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8: Eight years ago today, Syria plunged into civil war. According to the UN, nearly half the people who lived in that country in 2011 have been driven from their homes, and hundreds of thousands have been killed. President Bashar al-Assad has won the war, but fighting continues.

37: A poll conducted earlier this year found that 37 percent of Britons who prefer to remain in the European Union would be upset if a close relative married a strong leave supporter.


2 million: The number of new births in China fell by 2 million to 15.2 million in 2018. It was the second straight year of decline in the birthrate since China ended its "one child" policy in 2015. More than half of respondents who said they were delaying having children cited the high cost of raising a child.

84 million: Some 84 million Indians, equal to the population of Germany, have become eligible to vote since India's most recent national elections in 2014.

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Fidel Castro meets with the American parents of the The Bay Of Pigs Prisoners in Havana, Cuba, on March 1, 1963.

Fidel Castro, center left with hands on hips, meets with the American parents of the The Bay Of Pigs Prisoners, who were released after a deal with America for $63 million, in Havana, Cuba, on March 1, 1963.

Keystone Press Agency/Keystone USA via ZUMAPRESS.com
Sixty-five years ago this morning, nearly 1,500 CIA-trained Cuban exiles stormed a beach on the southwestern coast of Cuba. Their aim was to spark a nationwide uprising against the new, revolutionary government of Fidel Castro. The Americans were confident – after all, they’d used a similar approach to overthrow the leftist president of Guatemala [...]
​A crowd celebrates after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, in Sidon, Lebanon, on April 17, 2026.

A crowd celebrates as displaced people return to their homes after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, in Sidon, Lebanon, on April 17, 2026.

REUTERS/Aziz Taher
Is an end to the Iran war in sight?The 10-day ceasefire negotiated between Israel and Lebanon took effect last night – one that the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah acknowledged but hasn’t said whether they’d abide by – has added some momentum to the US-Iran ceasefire talks. US President Donald Trump said Thursday that the war “should be ending [...]
Hard number: Haiti’s hunger crisis
Natalie Johnson
Five years after President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated, the turmoil in Haiti – where gangs control large swaths of the country and continue to sow chaos – shows no signs of abating. The consequence is a burgeoning humanitarian crisis, with 1.4 million people displaced, and millions more facing food shortages. Officials fear the Iran war could [...]
Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on April 14, 2026.​

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Rosseti CEO and Board Chairman Andrei Ryumin at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on April 14, 2026.

Sputnik/Alexander Kazakov/Pool via REUTERS
Putin ups the ante – but should he?Russia continues to bombard Ukraine, killing 17 people in a wave of drone and missile attacks overnight. But the Parliament also signed a law on Tuesday that would allow the military to attack any country that holds Russians captive. Europe fears that Russian President Vladimir Putin will use this as a pretext to [...]