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• Environmental Protection Agency telah mengklasifikasikan mikroplastik dan antidepresan sebagai kontaminan air minum, merespons advokasi dari gerakan MAHA dan kekhawatiran kesehatan masyarakat. • Klasifikasi ini menandai langkah regulasi yang signifikan dalam menangani kontaminan yang baru muncul dalam pasokan air AS yang telah memicu kekhawatiran di kalangan pakar kesehatan dan advokat lingkungan. • Penetapan ini dapat mendorong tindakan regulasi di masa depan untuk menetapkan standar air minum dan persyaratan pengolahan bagi zat-zat tersebut.

• Presiden Donald J. Trump menandatangani perintah eksekutif yang memberlakukan sanksi tertarget pada beberapa pejabat dan entitas rezim Kuba yang menurut pemerintah telah mendukung penindasan dan pelanggaran hak asasi manusia. • Gedung Putih menyatakan bahwa tindakan ini mengirimkan pesan solidaritas kepada para pembangkang Kuba dan melengkapi upaya yang lebih luas untuk menekan rezim otoriter di Amerika Latin. • Para pengkritik di Kongres, termasuk beberapa anggota Demokrat dan bahkan beberapa anggota Republik, berpendapat bahwa langkah tersebut bisa menjadi bumerang dengan memperketat pengaruh AS menjelang negosiasi mendatang mengenai migrasi dan keamanan regional.

• Sebuah survei baru dari POLITICO‑Citrin Center‑Possibility Lab yang dirilis hari Jumat menunjukkan bahwa mayoritas besar baik dari Partai Republik maupun Demokrat mendukung komisi independen untuk menentukan batas wilayah distrik DPR AS, memperlemah argumen yang menentang penghentian gerrymandering partisan. • Pemerintahan Trump sedang mempertimbangkan berbagai proposal untuk meresmikan panel redistricting independen dengan mengaitkan dana federal bagi negara bagian yang mengadopsi komisi tersebut, sebuah strategi yang dapat membentuk ulang distrik-distrik pertempuran sengit pada tahun 2026 dan seterusnya. • Kelompok hak sipil dan advokat hak suara menyambut baik temuan jajak pendapat tersebut, dengan alasan bahwa komisi independen akan mengurangi manipulasi partisan terhadap peta wilayah yang saat ini menguntungkan kedua belah pihak.

• Aksi mogok (walkout), pawai, dan pertemuan lainnya direncanakan untuk demonstrasi ‘May Day Strong’ di seluruh penjuru negeri • Ribuan orang bersiap untuk bergabung dalam pemadaman ekonomi (economic blackout) pada Hari Buruh Internasional hari Jumat ini, sebagai bagian dari 3.500 acara “May Day Strong” di seluruh negeri. • Penyelenggara menyerukan aksi “tidak sekolah, tidak bekerja, tidak belanja” dengan aksi mogok, pawai, pesta rakyat (block parties), dan pertemuan lainnya yang direncanakan hingga malam hari.

• Senator AS mengadakan panel dengan para ilmuwan terkemuka Tiongkok dan memperingatkan risiko bagi masyarakat kecuali jika teknologi baru tersebut diregulasi • Senator AS Bernie Sanders menyampaikan pentingnya kerja sama internasional dalam meregulasi AI pada diskusi panel hari Rabu di Capitol Hill bersama dua ilmuwan terkemuka Tiongkok • Di saat perusahaan rintisan dan raksasa teknologi, terutama di Silicon Valley dan Beijing, berlomba untuk memajukan dan meningkatkan skala kecerdasan buatan mereka, Sanders menjadi salah satu skeptis AI yang mengadvokasi perlunya perlindungan

• Gubernur Florida Ron DeSantis mengungkap peta distrik kongres baru yang dapat menghilangkan kursi tambahan Demokrat di DPR. • Proposal redistrikasi ini menargetkan area dengan petahana dari Partai Demokrat, yang memperparah persaingan menjelang pemilihan tengah periode (midterms) 2026. • Partai Republik menganggap hal ini sebagai kunci untuk mempertahankan mayoritas di DPR, sementara Partai Demokrat memperingatkan adanya taktik penekanan pemilih.

• Seorang Demokrat Connecticut yang ambisus secara politik meninggalkan negosiasi bipartisan mengenai pendanaan pemerintah di tengah tekanan partai agar dilibatkan. • Aksi walkout ini meningkatkan ketegangan terkait prioritas anggaran federal dan pemotongan pengeluaran. • Hal ini dapat menunda rancangan undang-undang pendanaan yang krusial bagi tenggat waktu fiskal mendatang.

