A drug-related standoff between Venezuela and the United States further escalated Saturday as U.S. Vice President JD Vance defended a strike on a suspected drug-trafficking speedboat that killed 11 people in the southern Caribbean.
Ukraine’s president has vowed to continue retaliating against Russian attacks on his country’s energy facilities and civilian sites, despite criticism from neighbors Slovakia and Hungary. Volodymyr Zelenskyy made the remarks after meeting Slovakia’s prime minister in the Ukrainian border city of Uzhhorod.
President Donald J. Trump on Friday revived the historic title “Department of War” for the U.S. Defense Department as his administration claimed credit for freeing dozens of American hostages and pressed for the release of others still held in Gaza and Belarus.
Europe faced fresh anxiety Friday after the White House confirmed the United States will end support for a program that helped prepare Eastern European armies to counter potential Russian aggression.
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Friday that any foreign troops sent to Ukraine would be “legitimate targets for destruction” by Russia’s military. His comments came a day after European leaders met in Paris to discuss possible future security guarantees for Ukraine.
Afghan families are forced to make impossible choices after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan, devastating the mountainous Kunar province, where entire villages collapsed.
Leaders from 26 nations have pledged to commit troops to Ukraine as part of “post-war security guarantees,” despite mounting concern that such a move could pave the way for a return to conscription and compel young people to serve in volatile territories. The initiative, spearheaded by French President Emmanuel Macron through the “Coalition of the Willing,” was discussed at a summit in Paris and envisions deployment of a “reassurance force” once fighting subsides.
Nearly 30 Christians in China’s Hubei province are on trial after being accused of organizing and using an “evil cult to undermine law enforcement,” charges rights advocates say are part of ongoing persecution of believers in the Communist-run nation.
Portugal declared a national day of mourning Thursday after at least 17 people were killed and 21 others injured when the Glória funicular in central Lisbon derailed and slammed into a building, raising questions about maintenance.
The District of Columbia has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, challenging the president’s decision to deploy National Guard troops to the nation’s capital as part of a federal crackdown on crime.