World

The US National Archives has made millions of NSDAP (Nazi Party) membership cards available online, containing data on 6.6 million Germans who were members until 1945, stored on over 5,000 digitized microfilm reels. Historian Johannes Spohr notes that these sources have been accessible at the German Federal Archives since 1994, where more comprehensive information beyond mere membership can be obtained.

The US administration has lifted sanctions on Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, in the latest move towards normalizing relations between the two countries after US forces allegedly abducted her predecessor, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife. The couple were taken to New York following their abduction in January to face charges of purported drug trafficking, to which both have pleaded not guilty.

A diplomatic controversy has flared between US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron. During a private lunch in Washington, Trump allegedly mocked Macron and his wife Brigitte by imitating a French accent. The incident came to light through a video briefly posted on the White House YouTube channel before being removed, highlighting tensions within the NATO alliance.

A Lebanese-French artist has filed a legal complaint in a Paris court regarding an Israeli bombing of his family home in Beirut that killed his parents and a domestic worker, alleging the attack could constitute a war crime. The suit, submitted to France's war crimes unit on Tuesday, represents a rare instance of an individual pursuing war crimes charges for an Israeli bombing and marks the first time a French court has taken a case concerning Israel's bombing campaign in Lebanon.

The Taliban government in Afghanistan has released American academic researcher Dennis Coyle after holding him for over a year. The country's foreign ministry stated that the release was made on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan. Coyle was detained in January 2025, with Afghan authorities accusing him of violating laws but never specifying which ones, raising questions about the transparency of the judicial process.

At a fish market in the Libyan capital of Tripoli, stallholders shout to attract customers to trays piled high with popular frozen seafood such as octopus, squid, and shrimp. But that's not all on display. Some trays contain sharks with bellies still swollen with eggs. Among them are dozens of longnose spurdogs, known locally as "kalb al-bahr," which have clearly been caught mid-breeding season.

The four astronauts aboard the Artemis II mission have embarked on a historic journey around the Moon, marking a critical step in NASA's ambitious program to establish a long-term human presence on the lunar surface. The test flight lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, witnessed by tens of thousands of spectators, evoking memories of the Apollo missions from the 1960s and 1970s, and representing the first crewed flight toward the Moon since 1972.

The Hungarian investigative platform Direkt36 has reported that Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government allegedly used the country's intelligence service to spy on the opposition Tisza Party, aiming to obstruct its participation in upcoming parliamentary elections. This scandal, dubbed "Hungary's Watergate," has raised serious concerns about democratic integrity ahead of the April 12 vote.

Governments across Asia are intensifying their reliance on coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, in an attempt to cover massive energy shortfalls allegedly triggered by the US-Israel regime's war on Iran. This move has sparked warnings from climate experts who highlight coal's devastating environmental impact and argue that the energy crisis should serve as a wake-up call for governments to invest in renewables, which could provide a more stable supply less vulnerable to price shocks.

Dutch prosecutors in Assen have unveiled the recovered 2,500-year-old Coșofenești golden helmet and two of three golden bracelets, which were stolen from the Drents Museum in January last year. The artifacts were on loan from the Romanian National History Museum in Bucharest. The theft sparked international headlines, diplomatic tensions between Romania and the Netherlands, and a widespread treasure hunt.

The Costa Rican government has signed an agreement with the United States to accept up to 25 deported migrants per week, marking the latest move in the Trump administration's policy of deporting individuals to "third countries." Costa Rica's Minister of Public Security, Mario Zamora, stated in a video statement to The Guardian: "Costa Rica feels obligated to reciprocate at a time when the United States and its immigration services need the humanitarian cooperation of Costa Rican authorities." He emphasized: "With financial support from the United States, they will be provided with housing and food on Costa Rican soil. Costa Rican immigration authorities will collaborate with US immigration authorities to carry out all necessary immigration logistics to guarantee the return of these individuals to their countries."

The Australian government has imposed a temporary six-month ban on tourist visas for Iranian nationals. This decision comes amid waves of airstrikes by the US and Israel on Iran. Approximately 6,800 Iranians outside Australia with valid tourist visas are affected, although some may still be allowed entry under special consideration. The laws, which have enraged refugee and humanitarian advocates, are purportedly in response to the government's concerns that people travelling to Australia on temporary visas could seek to stay permanently due to the war in the Middle East.