Para penggemar di Buffalo, yang hanya berjarak beberapa mil dari Ontario, mengisi keheningan saat mikrofon mati di awal pertandingan. The Electric City. Nickle City. Queen City. City of No Illusions. Buffalo, New York, telah mengumpulkan banyak julukan selama bertahun-tahun, tetapi di era meningkatnya ketegangan antara dua sekutu tradisional, salah satu julukan tersebut memiliki resonansi ekstra: the City of Good Neighbors. Baca selengkapnya...

• Mayoritas warga Amerika menyatakan keprihatinan atas kenaikan biaya kesehatan dan mendukung peningkatan pengeluaran pajak federal untuk mengatasi tantangan tersebut, menurut Axios/Ipsos American Health Index yang dirilis pada 17 Maret 2026. • Jajak pendapat tersebut menunjukkan dukungan bipartisan terhadap tindakan pemerintah mengenai keterjangkauan layanan kesehatan, mencerminkan kekhawatiran luas di kalangan publik AS tentang biaya medis yang melonjak. • Warga Amerika juga menunjukkan peningkatan kepercayaan terhadap penanganan pemerintah dalam keputusan vaksinasi anak, yang menandakan kepercayaan publik yang lebih luas terhadap intervensi kebijakan kesehatan.

Residents and visitors in California alert each other whenever they spot the above average size animal at Pier 39A gigantic 2,000lb steller sea lion nicknamed “Chonkers” has become an unexpected local celebrity after taking up residence in the San Francisco Bay.The massive sea lion swam up to a dock on Pier 39 in San Francisco around a month ago and has remained in the area since, drawing attention from residents, visitors and social media users who have been sharing frequent photos and videos of the animal looming over its peers. Continue reading...

Candle-making kits and rubber toys among products recalled after revelation about play sand sold by HobbycraftMore than 30 children’s toys have been recalled in the UK after the Guardian revealed that play sand sold by Hobbycraft was contaminated with asbestos.Over the past three months, other children’s products ranging from candle-making kits to stretchy rubber toys have been recalled by retailers including Tesco, Primark, Matalan and M&S after being found to contain the substance. Continue reading...

• The United States announced Friday a temporary suspension of certain oil-sector sanctions against Venezuela pending the outcome of renewed diplomatic negotiations scheduled to begin Monday in Mexico City, marking the first high-level talks in 18 months. • State Department officials stated the measure aimed to create "negotiating space" for discussions on political prisoners, election transparency, and humanitarian access, with hopes of establishing a pathway toward normalized relations. • Venezuela's government welcomed the development but demanded complete lifting of financial sanctions, which have contributed to severe shortages of food and medicine affecting 28 million citizens, according to UN estimates.

Meta to lay off 10% of its staff and Microsoft to offer retirement to 7% of US workforce. Plus, Iron Maiden at 50Good morning.Meta and Microsoft are cutting thousands of employees as they bet big on AI and executives claim that the technology is meeting productivity needs.What have they said about AI? Mark Zuckerberg said in January that AI was making some hiring unnecessary. Mustafa Suleyman, Microsoft’s AI chief, said in February that he believed AI would be able to replace most white-collar work within the next 12 to 18 months.How many tech layoffs have there been in 2026? In four months, more than 92,000 employees in the industry have lost their jobs, according to the tracker Layoffs.fyi. But some experts believe companies may be “AI washing” – using it as cover for a slowing labor market and demand or rising costs. Continue reading...

MPs call for investigation into Essar Energy, owner of Stanlow refinery, which shifted loans from ‘Putin’s piggy bank’ VTB to MauritiusDays after the first wave of Russian tanks surged over the border into Ukraine in March 2022, dockers at a port in northern England took a stand.Appalled by Vladimir Putin’s brutality, workers at Ellesmere Port in Cheshire vowed never to unload any Russian oil destined for the nearby Stanlow refinery, a major hub for UK fuel supplies. Continue reading...

Radio presenter arrives for case management hearing into allegations he breached his Kiis FM radio contractFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastKyle Sandilands says his legal fight with ARN Media is getting “pretty ugly” and he just wants to get back on air.The former Kiis radio breakfast host made the comments on Friday morning as he arrived at the federal court in Sydney in a Rolls Royce in front of a large media pack. Continue reading...

More than 200,000 have signed petitions urging the government to break contracts, amid concerns about the company’s ‘supervillain’ manifestoOver 200,000 people have called on ministers to break contracts with Palantir in an apparent groundswell of public concern about the US tech company’s role in the NHS, police, military and councils.Two petitions have attracted 229,000 signatures, one calling for the government to end all public contracts with the firm, whose software is used by Donald Trump’s ICE immigration enforcement programme and the Israeli military, and another urging the health secretary, Wes Streeting, to cancel its £330 patient data contract with the NHS. Continue reading...

