International stories with Namibia and SADC relevance.
A shooting incident occurred at the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday; President Trump confirmed the shooter has been apprehended and that Trump, the First Lady, Vice President, and Cabinet members are safe. The dinner will be rescheduled within 30 days.
12 min ago · Capital News →
A shooting incident occurred at the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday; President Trump confirmed the shooter has been apprehended and that Trump, the First Lady, Vice President, and Cabinet members are safe. The dinner will be rescheduled within 30 days.
12 min ago · Capital News →
Germany will send the minesweeper "Fulda" to the Mediterranean in the coming days for a possible mission to secure the Strait of Hormuz after the US-Iran war ends, pending parliamentary approval and lasting cessation of hostilities. The deployment aims to contribute to an international coalition protecting freedom of navigation in the strait, through which about one-fifth of global oil shipments usually pass.
2 hours ago · Citizen Digital →
Russian strikes across Ukraine killed at least six people Saturday, mostly in attacks on residential buildings in the eastern city of Dnipro, as Ukraine's President Zelensky urged stronger European action and more sanctions against Russia.
3 hours ago · Citizen Digital →
French President Emmanuel Macron said his goal is to achieve a full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz in coming days and weeks, guaranteeing freedom of navigation without tolls, a day after TotalEnergies CEO warned of global energy shortages if the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran continues for months. Movement through the strait, which normally carries about a fifth of the globe's oil and gas supply, has been choked due to Iranian seizures of container ships and U.S. blockades on Iranian ports.
4 hours ago · Citizen Digital →
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman apologized to the Canadian community of Tumbler Ridge for failing to report a banned ChatGPT account linked to Jesse Van Rootselaar, who police say killed eight people in a school in February before taking her own life. The account had been banned in June for policy violations that Altman said did not meet OpenAI's internal criteria for reporting to law enforcement.
6 hours ago · Citizen Digital →
Insurgents staged simultaneous complex attacks across Mali on Saturday, hitting the military base in Kati near Bamako and cities further north including Mopti, Gao, and Kidal, with the airport shut and the U.S. embassy urging citizens to shelter in place. Security sources attributed the assault to al Qaeda affiliate JNIM and the Tuareg-led FLA, marking what analysts describe as the biggest coordinated attack in years against the military-led government.
7 hours ago · Citizen Digital →
Iran said it hanged an Iranian working for Israeli intelligence on Saturday for vandalism and violence during nationwide protests this year, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency. The man was accused of destruction, arson, and spreading fear across Isfahan.
8 hours ago · Citizen Digital →
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said on Friday that a U.S. blockade on Iran is "going global," with no ships able to sail from the Strait of Hormuz without U.S. Navy permission. He added that Iran has an opportunity to negotiate and abandon its nuclear programme, while 34 ships had been turned around as of Friday morning.
19 hours ago · Citizen Digital →
US negotiators including Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are scheduled to travel to Pakistan on Saturday to meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, but Iran's foreign ministry said its officials do not plan to meet with US representatives, with Tehran's concerns instead to be conveyed through mediator Pakistan. The talks aim to address a conflict now in its ninth week that has seen Iran close the Strait of Hormuz and the US block Iranian oil exports, driving energy prices to multi-year highs.
21 hours ago · Citizen Digital →
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi was expected to visit Islamabad to discuss proposals for restarting peace talks with the United States, with Pakistan acting as mediator to convey Iran's proposals to Washington. The visit comes after earlier talks between the two countries collapsed, with the Strait of Hormuz remaining blockaded and a ceasefire extended as negotiations continue.
25 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Only five ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz in 24 hours, Friday shipping data showed, after Iran seized two container ships and the U.S. continues to blockade Iranian ports. Passage through the critical waterway has collapsed from an average of 140 daily passages before the Iran war began on February 28, disrupting a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.
25 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Malaysia appointed former high court judge Abdul Halim Aman as anti-graft czar, replacing Azam Baki, who faced allegations of abuse of power and improper shareholding during his tenure since 2020. The move comes as Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's government faces scrutiny over its anti-corruption commitments.
