International Glance
Israeli forces blocked two senior Catholic leaders from reaching the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in occupied East Jerusalem to celebrate Palm Sunday Mass.
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Custody of the Holy Land said Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch, and Father Francesco Ielpo, custos of the Holy Land, were stopped en route to the church.
The leaders had attempted to enter privately without any ceremonial procession or public gathering, but were refused access.
The church bodies said this was the first time in centuries that the heads of the Catholic Church had been prevented from celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at the Holy Sepulchre.
“This incident is a grave precedent, and disregards the sensibilities of billions of people around the world who, during this week, look to Jerusalem,” they said.
Israel blocks top Catholic leaders from Palm Sunday Mass at Holy Sepulchre
‘Smarter, More Advanced, More Modern’ – Inside Ukraine’s Drone War
Drones are no longer just shaping the war in Ukraine – they are defining it. What began as an improvised response to a lack of manpower has evolved into a technological arms race, shaping not only how battles are fought but where they reach.
Ukrainian forces, driven by innovation and necessity, have managed not only to hold the front line but to strike far beyond it – targeting military infrastructure, ammunition depots, drone production sites and even oil refineries deep inside Russian-held territory.
At the center of this transformation are specialized units like Typhoon, a special-purpose unmanned systems unit of Ukraine’s National Guard, established in 2024. Operating across key directions such as Kharkiv and Pokrovsk, the unit focuses exclusively on drone warfare and electronic systems, from reconnaissance and strike UAVs to electronic warfare and interception.
Built largely by volunteers and veterans of special forces units, Typhoon combines technical expertise with battlefield experience, constantly adapting to a rapidly evolving war.
‘Policing thought’: French bill to fight antisemitism accused of silencing Israel critics
A bill "aimed at combating renewed forms of antisemitism", which is due to be debated on by parliament next month, has sparked a heated controversy in France in recent weeks.
Many organisations and parts of the political left suspect the proposed legislation of exploiting the fight against antisemitism to censor and criminalise criticism of the Israeli government.
The bill was introduced in November 2024 by Caroline Yadan, an MP representing French citizens living abroad in a constituency including Israel and Palestine, who left President Emmanuel Macron's Renaissance parliamentary group last summer to protest against his recognition of the State of Palestine.
Yadan, who is also vice-president of the France-Israel friendship group in the National Assembly, has also criticised the French president for calling in 2024 for a halt to arms deliveries to Israel.
Officially, the proposed law aims to address the “resurgence” of antisemitic acts in France since 7 October 2023 and the development of “an obsessive hatred toward the state of Israel”.
Ukraine Seals Defense Deal With Saudi Arabia as Zelensky Lands in Surprise Visit
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine and Saudi Arabia have reached an important agreement on defense cooperation during his surprise visit to the kingdom.
In a Telegram post, Zelensky said the document was signed ahead of his meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
He added that the agreement lays the foundation for further contracts, technological cooperation, and investment, while strengthening Ukraine’s international role as a security donor.
Zelensky highlighted that Ukraine is ready to share its expertise and defense systems with Saudi Arabia and cooperate to strengthen the protection of lives.
“For the fifth year now, Ukrainians have been fighting against the same terrorist attacks with ballistic missiles and drones that the Iranian regime is currently carrying out in the Middle East and the Gulf region. And Saudi Arabia has what Ukraine is interested in. This cooperation can be mutually beneficial,” he said.
UK judge orders home secretary to explain opposition to Hamas de-proscription appeal
A British judge has ordered the UK home secretary to “get on with” explaining her opposition to Hamas's appeal to be removed from the list of proscribed terrorist organisations.
Hamas, currently proscribed in the UK, is appealing against this designation before the Proscribed Organisations Appeal Commission (POAC), an independent tribunal.
Last April, Mousa Abu Marzouk, the head of Hamas’s foreign relations office, instructed British lawyers to appeal against the UK’s 2021 decision by former Home Secretary Priti Patel to designate the movement as a terrorist organisation.
Four months later, in August 2025, Hamas lodged a second appeal to POAC after former UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper rejected the group’s request to be taken off the list of banned groups.
During Thursday’s proceedings, Justice Jonathan Swift, the chair of POAC, told government lawyers to respond to Hamas's appeal and to “clearly explain any reasons for delay” by 20 May.
US votes against UN resolution labeling slavery ‘gravest crime against humanity’
The U.S., Israel and Argentina on Wednesday voted against a United Nations resolution led by Ghana to label the international slave trade as the “gravest crime against humanity” and call for reparations.
The resolution received 123 votes from the U.N. General Assembly in favor and 52 countries abstained, including all 27 European Union members, the United Kingdom, Australia, Oman and Japan.
The resolution also focused on the need to address historic wrongs toward Africans and people of the diaspora, and it placed emphasis on claims for reparations.
Diplomats cheered and some danced over the resolution’s adoption.
Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Dan Negrea called the resolution’s text “highly problematic in countless respects.” Negrea said in a statement that the U.S. “does not recognize a legal right to reparations for historical wrongs that were not illegal under international law at the time they occurred.”
IOC bans transgender women athletes beginning with LA Games in 2028
Transgender women are banned from competing at the Olympics, beginning with the Los Angeles Summer Games in 2028.
International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry announced the change Thursday, March 26, reversing its 2004 decision to allow the participation of transgender athletes. To date, only one openly transgender woman has competed at the Olympics in 2021, a weightlifter from New Zealand who did not make it past her opening round of competition at the Tokyo Games.
Women who want to compete at the Olympics will have to do a one-time genetic test.
The IOC began examining the issue of transgender participation in September 2024 after several sport federations, including World Athletics and World Aquatics, took steps to limit or ban transgender athletes. A year later, Coventry announced the creation of a working group that looked at "scientific, medical and legal developments since 2021."
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- Lebanon: Israeli strike kills Maronite priest
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