Several major news outlets, including Reuters, Associated Press (AP), and HuffPost, were on Wednesday blocked from covering President Donald Trump’s first cabinet meeting by the White House. However, it is yet to be known whether the blockade will be permanent or a one-off censorship. This move is part of the administration’s new policy on media coverage, which gives the White House control over which outlets can cover the president in…

….As Hamas returns bodies of four hostages Militant group, Hamas has handed over the bodies of four hostages, and Israel has released more than 600 Palestinian prisoners, as the five-week-old ceasefire appeared to get back on track after a breach that had brought fears of a return to war in Gaza. The bodies of the hostages were transferred to the Red Cross in southern Gaza and driven to the border…

An agency of the United States government, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has said North Korea was behind the theft of $1.5 billion worth of digital assets, described as the largest crypto heist in history. According to reports, the theft took place last week. “(North Korea) was responsible for the theft of approximately $1.5 billion USD in virtual assets from cryptocurrency exchange, Bybit,” the FBI said in a public…

A leading independent journalist and book author from Vietnam has been sentenced to 30 months in jail over Facebook posts critical of the government. Following a trial that lasted only for a few hours, a court in the capital Hanoi convicted 63-year-old Huy Duc of “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the state” through posting 13 articles on Facebook. “These articles have a large number of interactions,…

U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will impose 25 percent tariffs on the European Union (EU) “very soon” and claimed the bloc was “formed in order to screw the United States.” The US president made the remarks while holding his first wide-ranging cabinet meeting at the White House since his inauguration in January. The world’s richest man Elon Musk, who leads the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) but…

Pope Francis’s condition showed “a further, slight improvement”, the Vatican said Wednesday, while continuing to maintain the prognosis for the 88-year-old fighting pneumonia in both lungs was “reserved.” “The clinical conditions of the Holy Father in the last 24 hours have shown a further, slight improvement,” said the Vatican in its nightly bulletin on the health of the pontiff, who has been in hospital since February 14. “Although a slight…

President Donald Trump publicly backed efforts by Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to slash government spending and cut the federal workforce on Wednesday, with the president downplaying potential conflicts between Musk and members of his Cabinet. Trump opened his first Cabinet meeting shortly before noon at the White House, with Secretary of State, Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary, Pete Hegseth seated beside him. For more than…

Thousands of people lined the streets of Israel on Wednesday to pay their respects to Shiri Bibas and her two young sons as their funeral procession made its way to a cemetery in the south of the country. Bibas was 32 and her sons, Ariel and Kfir, were 4 years old and just shy of 9 months old when they were taken hostage by Hamas during the Oct. 7 2023,…

…But Zelenskyy wants security guarantees Ukraine and the U.S. have outlined an agreement in which they would jointly fund Ukraine’s future security and reconstruction using an investment fund powered by the country’s rare earth minerals, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday. However Zelenskyy said the deal would fail if it did not adequately provide for Ukraine’s future security against Russia — and only looked after American interests. “If I see and…

President Donald Trump has suggested the introduction of a “gold card” visa — a potential opportunity for foreign investors to buy their way to American citizenship. The U.S. currently offers a similar opportunity through the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Programme, which was established in 1990 and is administered by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). According to USCIS’s website, the visa is open to investors who “make the necessary investment…

Vice President of the United States J.D. Vance has reacted after President Donald Trump refused to outright endorse him as his successor. Trump speaking with Fox News host, Bret Baier, said he wasn’t yet ready to endorse Vance for a 2028 presidential run of his own. But he added “No, but he’s very capable.” When asked in an interview with the Daily Mail about Trump’s remarks, Vance laughed it off.…

London, UK – Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson could stage a dramatic return to Parliament, according to close ally, Jacob Rees-Mogg. Speaking on GB News, Rees-Mogg suggested that Johnson might contest the Runcorn and Helsby by-election if the seat becomes available. The speculation follows the sentencing of current MP Mike Amesbury, who was handed a 10-week prison sentence after pleading guilty to assaulting a constituent. Despite his conviction, Amesbury—who was…