Top World News

Feb 25, 2026 - World

Tommy Schaefer released early from sentence for murder of Sheila von Wiese-Mack and will face US federal chargesIndonesia has freed and deported a US man after he spent 11 years in prison for the premeditated murder of his then girlfriend’s mother on the tourist island of Bali, and he will now faces federal charges in the US.Tommy Schaefer was sentenced to 18 years in prison in Bali for the 2014 murder of Sheila von Wiese-Mack, the mother of Heather Mack, during a luxury holiday, in a case that became known as the Bali suitcase murder. Prosecutors allege the couple were trying to gain access to a $1.5m (£1.1m) trust fund. Continue reading...

Feb 25, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump spoke for more than 90 minutes Tuesday night during his first State of the Union speech of his second presidential term — breaking records for the longest address in history. Trump's SOTU speech was reportedly the longest since at least 1964 and broke the previous record for President Bill Clinton's 2000 address, CNN reported. The president spoke on many topics throughout the evening at the House Chambers, touting his first year in office. He gave multiple awards to guests in the audience and spoke at great length just days after his tariffs were struck down by the Supreme Court. Trump also made mention of the potential US military action against Iran amid growing tensions and upcoming negotiations.

Feb 25, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump has long been posturing toward military action in Iran — but one of his top generals pumped the brakes on the whole thing, enraging him, Slate reported on Tuesday."The military warning — first reported in the Washington Post, then confirmed in the New York Times — must be particularly rankling," wrote Fred Kaplan. "According to the reports, in a recent White House meeting with many top officials present, Gen. Dan Caine — whom Trump selected, and has since highly lauded, as chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff — said that a shortage of munitions and the absence of any allies would make a prolonged war with Iran very difficult.""It is unusual for Trump’s advisers to dampen his fantasies of easy wins, and it is less common still for high-level discussions of military plans to be leaked," the report continued. "The fact that Caine confronted Trump on this plan, and that someone spilled this to the public, suggests a growing concern among some inside players that the president’s increasingly casual adventurism could engulf the armed forces, the region, and the nation in danger."Trump, for his part, has said that Caine “has not spoken of not doing Iran” in response to the article — but, Kaplan notes, the original reports never actually said Caine told Trump not to attack Iran, but simply explained why it would be extremely difficult.Caine, for his part, did oversee the Trump administration's strike on Iran's nuclear facilities last year, which, while controversial, did not come at a great cost to the United States.However, said the report, "Operation Midnight Hammer, as the attack was known, was a speedy one-off venture where three B-2 bombers dropped bunker-busting bombs, watched them hit their targets, and sped back home, the end ... A larger attack on Iran — whether to wipe out more of its nuclear infrastructure, destroy its ballistic-missile fleet, or overthrow the regime — would be a much more elaborate, time-consuming business."

Feb 25, 2026 - World

Secretary of State Marco Rubio held an unusual briefing on Tuesday that raised concerns among intel lawmakers over whether the U.S. may launch military attacks on Iran. Rubio's private meeting was held virtually just hours before President Donald Trump's State of the Union address and included both Senate and House lawmakers, including high-ranking members of the House and Senate Intelligence Committees, Politico reported. The move has raised questions over the Trump administration's decision to take military action in the Middle East. Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) expressed alarm over Rubio's comments. "Rep. Jim Himes, top Intel Committee Dem, on Trump and Iran: 'I'm very concerned. Wars in the Middle East don't go well for presidents, for the country, and we have not heard articulated a single good reason for why now is the moment to launch yet another war in the Middle East,'" Sahil Kapur, senior national political reporter for NBC News, wrote on X.House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) shared his apprehension about Trump's previous statements on Iran and what could happen next. Last year Trump had claimed that U.S. military strikes in Iran had dismantled the country's nuclear program. "What happened to Iran's nuclear program being 'completely and totally obliterated'?... Donald Trump's words, not our words. Clearly he was lying to the American people or he's lying right now," Jeffries said in an interview with reporters that was shared by journalist Aaron Rupar on X.

Feb 24, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump hosted the US men's Olympic hockey team in the Oval Office on Tuesday, joking that he would take one of the players' gold medals. Trump has taken other people's awards in the past, including the Nobel Peace Prize, which was presented by Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado. He teased the Olympic gold medalists visiting the White House that he would put on one of the medals. "Absolutely, I'll put it on. I'm not giving it back," Trump joked to winger Matthew Tkachuk. Trump and the men's hockey team have come under fire after comments made following the men's hockey team's win, which came after the US Women's hockey team secured their own gold medals at the Winter Olympics in Milan. Following the men's team victory, the president lamented during a phone call with the team about having to invite the women's team to the White House, which also won gold at the Olympics."And we have to — I must tell you — we're going to have to bring the women's team," Trump told the men's hockey team during a phone call. "[If I don't] do that, I do believe I probably would be impeached, OK?"The women's team later rejected the president's invitation. Trump putting on Gold Medal: Absolutely, I'll put it on. I'm not giving it back. pic.twitter.com/hIumVxFyxy— Acyn (@Acyn) February 24, 2026