Bad optics? Israel jails soldiers who smashed Jesus statue in Lebanon – Al Jazeera

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  1. Bad optics? Israel jails soldiers who smashed Jesus statue in Lebanon  Al Jazeera
  2. Israeli Soldiers Sentenced to Jail for Damaging Jesus Statue in Lebanon  The New York Times
  3. Israeli soldier's desecration of crucifix in south Lebanon draws condemnation  Reuters
  4. Israeli soldiers punished over vandalism of Jesus statue in Lebanon  BBC
  5. 2 troops dismissed, jailed for smashing statue of Jesus in southern Lebanon  The Times of Israel
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Pope Leo’s trip targets major obstacle to Catholicism’s spread in Africa: Sorcery – National Catholic Reporter

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  1. Pope Leo's trip targets major obstacle to Catholicism's spread in Africa: Sorcery  National Catholic Reporter
  2. Many African Catholics have greeted Leo’s first visit with joy. Others fear he’s lent legitimacy to strongman leaders  CNN
  3. Sudanese priest in Angola: Sudan in need of Pope’s message for peace  Vatican News
  4. Christ is not ‘a guru or a good luck charm,’ pope says at Mass in Angola  EWTN News
  5. In Angola, love for an American pope but not for an American president  The Washington Post
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Some who fled abuses in Equatorial Guinea fear pope’s visit might legitimize longtime ruler – AP News

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  1. Some who fled abuses in Equatorial Guinea fear pope’s visit might legitimize longtime ruler  AP News
  2. Pope: Africa will enrich my life and ministry as Successor of Peter  Vatican News
  3. Pope’s last day in Equatorial Guinea a tale of tensions  Crux
  4. Pope Leo criticises Equatorial Guinea prisons as he winds up Africa tour  BBC
  5. Pope urges US and Iran to return to peace talks, condemns capital punishment  AP News
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US criticizes China’s pressure on African countries to block Taiwan president’s trip – Reuters

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  1. US criticizes China's pressure on African countries to block Taiwan president's trip  Reuters
  2. Lai Ching-te: Taiwan president cancels trip after African countries revoke flight permits  BBC
  3. Taiwan president blames China for forced cancellation of Eswatini trip  The Guardian
  4. China Lauds Flight Block of Taiwan Leader in Bid to Isolate Lai  Bloomberg.com
  5. The Ugly Side of Eswatini-Taiwan Relations  The Diplomat – Asia-Pacific
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Tourist charged with damaging historic Florentine fountain in pre-wedding prank

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Police catch woman, 28, climbing colossal 16th-century statue of Neptune to touch its genitals as a dare

A tourist has been charged after allegedly climbing a colossal marble statue in Florence to touch its genitals for a pre-wedding prank.

Experts said the woman caused thousands of euros of damage to the Neptune fountain in Piazza della Signoria.

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A 42bn-euro dilemma: What is stopping EU from holding Israel to account? – Al Jazeera

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  1. A 42bn-euro dilemma: What is stopping EU from holding Israel to account?  Al Jazeera
  2. EU divided on suspension of Israel pact as Spain pushes for action  Reuters
  3. EU foreign ministers reject proposal to suspend association agreement with Israel  The Guardian
  4. Suspend EU-Israel Trade Agreement  Amnesty International
  5. Spain Renews Push to Punish Israel After Orban’s Loss  Bloomberg.com
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‘Impossible’ to reopen strait of Hormuz amid ‘flagrant’ ceasefire breaches, Iran says

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Iranian forces seize two ships in critical waterway as Washington and Tehran maintain separate blockades

Iranian forces have seized two ships in the strait of Hormuz as the US and Iran doubled down on imposing separate blockades of the shipping waterway.

The standoff over the strait – through which about 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied fossil gas passed through during peacetime – has raised doubts about whether stalled peace negotiations will resume.

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Labour MP calls for Starmer’s resignation to end ‘psychodrama’ – UK politics live

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Jonathan Brash says ‘own goals’ are distracting from Labour’s achievements

UK inflation accelerated to 3.3% in March after the Iran war triggered the biggest jump in fuel prices for more than three years, Richard Partington reports.

Today the Liberal Democrats staged a photocall to publicise their line about this being “Trumpflation”. Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dem deputy leader and Treasury spokesperson, said:

People across our country have been struggling for years with a devastating cost-of-living crisis and Donald Trump’s idiotic war in Iran has added to it. The cost of fuel is soaring, mortgage rates are rising and fixed energy deals are already going up by hundreds of pounds.

But what is utterly inexcusable is that there are politicians in this country - Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch - who are happy to cheerlead Donald Trump as he hikes people’s bills. All the while this Labour government promised to fix the country but instead we’ve got political Groundhog Day: yet more sleaze and scandal.

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White House close to deal of up to $500m to rescue ailing Spirit Airlines

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Rising costs have continued to plague the company, now facing soaring fuel costs due to the war with Iran

The White House is finalizing a financing package to help ailing US budget carrier Spirit Airlines, which could receive as much as $500m in loans as rising costs continue to plague the company.

News of the potential deal comes as Spirit and others struggle with soaring fuel costs due to the war with Iran.

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