“Iran has allowed two French former detainees, Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, to leave the country, French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday. They had been holed up in French diplomatic premises there since their release from prison in November. ‘Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris are free and on route toward French territory, after three and a half years of detention in Iran,’ Macron posted on X. The green light for them to leave Iran, long sought by France, signaled how Iran is differentiating between nations, treating some favorably and others as foes, in the context of the Iran war. Macron has distanced France from the conflict, saying his country wasn’t consulted in advance about the U.S-Israel strikes and didn’t want the war. He thanked Oman for playing a mediation role in the release of Kohler and Paris.” (04/07/26)
“Within a span of three weeks, the world’s main monotheistic religions have marked significant annual observances – Ramadan for Muslims, Easter for Christians, and Passover for Jews. Specific worship practices during these periods of prayer and reflection differ. But they all touch on common themes of forgiveness as well as redemption or liberation – both from severe external dangers and harsh inner sentiments. ‘Forgiveness … forms an important part of what it means to be a Christian (and to be a follower of many other major religions, too),’ Financial Times columnist Jemima Kelly wrote recently. In addition to benefiting individuals, she noted, ‘It can allow nations to heal after decades of conflict [and] bridge the kind of deep divides … we now see in our societies.’ Celebrating Eid, at the end of Ramadan, ‘is all about forgiving people,’ according to Sadaf Farooqi, a writer and Islamic educator based in Karachi, Pakistan.” (04/06/26)
“Everyone remembers the photo of little Liam Ramos, the 5-year-old migrant child pictured in ICE custody wearing a sky blue bunny hat. ICE said that they tried to detain Liam’s father, an illegal [sic] migrant from Ecuador, who ran from them, leaving Liam in their custody. They then tried to give Liam to his mother, but she refused to open the front door, leaving ICE no choice but to detain Liam. Liam and his father were later taken to an ICE detention center, but a judge ordered them released after a few weeks on the grounds that they had a pending asylum case. … Just a month later, the truth that I and many others had suspected came out: The Ramos asylum case is bogus. … You probably didn’t hear about that. The media doesn’t tend to report such things.” (04/07/26)
“Ukrainian forces are operating in western Libya under a covert deal endorsed by the West, and they used the Northern African country’s territory to strike a Russian tanker in the Mediterranean last month, two Libyan officials said Tuesday. The Russian-flagged Arctic Metagaz, carrying 61,000 tons of liquefied natural gas, was badly damaged in a suspected sea drone attack near Maltese waters early in March. It has since drifted off Libya. All 30 crew members were rescued and put on another vessel heading to the Libyan city of Benghazi, the Libyan Maritime Authority said. The tanker is part of Russia’s so-called shadow fleet transporting oil in violation of international sanctions over Moscow’s more than 4-year-old invasion of Ukraine. A recent temporary U.S. waiver on those sanctions is aimed at easing supply shortages amid the Iran war.” (04/07/26)
“On April 1, the Supreme Court began hearing arguments in Trump v. Barbara, the class-action lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s executive order restricting birthright citizenship. Trump insists that this ban is necessary to stop birth tourism. This refers to the practice of traveling to another country to give birth, thereby allowing the child to automatically acquire citizenship. Via TruthSocial, Trump writes: ‘Birthright Citizenship has to do with the babies of slaves, not Chinese Billionaires who have 56 kids, all of whom ‘become’ American Citizens. One of the many Great Scams of our time!’ Solicitor General D. John Sauer has raised similar concerns. He remarks, ‘Media reported as early as 2015 that, based on Chinese media reports, there are 500 — 500 — birth tourism companies in the People’s Republic of China, whose business is to bring people here to give birth and return to that nation.'” (04/07/26)
“A French high-speed train driver was killed on Tuesday and 16 people were injured when his locomotive slammed into a truck carrying military equipment at a railway crossing in northern France, local authorities said. The driver of the truck was detained, and an aggravated manslaughter investigation was opened, but it is too early to determine the exact cause of the crash, Prosecutor Etienne Thieffry told reporters. Jean Castex, the head of the national railway authority SNCF, said the railroad crossing gates were functioning correctly. The train was traveling at 160 kilometers per hour (100 mph) when it hit the truck, the local prefect said. Rescue crews rushed to the scene after the crash in the town of Bully-les-Mines on a train route leading from Dunkirk to Paris, the regional administration said in a statement, adding that two of those wounded were seriously injured and that more than 200 train passengers were evacuated.” (04/07/26)
“Government isn’t evil. People are evil, not institutions or things. An army, a gun, isn’t evil, but they certainly can be, and have been, used by evil people, for evil purposes. And this describes governments down through history as well. I have often said that government is a ‘necessary evil’. That isn’t quite accurate; it is, sadly, ‘necessary.’ If all men were angels, Mr. Madison said, we wouldn’t need government. But, obviously, all men aren’t angels, thus some restraining force is required to curb what evil men do. Governments should be established for that purpose, and it is a legitimate one. The apostle Paul, in Romans 13, describes the reality of our world even today by talking about the rationale for government and what our response to it should be.” (04/07/26)
“Wandering down the unlit corridors of a six-storey building behind the Royal Hill casino, each door opens onto a different world. In one there is a perfect replica of a Vietnamese bank. In another, you’re in an Australian police station. A Chinese police officer’s shirt hangs in one corner. Motivational messages have been painted on the walls. ‘Money Coming From Everywhere,’ read the Chinese characters on one sign. Discarded fake hundred dollar bills are lying all over the floor. This was a massive scam compound, just inside Cambodia in a border town called O Smach. Thousands of people from different countries worked here, under a harsh regime which strictly regimented their lives, defrauding thousands of others across the world of their savings.” (04/07/26)
“The powerful Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah said in a statement on Tuesday that it will release American journalist Shelly Kittleson, who was kidnapped from a Baghdad street corner last week. The group said its decision came ‘in appreciation of the patriotic stances of the outgoing Prime Minister’ Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, without giving more details. It added that ‘this initiative will not be repeated in future.’ Kataib Hezbollah had not previously acknowledged that it was the one responsible for Kittleson’s abduction, although both U.S. and Iraqi officials had pointed fingers at the group. U.S. officials had previously alleged the group was responsible for abducting freelance journalist Shelly Kittleson from a Baghdad street corner on March 31. The Iraqi government has not publicly named the group responsible, and the militia has not claimed the kidnapping.” (04/07/26)
“As an American political writer on the left, it is quite unusual to see one’s advice being followed. During Barack Obama’s presidency, I argued repeatedly that Democrats badly botched the response to the Great Recession. Thanks in part to backroom maneuverings from then-head of the National Economic Council Larry Summers, the stimulus package of 2009 was roughly half as big as it needed to be. As a result, unemployment was still 10 percent on Election Day 2010—a big reason why Democrats lost 63 seats in the House and six in the Senate, relinquishing full control of Congress that never returned for the duration of Obama’s presidency. Fast-forward to 2021, and much to my surprise, ol’ Joe Biden and congressional Democrats did exactly what I and other critics recommended. With the economy still coming out of a very severe recession from the pandemic, Biden met the challenge with a $1.9 trillion stimulus.” (04/07/26)
