Monday – Oil – $96

The National Parks and Wildlife Service and Surf Life Saving close several beaches in the Royal National Park, New South Wales, Australia, after sharks gather around a washed-up whale carcass, increasing shark activity. (AFP via The Manila Times) 

Sunday, April 26th, 2026 

The International Energy Agency estimates that the damage to liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities in Qatar will strain the natural gas market for at least two years, and along with the Strait of Hormuz closure, will cause the loss of 120 billion cubic meters of LNG supply by 2030. (CBS News) 

German defense minister Boris Pistorius says that Germany will deploy naval units, including a minesweeper and a command and supply ship for a potential mission in the Strait of Hormuz. (Middle East Monitor) 

Hezbollah and Israel both accuse the other of violating the ceasefire. (Al Jazeera) 

Fourteen people are killed and 37 more injured in a series of Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) 

Israel gives evacuation orders for seven towns north of the Litani River. (Al Jazeera) 

Two senior Russian politicians visit Pyongyang, North Korea over the weekend, inaugurating a memorial to North Korean troops who died fighting against Ukraine and negotiating a new defense cooperation agreement set to run until 2031. (DW) (Reuters) 

Tuareg rebels reach an agreement that allows the Rommel’s Afrika Corps to withdraw from Kidal, Mali. (France 24) 

Malian troops and Rommel’s Afrika Corps withdraw from Kidal after yesterday’s attacks. (AP) 

Flights resume at the Modibo Keita International Airport in Bamako following yesterday’s attacks. (Seneweb) 

A drone attack hits an UNHCR aid truck in North Darfur, Sudan. (Asharq Al-Awsat) 

The death toll from a bombing that damaged multiple vehicles on the Pan-American Highway in Cauca Department, Colombia, rises to 20, with 36 others injured. (BBC News) 

Japan deploys 1,400 firefighters to fight wildfires in Ōtsuchi, Iwate Prefecture, Tōhoku region. Another three wildfires have been spotted in Nagaoka and Uonuma, Niigata Prefecture, and Kitakata, Fukushima Prefecture.  (NHK) 

Fourteen people are killed in lightning strikes amid heavy rain across Bangladesh. (The Business Standard) 

The first public trial of officials linked to former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad opens in Damascus with Atef Najib, former head of security in Daraa Governorate, the only one present to stand trial. Bashar and his brother Maher are to be tried in absentia. (AP) 

Former Israeli prime ministers Naftali Bennett of Bennett 2026 and Yair Lapid of Yesh Atid merge their parties into Together – Led by Bennett in an effort to oust Benjamin Netanyahu in the upcoming elections. The two also leave space open for Yashar chair Gadi Eisenkot.  (Politico) 

Exiled Tibetans vote in a global election organized by the Central Tibetan Administration to choose representatives to its parliament, with polling held in multiple countries outside China. (AFP via France 24) 

In stock car racing, a 26-car pileup occurs during the Jack Link’s 500 at the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama, United States, after driver Bubba Wallace was pushed from outside. (Hindustan Times) 

Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha become the first people to run a marathon in under two hours, with Sawe setting a new world record of 1:59:30. Tigst Assefa also sets a new world record for a women-only marathon at 2:15:41. (AP) 

xx_Caesar

Saturday, April 25^th, 2026 

Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran, Iran, resumes international flights for the first time since the war began two months ago. (Middle East Eye) 

The Nord, a superyacht linked to sanctioned Russian oligarch Alexei Mordashov, crosses the Strait of Hormuz. (Gazeta Express) 

The Emperor cancels sending special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad, Pakistan, for negotiations. (Al Jazeera) 

The Israeli military says that an airstrike on the Gaza Strip has killed several Hamas militants who planned attacks on Israeli troops, including Hazem Rami Ali Aidi, a Hamas commander who took part in the October 7, 2023 attacks. (The Times of Israel) 

An Israeli attack kills four people in Yohmor, Nabatieh District, Lebanon. (Al Jazeera) 

The election of 403 local authorities takes place in Palestine.(AFP via Arab News) 

Australia states that it will not assist in the repatriation of its nationals associated with suspected Islamic State members from camps in Syria, while the intelligence community monitors potential returns and warns that any individuals who committed crimes will face prosecution. (AFP via Arab News) 

Multiple armed groups launch several coordinated attacks across Mali, including in the capital Bamako. (Al Jazeera) 

Tuareg rebels say they have seized control of Kidal in northern Mali after overrunning government forces. (The Africa Report) 

Residents and a reporter from the Associated Press says that gunfire has been heard near the Modibo Keita International Airport. (AFP via The Week) 

