Iran Detains U.S. Citizens Amid Escalating Conflict With the United States and Israel 
U.S. Begins Charter Evacuations as Iran Conflict Disrupts Middle East Air Travel 
Trump Offers U.S. Insurance and Naval Escort for Tankers as Strait of Hormuz Crisis Disrupts Global Oil Trade 
AI is already creeping into election campaigns. NZ’s rules aren’t ready 
European Allies Deploy Air Defenses to Cyprus After Drone Attack on RAF Akrotiri Base 
U.S. Officials Review Tencent’s Stakes in Epic Games, Riot Games Over Security Concerns 
Middle East Air War Triggers Massive Flight Cancellations and Global Airline Disruptions 
Michael Whatley Wins North Carolina GOP Senate Primary, Setting Up High-Stakes Battle With Roy Cooper 
Trump’s Iran Strikes Spark War Powers Clash in Congress 
U.S. Interior Department Responds to Leak of Trump Administration Plans to Revise National Park History 
Trump Defends Extended U.S.-Israel Military Campaign Against Iran 
Does international law still matter? The strike on the girls’ school in Iran shows why we need it 
Supreme Court Backs GOP Lawmaker in New York Redistricting Fight Ahead of Midterms 
Rubio Says U.S. Would Not Target School After Deadly Iran Strike Reports 
U.S.-Israel War on Iran Escalates as Gulf Conflict Disrupts Oil, Air Travel and Regional Security 
Trump to Attend White House Correspondents’ Dinner 2026, Ending Long Boycott 
Defense Contractors Move to Drop Anthropic AI After Trump Administration Ban 
A top aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed that a demilitarized zone be established inside Russia. The zone would be part of a settlement after the war to protect Ukrainian regions from attacks from Moscow.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said on Twitter on Monday that a demilitarized zone should be set up around 100 to 120 kilometers inside Russia along the border as part of a settlement after the war. Podolyak said that such a zone would ensure the protection of Ukrainian regions from potential Russian attacks in the future.
“It will be necessary to introduce a demilitarization zone of 100-120 kilometers on the territory of Belgorod, Bryansk, Kursk, and Rostov republics,” said Podolyak, referencing Moscow’s backing of separatist entities that refer to themselves as “people’s republics” in Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
“The key theme of the post-war settlement should be the establishment of safeguards to avoid the recurrence of aggression in the future,” said Podolyak, adding that the measure would be to make sure Ukrainian regions on the front lines are safe. Podolyak also said the demilitarized zone could initially have an international presence to keep the area in control.
Podolyak’s comments follow those of the Russian governor of Belgorod, which called for the annexation of Kharkiv to prevent cross-border shelling by Ukrainians, which Moscow blames for the incidents. Russia has also alleged that Ukraine has increased its drone attacks on targets within Russia. Kyiv has denied the accusations saying that it is fighting a defensive war in its own territory.
On the same day, the British defense ministry, in its intelligence bulletin, said that Russia held military exercises around the bridge in the annexed Crimea region. The drills included creating a smoke screen, according to the ministry, using TDA-3 smoke generators “likely of the 28th Brigade of Russia’s Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Protection Troops.”
The ministry said that Russia considers this a part of its “camouflage and deception” tactic. However, such a tactic was “generally been ineffectual” in the war in Ukraine due to a lack of central planning and a “poor low-level battle discipline.”
Photo: President.gov.ua/Wikimedia Commons(CC by 2.0)
