April 29, 2026 - Daily News Digest
On this day in 1770, British explorer James Cook made his first landing in Australia, at Botany Bay.
QotD: “I pray with all my heart that our lands will continue to defend our shared values with our partners in Europe and the Commonwealth, and across the world, and that we ignore the clarion calls to become ever more inward-looking,” Britain King Charles told the joint meeting of the US Senate and House of Representatives.
IRAN/LEADERSHIP – Iran’s Guards seize wartime power, weakening Supreme Leader’s role.
Two months into a war with the U.S. and Israel, Iran no longer has a single, undisputed clerical arbiter at the pinnacle of power — an abrupt break with the past that may be hardening Tehran’s stance as it weighs renewed talks with Washington.
Since its creation in 1979, the Islamic Republic has revolved around a supreme leader with final authority on all key matters of state. But the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on the first day of the war, and the elevation of his wounded son, Mojtaba, have ushered in a different order dominated by commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and marked by the absence of a decisive, authoritative referee.
Mojtaba Khamenei remains at the apex of the system, but three people familiar with internal deliberations say his role is largely to legitimize decisions made by his generals rather than issue directives himself.
Wartime pressure has concentrated power into a narrower, harder-line inner circle rooted in the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), the Supreme Leader’s office and the IRGC, which now dominates both military strategy and key political decisions, Iranian officials and analysts say.
“The Iranians are painfully slow in their response,” said a senior Pakistani government official briefed on peace talks between Iran and the United States that Islamabad has been mediating. “There is apparently no one decision-making command structure. At times, it takes them 2 to 3 days to respond."
Analysts said the obstacle to a deal is not internal infighting in Tehran, but the gap between what Washington is prepared to offer and what Iran’s hardline Guards were willing to accept.
IRAN/CURRENCY – Iran’s rial currency hits record low as shaky ceasefire with US and Israel holds.
https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-war-ceasefire-rial-currency-157e7c6d099c7db8b4366bb341fc655d
Iran’s national rial currency hit a record low Wednesday of 1.8 million to the dollar as a shaky ceasefire with the U.S. and Israel holds.
The rial had remained stable in the early weeks of the war that began Feb. 28, in part because there was little trading or imports.
The rial began to slide two days ago. Experts warn that its fall is likely to further fuel inflation in a country where many imported goods, from food and medicine to electronics and raw materials, are affected by the dollar rate.
Prices of basic household goods had already been rising before the rial’s latest fall, adding to pressure on Iranian families. Over the past two weeks, people buying daily essentials have faced higher prices for milk, yogurt, cooking oil, bread, rice, cheese and detergents.
The increases point to broader inflationary pressure in the economy driven by uncertainty, supply disruptions, higher transport and production costs and the continuing impact of the U.S. blockade. The rial’s latest slide is likely to add further pressure particularly on goods tied to imports, packaging and raw materials.
UKR/RUS/ENERGY – Another Russian oil facility burns after Zelensky touts Ukraine’s drone reach.
Another oil facility deep inside Russia was reportedly on fire Wednesday following what Ukraine’s president claimed was his country’s latest long-range drone attack.
The facility is in the Perm region of Russia, located in the Ural mountains more than 1,500 kilometers (900 miles) from Ukraine. Ukraine’s Security Service, known as the SBU, said it had struck a Russian oil pumping station near the city of Perm as part of efforts to target Russia’s energy infrastructure.
Russian media also reported the attack, though Perm Gov. Dmitry Makhonin said only that a drone hit an unspecified industrial facility, sparking a fire.
Russian officials have not been forthcoming about Ukrainian claims that Kyiv is carrying out more long-range attacks and that its domestically developed drones are increasingly accurate.
Advanced drone technology has become a defining feature of the battle as Russia’s bigger army presses its more than four-year invasion of its neighbor. Ukraine’s response has included a drive to develop new drones for attack and defense.
UKR/ISRAEL/GRAIN/TWITTER DIPLOMACY – Ukraine asks Israel to seize vessel it says is carrying grain stolen by Russia.
Ukraine has requested that Israel seize a vessel carrying grain it says was stolen from areas occupied by Russia, its top prosecutor said on Wednesday, after the shipment sparked a diplomatic tussle between the countries.
Ukraine and Israel traded accusations on Tuesday, with Ukraine saying it had repeatedly urged Israel via diplomatic channels to take measures regarding the vessel. Israel accused Kyiv of "Twitter diplomacy".
