A US watchdog warned that aid to Afghanistan may be funding the Taliban,the US Central Command conducted a raid in northwest Syria that reportedly killed an Islamic State leader,a US warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait following China's recent drills,and North Korea's Kim Jong Un ordered the launch of the nation's first spy satellite.Meanwhile, amid ongoing fighting in Sudan,the two warring sides failed to abide by two separate ceasefires on Tuesdayand Friday,as reports emerged that the UAE is arming the opposition with thermobaric bombs.

Moscow's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov traveled to Brazil on Monday,as footage released on Tuesday showed Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin visiting troops in Kherson and Luhansk.NATO Sec. General Jens Stoltenberg made his first visit to Kyiv since the conflict started on Thursday, where he met with Ukrainian Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy.Following his trip, the NATO representative announced that all alliance members were prepared to welcome Ukraine's candidacy - a claim challenged by Hungary.On Tuesday, the US Dept. of Justice charged four Americans and three Russians for allegedly working with Moscow's Federal Security Service to conduct a "malign influence campaign,"while a report published on Friday speculated that the Air National Guardsman accused of leaking classified US intel may have begun disseminating documents just days after the war started.Meanwhile, a Russian warplane accidentally bombed its own city of Belgorod on Thursday night, damaging several cars and apartment buildings.

US Pres. Joe Biden hosted his Colombian counterpart Gustavo Petro,Palestinian Pres. Mahmoud Abbas met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman,Cuba's Pres. Miguela Díaz-Canel was ratified for a second term,the UK's Dominic Raab resigned as deputy prime minister,and Germany's former Chancellor Angela Merkel was gifted the nation's highest honor.Meanwhile, Mexican Pres. Andrés Manuel López Obrador accused the Pentagon of spying,Seagate Technology Holdings was fined $300M for shipping drives to China's Huawei,the UK warned Beijing against intimidating foreign nationals on British territory,and two New York residents were arrested over an alleged secret Chinese police outpost.In other news, UK PM Rishi Sunak faced an investigation over his wife's childcare firm,India's opposition leader Rahul Gandhi's plea for a stay on his recent defamation conviction was rejected,Tunisian police detained the nation's opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi,and protests were held in Sri Lanka to demand justice for the 2019 Easter bombings.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. officially launched his bid for the 2024 presidential election,Conservative radio host Larry Elder announced his presidential campaign,and a Wall Street Journal poll found that former Pres. Donald Trump is leading Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis,as the Trump campaign has so far raised $34M.Meanwhile, Biden signed an executive order to expand childcare access,McCarthy called for a 1% federal spending cap as a condition to raise the debt ceiling,as a bipartisan House group unveiled an alternative plan to avoid a default,an anonymous Internal Revenue Service agent alleged that the Hunter Biden probe is being mishandled,and the GOP opposed efforts to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

The manslaughter charges against actor Alec Baldwin were dropped,a suspect in the shooting of 16-year-old Raph Yarl surrendered and was released on bond,the alleged upstate New York shooter of 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis was charged with murder,eight US officers were found legally justified in the shooting of Jayland Walker,and 10 family members were killed in a shooting in South Africa.Meanwhile, Canadian police announced a probe into a $15M heist at Toronto's Pearson Airport,a Canadian professor was convicted in the 1980 Paris synagogue bombing,and Air France and Airbus were acquitted over a 2009 crash of a flight traveling from Brazil to Paris.

The UN prepared to exit Afghanistan over a local female staff ban,Amnesty International alleged Nicaragua is consistently engaging in human rights violations,a report claimed that Chinese surveillance giant Hikvision was aware its contracts targeted Uyghurs,Myanmar pardoned 3K prisoners to celebrate the Buddhist new year,and the UK police was criticized over the arrest of a French publisher.Meanwhile, SCOTUS temporarily upheld access to the abortion pill mifepristone,Florida expanded its so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill to all grade levels,the US House passed a federal ban on transgender athletes from women's sports,India's top court heard pleas to legalize LGBTQ+ marriages,and Uganda's president returned a strick LGBTQ+ bill to parliament for amendments.

The UN forecast that India is set to become the world's most populous country by mid-year,China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported that the nation's economy grew by 4.5% in Q1,nurses in the UK rejected the government's pay offer and planned further strikes,and over 155K federal workers in Canada launched strikes over stalled wage negotiations.

Buzzfeed announced plans to close its news division and cut 15% of staff,Netflix announced its rollout of limits on password sharing in the US,DeSantis nullified a Disney deal that avoided state oversight,and Twitter started removing blue ticks from verified users who didn't purchase its paid subscription,and, after the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation joined a growing list of networks to pause its use of Twitter over its funding label,the company dropped its "state-affiliated" and "government-funded" labels.Meanwhile, Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems reached a $787.5M settlement,and a US jury cleared Tesla in an autopilot crash lawsuit.

Scientists discovered why hair turns gray,a viral artificial intelligence (AI) song replicating the voices of Drake and The Weeknd was pulled,and F1 champion Michael Schumacher’s family said they would take legal action over a fake AI-generated interview.

A US Senate report alleged China began working on a COVID vaccine before the virus's official outbreak,the UN children's agency reported a drop in childhood vaccinations due to COVID,the World Health Organization officially launched an mRNA tech hub in South Africa,and a study predicted that a male contraceptive pill could be available within five years.

A report found that a record 64M Americans face daily spikes in deadly particle pollution,climate scientists warned that the expected arrival of El Niño could bring record temperatures in 2023,and New Zealand canceled a child cat-killing contest amid public outcry.

Eight healthcare workers are set to stand trial over the death of soccer legend Diego Maradona,and the Italian Olympic Committee overturned soccer team Juventus' 15-point deduction.

A stampede at a Ramadan event in Yemen killed dozens,a fire at a private hospital in Beijing killed at least 29,and a New York parking garage collapsed, killing one and injuring several.

SpaceX's Starship rocket exploded minutes into its first test flight.