Leaders will discuss how to respond to surging energy prices amid the war in the Middle EastEurope live – latest updatesEU leaders have welcomed the end of diplomatic deadlock over a long-awaited €90bn (£78bn) loan for Ukraine, after the bloc finalised the agreement along with a 20th package of sanctions against Russia.After weeks of delay, the EU signed off on the loan on Thursday, in time for summit talks in Cyprus that are scheduled to begin in the evening and will include talks over a dinner with the Ukrainian leader, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Continue reading...

British foreign secretary told to impose new measures, with ruble-pegged cryptocurrency A7A5 being supported in countryMore than 20 MPs and peers have called on the foreign secretary to take action against institutions and individuals in Kyrgyzstan allegedly facilitating large-scale Russian sanctions evasion.They urged the UK to levy personal sanctions against three top Kyrgyz officials for their alleged role in facilitating Russian sanctions evasion more broadly, and more specifically for allowing Kyrgyzstan to host infrastructure supporting the cryptocurrency A7A5. Continue reading...

Georgia players celebrated championship at White HousePresident shakes hands of men, not women in videoFormer tennis star Navratilova leads criticismA White House photo celebrating a champion women’s sports team has drawn backlash due to the positioning of Donald Trump and a group of men, who overshadowed the female athletes by lining up in front of them.The University of Georgia women’s tennis team was one of several collegiate teams to visit the White House on Wednesday to mark a recent championship win. In a photo shared by press aide Margo Martin, a group of six men, including Donald Trump, took up the front row of a stage setup, with 11 women standing in the background largely obscured. Continue reading...

Move comes after Hungary and Slovakia dropped opposition following reopening of the Druzhba oil pipelineEU leaders are set to meet in Cyprus this evening to discuss the latest on the Middle East and the next EU budget, starting in 2028.But it looks like they will have a bit of a detour – and a reason to celebrate, too – as the long-awaited €90bn loan for Ukraine and the 20th package of sanctions against Russia are on course to be unblocked after four months of delays caused by Hungary’s Viktor Orbán. Continue reading...

Radio company ARN’s defence alleges the shock jock denigrated executives, censors, critics and the audience of the Kyle and Jackie O ShowFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesSign up for Guardian Australia’s free weekly media newsletter hereKyle Sandilands repeatedly berated Kiis FM executives, the radio station’s censors, critics of the Kyle and Jackie O Show and the Melbourne audience in expletive-laden rants, according to federal court documents.The details of the alleged tirades, which aired months before the shock jock was sacked and accused of “serious misconduct” by ARN, are contained in the company’s defence of an $85m claim filed by Sandilands. Continue reading...

• The US Treasury Department announced targeted sanctions against 15 military leaders and three jade trading companies linked to Myanmar's junta, citing credible evidence of systematic ethnic persecution against Rohingya and other minorities. • The sanctions block access to the US financial system and freeze assets estimated at $40 million, with the State Department formally classifying the military's actions as crimes against humanity. • International human rights bodies praised the measures but noted they represent a limited response, calling for broader multilateral action and ICC referral to hold perpetrators accountable.

• The Biden administration announced comprehensive sanctions targeting Russian entities involved in chemical weapons production and deployment, following reports of their use against Ukrainian forces in recent weeks. • The Treasury Department froze assets of 12 Russian companies and individuals, with officials stating the measures aim to deter further violations of the Chemical Weapons Convention. • Security analysts warn that chemical weapons escalation signals Russia's desperation as its conventional military capabilities face sustained Ukrainian resistance.

News follows Guardian report on licence given to British firm exporting machinery to Armenian firm linked to Russian war effortBritish firms will face “much tougher” controls to prevent their goods from reaching Russia via other countries, undermining sanctions and aiding Vladimir Putin’s assault on Ukraine.Under plans to be unveiled on Wednesday, the government will be able to require UK manufacturers to obtain a licence if they want to export to a country suspected of acting as a staging post for exports ultimately destined for Russia. Continue reading...

• The latest POLITICO-Citrin Center-Possibility Lab survey reveals strong majorities in both parties favor an independent panel for drawing House district lines. • Over 70% of Democrats and Republicans support the nonpartisan approach to prevent gerrymandering ahead of midterms. • This consensus could pressure Congress to reform redistricting processes and reduce partisan map battles.

The Kissing Booth’s Joey King and Game Of Thrones’ Maisie Williams star alongside the original cast members as the next generation of the cursed Owens familyGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailThe midnight margaritas are officially back on the menu. Within 24 hours of its debut, the first official teaser for Practical Magic 2 has surged into the Google Trends top 10, attracting millions of views and signalling an enthusiastic appetite for the return of the Owens family and all things witchy.Academy Award winners Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman will return as sisters Sally and Gillian, with Kidman sharing a video of her and her fellow star on set last year, captioned: “The witches are back”. Continue reading...