“Los Angeles County saw the largest decline of any county in the United States in 2025, according to new census data published on March 26. Nearly 54,000 people moved out of L.A. County between July 1, 2024 and July 1, 2025, U.S. Census data shows. The decline is part of an ongoing trend. In 2020 L.A. County was estimated to have more than 10 million residents. As of 2025, the county was thought to have just under 9.7 million residents. It’s unclear where the fleeing Angelinos are moving. However, the neighboring counties of Riverside and San Bernardino saw a combined increase of 21,131 residents between 2024 and 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The greater Las Vegas area also saw a population boost of more than 21,000 people last year.” (03/30/26)
“An attack on a gold mine in South Sudan, one of the world’s poorest and most volatile countries, killed at least 73 people and wounded 25, the vice president said. The assault at the weekend targeted the mining area of Khor Kaltan, around 70 kilometres (45 miles) by road southwest of the capital Juba. … Since gaining independence from Sudan in 2011, the world’s youngest country has suffered a series of deadly conflicts. It has seen an uptick in violence between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and fighters linked to First Vice President Riek Machar, mostly in the central-eastern Jonglei State. … A spokesman for Machar, who has been confined to house arrest for a year, denied that his forces were behind the attack and pointed the finger at the South Sudanese army.” (03/30/26)https://www.newarab.com/news/gold-mine-attack-south-sudan-kills-least-73-people
“French authorities are investigating a suspected link to Iran after thwarting a bomb attack outside a Bank of America building in Paris, the interior minister said Monday. Five people are in custody. Authorities suspect a link due to similarities with other recent attempted attacks in Europe for which a pro-Iran group claimed responsibility, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said. On Saturday morning, Paris police officers spotted two suspects carrying a shopping bag near the Bank of America office in the 8th arrondissement of the French capital. The national anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office is looking into alleged terrorism-related offenses. The ‘modus operandi is in every respect similar to actions that have been carried out in the Netherlands and in Belgium’, Nuñez said on French radio RTL. In those cases, there were claims by a pro-Iranian group that ‘linked them to the conflict’ in the Middle-East.” (03/30/26)
“Kosovo on Monday approved sending troops to Gaza for an international security force as part of a U.S.-backed initiative after last year’s ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Several nations including Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan and Albania have committed troops to the International Stabilization Force to keep peace and back a transitional administration in Gaza under U.S. President Donald Trump’s ‘Board of Peace.’ Kosovo’s government said in a televised ministerial meeting on Monday the defence ministry had decided to send a force to Gaza after receiving a U.S. invitation in December.” (03/30/26)
“Paintings by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse worth millions of euros were stolen in a heist on a museum near the Italian city of Parma, police say. Four masked men entered the Magnani Rocca Foundation villa on 22 March, police said, making off with Les Poissons by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Still Life with Cherries by Paul Cézanne and Odalisque on the Terrace by Henri Matisse. The gang was in and out in three minutes, Italian media outlets have reported, and was only interrupted by the museum’s alarm system, preventing them from stealing more. … The thieves involved in the robbery forced their way through the main door to the Villa dei Capolavori, nestled in the Parma countryside, and nabbed the paintings from the French Room on the building’s first floor, Italian media outlets have reported.” (03/30/26)
“White House ‘border czar’ Tom Homan said Sunday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents could remain at U.S. airports to assist security operations even though Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials are set to receive their paychecks. Homan, in news appearances Sunday, said that ICE’s presence at American airports hinges on how many TSA agents report back to work. More than 500 TSA workers have quit since a partial government shutdown in February over funding for the TSA’s parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security. Thousands of TSA employees, who as essential workers are expected to work without pay during the shutdown, called out sick, with many taking on other jobs to make ends meet, resulting in travelers trapped in long lines at airport security checkpoints.” (03/30/26)
“The president of the Central African Republic, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, was sworn in for a third term on Monday three months after a disputed general election. Touadéra will be serving a new seven-year term. He was declared the winner of the vote in December, which was boycotted by the coalition opposition party following a 2023 constitutional referendum that removed term limits and increased the presidential term from five to seven years. ‘We aspire to build a sovereign economy and ensure transparent management of our natural resources,’ Touadéra said at the swearing-in ceremony in Bangui, attended by the presidents of Congo-Brazzaville and Comoros. Opposition parties and civil society rejected the results of the election, which the Constitutional Council said that Touadéra won with 77.9% of the vote. ‘You have to be a fool to believe that,’ said Frédéric Godoba, a civil society activist.” (03/30/26)
“The Kremlin on Monday welcomed the arrival of a Russian-flagged oil tanker to Cuba, saying energy supplies to the fuel-starved island had been discussed with the U.S. ahead of its delivery. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow considered it its duty to help Cuba, according to Russian state news outlet RIA Novosti. He added that Havana needed petroleum products amid a de facto U.S. oil blockade. A Russian oil tanker carrying a humanitarian shipment of 100,000 tons of crude oil reportedly arrived in Cuba earlier in the day.” (03/30/26)
“An American E-3 Sentry was destroyed during Iran’s attack on the Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia, according to US officials and new photos. Viral images circulated online and verified by the AFP show the E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System Aircraft (AWACS) ripped in two following Friday’s missile and drone assault. The destruction of the $270 million aircraft is a significant blow to America’s ability to get a real-time picture of battle and assess incoming attacks in the Middle East, retired Air Force Col. John Venable told The Wall Street Journal. … Twelve US service members were also reportedly injured after an Iranian missile and multiple drones hit the air base. … Multiple US refueling aircraft were also damaged in the attack.” (03/29/26)
“Protesters filled the streets Saturday at more than 3,300 rallies across all 50 states for No Kings, a movement that bills itself as nonviolent opposition to what organizers view as authoritarian rulers in the White House and beyond. … While real-time turnout is tough to measure, the coalition of left-leaning groups steering No Kings expected this weekend’s headcount to break records. The last eruption of nationwide gatherings in October drew approximately 7 million people, according to their tally.” (03/28/26)