Ukraine's Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko said on the Telegram app that the vessel, Panormitis, was headed to the Israeli port of Haifa with grain "some of which was shipped" from Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine. The grain had earlier been loaded from another vessel, he said.
"The Ukrainian side is asking its Israeli partners to seize the vessel and its cargo, conduct a search, seize the vessel's and cargo documentation, take grain samples, and question the crew members," Kravchenko said.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, who previously said Ukraine had not provided any evidence for its claims, wrote on X on Wednesday that Kyiv had submitted its request to seize the vessel late on Tuesday.
"One would expect the submission of a legal request before Tweeting. You chose differently, for your own reasons. The request is now being examined by the relevant authorities," he wrote.
MALI/RUSSIA/SEC – Mali turmoil threatens Russian push for influence and mineral wealth in Africa.
A series of reversals suffered by Mali's Moscow-backed military government has dented Russia's image as a self-styled security guarantor in Africa and threatens its strategic and economic interests on the continent.
The military junta, which turned to Russia for support after expelling French and U.N. troops following coups in 2020 and 2021, was rocked at the weekend by an offensive by West Africa's al Qaeda affiliate and a Tuareg-dominated separatist group.
Mali's Russia-trained defence minister, Sadio Camara, was killed in a suicide bombing, Russia's Africa Corps was forced to withdraw from Kidal - an important town that Russian mercenaries helped take in 2023 - and Moscow used helicopter gunships and strategic bombers to hold insurgents back.
Assimi Goita, the junta leader who was welcomed in the Kremlin last summer by President Vladimir Putin, survived. But he now faces the prospect of armed groups trying to seize swaths of Mali's vast desert north amid Russian warnings that the insurgents are regrouping.
The events could be a serious threat to Russian interests, political analysts say, and Moscow's response is being closely watched abroad at a time when its forces are tied down fighting in Ukraine and its geopolitical influence is under pressure in other parts of the world.
"Mali is one of the centres of power for Russia in West Africa," Irina Filatova, an Honorary Research Associate at the University of Cape Town, told Reuters.
She said Russia had strategic and economic interests in Mali, part of a chain of African countries including Burkina Faso, Niger and Central African Republic which Moscow had worked hard to cultivate in pursuit of geopolitical clout and access to mineral wealth in exchange for security protection.
"If the Russians cannot return Kidal very quickly it will be a big hit to their credentials as a source of strength and to the perception of their ability to protect the security of Mali and other countries," said Filatova.
UAE/OPEC/ENERGY – UAE reviewing multilateral ties after OPEC exit but rules out more departures, official says.
The United Arab Emirates is reassessing its role and contributions across multilateral organisations but is not considering any further withdrawals at this time, a UAE official told Reuters on Wednesday, a day after Abu Dhabi announced its withdrawal from OPEC.
The Emirati official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the country is reviewing the utility of its membership in multilateral organizations broadly.
The statement comes amid intense speculation that Abu Dhabi could exit other regional bodies, including the Arab League and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), following its surprise decision to leave the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and OPEC+ effective May 1.
The exit of the UAE -- one of the group's biggest producers -- widens a rift between the UAE and its neighbour Saudi Arabia, which is effectively OPEC's leader.
Once firm allies, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh have developed a simmering rivalry, clashing on issues from oil policy and regional geopolitics to the race for foreign talent and capital.
The comments add to a broader reassessment of alliances underway in Abu Dhabi since the start of the Iran war, with the GCC facing some criticism for what Abu Dhabi has called an inadequate response to the conflict.
GERMANY/DEMO – Germany’s birth rate reached lowest level on record in 2025.
https://www.dw.com/en/germanys-birth-rate-reached-lowest-level-on-record-in-2025/a-76965865
According to preliminary figures from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), around 655,000 live births were recorded in 2025, compared to around 680,00 in 2024.
Last year, the country recorded more than one million deaths. This brings the birth deficit to around 350,000, setting yet another record.
Last year marked the fourth consecutive year of decline in the birth rate and the lowest level since 1946.
Germany's current replacement rate is at 1.35 children per woman, which is a record low and far below the 2.1 needed to maintain a stable population.
The Destatis attributes this trend to the entry of the relatively small birth cohorts born in the 1990s into the crucial fertile age of their early 30s, as well as the decline in the total fertility rate since 2022.
As in previous years, the number of births in 2025 fell more sharply in the eastern German states (-4.5%) than in the western states (-3.2%) compared to 2024.
