Headlines- After gunfire outside the White House correspondents' dinner in Washington, DC, US President Donald Trump was evacuated.
- After attending high-level discussions and presenting Pakistani officials with Tehran's list of demands for ending the war, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi left Islamabad, Pakistan.
- US President Donald Trump has called off envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff's planned visit to Pakistan for peace talks with Iran.
- An intercepted ship affiliated to the Iranian "shadow fleet" is being escorted back to Iran by a Navy helicopter, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM).
- About ten minutes after he announced on Saturday morning that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would not be traveling to Pakistan for diplomatic talks, US President Donald Trump claimed that Iran sent over a new peace offer that was "much better" than what they would have worked with going into the meeting.
- On Saturday, Tuareg rebels and an Al-Qaeda affiliate took credit for synchronized operations throughout Mali.
- In the first elections since the start of the Gaza war, Palestinians in the West Bank and central Gaza cast votes for local councils on Saturday.
Category: News & Views
Malaysia Ends Mandatory Death Penalty, Amends...
Malaysia’s parliament on Monday voted to scrap the mandatory death penalty and reduced the number of offenses punishable by hanging, saying capital punishment as a deterrent had not lowered crime.
Since Coup, Nearly 450 Civilians Killed...
Civilians are being killed at an alarming rate in Myanmar’s civil war, dying in airstrikes, artillery shelling and while being held in detention, data released from an armed ethnic group fighting the junta showed.
Former PM Najib Loses Last Legal...
Former Malaysian leader Najib Razak on Friday lost his final judicial chance to get out of prison when the country’s highest court rejected his request to review its 2022 decision to incarcerate him for corruption, although his lawyer claimed Najib’s legal hopes were still alive.
Once-Bustling Town of Thantlang Reduced to...
Western Myanmar’s once bustling town of Thantlang, with a sign above its gateway proclaiming that its inhabitants are “Not rich, but happy,” now lies in ruin after an onslaught of military raids, arson attacks, and airstrikes
UN Calls for Release of Ailing...
The United Nations has called on Hong Kong authorities to release veteran rights activist and lawyer Albert Ho, who was returned to custody to await trial for “subversion” under a national security law after his bail was revoked earlier this month.
Asia Fact Check Lab: Did Putin...
Around the time of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s visit to Moscow earlier this week, a Twitter account with more than 50,000 followers posted a photo purportedly showing Russian President Vladimir Putin kneeling before Xi and grasping his hands in apparent supplication.
Analysts: Rising Intolerance,Religious Conservatism in Malaysia...
An International Women’s Day march, a film about a Muslim character exploring other religions’ views on the afterlife, and an interfaith program have all recently become targets of religious conservatives’ outrage in Muslim-majority Malaysia.
Myanmar Junta Pledges 15 Villages for...
Myanmar’s junta is planning 15 new villages with 750 plots of farmable land in Rakhine state as part of a pilot program that would see 1,500 ethnic Rohingyas repatriated from refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh next month.
Activists Fear ‘Political Vacuum’ After Thai...
Thailand’s election in May could result in no party winning a clear mandate, likely forcing the longtime opposition Pheu Thai party and a military-backed one to form an alliance, Thai activists and academics told BenarNews this week.
As Ramadan Begins, China’s Muslims Face...
As Muslims around the world prepare to begin the holy month of Ramadan, China’s Muslims are facing fasting bans and their cultural and religious traditions are increasingly under attack