Two former Israeli prime ministers join forces against Netanyahu in upcoming elections

World News

Updated 11:25 AM PDT, April 26, 2026
ASSOCIATED PRESS

JERUSALEM (AP) — Two Israeli political heavyweights on Sunday said they would join forces in elections scheduled for later this year in an effort to unseat longtime Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid served as prime ministers in a rotation agreement as part of a coalition government they formed in 2021, ending 12 years of Netanyahu’s rule. Now they plan to merge their parties into single faction headed by Bennett, calling it a partnership between the center and the right.

Iranian foreign minister heads to Moscow for meeting with Putin after second Pakistan trip

By Lucy Davalou & AFP & AP
Published on 26/04/2026 - 20:27 GMT+2

•Updated 21:40

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi travelled once to Oman and twice to Pakistan over the weekend, before heading to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi returned to Pakistan on Sunday, a day after leaving the country as US President Donald Trump cancelled a planned trip to Islamabad by US negotiators.

4 deadlines that could shape Trump’s next 5 weeks

Trump and the GOP have a series of make-or-break moments ahead

Illustration by Claudine Hellmuth/POLITICO 

(source images via AP and iStock)

By POLITICO Staff

04/26/2026

The next five weeks could prove pivotal for President Donald Trump and Republicans on Capitol Hill. They face a series of deadlines — some self-imposed — that could shape the party’s fortunes through the midterms.

Key question: How did armed man get so close to Trump WHCD event?

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the suspect was likely targeting administration officials.

By Jacob Wendler

04/26/2026

Law enforcement are investigating how a suspect got a firearm into the venue where the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was held Saturday, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said.

Surviving in a poisoned land: Chernobyl's wildlife is different, but not in the ways you might think

Chris Baraniuk
It's 40 years since the Chernobyl disaster. This is what it has meant for wildlife living around the devastated nuclear power plant.

"Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa!" In the middle of the night, a noise from the darkness in the abandoned, irradiated landscape of Chernobyl. Pablo Burraco, a scientist, stepped quietly between the trees, not far from the ruins of the power plant at the centre of the world's worst nuclear disaster. In the aftermath of the catastrophic reactor explosion in 1986, the surrounding area was evacuated for many miles, so few people trod where Burraco now did.

Karoline Leavitt's ‘shots will be fired’ remark ahead of White House dinner shooting surfaces

White House press secretary’s viral video ahead of Correspondents’ Dinner fuels speculation over shooting incident

Updated on: Apr 26, 2026 7:55 AM IST

By Shirin Gupta

A viral video of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has stirred online chatter ahead of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner (WHCD) shooting incident, after she urged viewers to tune in, hinting that Donald Trump would “bring the heat” and that there would be “shots fired.”

Zyuganov warns faltering economy risks 1917-style revolution

April 24, 2026

Russian Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov has warned parliament that worsening economic conditions could trigger unrest reminiscent of the 1917 revolution if urgent corrective measures are not taken.

Ballroom Shooter is identified as 30-year-old Cole Allen from Torrance, California

Trump Calls Politics a "Dangerous Profession" Following Shooting Incident at White House Correspondents' Dinner

April 25, 2026 / 11:19 PM EDT 

President Trump spoke to reporters on Saturday night following a security incident during the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner, where shots were fired at the venue. Despite the chaos, the president expressed a desire for the event to continue after he was evacuated.

Mexico says 2 US federal agents who died were not authorized to participate in any local operation

One entered the country as a visitor while the other entered with a diplomatic passport, Mexico's Ministry of Security said

By Associated Press

04/25/2026 

MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s government said Saturday that two U.S. federal agents recently killed in a car crash in the country’s northern region were not authorized to participate in operations in Mexico.

Suspect Apprehended After Gunfire at Dinner Attended by Trump

April 25, 2026

President Donald Trump was evacuated from the Washington Hilton hotel, where journalists and celebrities were gathered for the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner in the nation's capital.

On the evening of April 25, 2026, at around 9:38 p.m. ET, chaos erupted at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner, prompting the swift removal of President Trump. Reports indicated gunfire at the Washington Hilton, leading to a quick response from the Secret Service, who took a suspect into custody.

Russia launches 3 tons of cargo to the International Space Station from Kazakhstan

News
By Mike Wall 

last updated 3 hours ago
Liftoff occurred today (April 25) at 6:21 p.m. ET.

