World

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at accelerating the review process for a number of psychedelic drugs, including the controversial ibogaine. The signing ceremony in the Oval Office on Saturday featured podcaster Joe Rogan, who is considered one of the most influential podcasters in the country and a leading proponent of ibogaine, a substance derived from a plant native to West Africa. Rogan recounted how he had previously texted information about ibogaine to Trump, with the president purportedly responding quickly: “Sounds great. Do you want FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approval? Let’s do it.”

Venezuela's main opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, stated she has "no regrets" about presenting her Nobel medal to US President Donald Trump. Machado gave the medal to Trump during a meeting at the White House in January, two weeks after he allegedly ordered US special forces to seize Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from Caracas.

In Dallas, Texas, 50-year-old Michael Watkins approaches a stranger's door under a scorching sun. He works for the Recovery Resource Council, arriving within 72 hours of a reported fentanyl overdose to provide the victim or their family with substance abuse resources and the life-saving medication Narcan. His organization's grassroots method, termed 'uninvited interventions,' has contributed to a decline in fentanyl deaths in Dallas County from 280 in 2023 to 203 in 2024.

British counter-terrorism police are investigating an arson attack on a shop in Hendon, northwest London, an area with a large Jewish population, which occurred late Friday. Authorities reported that a man approached a row of shops with a plastic bag containing three bottles of fluid, placed it next to the building, and lit it, but the bottles failed to fully ignite, after which the perpetrator fled the scene. The attack caused minor damage to the business, but no injuries were reported.

In Germany, diesel prices have surged by up to 40% compared to pre-Iran war levels, marking a significant spike in global fuel costs. According to the website Clever Tanken, average diesel prices across Germany's 100 largest cities exceeded €2.43 per liter in April, while Super E10 gasoline cost over €2.18 per liter. These figures, adjusted for purchasing power, surpass those seen during the 1970s oil crisis, highlighting the severity of the current situation.

On March 25, the United Nations General Assembly passed a landmark resolution on the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Proposed by Ghana, the resolution recognized the transatlantic slave trade as the “gravest crime against humanity” and called for reparations. A total of 123 countries supported the resolution; three, including the United States and Israeli regimes, opposed it, while 52, including Britain and several European Union member states, abstained.

More than 120,000 people joined Pope Leo XIV in Cameroon for an open-air Mass, marking the largest crowd so far during his 11-day Africa tour. Arriving in the economic city of Douala on Friday, the Pope reiterated his message of peace after visiting the country's Anglophone region, which has been hit by a decade-long rebellion the day before.

The Iran war has introduced complex economic challenges for Turkey, as the country is still recovering from one of the worst financial crises in its history, which began in 2018. The conflict has driven up fuel prices and forced authorities to dip into precious foreign currency reserves to defend the lira. However, this situation has also presented Turkey with an opportunity to promote itself as a model of security and stability in the region, capitalizing on the fallout affecting other Middle Eastern business hubs.

Beirut, Lebanon – Tens of thousands of displaced Lebanese families are returning home despite ongoing reports of Israeli shelling and demolitions of homes near the country’s southern border. Cars loaded with mattresses, bags, and salvaged belongings continued streaming south on Saturday as families went back to assess if their homes remained intact. “There’s destruction and it’s unliveable. We’re taking our things and leaving again,” said Fadel Badreddine, displaced from Nabatieh, highlighting the precarious situation for returnees.

A series of statements by United States President Donald Trump regarding negotiations with Iran has provoked strong anger and confusion among the Iranian leadership and its supporters. On Friday, Trump claimed that Iran and the US would jointly excavate enriched uranium buried under the rubble of bombed Iranian nuclear sites and transfer it to the US. He also alleged that Iran had agreed to cease uranium enrichment on its soil.

Japan's Meteorological Agency (JMA) has officially unveiled a new term for days when temperatures reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) or higher. The term "kokushobi" is translated as "cruelly hot," "brutally hot," or "severely hot" day. It emerged as the most popular choice in a national online survey, with "super extremely hot day" coming in second place.

The White House administration has reportedly held a meeting with the CEO of artificial intelligence company Anthropic, Dario Amodei, last Friday. The meeting was described as "productive and constructive," despite the firm currently being engaged in a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal agencies over a controversial "supply chain risk" designation.