Progress

• President Trump kondigde op 5 mei aan dat militaire operaties tegen Iran zouden worden gepauzeerd nu de onderhandelingen vorderen richting een breder akkoord, wat een significante verschuiving markeert in het maandenlange conflict dat op 28 februari 2026 begon. • De pauze volgt op diplomatieke betrokkenheid, waaronder een ontmoeting op hoog niveau tussen Israël en Libanon op 14 april en een 10-daags staakt-het-vuren tussen Israël en Hezbollah dat op 16 april werd aangekondigd, wat wijst op momentum in de regionale vredesbesprekingen. • De operationele pauze suggereert dat de regering-Trump gelooft dat een onderhandelde schikking haalbaar is ondanks de initiële militaire interventie, hoewel de specifieke voorwaarden van de voorgestelde Iran-deal geheim blijven.

• Rapport gebaseerd op onderzoek van senior peiler van Blair en Clinton komt nu Labour zich voorbereidt op sombere verkiezingsresultaten • Mei-verkiezingen: Wat staat er op het spel in Engeland, Wales en Schotland? • Britse politiek live – laatste updates

• De Congrespartij beraadt haar politieke allianties in Tamil Nadu na de recente staatverkiezingen, met berichten over gesprekken na de verkiezingen met de TVK-partij van acteur Vijay. • De DMK heeft het Congres publiekelijk bekritiseerd vanwege deze onderhandelingen en uitte zorgen over potentiële verschuivingen in de dynamiek van de INDIA-bloccoalitie in de staat. • Het Congres heeft haar afdeling in Tamil Nadu (TNCC) opdracht gegeven om de definitieve beslissing te nemen over de steunregelingen voor de regeringsvorming.

Amerikaanse president pauzeert ‘Project Freedom’ om te werken aan ‘definitieve overeenkomst’ met Teheran; aandelen profiteren ook van AI-euforie

• President Trump kondigde dinsdagavond aan dat hij 'Project Freedom', de operatie om schepen door de Straat van Hormuz te begeleiden, pauzeert vanwege 'grote vooruitgang' richting een volledig akkoord met Iran en verzoeken van Pakistan en andere landen. • Trump verklaarde dat de pauze 'voor een korte periode' zal duren om te zien 'of het Akkoord kan worden afgerond en ondertekend', terwijl de Amerikaanse marineblokkade van Iraanse havens van kracht blijft. • De zet vertegenwoordigt een aanzienlijke verschuiving in de confrontatiekoers van Trump tegenover Iran na maanden van militaire escalatie, hoewel minister van Buitenlandse Zaken Marco Rubio Iran bleef bekritiseren voor het feitelijk afsluiten van de strategische olieroute.

Research on maths teaching in English secondary schools upends decades of debate over mixed-ability educationTeaching pupils in classes grouped by ability improves the results of high-flyers but does not affect the progress of less able children, according to a study that upends decades of debate over mixed-ability education.The research by University College London’s Institute of Education found that secondary school pupils in England with previously strong maths performances made slower progress in mixed-attainment classes than when they were taught alongside children with similarly high ability. Continue reading...

US generated more power from renewables like solar and wind than fossil fuels recently for a full month in a firstDonald Trump has wielded the full might of his administration to crush the progress of clean energy, which has called a “scam” and “stupid”. But there are signs this assault is not going to plan.In March, the US generated more of its electricity from renewable sources such as solar and wind than it did via gas, the first time clean energy has surpassed the planet-heating fossil fuel for a full month nationally, according to data from the Ember thinktank. Continue reading...

Rabbis Charley Baginsky and Josh Levy say criticising Israeli government is not disloyalty but a Jewish obligationThe UK’s most senior progressive rabbis have warned that Israel’s current political direction risks becoming “incompatible with Jewish values”, while insisting that criticism of the country’s government is “a Jewish obligation” rather than an act of disloyalty.Rabbi Charley Baginsky and Rabbi Josh Levy, co-leads of Progressive Judaism – the newly formed movement representing around a third of synagogues in the UK – said Israel’s trajectory could pose an “existential threat” not just to the country itself but to Judaism. Continue reading...

US president’s desperation for war to end has seen him trying to speed through a process he does not fully controlMiddle East crisis – live updatesA set of mismanaged and premature media announcements by Donald Trump and Tehran has led to the collapse of any progress towards a peace settlement between Iran and the US.The recent missteps ended with Iran saying it would reinstate a complete block on the movement of commercial shipping through the strait of Hormuz and that it would not allow any of its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to be exported out of the country. Continue reading...