Russia launched its latest Progress cargo ship toward the International Space Station today

A Soyuz rocket topped with the robotic Progress 95 freighter lifted off from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan today at 6:21 p.m. EDT (2221 GMT; 3:21 a.m. on April 26 local time). The Russian freighter, known as Progress 95, is hauling about 3 tons of food, propellant and other supplies to the International Space Station (ISS).

EU to prepare blueprint for mutual assistance pact, amid NATO doubts

By Michele Kambas and Ingrid Melander

April 24, 2026

Summary

• EU's mutual assistance clause has only been used once
• Unlike NATO's article 5, it's not backed by detailed plans
• NATO's Article 5 seen as bedrock of European security
• Trump's comments have raised doubts over US commitment to Article 5

NICOSIA, April 24 (Reuters) - EU leaders have asked ​officials to prepare a blueprint for how the bloc's previously obscure mutual assistance clause would work, host Cyprus said at a ‌summit on Friday, amid doubts over the U.S. commitment to the NATO military alliance.

The Mystery of Missing and Dead Scientists, Explained

Michael Shermer
April 25, 2026

As I write this the week of April 20, 2026, both mainstream media and social media are chockablock full of coverage of the disappearance or death of eleven (and counting) U.S. scientists who worked on UFOs, nuclear weapons, military defense, propulsion systems, or other related fields (a category that keeps growing as new deaths or disappearances are identified not associated with one of the original categories).

Trump and the White House Correspondents’ Dinner Deserve Each Other

People really seem worked up about the president ruining this weekend’s big party. But you can’t ruin something that’s already rotten to the core.

Jason Linkins

April 25, 2026

Make ready the orchestra of tiny violins, everyone! This weekend, Washington, D.C.’s greatest collection of reprobates and dweebs will gather at the Washington Hilton for the annual tribute to meretriciousness that is the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Alas, there is bad news to report: President Donald Trump will be ruining the affair by attending it, after several years of ruining it by not attending it. As a result, people are so upset that they’re calling for this weekend’s big party to be called off entirely.

Firm Building Trump’s Ballroom Got a Secret No-Bid Contract for a Nearby Job

The National Park Service increased the value of the contract several times over and then awarded it to Maryland-based Clark Construction, in a process that experts said was highly unusual.

By David A. Fahrenthold, Luke Broadwater, and Andrea Fuller

The reporters reviewed dozens of pages of documents about this contract and analyzed other contracts awarded for similar projects.

April 25, 2026

To build his mammoth White House ballroom, President Trump last summer chose Maryland-based Clark Construction. Since then, Mr. Trump has repeatedly sung the company’s praises, even saying he wanted it to refurbish projects all over Washington.

DNA Evidence Leads to a Single Suspect, but it may be too late for Nancy Guthrie now

April 25, 2026

Key Points

• Ex-FBI Agent Says DNA Evidence May Point to a Single Suspect
• The “leads” that led us nowhere and why they proved unhelpful.”
•  Why can it take so long, even if the suspect looked clumsy?

You can travel all around the world in 80 days, but obviously, you cannot locate an elderly woman abducted from her home in Tucson, Arizona, as investigators are still working to identify what happened to Nancy Guthrie. It's almost summertime, and very damaging to Savannah and her family, but the FBI is still examining DNA evidence from the crime scene that was sent to a private laboratory in Florida, after the Pima County Sheriff’s Department initially submitted the DNA profile. 

One may wonder if the FBI would be more motivated if the missing person were some Republican persona's mother or if that Patel guy who heads the Bureau was doing his job instead of being vulgar, annoying, and incompetent as usual. Nanos should have resigned a long time ago... 

Might Donald Trump try to rig the midterms?

It is unclear how much he cares about the midterms, given that he is not on the ballot, but he seems to view them in personal terms.
The Economist
Published 23 Apr 2026

“Basically, we just sort of rack our brains,” says Joe Morelle. “What would happen if this happened? Usually the answer is, well, that’s never happened before—but this is what we would do.” Mr Morelle is the top-ranking Democrat on the House Committee on House Administration. In normal times, his team oversees matters of great importance to Congress, such as who gets a parking permit in the House garage. This being an election year, he is preoccupied with an even more existential question. What if Donald Trump tries to steal the midterms?

Rubio Still Far from the Negotiating Table: He Prefers to Watch Over Trump

April 25, 2026

The Secretary of State appears to be focused on his role as National Security Advisor and preventing impulsive decisions

Emanuele La Prova

Giornalista pubblicista

As President Donald Trump prepares to send a delegation to the next round of talks between the United States and Iran in Pakistan, scheduled for this weekend, his Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, will once again remain at home.