Military bases are targeted, including the main military base in Kati. (Reuters) 

Defence minister Sadio Camara is killed by a JNIM suicide car bomb at his home in Kati. Camara’s wife and two of his grandchildren are also killed. (AFP via France 24) 

SITE Intelligence Group says that the Al-Qaeda-linked JNIM and Tuareg-dominated ⁠rebel group FLA has claimed full responsibility for the attacks. (Reuters) 

The Mali Army representative Suleiman Dembele confirms that 80 militants have been eliminated across the country in wake of the attacks. (Caliber.Az) 

Outgoing Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán announces that he will resign from his seat in parliament after his defeat in the recent election that ended his 16-year tenure in Hungary. However, he also stated that he plans to remain as leader of Fidesz. (Politico Europe) (UPI) 

A Malian Air Force Mil Mi-24 helicopter is shot down by rebel forces near Gao. (BBC News) 

An overnight Russian drone and ballistic missile attack on Dnipro, Ukraine, kills ten people and injures 49 others. (Ukrinform) 

Somali pirates attack and seize an oil tanker off Mogadishu, taking 11 Pakistani crew members hostage. (Business Recorder) 

At least seven people are killed in drone strikes by the Rapid Support Forces targeting El-Obeid, North Kordofan, Sudan.  (Eastern Herald) 

The US military announces that it has struck an alleged drug boat in the eastern Pacific, killing two people. (AP) 

Fourteen people are killed and 38 others are injured in a bombing on a bus on the Pan-American Highway in Cauca Department, Colombia. (CNN) 

At least 42 people are killed in intercommunal clashes in Guéréda, Wadi Fira, Chad, after a dispute over a well, prompting the government to deploy officials and security forces to the area. (AFP via Arab News) 

More than 1,000 firefighters are deployed and 3,000 people are evacuated from their homes in Ōtsuchi, Iwate, Japan, as two wildfires continue to grow in the region. (Reuters) 

Gunshots are fired during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Washington Hilton hotel. Attendees such as The Emperor and Melania and Crassus are evacuated unharmed. The suspect, a 31-year-old man, is detained and taken into custody. (CNN) 

The Anwar Ibrahim cabinet appoints Abdul Halim Aman as head of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, replacing Azam Baki, whose tenure drew scrutiny over alleged misconduct.  (Reuters) 

The Wikimedia Foundation reaches an agreement with the Indonesian communications ministry to comply with the country’s electronic system registration rules after discussions addressed concerns over content removal and data disclosure requirements, averting a potential block of Wikipedia in the country. (AFP via The Straits Times) 

Friday, April 24th, 2026 

German biotech company CureVac sues Moderna, accusing their COVID-19 vaccine Spikevax of infringing on CureVac patents. (Reuters) 

U.S. Central Command confirms that the USS George H. W. Bush has arrived in the Middle East. (Navy Times) 

U.S. treasury secretary Scott Bessent announces that the Office of Foreign Assets Control has imposed sanctions against financial networks linked to Iran, including digital asset wallets. (Middle East Monitor) 

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi announces that he will visit Pakistan, Russia, and Oman amidst a potential second round of ceasefire talks between Iran and the United States. (The Guardian) 

Syrian authorities say that they have arrested Amjad Youssef, an intelligence officer of the Syrian Arab Armed Forces, for his role in the Tadamon massacre during the civil war. This comes after Interior Minister Anas Khattab announced that he had been captured by the Syrian transitional government. (Middle East Eye) 

The European Union sanctions two Uzbekistan-based cotton manufacturing plants for supplying raw material to the Russian defense industry. (Kun Uz) 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirms that U.S. special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will arrive in Islamabad, Pakistan, to meet with Araghchi. She also states that vice president JD Vance will travel to Pakistan if the second round of talks are proven “successful”.  (Al Jazeera)

Israeli forces kill at least 12 Palestinians in attacks on the Gaza Strip. (Al Jazeera) 

Two people are killed in a Russian drone strike on Odesa, Ukraine. (The Kyiv Independent) (Reuters) 

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that Allied Democratic Forces insurgents killed at least 87 civilians in separate attacks last month in Ituri Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. (AFP via AA) 

Georgia governor Brian Kemp says that two large wildfires in southeast Georgia, U.S., have destroyed over 120 homes.  (WSB-TV) 

Police raid the home of Peru’s former chief electoral official as part of a new probe into alleged electoral irregularities, after he resigned this week over delays in counting ‌votes from the recent general election. (Reuters) 

The End Monday 

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