Netanyahu says Israel has 'no choice' but to continue fighting in Gaza
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel has “no choice” but to continue fighting in Gaza. He says Israel will not end the war before destroying Hamas, freeing the hostages and ensuring that the territory won’t present a threat. He is under growing pressure at home after Israel resumed the war last month. The prime minister on Saturday evening also repeated his vow to make sure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon. Netanyahu spoke after Israeli strikes killed more than 90 people in 48 hours. That's according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Israeli troops have been increasing their attacks to pressure Hamas.
Ukraine wary of Putin’s Easter truce and says it will reciprocate only a genuine ceasefire
CHERNIHIV REGION, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine says it will reciprocate any genuine ceasefire by Moscow, but has voiced skepticism after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a temporary Easter truce in Ukraine starting Saturday. The announcement from Kyiv came as Russia and Ukraine conducted their largest prisoner exchange since Moscow’s full-scale invasion started over three years ago. Putin announced a temporary Easter ceasefire in Ukraine starting Saturday, citing humanitarian reasons. According to the Kremlin, the ceasefire will last from 6 p.m. Moscow time (1500 GMT) on Saturday to midnight (2100 GMT) following Easter Sunday. Putin offered no details on how the ceasefire would be monitored or whether it would cover airstrikes or ongoing ground battles that rage around the clock.
US and Iran say talks over Tehran's nuclear program make progress and set plans for more
ROME (AP) — Iran and the United States plan to meet over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program again next week, after both sides said they made progress in their talks in Rome. A U.S. official confirmed that at a point during the negotiations Saturday, President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke face to face. Iranian officials described them as indirect talks. Before they meet again in Oman on April 26, Araghchi said technical-level talks would be held in the coming days. That experts would be discussing details of a possible deal suggests movement in the talks.
Vatican notes 'exchange of opinions' over migrants, prisoners in meeting with Vance
VATICAN CITY (AP) — U.S. Vice President JD Vance has met with the Vatican’s No. 2 official as they the sides spar over the U.S. crackdown on migrants. A Vatican statement reaffirmed good relations but noted there was “an exchange of opinions” over current international conflicts and humanitarian situations involving migrants, refugees and prisoners. There was no immediate word if Vance stopped by to greet Pope Francis, who has been resuming some official duties during his recovery from pneumonia. The Holy See has expressed alarm over the administration’s crackdown on migrants and cuts in international aid while insisting on peaceful resolutions to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
DEI rollbacks hit campus support systems for students of color
WASHINGTON (AP) — As U.S. colleges are pulling back on diversity, equity and inclusion practices, students of color say they are starting to lose campus mentors, move-in events, scholarships and diversity offices where they always have felt welcome on predominately white campuses. The full scope of campus DEI rollbacks is still emerging as colleges respond to the Trump administration’s orders against diversity practices. But students at some schools say early cuts are chipping away at the sense of community that has helped open the door to higher education. The retreat from DEI has accelerated under President Donald Trump and his threats to cut federal funding.
Former President Clinton returns to Oklahoma City 30 years after bombing of federal building
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Thirty years after the deadliest homegrown attack in U.S. history, former President Bill Clinton has returned to Oklahoma City for a remembrance ceremony. Clinton was president on April 19, 1995, when a truck bomb exploded, destroying a nine-story federal building in the city's downtown. He delivered the keynote address Saturday at a remembrance ceremony near the Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum. Clinton was widely praised for how he helped the city grapple with its grief in the wake of the bombing, which killed 168 people, including 19 children. He says it was a day in his presidency that he will never forget.
Vance set to visit India for bilateral talks on economic, trade and geopolitical ties
NEW DELHI (AP) — U.S. Vice President JD Vance is set to visit India on a four-day tour as the two countries seek to strengthen their partnership by negotiating a bilateral trade deal. Vance will kickstart his visit on Monday when he will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. The two leaders are expected to hold discussions on economic, trade and geopolitical ties. The U.S. is India’s largest trading partner, and the trade deal, if achieved, could significantly enhance economic ties between the two countries. Vance’s visit is seen as an important diplomatic mission by President Donald Trump’s administration, and it coincides with a rapidly intensifying trade war between Washington and Beijing.
An incessant crackdown in Belarus hurls dozens of independent journalists into harsh prisons
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Dozens of journalists in Belarus have been imprisoned in recent years under a crackdown by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. According to Reporters without Borders, the country of 9.5 million remains Europe’s leading jailer of journalists. The crackdown intensified in 2020 when mass protests broke out after an election — widely denounced as fraudulent — kept Lukashenko in power. One count says 40 media workers are serving long sentences in harsh penal colonies that some compare to Soviet-era prisons. Many are deprived of medical care and isolated from their lawyers and relatives. Some have fled abroad. But after U.S. President Donald Trump returned to office, his administration halted foreign aid that provides vital funding for many independent Belarusian news outlets.
It's a girl! 2-way star Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers is now a father
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Two-way star Shohei Ohtani is now a father. The Los Angeles Dodgers slugger has posted on Instagram that his wife gave birth to a girl. “Congratulations Sho!” Manager Dave Roberts proclaimed while saying he wasn’t sure what the baby’s name was. The 30-year-old Ohtani missed the first two games of the series matching the past two World Series champions.
Zimbabwe's stone carvers seek a revival as an Oxford exhibition confronts a British colonial legacy
CHITUNGWIZA, Zimbabwe (AP) — A collection of Zimbabwean stone sculptures will be the centerpiece of an exhibition at Oxford University meant to “contextualize” the legacy of British colonialist Cecil John Rhodes. They depict the religious deception, forced labor and sexual abuse endured by Zimbabweans close to a century ago. But for many Zimbabwean sculptors, the exhibition is more than a history lesson. It’s a fight for the survival of an ancient art that's struggling because of vast economic challenges and declining tourism in the southern African nation.