25 April 2026 · The Standard →
Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza's Deir el-Balah area voted Saturday in municipal elections, the first vote since the Gaza war began in October 2023. Nearly 1.5 million registered voters participated in the West Bank, along with 70,000 in Deir el-Balah, with most electoral lists aligned with President Mahmud Abbas's Fatah party or running as independents, amid widespread disillusionment and criticism of the Palestinian Authority.
25 April 2026 · The Standard →
Pope Leo XIV will meet Sarah Mullally, the first woman to lead the Church of England, during her four-day visit to Rome. The meeting will highlight contrasts between the two churches: the Catholic Church restricts clergy roles to men, while the Church of England has ordained women as priests since 1994 and bishops since 2014, with women making up around 37 percent of active clergy.
25 April 2026 · The Standard →
The army in junta-ruled Mali on Saturday battled "terrorist groups" it said had launched attacks across the country, with fighting reported in the capital Bamako and other key cities including Gao, Kidal and Sevare. Mali has faced more than a decade of jihadist conflict and security turmoil linked to Al-Qaeda and Islamic State affiliates.
25 April 2026 · The Standard →
German prosecutors launched a spying investigation into phishing attacks targeting lawmakers on the Signal messaging app, with attacks allegedly directed at MPs from several parties, civil servants, diplomats and journalists. The attacks work by sending fake Signal support messages to trick victims into handing over account information, potentially allowing hackers to access chat groups, messages, photos and files.
25 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez stressed Spain is a "reliable member" of NATO after Reuters reported the United States was considering suspending it over its refusal to support military operations against Iran. Sanchez said Spain fulfills all its NATO obligations and dismissed the threat, noting there is no NATO treaty provision allowing suspension or expulsion of members.
25 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
The European Union and United States signed an agreement to coordinate on critical minerals for defense and key industries, citing concern over China's dominance in the sector. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the combined market power of the US and EU could reduce dependence on concentrated supplies.
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Norway will present legislation this year to prohibit social networks for users under 16, making technology companies responsible for age verification. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said the measure aims to protect children's digital lives and preserve childhood from algorithmic and screen-based takeover.
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
A U.S. Army master sergeant involved in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has been charged with using classified information to bet $400,000 on prediction market Polymarket that U.S. forces would enter Venezuela and Maduro would be removed from power. The Justice Department says it marks the first insider trading charges involving a prediction market.
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Joseph Kabugi, a 41-year-old computer science engineer from Kenya held as a prisoner of war in Kyiv, has described how he was fraudulently recruited to fight in the Russia-Ukraine war after being promised he would work in his area of expertise without involvement in combat. He warned other Kenyans and foreigners not to join the war, noting that foreign soldiers were given limited training and sent to the frontline under false pretences; Prime Minister Mudavadi has stated that 252 Kenyans were on the frontline, with two currently held as prisoners of war as the government seeks their repatriation.
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Israel and Lebanon extended their ceasefire for three weeks at a White House meeting brokered by President Trump, who said he was seeking "the best deal" to resolve the wider regional conflict despite ongoing fighting and tensions over the Strait of Hormuz.
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Italy's government and sports officials rejected suggestions by a US envoy that Italy replace Iran at the 2026 World Cup, with Italy's sports minister stating reinstatement "is not possible" and "you qualify on the pitch." Iran's embassy called the proposal an example of US "moral bankruptcy."
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Anonymised medical data of half a million members of UK health database Biobank was temporarily listed for sale on an Alibaba-owned Chinese website before being removed. Data minister Ian Murray said the breach involved information of all 500,000 Biobank members, and the data had been downloaded legitimately by three research institutions in China, whose access has now been suspended.
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
More than 120 rights groups, including the ACLU, issued a travel advisory warning that visitors to the 2026 World Cup in the United States risk "serious rights violations" due to US immigration policies, citing risks of arbitrary detention, deportation, invasive screening, and racial profiling. The coalition called on FIFA to pressure the US government for binding assurances protecting travelers' safety.
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →
Judges at the International Criminal Court confirmed murder charges against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte as crimes against humanity, saying there were "substantial grounds" to believe he played a key role in the murders of 76 people as part of his so-called "war on drugs". The case will now proceed to trial.
24 April 2026 · Citizen Digital →