03 World
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British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has formed a “special” new Cabinet committee to deal with the Iran conflict. Its efforts behind closed doors will coordinate the national response to the growing Middle East crisis through a series of talks, meetings, and earnest consultations.
Position papers can consequently be expected to arrive at 10 Downing Street along with further sub-committees a possibility all in lieu of immediate action.
The move came as Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron announced they will be co-hosting a Middle East summit in Paris on Friday to talk about a diplomatic solution to the Strait of Hormuz crisis.
The Independent reports the Westminster group – the Middle East Response Committee – already had its first meeting Tuesday focused on efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the shipping route vital for global oil and gas supplies.
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Back in January, President Trump dropped a one-liner worthy of the usually inimitable Willie Brown, the former mayor of San Francisco, who said of his long-ago romance with then-District Attorney Kamala Harris: “She loved me, I loved me. It was the perfect relationship.” Trump’s version, offered in an interview with NBC News, was about the…
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MANILA, Philippines — More than 17,000 American and Filipino military personnel will participate in one of their largest annual combat exercises in the Philippines that underscore the United States’ staunch commitment to Asia despite its preoccupation with the Middle East, a U.S. military official said Tuesday.
During the April 20-May 8 maneuvers, called the Balikatan, Japanese forces will fire a missile in a ship-sinking exercise in northwestern Philippine waters facing the disputed South China Sea. Japan’s defense chief has been invited to witness the live-fire drill, Philippine military officials said.
The large-scale combat drills between the U.S. and Philippines, which are longtime treaty allies, will expand this year to include other friendly forces, including those from Japan, France and Canada, which have signed visiting forces agreements with Manila, the Philippine military said.
“Our message is our dedication and commitment to our alliance and regional security,” Col. Robert Bunn, a spokesperson for U.S. forces, said in a news briefing when asked what message the U.S. military wanted to send with its large Balikatan deployment despite the war in the Middle East.
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Listing consumer electronics on the internet’s large ecommerce marketplaces is a key step in “democratizing” the products, allowing them to be purchased by anyone with just a click. It has happened to cars (in the United States, you can buy a Hyundai on Amazon), and now it’s happening to humanoid robots.
The Chinese manufacturer Unitree Robotics, among the most active robot-makers in the field, is preparing to bring its most affordable model, the Unitree R1, to international markets through Alibaba Group’s marketplace. According to reports in The South China Morning Post, the rollout will initially cover North America, Japan, Singapore, and Europe. There’s no exact on-sale date for the robots yet, but the Post report says it will show up as soon as this week.
This is not the first time Unitree has used AliExpress as a global storefront. The company’s G1 model, the more powerful and more expensive predecessor to the R1, is already listed at just under $19,000.
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Except for Medicare, Medicaid, and interest on the national debt, defense contractors are getting the biggest share of Ohioans’ federal tax dollars, according to a new analysis.
Medicare and Medicaid provide health care to more than 144 million Americans, and paying interest on the $39 trillion national debt isn’t really optional. However, policymakers choose to spend nearly $900 billion a year on defense, and allow the Pentagon to ship 54% of that off to wealthy defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin — sometimes for weapons systems of questionable military value.
If you look at the federal tax bill of the average American, that person is giving those contractors more than he or she is paying for food and agriculture, school lunches, housing and urban development, disaster relief and national parks and the environment combined, according to the Institute for Policy Studies’ 2026 Tax Day report.
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The man accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s home has been charged with attempting to kill Altman and a security guard at the residence, San Francisco district attorney Brooke Jenkins said Monday.
Authorities allege Daniel Moreno-Gama, 20, threw the incendiary device about 4 a.m. local time Friday, setting an exterior gate at Altman’s home alight before fleeing on foot, police said. Less than an hour later, Moreno-Gama allegedly went to OpenAI’s headquarters a few kilometres away and reportedly threatened to burn down the building.
Moreno-Gama is opposed to artificial intelligence, writing about AI’s purported risk to humanity and “our impending extinction,” according to court documents.
“This was not spontaneous. This was planned, targeted and extremely serious,” said Matt Cobo, FBI San Francisco acting special agent in charge, during a news conference.
