The US and Israel have launched extensive military strikes on Iran for eight days, targeting military infrastructure and regime facilities, but President Trump has offered conflicting explanations for war objectives—from regime change to unconditional surrender demands that Iran has rejected. The campaign has killed at least 175 people in an airstrike on an Iranian school, expanded to strike Gulf states including Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, and created regional instability with attacks on US embassy facilities in Baghdad and unclear escalation risks.

2. TRUMP CONVENES 'SHIELD OF THE AMERICAS' SUMMIT TO COUNTER CHINA AND COUNTER CARTELS

President Trump assembled leaders from a dozen Latin American and Caribbean nations at his Miami golf club to establish a regional coalition focused on countering Chinese economic and political influence and combating drug trafficking organizations. The summit excluded major regional powers Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, and Trump made threats toward Cuba while praising Venezuela's cooperation, signaling a shift in Western Hemisphere diplomacy.

3. NEPAL'S GEN Z-BACKED RAPPER-POLITICIAN BALENDRA SHAH WINS LANDSLIDE ELECTION

Balendra Shah, a former rap artist and Kathmandu mayor, is on course to become Nepal's next prime minister in a landslide victory following Thursday's general election—the first since youth-led protests toppled the previous government in September 2025. Shah's election represents a generational and reformist shift in Himalayan politics, with his party heading toward a major parliamentary majority.

4. UK FACES GROWING PRESSURE TO WITHDRAW CYPRUS MILITARY BASES AS IRAN CONFLICT ESCALATES

Local Cypriot protesters are escalating calls for the UK to withdraw its military bases from the island following an Iranian drone strike on a British air facility, with Cyprus's foreign minister warning that facilities are now seen as security threats. The incident has intensified debates over Britain's role in the US-Israel war on Iran and exposed vulnerability of UK overseas military infrastructure.

5. FEDERAL JUDGE VOIDS VOICE OF AMERICA MASS LAYOFFS, REJECTING KARI LAKE'S APPOINTMENT

A federal judge ruled that Kari Lake's appointment to oversee the parent agency of Voice of America was invalid, voiding the mass layoffs she had ordered at the government-funded news organization. The decision represents a significant legal rejection of the Trump administration's attempts to dismantle the international broadcaster.

★ BONUS: When DOGE Unleashed ChatGPT on the Humanities (New York Times)

📅 March 2026 archive →

Generated Saturday, March 7, 2026 at 10:18 PM PT