World

From cryptocurrency-based online platforms to oil futures and the United States S&P 500 stock benchmark, traders have placed bets worth hundreds of millions of dollars since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran. These bets were suspiciously well-timed, suggesting potential knowledge of key White House decision-making, with researchers documenting numerous examples of anonymous accounts making accurate predictions just before critical events.

Authorities in Estonia and Latvia have reported drones entering their airspace from neighboring Russia, heightening concerns about regional spillover from the Ukraine war. Estonia's Internal Security Service stated on Wednesday that a drone flying from Russian airspace struck the chimney of a power station in the northeastern village of Auvere. The incident caused no casualties or injuries.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry has officially stated that there are no talks or negotiations with the United States, dismissing recent reports that the US allegedly conveyed a one-month ceasefire proposal to Tehran via Pakistan. Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei expressed distrust in US diplomacy, saying, “We cannot trust the United States diplomacy,” and cited past attacks during nuclear negotiations as evidence. This firm rejection comes as the US-Israel war with Iran enters its fourth week, with Iranian forces continuing missile strikes against targets in Israel and Kuwait, despite claims by the US and Israeli regimes that Iran’s missile stocks have been depleted.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has issued a stark warning about Israel's plans to occupy Lebanon, stating that Israel "seeks to inflict the same level of damage and destruction" on Lebanon as it has on the Gaza Strip. In an address to parliament, Sanchez emphasized that Israel's preparations to invade and control territory up to 30km inside Lebanon's southern border pose a serious threat to regional stability, highlighting the ongoing tensions in the Middle East.

In Berlin, four activists from the environmental group Greenpeace suspended themselves from a construction crane adjacent to the Chancellery early Wednesday morning, unfurling a 100-square-meter banner that read "Freedom instead of fossil fuel politics." The protest aimed to criticize the perceived shortcomings in the new climate protection program of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's government, which is slated for cabinet approval later in the day.

An aerial attack on a military base in Iraq’s western Anbar province has resulted in the deaths of seven fighters and injuries to 13 others, according to Iraq’s Ministry of Defence. The strikes on Wednesday targeted the military healthcare clinic at the base in Habbaniyah, with the ministry condemning the assault as “a heinous crime” that violated “all international laws and norms”.

The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) in the United States has reportedly agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) after 17 months of negotiations. The deal allegedly includes a salary cap increase, significantly higher minimum salaries, revenue sharing, and charter flights. Experts are calling it a seismic moment not just for basketball, but for the global architecture of women's professional sports, though its long-term sustainability remains uncertain amid broader economic challenges.

United States President Donald Trump has claimed that Washington is engaged in "productive" talks with Iran, but Iranian officials have publicly rejected these assertions, labeling them "fake news" designed to ease oil prices. Behind the scenes, Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan have established an indirect channel of communication between American and Iranian officials in recent days, according to two senior diplomatic sources in the region. Still, despite the small window for diplomacy that may have emerged, experts remain skeptical over the prospects for a ceasefire as the positions of the warring parties remain far apart.

In Gaza City's Remal market, Abdulrahman al-Awadi operates a mobile phone charging station from a small tarpaulin tent—a job born out of necessity during Israel's war on Gaza. The 25-year-old fine arts graduate from Al-Aqsa University never imagined he would end up charging phones for one or two shekels (about $0.30) each. Before the conflict, he worked in fine arts and graphic design, but now he struggles to secure a bare-minimum income in a collapsed economy.

Iran's armed forces spokesperson, Ebrahim Zolfaqari of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, dismissed claims by US President Donald Trump that talks are underway to end the conflict, asserting that the United States is failing in its war and negotiating with itself to save face. In comments carried by Iran's semi-official Fars news agency, Zolfaqari mocked US leadership, asking: "Has the level of your inner struggle reached the stage of you negotiating with yourself?" and adding, "Don't call your failure an agreement."

US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have allegedly stated that Iran's missile capability is 'destroyed' and 'degraded,' yet Iran persists in launching attacks against Israel and Gulf states. As the US-Israel conflict with Iran nears its fourth week, despite assertions from the US and Israeli regimes that missile stocks have been largely depleted, Iran continues to demonstrate at least some residual missile capacity. A White House social media post on March 14 purportedly claimed that 'Iran's ballistic missile capacity is functionally destroyed,' but 10 days later, Iran conducted several strikes, contradicting this narrative.

According to a new report by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) for 2026, the tuberculosis (TB) situation in the broad region covering Europe and Central Asia remains serious. A key issue is that one in five patients is still undiagnosed or unregistered, leading to uncontrolled spread of the infection in communities. In 2024, 161,569 TB cases were officially recorded in 51 countries of this region, but WHO estimates suggest the actual number of infected individuals is close to 204,000.