“AFP journalists in Kabul heard multiple explosions and gunfire on Tuesday, as Afghan and Pakistani troops keep up their border battles. The blasts in the Afghan capital were heard alongside anti-aircraft weapons and gunfire from across the city, and came as the Afghan defence ministry said “the fighting is still ongoing” against Pakistani forces. An AFP journalist in Jalalabad city, between Kabul and the frontier, reported hearing explosions and various weapons being fired. At the nearest border crossing, around 50 kilometres (30 miles) from Jalalabad, residents in Torkham told AFP the days-long fighting was continuing. The neighbours have clashed along the frontier since Thursday, when Afghanistan launched a border offensive in response to Pakistani air strikes.” (03/03/26)
“The Supreme Court on Monday night cleared the way for New York to go forward with the 2026 elections using the state’s existing congressional map. Over the objections of the court’s three Democratic appointees, the justices granted a request from a Republican member of Congress, a group of voters, and state election officials to pause an order by a state trial court that would have required the state to redraw the map to add Black and Latino voters.” (03/03/26)
“The world’s largest acidic geyser is putting on a show again, erupting for the first time in six years after a quiet hiatus, officials at Yellowstone National Park say. The Echinus Geyser — located in the park’s famous Norris Geyser Basin — had been in slumber since 2020, and it’s unknown whether the eruptions will continue into the summer. Researchers say geysers can sometimes become active for a month or two before falling dormant again. ‘Geysers are always turning on and off. That’s Yellowstone being Yellowstone!’, the US Geological Survey wrote on X. A geyser is a spring of water which has been heated geothermally, and which erupts at various rates. It is formed from a tube-like hole that goes down into the Earth’s surface and is filled with water. When the water at the bottom, which is near molten rock called magma, heats in the tube it begins to boil and is forced upwards and erupts. After eruption, the water slowly goes back down into the tube. Then the process starts again.” (03/03/26)
“A federal judge in Washington, D.C., ruled Monday that the Trump administration can’t block members of Congress from making unannounced visits to Immigration and Customs Enforcement [abductee concentration camp] facilities. U.S. District Court Judge Jia Cobb said an order from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that required lawmakers to give a seven-day notice before visiting the facilities violated the law. Under a the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Noem is not allowed to use funds appropriated by Congress to then prevent them from visiting ICE detention facilities. Cobb said the Department of Homeland Security, however, used appropriated funds to craft the seven-day policy announced in January.” (03/02/26)
“Iranian drones hit the US embassy in Riyadh as Tehran continued to launch waves of retaliatory strikes at the Gulf and Israel, while Israeli soldiers began operating in southern Lebanon on the fourth day of an increasingly regional war in the Middle East. The drone attack on the US embassy in Riyadh caused a minor fire, prompting the diplomatic mission to tell Americans to distance themselves from the compound. The attack followed an earlier Iranian drone strike on the US embassy in Kuwait, as Iran continued to target US bases, facilities and personnel in Arab Gulf states. … Meanwhile, US and Israel continued their strikes against Iran, with the US claiming it had destroyed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps command and control facilities.” (03/03/26)
“A federal appeals court on Monday declined to delay implementation of the Supreme Court ruling that invalidated most of President Trump’s tariffs, allowing next steps in processing of tariff refunds to begin swiftly, following the high court’s decision last month. … The Trump administration had said it would issue refunds if the duties targeting nearly every U.S. trading partner around the world were ultimately found unlawful by the Supreme Court. The high court ruled in a 6-3 decision that a federal emergency powers law known as the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, did not give the president the authority to impose tariffs. But on Friday, the Trump administration asked the Federal Circuit to wait 90 days before issuing its mandate ‘to allow the political branches an opportunity to consider options,’ after the Supreme Court’s decision.” (03/02/26)
“At least 169 people were killed after insurgents raided a village in a remote area of South Sudan, a local official said Monday, It’s the latest bout of sporadic violence that has left the country teetering on the verge of full-blown civil war. The victims, including 90 civilians, were attacked on Sunday in Abiemnom county, said James Monyluak, information minister for the administrative area of Ruweng. He said women and children were among the dead, in addition to dozens of combatants. The U.N. Mission in South Sudan, known as UNMISS, said in a statement that 1,000 people sought shelter at its base after the attack.” (03/02/26)
“The Supreme Court on Monday ruled California is likely violating the constitutional rights [sic] of parents who object to policies preventing teachers from disclosing when their child changes their name or pronouns in school. The decision marks a major victory for parental rights [sic] advocates at this early stage of the case — and a blow to the state’s efforts to shield the privacy of LGBTQ students. The justices have yet to definitely resolve the fiercely disputed issue, and the case could ultimately return to the high court. … ‘The parents who assert a free exercise claim have sincere religious beliefs about sex and gender, and they feel a religious obligation to raise their children in accordance with those beliefs. California’s policies violate those beliefs,’ the court wrote in its unsigned opinion.” [editor’s note: Are the teachers also required to serve communion, conduct circumcisions, etc. on demand? – TLK] (03/02/26)
“President Emmanuel Macron on Monday broke several decades of French nuclear taboos — promising to increase the number of warheads and making explicit France’s role in European security. Those are some of the most significant changes in French nuclear doctrine since the end of the Cold War. ‘An increase of our arsenal is indispensable,’ the French president said at the highly secure Ile Longue naval base that houses France’s four nuclear submarines. … The French president outlined enhanced cooperation with European nations, naming Germany, Poland, Greece, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark and Sweden, which would include joint nuclear drills and ultimately, the potential temporary deployment of French nuclear-capable fighters in allied countries.” (03/02/26)
“The Supreme Court denied an opportunity Monday to weigh the Second Amendment rights of those convicted of nonviolent felonies. The opportunity arose through an appeal in Vincent v. Bondi, in which Utah resident Melynda Vincent argued that the prohibition on her possessing a firearm due to her check fraud conviction contradicts recent case law. The 10th Circuit twice ruled against Vincent, holding that neither the Supreme Court’s ruling in NYSRPA v. Bruen nor United States v. Rahimi abrogated the nearly 50-year-old federal statute prohibiting felons from possessing guns. The high court refused to hear the case despite issuing a grant, vacate and remand order requiring the 10th Circuit to reconsider the appeal in light of Rahimi.” (03/02/26)
