Despite Iran’s announcement of a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the United States says the strategic waterway remains open to shipping. As military tensions persist, Washington and Tehran appear to be moving closer to a potential agreement that could ease a growing regional crisis.

Lebanon's death toll from months of Israeli attacks has climbed to 3,666, with more than 11,300 wounded, as fresh airstrikes and drone attacks killed at least a dozen people in the south. The renewed violence comes despite a ceasefire agreement reached earlier this month.

Hundreds of anti-migrant protesters marched through a township outside Johannesburg on Monday, one day after South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa attempted to quell rising tensions in a televised address.

Iran and Israel have announced a pause in their military operations against each other following a rapid escalation of hostilities over Sunday and Monday.

The world experienced more state-based conflicts in 2025 than at any time since the end of World War II, according to a new Norwegian study. Researchers also reported a dramatic rise in attacks against civilians, making last year one of the deadliest in decades.

Ethiopia heads to the polls with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed widely expected to win amid low-key campaigning, opposition weakness, and ongoing security tensions.

Burkina Faso’s military junta has closed the capital’s main Sunni mosque after nearly 100 supporters of a detained preacher were arrested following protests, deepening concerns over growing repression under the country’s military rulers.

Eighty-year-old Laurent Gbagbo was re-elected as leader of the PPA-CI party at its congress this week.

Cape Verdeans headed to the polls on Sunday in legislative elections marked by uncertainty, with five parties competing and Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva seeking a rare third term in a country long praised for its political stability.

Felicien Kabuga, once among Rwanda’s richest businessmen and later accused of helping finance the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, has died in detention while awaiting further legal proceedings before a UN-backed tribunal in The Hague.