the 32nd member of NATO on Thursday in a historic move that will see the military alliance increase its presence in the Nordic territory near Russia as a new Cold War re-emerges.

As China struggles to manage an economic downturn that includes slow growth and high youth unemployment, the ruling Chinese Communist Party announced Tuesday that it is increasing its defense budget by 7.2 percent, the Associated Press reports. 

Recently, the head of the U.S. Strategic Command reported to Congress that China is creating a new class of mobile intercontinental ballistic missiles, signifying a substantial expansion of its nuclear weapon arsenal, the Washington Times reported.

The United States demanded Wednesday that Iran is diluting all of its enriched uranium to up to “60 percent purity” after warnings from United Nations experts that the Islamic Republic could enrich towards having nuclear weapons.

A new report on Iran’s use of the death penalty shows that the Islamic regime in Tehran executed a “staggering” 834 people last year, a 43% increase from 2022. Published on Mar. 5, the report was jointly compiled by the Iran Human Rights group (IHRNGO) and the France-based Together Against the Death Penalty organization (ECPM).

French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday he “fully stood behind” his remarks about sending Western ground troops to war-ravaged Ukraine and urged allies not to be “cowards.”