Iran war threatens to push 2.5 mn people in India into poverty: UNDP report | Economy & Policy News– www.business-standard.com
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The conflict and military escalation in West Asia threatens to push 2.5 million people in India into poverty and the country is projected to experience some loss in its human development progress, according to estimates and projections by the United Nations.
The United Nations Development Programme, in a report titled ‘Military Escalation In The Middle East: Human Development Impacts Across Asia And The Pacific’ noted that the conflict is “widening human development pressures across Asia and the Pacific through higher fuel, freight, and input costs, the shock is diminishing household purchasing power, raising food insecurity, straining public budgets, and weakening livelihoods.”
The preliminary assessment, issued Tuesday, estimates that globally 8.8 million people are at risk of falling into poverty and the West Asia military escalation could cost Asia-Pacific up to $299 billion.
Indonesia, US sign ‘major’ defence cooperation agreement | Military News– www.aljazeera.com
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Signing of defence partnership follows reports that Washington is seeking overflight access in Indonesia for US military planes.
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has hailed the establishment of a “major defence cooperation partnership” with Indonesia, saying it underscores the “strength and potential” of ties with Jakarta to maintain stability in the Asia Pacific region.
Hegseth hosted Indonesian Minister of Defence Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin at the Pentagon on Monday, where the deal was signed.
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FRANKFURT, Germany – One of the major reasons for the creation of the European Union was to make Europeans wealthier. Along the way, however, something went seriously wrong.
Europeans are becoming poorer compared to Americans, who are becoming richer.
One in five Germans now faces the risk of imminent poverty in what has long been one of the world’s wealthiest nations.
In France, the poverty rate has hit a 30-year high.
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NORTH Korea has spent three days testing missiles as crazed Kim Jong-un unveils his newest cache of cluster-bomb warheads and blackout bombs.
The deranged dictator was trying out a new cluster-bomb warhead last week, North Korean state media reported.
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The United States military issued a warning Monday that it will be enforcing a blockade of Iranian ports on the Gulf of Oman — east of the Strait of Hormuz — as ceasefire negotiations with Iran broke down over the weekend, U.S. Central Command said in a notice to seafarers.
The notice said the blockade would begin at 10 a.m. eastern, following a proclamation from U.S. President Donald Trump. The Gulf of Oman is a strategic body of water in the Arabian Sea, which lies just east of the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has been blocking to most international shipping traffic for weeks.
“The blockade will be enforced impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas, including all Iranian ports on the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman,” the U.S. military notice said.
US stands alone as Iran, China join key UN bodies over objections– www.foxnews.com
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Western democracies, including the UK, France, Canada and Australia, are facing backlash after allowing Iran and other authoritarian regimes to secure seats on influential United Nations (U.N.) bodies, with the United States standing alone in opposition.
The controversy stems from decisions by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), a 54-member body that plays a central role in shaping U.N. policy and staffing key committees.
Critics warn the outcome could allow governments accused of human rights abuses to influence global policy and control which civil society groups are granted access to the United Nations.
Conservatives have suffered a ‘breakdown’ after Orbán loss, says Polish MP who was granted asylum in Hungary– rmx.news
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After the landslide victory of opposition leader Péter Magyar, Marcin Romanowski, a Polish Law and Justice (PiS) MP granted political asylum in Hungary by the Fidesz government, says simply voting for change is not always a good thing. The MP also now faces extradition to Poland to face prosecution.
Cuba’s president says ‘we will defend ourselves’ against U.S. invasion – National– globalnews.ca
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Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said the island “will defend ourselves” against a U.S. invasion in an interview on NBC News’ Meet the Press on Sunday.
Díaz-Canel, 65, said the U.S. has no valid reason to carry out a military attack against the island or to attempt to depose him.
He said an invasion of Cuba would be costly and affect regional security, but should it happen, Cubans would defend themselves — even if it meant losing their lives in the process.
