“Israel’s High Court of Justice is discussing petitions seeking to compel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to remove Itamar Ben-Gvir from his position as national security minister, citing alleged interference in police work and harm to democratic norms. Four groups of citizens filed the petitions against Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir and the government. Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara supports the petitioners, who argue that the minister’s removal is required due to what they describe as systematic, ongoing violations of police independence and the transformation of the police from a law-enforcement body into a political instrument.” (04/15/26)
“Chinese President Xi Jinping brought up the significance of the friendship treaty between Beijing and Moscow on Wednesday in a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Xi described relations with Russia as particularly ‘precious,’ calling for deeper cooperation and mutual support. He said both countries should strengthen coordination and defend shared interests, Chinese state media reported. The Russian foreign minister offered China Russia’s help in boosting energy supplies to offset disruptions caused by the Iran war, including constraints on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.” (04/15/26)
“Peruvian right-wing presidential hopeful Rafael Lopez Aliaga gathered hundreds of supporters in Lima on Tuesday and gave authorities 24 hours to annul the first round of the country’s election over allegations of fraud. Lopez Aliaga, a fan of US President Donald Trump, is locked in a tight three-way race with a leftist candidate and a social democrat for second place in Sunday’s vote. The election runner-up wins a ticket to June’s presidential run-off against conservative frontrunner Keiko Fujimori. ‘I am giving them 24 hours to declare this electoral fraud null and void,’ said Lopez Aliaga, surrounded by a crowd of several hundred supporters. ‘If it is not declared null and void tomorrow, I will call for a nationwide protest.’ … Aliaga saw his lead over leftist ex-minister Roberto Sanchez and social democratic candidate Jorge Nieto shrink as the vote count continued.” (04/15/26)
“The European Union has unveiled an app to confirm users’ age online, setting the standard for verification technology as more countries consider laws banning young teenagers from social media. … The software was originally pitched as a way to prevent children from accessing obscene or harmful content online and comes as many EU members are debating restricting social media for minors. EU member states France and Greece have announced plans to pass measures banning younger teens from social media, pointing to studies on the sites’ addictiveness and harmful effects on minors.” (04/15/26)
“A grand jury indicted a Florida doctor on a manslaughter charge for allegedly removing a patient’s liver instead of his spleen during a 2024 surgery. The prosecutor for the First Judicial Circuit on Monday announced the charge of second-degree manslaughter against Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky. Prosecutors said that during an Aug. 21, 2024, surgery, which was scheduled to be a laparoscopic splenectomy, Shaknovsky removed the victim’s liver instead of his spleen. That resulted in ‘catastrophic blood loss and the patient’s death on the operating table,’ law enforcement officials wrote in a press release. The patient was a 70-year-old man from Muscle Shoals, Alabama. … Florida suspended Shaknovsky’s medical license after the surgery. Records show he voluntarily surrendered his medical license in Alabama after regulators moved to revoke his license.” (04/15/26)
“South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Roelf Meyer, who served in the last government of the apartheid era, as his new ambassador to the US, his office has said. The country has not had a top envoy in the US since Ebrahim Rasool was expelled last year after he accused President Donald Trump of trying to ‘project white victimhood as a dog whistle.’ This worsened already strained relations between the nations, which took a downward spiral after Trump’s return to office last year. … Meyer, 78, played a key role as one of the chief mediators, alongside Ramaphosa, during the talks to end the racist system of white-minority rule known as apartheid in South Africa in the 1990s.” (04/15/26)
“House GOP leaders postponed a Wednesday procedural vote on an extension of a key federal spy powers program as they scramble to land a deal with hard-liners around changes — acknowledging the truly ‘clean’ extension that President Donald Trump is demanding is currently DOA in the chamber. There are ongoing discussions around modifying the clean, 18-month extension of the surveillance authority known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, that Trump is ordering. GOP leaders acknowledged in private conversations Tuesday night and publicly Wednesday morning that at least some tweaks are necessary to quell a GOP rebellion that could lead to Section 702’s expiration April 20. … Democrats aren’t expected to help Republicans overcome the procedural rule, even though some of them support a reauthorization without policy changes at this time.” (04/15/26)
“Australia’s wealthiest person Gina Rinehart must part with some of her riches, a court has ruled in a high-profile dispute over her mining empire. Worth an estimated A$38bn (£20bn; $27bn), Rinehart inherited the iron ore ventures of her father in 1992, before going on to develop mines in the mineral-rich Pilbara region of Western Australia (WA). Two of her children and the heirs of her late father’s business partners argued they were entitled to a significant share of royalties and mining rights. On Wednesday, more than 13 years after the legal battle began, a Supreme Court judge ruled that Rinehart must pay past and future royalties to her rival heirs but that the mining rights remain hers. The legal battle centres around Hope Downs, one of Australia’s largest and most lucrative iron ore projects.” (04/15/26)
“Federal prosecutors made an unannounced visit this week to a construction site at Federal Reserve headquarters that is the focus of an investigation into a $2.5 billion renovation project, according to two people familiar with the visit. Two prosecutors and an investigator from U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office were turned away on Tuesday by a building contractor and referred to Fed attorneys, one of the people said. The two people familiar with the visit spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to publicly discuss an ongoing investigation. The visit indicates that the Trump administration is not backing down in its investigation of the Fed and its chair, Jerome Powell, even though the probe has delayed the confirmation of a new chair nominated by President Donald Trump.” (04/15/26)
“Three drivers in San Jose, California, filed a class action suit against the city and police department over the deployment of nearly 500 cameras operated by Flock Safety, a controversial surveillance tech company that uses AI and dedicated cameras to catalogue vehicles’ movements. Organized by the Institute for Justice, a libertarian nonprofit law firm, the suit argues that the city’s use of the technology constitutes an unreasonable law enforcement search, in violation of the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution. … Unlike other ALPR companies, Flock offers its customers the chance to share access locally, statewide or across the country. Its databases can be accessed without warrants by officials at participating law enforcement departments. San Jose shares its Flock data with hundreds of other law enforcement agencies in California, but not nationwide.” (04/15/26)
