3,000: The 3,000 residents of Orania, an all-white separatist enclave in South Africa, are calling on Donald Trump to help their cause. Representatives of Orania, which formed in opposition to the end of apartheid 30 years ago and already enjoys some local autonomy, recently visited Washington, DC, to drum up support. In February, the Trump administration blasted the current South African government for what it said was discrimination against white South Africans.
14 billion: On Thursday, India’s parliament passed a controversial law on the governance of lands donated to Muslim charities. The organizations, known as waqfs (or awqāf, if you’re a stickler for the original Arabic grammar), control a million acres of territory worth more than $14 billion. The new law permits non-Muslims to join the management boards that manage these properties. Supporters say the law promotes inclusivity and transparency, but opponents say it weakens the rights of India’s Muslim minority at a time when government-backed Hindu nationalist groups are trying to seize and destroy mosques they argue are located atop earlier Hindu temples.
6: In the United States, door-knocking Jehovah’s Witnesses can be seen as a blessing or a nuisance, but in Russia, they are “extremists.” A Russian court in the city of Chelyabinsk on Thursday sentenced a Jehovah’s Witness to six years in prison for organizing group activities. Since banning the group in 2017, Russia has jailed hundreds of Jehovah’s Witnesses, a community of about 175,000 people who are viewed with suspicion because of their dissidence from the Russian Orthodox Church and their ties to the US.
75: On Thursday, Portuguese anti-corruption investigators carried out 75 separate raids in three cities, targeting the Bank of Portugal as well as private accounting firms, homes, and other public institutions. They allege a massive, eight-year corruption scheme amounting to nearly $20 million in IT service contracts.
27: An Israeli airstrike hit a school in northern Gaza on Thursday, killing at least 27 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. The attack was part of the IDF’s latest military operation in Gaza, one that leading government officials have pledged to expand.
The day before the United States and Israel struck Iran on February 28, more than 150 accounts on Polymarket correctly bet it would happen on that specific date.
In this “ask ian,” Ian Bremmer breaks down the latest developments in the Middle East, highlighting a new five-point peace initiative from China and Pakistan.
Last week, Microsoft announced Microsoft Elevate for Changemakers, a new initiative designed to help nonprofit leaders confidently navigate the AI era. The program provides essential AI credentials, access to a peer community, and role-based resources to support responsible, mission-driven AI adoption. Part of Microsoft’s broader Elevate commitment, the initiative builds on the company’s 50-year legacy of supporting nonprofits worldwide. Microsoft partners with nearly one million nonprofit and education organizations globally and will deliver more than $5 billion in discounts, donations, and grants in the coming year. By equipping those closest to social challenges with the tools to lead, Microsoft Elevate for Changemakers helps ensure nonprofits remain at the forefront of AI-powered solutions. Read the full blog here.
The US president has now suggested several times that the Iran war could end without reopening the Strait of Hormuz.