Covid, light pollution regulations and faltering global economy affect location and intensity of brightnessEarth continues to get brighter every year, researchers have found, but the location and intensity of the progression has become increasingly volatile because of Covid-19, regulations on light pollution, and a faltering global economy.Nasa-funded researchers at the University of Connecticut (UConn) studied more than 1.1m satellite images taken over a nine-year period to establish that the planet’s artificial light increased by a net 16% between 2014 and 2022. Continue reading...

Silvia Salis, the leftwing mayor of Genoa and former Olympian, is described as ‘a breath of fresh air’ and potential unifierIt has been a turbulent month in Italian politics.A failed referendum on a judicial overhaul pierced prime minister Giorgia Meloni’s aura of invincibility, triggering government resignations and leaving her scrambling to restore credibility. At the same time, her once special relationship with Donald Trump has frayed after the US president publicly scolded her this week for criticising his broadside against Pope Leo and for not supporting the US-Israeli war on Iran. Continue reading...

• Donald Trump announced a major ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon while signaling progress toward a potential nuclear deal with Iran. • The development represents a significant diplomatic initiative amid broader Middle East tensions and ongoing US-Iran negotiations. • The ceasefire comes as regional dynamics continue to shift with multiple diplomatic channels active simultaneously.

Victory means Democrats hold on to the 11th district seat in the House, where Republicans hold a thin majorityDemocrat Analilia Mejia won a New Jersey special election for the US House on Thursday, defeating Republican Joe Hathaway on a message of standing up to Donald Trump.Mejia, a former head of the Working Families Alliance who had support from the senator Bernie Sanders, will fill the seat previously held by the Democratic governor Mikie Sherrill and serve until January. Continue reading...

Hampshire is latest school to fall to declining enrollment amid a decades-long crisis affecting liberal arts collegesSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxWhen Hampshire College enrolled its first class of students in 1970, it offered a new breed of liberal arts education, one meeting each student’s interests and motivations, emphasizing learning across disciplines and close relationships with teachers.For the next 56 years, Hampshire provided just that, becoming a beloved alma mater to scores of unconventional learners who sought, and found, a college experience “unlike anywhere else – and unlike anyone else’s”, as the school’s site still promises to deliver. Continue reading...

Chief inspector for England and Wales says prison remains in ‘precarious state’ more than year after urgent notificationThe Prison Service has made “very little progress” in enforcing a formal demand to stop drones from delivering drugs into one of its worst performing jails, a watchdog has concluded.Charlie Taylor, the chief inspector of prisons for England and Wales, said HMP Manchester remained in a “precarious state” after a failure to fix broken windows and install security to stop contraband being delivered to gangs. Continue reading...

The new head of the Greens Institute will organise thousands of volunteers for a major survey of economic and social life around AustraliaGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMax Chandler-Mather says the Greens can use “progressive economic populism” to win over Australians deserting the major parties for One Nation as the firebrand former MP accused the political class of thumbing its nose at the concerns of everyday voters.Chandler-Mather has been named the new executive director of the party’s internal thinktank, The Greens Institute, charged with closing capacity gaps exposed at the federal election. One of the Greens’ highest profile losses at the 2025 poll, Chandler-Mather and the former leader Adam Bandt were both defeated by Labor candidates in shock results. Continue reading...

Despite hostile rhetoric Trump let a Russian ship break his blockade – could it herald a Venezuela-style outcome?When a sanctioned Russian oil tanker, the Anatoly Kolodkin, docked at Cuba’s Matanzas oil terminal on Tuesday, unloading 700,000 barrels of crude, it was not immediately clear why the ship had been allowed to pass through Donald Trump’s oil blockade.In January, the US president had proclaimed on social media: “THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA – ZERO!” yet last week he told reporters, “If a country wants to send some oil into Cuba right now, I have no problem with it” – and waved the Russian ship through. Continue reading...

• US stock markets opened higher on March 30, 2026, with the S&P 500 up 0.33% or 21 points, Dow up 0.46% or 209 points, and Nasdaq up 0.2% or 41 points amid optimism over Trump-Iran negotiations. • President Trump stated Washington is in serious discussions with a more reasonable regime to end the war, warning Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face strikes on its oil infrastructure, boosting sentiment. • Energy stocks led gains with S&P 500 Energy Index up 1.5%, Exxon Mobil climbing 3%, and Chevron adding 1.5%, while oil rose $2.44 to $102.10.

• Researchers led by Professor Silvia von Karstedt discovered that loss of Caspase 8 protein in small cell lung cancer triggers inflammation promoting tumor growth and spread. • The study, published in Nature Communications on March 25, 2026, shows this loss reprograms cancer cells into an aggressive neuron-like state associated with relapse. • Findings from the CECAD Cluster of Excellence explain the cancer's notorious aggressiveness and poor prognosis.