Contrary to the trend, Hamburg was the only German state with an increase in birth rates, rising 0.5% in 2025.
ROK/MARTIAL LAW DECLARATION FALLOUT/JUSTICE – Yoon’s obstruction sentence hiked to 7 years.
https://www.dw.com/en/south-korea-yoons-obstruction-sentence-hiked-to-7-years/a-76976474
A South Korean appeals court hiked on Wednesday the sentence of former South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol from five years to seven years, in a justice obstruction case.
In January, a lower court sentenced Yoon to five years in prison for abuse of power, having used presidential security agents to block his arrest, and for other charges.
In a separate trial, Yoon was sentenced to life in prison for the crime of leading an insurrection over abruptly imposing martial law in 2024.
Yoon's previous sentence for the crime of obstruction was handed to him by a lower court that also cleared of some of the charges.
On Wednesday, the appeals court upheld the initial convictions, but also overturned some of the acquittals. Yoon charges were linked to his short-lived 2024 martial law. Prosecutors had been seeking a 10-year jail term.
"In trying to stop authorities from executing an arrest warrant by use of force, Yoon committed acts that are unacceptable in a society of law and order," the Seoul High Court judge said.
US/CHINA/NAFTA/AUTOS – The US wants to ban China’s high-tech cars, but they’re already here in El Paso.
https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/chinese-cars-byd-geely-u-s-mexico-be0dea28?mod=hp_lead_pos7
Just 5 miles from the U.S. border, a bustling commercial strip here offers the buzzy Chinese car brands currently blocked from the American market.
A Geely dealership features the all-electric EX2, a sleek compact that starts at only around $20,000. A bulky hybrid pickup truck sits next to a charger outside a BYD dealership. Great Wall Motor boasts some beefy gas-powered sport-utility vehicles, one advertised with the slogan “Be More Tank.”
Luis Hernandez, a Geely salesman, said he has poached many longtime Ford and Chevrolet owners attracted to the affordable sticker prices and whiz-bang Chinese technology. He recently sold two Geely Emgrand sedans, which start at around $17,000, to a Mexican family for their two daughters to commute to college in El Paso, where the sleekest Chinese cars are now attracting attention.
“If they were allowed to be sold in the United States,” Hernandez boasted of the Chinese models, “they would destroy the American car market.”
U.S. automotive executives don’t entirely disagree. Without a clear plan to deal with Chinese competitors, some of them said in interviews, the arrival of affordable, high-tech Chinese cars could upend a U.S. industry that contributes $1.3 trillion to the economy each year.
“I’m telling you, it is very difficult—not to say impossible—to compete,” said Hyundai Motor Chief Executive José Muñoz. “We cannot compete at the same price as the Chinese in the market where we operate. Otherwise, we will be losing money.”
So far, the many Chinese car companies that want to expand into the U.S. have been kept at bay. The U.S. has applied sky-high tariffs to vehicles imported from China, and regulations make it nearly impossible for such vehicles purchased in Mexico to be registered in the U.S.
US/SUPREME COURT/DEPORTATIONS – Supreme Court considers Trump’s plan to revoke deportation protections.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/us/politics/supreme-court-trump-deportations.html
The Supreme Court on Wednesday will consider whether the Trump administration can immediately end humanitarian protections that have allowed hundreds of thousands of Haitians and Syrians to live and work legally in the United States.
President Trump has moved to terminate a program, known as Temporary Protected Status, that has provided humanitarian relief to migrants from more than a dozen troubled nations by allowing them to settle temporarily in the United States.
The two cases the justices will hear involve more than 350,000 Haitians and about 6,000 Syrians the Trump administration has sought to expel from the United States, potentially forcing them to return to dangerous conditions in their home countries. The court’s ruling, expected in late June or early July, will also likely have implications for more than one million people from other countries whose protections under the program the administration has sought to terminate.
The justices fast-tracked the cases, scheduling them for the final day of arguments in a court term that began in October and has already included challenges to other major aspects of Mr. Trump’s agenda. In February, the court ruled against the legality of the president’s sweeping tariffs, and the justices will soon decide whether Mr. Trump can end the longstanding guarantee of birthright citizenship for the U.S.-born babies of illegal immigrants and certain foreign visitors.
Comments (1)
Of the 655,000 live births in Germany I wonder how many of those are from German citizens Vs the refugee/immigrant population?