Author: Daily Sabah With Reuters

Ukraine is ready to negotiate but not to surrender, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko said on Wednesday as details emerged in media reports of a U.S. proposal for a deal which would see Ukraine give up almost all territory currently occupied by Russia. “There will be no agreement that hands Russia the stronger foundations it needs to regroup and return with greater violence,” Svyrydenko wrote on X. “A full ceasefire – on land, in the air, and at sea – is the necessary first step,” she said, adding that if Moscow instead opted for a limited pause, Kyiv would…

Former champion Novak Djokovic is back at the Madrid Open for the first time in three years, chasing a historic milestone: his 100th tour-level title. Seeded No. 4, the 37-year-old Serbian star shares the same half of the draw as No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz, the Spanish favorite who returns to the Caja Mágica nursing fitness concerns after reaching back-to-back clay-court finals. Djokovic, a three-time Madrid champion, last competed in the Spanish capital in 2022, when he lost to Alcaraz in a thrilling semifinal — their first career meeting. Since capturing his 99th title at the Paris Olympics last August, Djokovic…

The Israeli military launched one of the biggest waves of strikes in Gaza for weeks on Tuesday, residents said, and health officials issued a new warning that healthcare faced total collapse from Israel’s blockade of all supplies. Gaza’s health ministry said a U.N.-backed polio vaccination campaign meant to target over 600,000 children had been suspended, putting the enclave at risk of the revival of a crippling disease that once had been all-but eradicated. In diplomacy to end the conflict, a Hamas delegation was expected to arrive in Cairo for talks. Two sources familiar with the mediation effort said the delegation…

Expert-level Iran-U.S. talks that were supposed to take place on Wednesday will be moved to Saturday, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Tuesday.

A federal jury in Manhattan on Tuesday found the New York Times not liable for allegedly defaming Sarah Palin in a 2017 editorial about gun control, dealing the former Republican U.S. vice presidential candidate a second loss at trial. The verdict came in a retrial of Palin’s case, after a federal appeals court threw out a 2022 verdict in the Times’ favor. Palin, 61, who also served as Alaska’s governor, sued the newspaper and former editorial page editor James Bennet over a June 14, 2017, article that wrongly suggested she may have incited a January 2011 mass shooting in an…

Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered to halt his invasion of Ukraine across the current front line as part of efforts to reach a peace deal with U.S. President Donald Trump, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday citing people familiar with the matter. Putin told Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy, during a meeting in St Petersburg earlier this month that Moscow could relinquish its claims to areas of four partly occupied Ukrainian regions that remain under Kyiv’s control, the report said citing three people familiar with the talks.

Harvard University sued President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday in an effort to halt the government’s pause of more than $2 billion in funding for the U.S. educational institution. “Over the course of the past week, the federal government has taken several actions following Harvard’s refusal to comply with its illegal demands,” Harvard President Alan Garber said in a statement. “Moments ago, we filed a lawsuit to halt the funding freeze because it is unlawful and beyond the government’s authority,” Garber said. Among the U.S. government agencies mentioned in Harvard’s lawsuit were the Education Department, the Health Department, the Justice…

Harvard University sued President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday in an effort to halt the government’s pause of more than $2 billion in funding for the U.S. educational institution. “Over the course of the past week, the federal government has taken several actions following Harvard’s refusal to comply with its illegal demands,” Harvard President Alan Garber said in a statement. “Moments ago, we filed a lawsuit to halt the funding freeze because it is unlawful and beyond the government’s authority,” Garber said. Among the U.S. government agencies mentioned in Harvard’s lawsuit were the Education Department, the Health Department, the Justice…

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Chinese citizens were working at a drone production site in Russia and suggested that Moscow may have “stolen” drone technology from China. The Ukrainian leader made the comment at a news conference in Kyiv days after he said China was supplying weapons and gunpowder to Russia, the first time he has accused Beijing of direct military aid to Moscow, something China staunchly denies. By suggesting Russia may have obtained drone technology from China without Beijing actually knowing, Zelensky appeared to be softening his tone towards China, which casts itself as neutral on the…

U.S. President Donald Trump said he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday about trade issues and Iran. “The call went very well—We are on the same side of every issue,” Trump wrote in a social media post.