“Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said neighbouring countries will no longer be targeted unless an attack originates from there, as the war launched by the United States and Israel, which triggered sustained retaliation from Tehran across the Gulf and beyond, enters its second week. … Pezeshkian said the Iranian interim leadership council approved the motion to stop attacks on neighbouring nations. In remarks carried by Iranian media, the president also apologised to neighbouring countries for the strikes that took place in recent days.” (03/07/26)
“The Pentagon and the Federal Aviation Administration agreed to conduct anti-drone laser tests in New Mexico after the military’s deployment of the lasers led the FAA to suddenly close airspace in Texas twice in the last month. The newly announced testing was being carried out to ‘specifically address FAA safety concerns’, the military said Friday in a statement. It was to take place Saturday and Sunday at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. Lawmakers were concerned about an apparent lack of coordination after the Pentagon allowed U.S. Customs and Border Protection to use an anti-drone laser in early February without notifying the FAA. The federal agency that ensures safety in the skies decided to close the airspace over El Paso for a few hours, stranding many travelers. The Trump administration said it was working to halt an incursion by Mexican cartel drones, which are not uncommon along the southern border.” (03/07/26)
“A man from Colorado unlawfully entered an occupied home in Provo Thursday evening before being confronted and shot by a resident inside the home. According to the Utah County Sheriff’s Office, around 8 p.m. on Tuesday, an adult male unlawfully entered a home in Provo Canyon that was occupied. Upon arrival, a resident verbally confronted the man. Despite being told to leave, he continued into the home and began damaging property. Because of the disturbance, a second resident locked themselves in a bedroom. The first resident then armed themselves with a handgun and again verbally confronted the man. The suspect attacked the resident, who then fired multiple shots at him. After being hit, the man left the home. As he was leaving, he stole a truck from outside and fled. Deputies en route to the scene observed the suspect and stopped him, taking him into custody.” (03/06/26)
“The Israeli military said it pounded Hezbollah targets in the densely populated southern suburbs of Beirut early Friday while also pummeling Tehran, after the U.S. military said its campaign was sharply degrading Iran’s ability to retaliate. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps also launched a wave of drones and missiles at targets in Tel Aviv on Friday, according to a statement from the force reported by IRNA, the country’s state news agency. Air-raid sirens went off in the city, and the Israeli military said that it had detected missile launches from Iran.” (03/06/26)
“Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is leaving the department and he will nominate Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) as her replacement, President Trump said Thursday. … Trump said Noem will be ‘moving to be Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, our new Security Initiative in the Western Hemisphere we are announcing on Saturday in Doral, Florida.’ He also said Mullin will start on March 31, calling him a ‘A MAGA Warrior’ who ‘truly gets along well with people, and knows the Wisdom and Courage required to Advance our America First Agenda.’ … Noem drew bipartisan fury after accusing Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti and mother Renee Nicole Good of being domestic terrorists after both were [murdered] by federal agents in January. … Half of Americans supported abolishing ICE in an early March YouGov poll, a sign of how much support has eroded for one of Trump’s signature political strengths on Noem’s watch.” (03/05/26)
“A power outage has struck most of Cuba, including the capital Havana, the state electric utility said, as the administration of United States President Donald Trump continues its attempts to cripple the Caribbean nation by curtailing vital oil shipments. News of the widespread power outage on Wednesday emerged as the country’s diplomatic relations with Latin American neighbour Ecuador plummeted after the expulsion of Havana’s top envoy and diplomatic staff from the Ecuadorian capital Quito was announced. Cuban state media outlet Cubadebate said the blackout was caused by a fault at the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant, located about 100km (62 miles) east of Havana, which cut electricity from Pinar del Rio in the far west of the country to the eastern Las Tunas province.” (03/05/26)
“The Justice Department posted a trio of FBI interviews with a woman who alleged President Donald Trump sexually assaulted her when she was a young teenager after she was introduced to him by Jeffrey Epstein. The woman’s central allegation, according to FBI summaries of her interviews with investigators, known as FBI 302s, is that Trump hit her after she bit his penis when he attempted to force her to perform oral sex. The three files come as Democrats are investigating whether the department purposefully withheld materials that included sexual assault allegations against Trump.” (03/05/26)
“Some two dozen states challenged President Donald Trump’s new global tariffs on Thursday, filing a lawsuit over import taxes he imposed after a stinging loss at the Supreme Court. The Democratic attorneys general and governors in the lawsuit argue that Trump is overstepping his power with planned 15% tariffs on much of the world. Trump has said the tariffs are essential to reduce America’s longstanding trade deficits. He imposed duties under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 after the Supreme Court struck down tariffs he imposed last year under an emergency powers law. … The new suit argues that Trump can’t pivot to Section 122 because it was intended to be used only in specific, limited circumstances — not for sweeping import taxes. It also contends the tariffs will drive up costs for states, businesses and consumers.” (03/05/26)
“A French police officer initially charged with murder in the deadly shooting of a teenager in 2023 will instead stand trial for the lesser charge of voluntary assault leading to death, the Versailles appeals court said on Thursday. Police officer Florian M. had fired at Nahel Merzouk after the latter had failed to comply with an order to stop his car. The seventeen year old had later died from his wounds, sparking violent protests across the country. In 2025, the Nanterre prosecutor’s office said one of two officers under investigation, identified as Florian M., would face the Assize Court of Hauts-de-Seine on charges of murder. Florian M. appealed, and the court lowered the charges on Thursday. … Under French law, voluntary assault leading to death by a person holding state authority carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, compared with up to 30 years for murder.” (03/05/26)
“A newly formed anti-corruption group has filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi over the deal that sold TikTok’s U.S. operation to a group of administration-backed investors. The suit, filed by the Public Integrity Project, a law firm that seeks to raise the ‘reputational cost of corruption in America,’ argues the deal violates a law intended to prevent the spread of Chinese government propaganda and has enriched Trump’s allies. … Trump signed an executive order in September paving the way for the deal, and the White House and China finalized a deal to give control of TikTok’s U.S. operations to a group of investors who were backed by Trump earlier this year. The deal included investors ‘Oracle, MGX, and affiliates of Susquehanna International Group, LLP and General Atlantic, among other companies,’ which the lawsuit said ‘have close ties to the President, and have at times personally enriched him.'” (03/05/26)
