Author: Daily Sabah With Reuters

The United States is prepared to recognize Russian control of the Ukrainian region of Crimea as part of a broader peace agreement between Moscow and Kyiv, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The United States is prepared to recognize Russian control of the Ukrainian region of Crimea as part of a broader peace agreement between Moscow and Kyiv, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Israel has not ruled out an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities in the coming months despite President Donald Trump telling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the U.S. was for now unwilling to support such a move, according to an Israeli official and two other people familiar with the matter. Israeli officials have vowed to prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon and Netanyahu has insisted that any negotiation with Iran must lead to the complete dismantling of its nuclear program. U.S. and Iranian negotiators are set for a second round of preliminary nuclear talks in Rome on Saturday. Over…

Ukrainian air defence units were repelling an attack by Russian drones on Saturday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said, adding that Russian drones in Ukrainian skies showed Moscow’s true attitude to Easter and the lives of people. He posted his statement after Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a unilateral Easter ceasefire in Ukraine, ordering his forces to end hostilities at 6 p.m. Moscow time (1500 GMT) on Saturday until the end of Sunday.

Russia’s Defence Ministry accused Ukraine on Saturday of attacking Russian energy facilities 10 times over the past 24 hours. The U.S. brokered a 30-day moratorium in March between Ukraine and Russia against strikes on each other’s energy infrastructure. Both sides have repeatedly accused the other of violating it. On Friday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, when asked if the energy moratorium was over, said it had already been a month but that no orders from the president had been received to change Russia’s position.

At least 12 people were killed in an attack in Ecuador’s coastal province of Manabi, police said on Friday. The attack took place overnight at a cockfighting ring, a venue where people gather to watch rooster fights. Police said there were also injured individuals who were taken to the health centers, but did not specify how many. Investigation units are at the scene working to gather information and identify the perpetrators, police added.

At least 12 people were killed in an attack in Ecuador’s coastal province of Manabi, police said on Friday. The attack took place overnight at a cockfighting ring, a venue where people gather to watch rooster fights. Police said there were also injured individuals who were taken to the health centers, but did not specify how many. Investigation units are at the scene working to gather information and identify the perpetrators, police added.

Russian troops recaptured the village of Oleshnya in Russia’s western Kursk region from Ukrainian forces, the RIA state news agency cited the Russian defence ministry as saying on Saturday. Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield report. Russia has been fighting to eject Ukrainian troops from Kursk since Kyiv sent its forces across the border in a lightning incursion in August 2024.

White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Friday that President Donald Trump and his team were studying the matter when asked if firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell was an option. “The president and his team will continue to study that matter,” Hassett told reporters at the White House in response to a question. Hassett’s exchange with the press came a day after Trump ramped up a long-simmering feud with the Fed chair, accusing Powell of “playing politics” by not cutting interest rates and asserting he had the power to evict Powell from his job “real fast.” Hassett appeared…

The Kremlin said on Friday that some progress had already been made in talks about a possible peace settlement to end the war in Ukraine but that contacts were rather complicated with the United States. “Contacts are quite complicated, because, naturally, the topic is not an easy one,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “Russia is committed to resolving this conflict, ensuring its own interests, and is open to dialogue. We continue to do this.” U.S. President Donald Trump will walk away from trying to broker a Russia-Ukraine peace deal within days unless there are clear signs that a deal…