“Hundreds of anti-war activists demonstrated in Tel Aviv and dozens in other cities on Saturday, after an interim order by the High Court of Justice ordered police to allow protests on a larger scale than permitted under the IDF Home Front’s regulations, despite the military’s objection that it would not be safe amid the ongoing missile threats from Iran, Hezbollah and the Houthis. Just before 9 p.m., however, police said the main demonstration at Tel Aviv’s Habima Square had exceeded the court’s 600-protester limit, declared the event unlawful, and violently dispersed the crowd, making 17 arrests. … Many of the demonstrators in Tel Aviv’s Habima Square had waved signs demanding an end to the ongoing war with Iran, while others decried a newly passed law enshrining the death penalty for Palestinian terrorists.” (04/05/26)
“The screenwriters[‘] union and Hollywood studios reached a surprise four-year tentative agreement after roughly three weeks of negotiation. The Writers Guild of America West said on X that its negotiating committee unanimously approved a tentative agreement with The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents studios. The alliance confirmed the deal in a separate statement on its website Saturday. … The contract agreement, a year longer than a typical three-year deal, must be approved by the guild’s board and members before it is ratified.” (04/05/26)
“Gladys Khoza had missed being able to see her family. Not because they couldn’t visit, but because the 84-year-old had vision problems. Now that has changed. Khoza is one of 133 people whose sight was restored during a ‘marathon’ of free cataract surgeries conducted by doctors in South Africa at two hospitals over two weekends last month. ‘Wow!’ a delighted Khoza whispered as a nurse peeled back a bandage a day after her operation, and the world came back into view. ‘Can you see me?’ the nurse asked. ‘Very well,’ Khoza replied, a big grin on her face. Patients in South Africa’s public health service can be on waiting lists for years for the simple 15-20-minute cataract operation. Officials said some of those who were selected from hospital waiting lists for the surgeries had been waiting since 2019 to see properly again.” (04/04/26)
“A small blast outside a pro-Israel Christian center in a central city in the Netherlands is under investigation. The explosion on Friday night caused limited damage at the Israel Centre, which is run by Christians for Israel, a non-profit in the city of Nijkerk, police said. No one was injured. Police appealed for witnesses and said nobody has been arrested. … The incident comes after a string of similar nighttime attacks in Belgium, Britain and the Netherlands that have heightened concerns over antisemitism in the wake of the war in the Middle East.” (04/04/26)
“US President Donald Trump is seeking $152m (£115m) to reopen the infamous Alcatraz prison as part of his proposed budget for the 2027 fiscal year. Located near San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, the site, also known as The Rock, was once regarded as one of America’s most notorious prisons, but has served as a tourist attraction in recent years. The budget request is seeking money ‘to rebuild Alcatraz as a state-of-the-art secure prison facility’, with funds covering the first year of costs. The plan has been met with scepticism by a number of politicians in California, with questions raised about the final cost of the project and the challenges of running Alcatraz as an active prison. The maximum security facility was closed in 1963. As a tourist site, it is currently run by the National Park Service.'” (04/04/26)
“Now more than halfway to the moon, the Artemis II astronauts prepared for their historic lunar fly-around to push deeper into space than even the Apollo astronauts. On the downside, their toilet is on the blink again. The three Americans and one Canadian are set to reach their destination Monday, photographing the mysterious lunar far side as they zoom around. It is the first moon-bound crew in more than 53 years, picking up where NASA’s Apollo program left off. ‘The Earth is quite small, and the moon is definitely getting bigger,’ pilot Victor Glover reported. Until the Orion capsule’s bathroom is fixed, Mission Control has instructed the astronauts to break out more of the backup urine collection bags. The so-called lunar loo malfunctioned following Wednesday’s liftoff and has been hit-and-miss ever since. A version of the Artemis II toilet was tested on the International Space Station several years ago.” (04/04/26)
“A federal judge blocked President Donald Trump’s admissions data collection for public universities in 17 states, delivering a major blow to his crackdown on the use of race in college admissions. The administration significantly expanded the scope of admissions information colleges must submit to the federal government after Trump issued an August memo directing the Education Department to do so. The move is a key part of a Trump administration effort to probe whether schools are discriminating against applicants based on race. But a group of Democratic attorneys general from 17 states sued in early March to block the data collection.” (04/04/26)
“German males aged between 17 and 45 may need to seek approval for lengthy stays abroad, under changes introduced as part of a new law which introduced voluntary military service. The Military Service Modernisation Act, which came into force on 1 January, aims to boost defences following threats from Russia in the aftermath of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In a statement sent to the BBC, a defence ministry spokesman confirmed that males aged 17 and older were required to obtain prior approval for stays abroad lasting longer than three months. Under the current law, travel approvals must generally be granted and it remains unclear how the rule would be enforced if breached.” (04/04/26)
“US federal agents have arrested the niece and grandniece of the late Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani after the Trump administration’s top diplomat, Marco Rubio, revoked their lawful permanent resident status, officials said on Saturday. ‘Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter are now in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement,’ or ICE, the state department said in a statement. In his own statement on social media, Rubio, the US secretary of state, confirmed that the mother-daughter pair are ‘pending removal’ from the US, a development that came after the US and Israeli militaries began waging war on Iran in late February, in part citing an Iranian history of terrorism sponsorship.” (04/04/26)
“A smoky wildfire in southern California that broke out a day earlier and prompted evacuation orders was mostly under control Saturday afternoon, fire officials said. Encompassing roughly 6.3 square miles (about 16 square kilometers) in Riverside County, about 64 miles (103 kilometers) east of Los Angeles, the Springs Fire was no longer growing and at least 75% percent contained Saturday, said Terra Fernandez, public safety information specialist for the Riverside County Fire Department. It was 25% contained on Friday. Fire officials also lifted evacuation orders for a large swath of neighborhoods Saturday morning. Fernandez said she expected the rest will be lifted by the end of the day. ‘It’s pretty much under control,’ Fernandez said. The fire was fueled by strong Santa Ana winds with gusts predicted to get up to 45 mph (72 kph) on Saturday. But winds had ‘dissipated a bit’ since Friday, helping the efforts of fire crews, Fernandez said.” (04/04/26)