Weapons of Mass Automation: AI can make war more lethal than nuclear weapons. How US, Russia, China, India and others are preparing – WION– news.google.com
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Weapons of Mass Automation: AI can make war more lethal than nuclear weapons. How US, Russia, China, India and others are preparing WION
Magyar’s remarks on energy supplies from Russia cause tensions in Kiev — media – World– tass.com
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MOSCOW, April 14. /TASS/. The stance of Peter Magyar, leader of the Tisza party – victorious in Hungary’s recent elections – regarding oil and gas supplies from Russia is poised to influence Hungary’s relations with Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian media outlet Strana.
The publication suggests that Magyar’s apparent intention to preserve Russian energy imports could be a significant source of tension between the two nations.
Anti-America, Pro-Iran Spanish Prime Minister’s Wife Just Criminally Charged – RedState– redstate.com
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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has been sticking his thumb in the eye of the United States for years, but now he’s got other things to worry about than whether to continue to tear down the Western alliance at the behest of Islamists. According to reports, Sanchez’s wife, Begona Gomez, has been criminally charged for various corruption-related offenses, including influence peddling and embezzlement.
Spain pushes China to assume global leadership role during Iran war– www.washingtonexaminer.com
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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Monday pushed China to embrace a larger role on the world stage as Europe increasingly turns to Beijing amid growing tensions with the United States.
Sanchez’s speech at Beijing’s Tsinghua University follows recent moves from the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and others to tighten ties with China after the Trump administration redefined its relationship with Europe, leading many allies to question Washington’s commitment to long-standing alliances.
On the day before he is set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Sanchez pushed back against the notion that Europe holds little value and called on China to help fill what he described as a new power vacuum left by the U.S.
“Europe may seem small on a map. But its weight is decisive, and its unity is a guarantee of stability and prosperity in the world, a world that cannot be understood without China,” Sanchez said. “We are called upon to understand one another and to cooperate.”
“Europe will also have to redouble its efforts, especially now that the United States has decided to withdraw from many of these fronts,” he added.
New bill in Germany could block people with ‘extremist’ views from buying houses– www.lifesitenews.com
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A draft bill by the German government would introduce a law preventing people with “extremist” views from buying a house.
The draft bill from the Ministry of Construction, led by Verena Hubertz from the Social Democrats (SPD), would give municipalities the right of first refusal if a potential buyer of property has “anti-constitutional aspirations.”
German news outlet NIUS reports that individuals whose views are deemed dangerous by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency) can be prevented from purchasing homes.
According to the draft, the building law change is intended to contribute to “strengthening the focus on the common good” and “preventing social ills.” To this end, the government says it aims to prevent the “spatial impact of organized crime as well as right-wing, left-wing, or religiously motivated extremist activities.”
VIDEO: Mystery Weapon Spotted In Hands Of President Trump’s Secret Service Detail– wltreport.com
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This has users on X talking.
President Trump was spotted over the weekend on video at his Doral Golf Club; however, his Secret Service detail has garnered all the attention.
In a video of Trump meeting with a supporter, one of Trump’s Secret Service agents is spotted holding a futuristic weapon.
Take a look:
Wtf is this thing that Trump’s secret service guy is holding? pic.twitter.com/7kp65x0NfI
— Wu Tang is for the Children (@WUTangKids) April 13, 2026
Canadian man resisting euthanasia receives sacraments from traditional Catholic priest– www.lifesitenews.com
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A disabled man known for speaking out against Canada’s aggressive euthanasia regime recently received sacraments, including Extreme Unction, from a traditional Catholic priest.
Roger Foley, who suffers from an incurable and degenerative brain disease, told LifeSiteNews that he welcomed the opportunity to have a priest visit after a period of health decline despite the fact that he has long been irreligious.
“It was a very wonderful experience,” Foley said regarding the visit. “I felt honored and humbled, especially with the kindness and knowledge of the priest. I would tell him how confused I am and he would tell me more about the Catholic faith. He answered a lot of my questions.”
Foley admitted that it is difficult for him to have faith, “especially now because of all the bad things that have happened to me,” though he accepts Catholic teaching about the sacraments. His condition makes it difficult for him to move, and he can no longer eat or drink, receiving his nourishment from IV fluids. On top of this he has suffered pain, severe fatigue and cognitive decline, as well as cruel behavior from hospital staff.