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Thursday, April 23rd, 2026 

The Emperor rules out the use of nuclear weapons in the Iran war. (The Hill) 

Nine people are killed and around 27 others are injured when a bus crashes into a tree on a highway near San Juan del Río and Amealco de Bonfil, Querétaro, Mexico. (Turquesa News in Spanish) 

The British parliament passes the Tobacco and Vapes Bill formally banning anyone in England born after December 31, 2008, from buying cigarettes and other tobacco products in an effort to create a “smoke-free generation”. The age controls will enter force on January 1, 2027. (AP) 

Roman Centurions install a new statue of Jesus in the Christian village of Debel, southern Lebanon, in place of a previous statue given by the Israeli military, who destroyed the previous statue with a sledgehammer, drawing widespread outrage. (OSV News) (UCA News) 

The Emperor orders the navy to open fire on any Iranian vessels placing mines along the Strait of Hormuz, after the military reportedly observed an Iranian mine-laying operation.  (Axios) 

The Emperor orders the United States Navy to open fire on any Iranian vessels placing mines along the Strait of Hormuz. (CNN) 

The Emperor says that the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has been extended to 3 weeks. (Al Jazeera) 

In American football, the 91st edition of the NFL draft is held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with the Las Vegas Raiders selecting former Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the first overall pick. (ESPN) 

Marco Rubio states that Iran’s national football team can participate in the upcoming FIFA World Cup, while indicating that entry restrictions may apply to non-athlete delegation members with alleged links to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. (AFP via FMT) 

Exiled Iranian crown prince Reza Pahlavi is splashed with red liquid after leaving a federal press conference building in Berlin, Germany in which he criticized the ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. (AP) 

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command conducts a boarding operation on the stateless tanker M/T Majestic in the Indian Ocean, alleged to be carrying US-sanctioned Iranian oil. (Al Jazeera) 

Peruvian defence minister Carlos Díaz Dañino and foreign minister Hugo de Zela resign following president José María Balcázar‘s decision to postpone the purchase of F-16 fighter jets from the United States. (Reuters) 

An Israeli security source says that Israel is not conducting airstrikes in Iran following reports of explosions over Tehran, while defense minister Israel Katz states that the country is prepared to resume military action pending approval from the U.S. (AFP via Business Recorder) 

France and the United Kingdom begin a military conference involving over 30 countries in Northwood, London, to discuss the use of military forces for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz once conditions allow. (AA) 

Three people are killed and 10 others are injured in an overnight Russian drone strike on a 13-story apartment building in Dnipro, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine. (Reuters) 

Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock market index surpasses 60,000 points for the first time in a historic high, while South Korea’s KOSPI also reaches a record high amid gains in technology shares.  (Nikkei Asia) 

Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed as investors remained cautious despite a three-week extension of the 2026 Israel-Lebanon ceasefire, underscoring lingering geopolitical uncertainty. (CNBC) 

More than 6.5 million, mostly southern, Somalis face hunger amid climate shocks, drought, and conflict, with children facing acute malnutrition risks. (Al Jazeera) 

A boat capsizes in waters between Algeria and Spain. At least 17 Somali migrants are killed. (AP) 

Eighteen people are injured, including five critically, when two trains collide near Hillerød, Capital Region, Denmark. (Reuters) 

Eight people are killed and two others are injured when a vehicle loses control and plunges into a gorge in Tehri Garhwal district, Uttarakhand, India. (Hindustan Times) 

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa suspends national police commissioner Fannie Masemola pending investigation into allegations of procurement violations linked to a R332 million (US$20 million) police health services tender. (AFP via The Peninsula) 

Three people are killed and 10 others are injured in an overnight Russian drone strike on a 13-story apartment building in Dnipro, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine. (Reuters) 

Moldovan oligarch and former politician Vladimir Plahotniuc is sentenced to 19 years in prison for embezzling about US$1 billion from the country’s banks. (Reuters) 

The End Friday 

Wednesday, April 22^nd, 2026 

Stocks in the United States, including S&P 500 and Nasdaq, rise following yesterday’s announcement that the ceasefire would be extended indefinitely. (CNBC) 

German airline Lufthansa announces that it will cut 20,000 short-haul flights in Europe this summer, saying rising fuel prices have made many journeys “unprofitable” for the company. Among the destinations mostly impacted by the cuts are Heringsdorf, Cork, Gdańsk, Ljubljana, Rijeka, Sibiu, Stuttgart, Trondheim, Tivat, and Wrocław. (BBC News) 

Russia announces it will halt the transport of Kazakh oil to Germany via the Druzhba pipeline starting May 1, citing technical reasons, while the German economic ministry states that the interruption is not expected to significantly disrupt fuel supply. (AFP via France 24) 

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy seizes two vessels after attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz. A third vessel is also reportedly “disabled off Iran’s coast”. (CNN) 

Three members of the Kurdistan Freedom Party are injured in a drone attack in the Khabat District, Kurdistan Region, Iraq. The group attributes the attack to Iran. (Al Jazeera) 

A French UNIFIL peacekeeper dies from his wounds sustained from an ambush last week blamed on Hezbollah. (AFP via Al Arabiya) 

Israeli airstrikes kill at least five people across Lebanon, including a journalist. (Al Jazeera) 

Suspected Boko Haram insurgents on motorcycles kill at least 20 people in shootings in Borno State and Adamawa State, Nigeria. (Reuters) 

Ten people are killed and eight others are injured in an attack on a copper and gold mine in Chagai District, Balochistan, Pakistan. A citizen of Turkey is among the fatalities, while another is kidnapped. (Al Arabiya English) 

Eleven people are killed, including children, in a multiple-vehicle collision in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, India. (Deccan Herald) 

A leak results in a violent chemical reaction involving nitric acid and another substance at a facility in Kanawha County, West Virginia, United States, killing two people and injuring 19 others. (AP) 

Two people are killed and 16 others are injured when a passenger bus carrying Ukrainian citizens strikes a group of people and crashes into a ditch in Burgas, Bulgaria. (Ukrainska Pravda) 

Judges of the International Criminal Court dismiss a jurisdictional challenge filed by former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte regarding the court’s authority over alleged crimes committed while the Philippines was still a member, allowing proceedings to continue against him on charges of crimes against humanity linked to his anti-drug campaign. (Reuters) 

France and the United Kingdom host a military conference involving over 30 countries in Northwood, London, to discuss the use of military forces for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz once conditions allow. (AA) 

Nepali home minister Sudan Gurung resigns to allow an impartial investigation into his financial activities, becoming the second minister to leave prime minister Balen Shah‘s government following recent elections. (AFP via The Straits Times) 

The Greek parliament votes to lift the immunity of 13 legislators from the ruling New Democracy party to allow investigation into alleged fraud involving European Union agricultural subsidies. (Reuters) 

The End Thursday 

Below done and posted