“Georgia’s Patriarch Ilia II, the longtime head of the Georgian Orthodox Church and one of the country’s most influential figures, has died. He was 93. Ilia II died late Tuesday after being hospitalized in critical condition with internal bleeding. … Ilia II led the church for nearly five decades. He assumed the leadership role in 1977, when Georgia was part of the Soviet Union and religious practices were restricted, and remained a dominant spiritual and public figure after Georgia regained independence.” (03/18/26)
“BP announced Tuesday night that it will initiate a lockout for more than 800 United Steelworkers Local 7-1 employees as the two parties still haven’t come to a contract agreement. In a Tuesday update, the company said it provided notice to cancel the 24-hour rolling contract extension, provided lockout notice, and sought commitment from the union to help facilitate a safe handover of operations. The lockout becomes effective at midnight Thursday. … BP has trained replacement workers — consisting of current and former employees — to operate the refinery safely and in compliance with regulatory requirements, and the company doesn’t expect disruptions to its operations or production.” (03/18/26)
“A Brazilian police operation in Rio de Janeiro favelas on Wednesday killed seven presumed drug traffickers, including a gang chief, as well as a local resident caught in the crossfire, law enforcement officials said. Claúdio Augusto dos Santos, a drug-trafficking boss and member of the notorious Red Command criminal organization, was among those killed in the operation in central Rio, Secretary of the Military Police Col. Marcelo de Menezes said in a press conference. In retaliation, police said ‘criminals’ set fire to a bus and blocked roads in Rio’s central zone, leading to four arrests. Márcio Sousa, the driver of the bus set alight, reported that the attackers boarded the vehicle with two bottles of gasoline.” (03/18/26)
“Illinois lieutenant governor Juliana Stratton won the Democratic primary race to succeed Illinois’[s] US senator Dick Durbin, beating out US representative Raja Krishnamoorthi. With nearly 90% of the vote tallied, Stratton was leading Krishnamoorthi by more than six percentage points on Tuesday night, according to the Associated Press. … Stratton, a progressive with the support of governor JB Pritzker, had been behind Krishnamoorthi in polling until recent weeks, when an infusion of cash from the governor and a hardening sentiment on immigration pushed aside the relatively moderate congressman. Stratton also faced competition on her left from congresswoman Robin Kelly, which threatened to split the progressive vote. Kelly drew less than 20% of the vote, according to the Associated Press. Durbin, 81, is retiring after service five terms in the Senate.” (03/18/26)
“The U.S. dropped several 5,000-pound ‘deep penetrator’ bombs on the Iranian coast looking out onto the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said, as the threat of Iranian attacks on commercial vessels keeps the vital waterway effectively shut for tankers carrying oil and gas. The U.S. military said the munitions targeted protected Iranian sites housing anti-ship cruise missiles posing a danger to international shipping in the strait. … Iran has vowed a ‘decisive’ response to the killing of Tehran’s top security official, Ali Larijani, in an Israeli strike on Tuesday, and targeted Israel with new missile strikes. … Israel launched fresh attacks on the Lebanese capital Beirut, and ordered parts of southern Lebanon to evacuate ahead of operations against the Iran-backed political and militant group, Hezbollah.” (03/18/26)
“The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued broad guidance towards the crypto industry on Tuesday, with SEC Chair Paul Atkins declaring that ‘most crypto assets’ would not be considered securities. The guidance provides distinctions between which types of assets do not meet the definition of securities and what would make an asset meet that definition as an investment contract. It also notes that protocol mining (as on Bitcoin) and staking, along with crypto airdrops — or tokens sent to a protocol’s users and contributors — do not meet that definition. … The taxonomy included in the SEC’s implementation divides digital assets into five groups: digital commodities, digital collectibles, digital tools, stablecoins, and digital securities. Digital securities are the only type of digital asset that the SEC says fall squarely within its regulatory remit, according to a fact sheet.” (03/17/26)
“Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine will face a deficit of missiles it is using to fight Russia due to the war in the Middle East. In an exclusive interview with the BBC, the Ukrainian president said Russia’s Vladimir Putin wanted a ‘long war’ between the US, Israel and Iran because it would weaken Kyiv, with US resources being directed elsewhere. … ‘For Putin, a long war in Iran is a plus,’ he said. ‘In addition to energy prices, it means the depletion of US reserves, and the depletion of air defence manufacturers. So we [Ukraine] have a depletion of resources.'” (03/18/26)
“The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Tuesday formally subpoenaed Attorney General Pam Bondi to answer questions about the Epstein files. The committee voted earlier this month to subpoena Bondi, following a motion from Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), who said it was unclear whether the Justice Department had turned over all records related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that were required under a law mandating their release. … The Justice Department has faced numerous accusations that it failed to meet the letter of the law in sharing the files related to Epstein, including various deadlines.” (03/17/26)
“The Trump Administration’s global economic policy, particularly its penchant for using tariffs as a bargaining chip, has had massive ramifications on the highly-globalized automotive industry. According to an analysis of the automaker financial reports by Automotive News, the Trump tariff plan has already cost automakers some $35.4 billion since the start of 2025. The news come via analysis of the latest data from car companies, which include data for the full-year costs of 2025 as well as projections for 2026 through mid-March where applicable. … that financial strain also comes at the same time as Trump’s massive rework of emissions and climate regulations, which saw automakers walk back their EV initiatives. AN reports those actions have also cost automakers around $70 billion thus far.” (03/17/26)
“Rachel Reeves has announced that the Treasury will draw up plans to give regional leaders a share of national tax revenues as part of a radical plan to rebalance the economy of England. Setting out her intention of creating ‘investment-led growth,’ the chancellor promised ‘a genuine break with the past’ that would shift spending power away from Westminster. … Reeves set out plans to reform regulation to ‘shift the balance of power towards workers, consumers, bill-payers and renters.’ Her lecture was titled The Active and Strategic State, and restated the approach she calls ‘securonomics.'” (03/17/26)
