Search
AI-powered search, human-powered content.
scroll to top arrow or icon

{{ subpage.title }}

President Joe Biden at an event with Kamala Harris on lowering drug costs for America.

HARD NUMBERS: Biden diagnosed with cancer, Russian drones hammer Ukraine, Israeli forces enter Gaza, Pope Leo gets political, UK and EU are friends again, Austria wins Eurovision

9: Former US President Joe Biden, 82, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer that has metastasized to the bone. Biden’s cancer has a “Gleason score” of 9 out of 10, which means it is highly aggressive, but since it requires hormones to grow, may respond to treatment that deprives the tumors of hormones. Both US President Donald Trump and former Vice President Kamala Harris expressed their sorrow on social media and wished the former president a successful recovery as he and his family review treatment options.

Read moreShow less

An Iranian newspaper with a cover photo of US President Donald Trump and US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, is seen in Tehran, Iran, on May 11, 2025.

Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

What We’re Watching: US and Iran near mini-deal, Europe election extravaganza, Diss tracks at Eurovision

US and Iran edge toward “mini-deal” on nukes

US President Donald Trump said Thursday that the US and Iran have “sort of” agreed on terms for a nuclear deal, one day after a top Iranian adviser said Tehran is willing to eliminate weapons-grade uranium, limit enrichment, and allow international inspections — if sanctions are lifted immediately. But dismantling their nuclear program or ability to enrich uranium, as per the Iran nuclear deal negotiated in 2015, is off the table.

“While a full-scale deal like the [2015 deal] appears unlikely, both sides are showing interest in a limited ‘mini-deal’ that reduces tensions and creates more space for diplomacy,” says Eurasia Group Iran expert Gregory Brew. “A win for Trump and for his new friends in the Gulf.”

Election extravaganza: Big weekend for Europe

There will be a trio of elections on the continent this Sunday. Here’s a quick roundup of who’s voting and where.

Poland: The first round of the presidential election takes place this weekend, pitting Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, a centrist, against the right-wing Law and Justice leader Karol Nawrocki. The election will be a harbinger of Poland’s alignment with the European Union at a vital time for the bloc. Polls have Trzaskowski ahead, but well short of 50%, which means there will likely be a runoff between the two front-runners on June 1.

Portugal: The Iberian nation is holding its third election in as many years, leaving some of the electorate fed up with its stagnant government. Polls suggest the situation isn’t about to get better: Prime Minister Luis Montenegro’s center-right Democratic Alliance is ahead but doesn’t have enough support to gain a working majority.

Romania: Of all the elections this weekend, it’s the one in Bucharest that is garnering the most attention, after the Romanian Constitutional Court barred nationalist candidate Călin Georgescu from running over allegations of Russian meddling. George Simion has filled Georgescu’s shoes and will seek to triumph over the pro-EU candidate Nicusor Dan. With polls tied, the race is on a knife-edge.

At Eurovision 2025: Glitter, geopolitics, and a sauna diss track

Europe’s glitter-soaked, pyrotechnic-powered music competition fever dream — otherwise known as the Eurovision Song Contest — takes place Saturday at 9 p.m. CET (3 p.m. ET). It’s part talent show, part geopolitical popularity contest, and fully unhinged fun.

Unlike in the past two years, politics is taking a relative back seat this time around. However, there are two diss tracks. Sweden’s “Bara Bada Bastu” — the odds-on favorite — roasts Finland’s love of saunas, while Estonia’s viral “Espresso Macchiato” mocks Italian language and American work culture. Mamma mia!

KAJ performing Bara Bada Bastu for Sweden at the First Semi-Final in St. Jakobshalle

EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett

At Eurovision 2025: Glitter, geopolitics, and a sauna diss track

Europe’s glitter-soaked, pyrotechnic-powered, music competition fever dream – otherwise known as the Eurovision Song Contest – takes place Saturday in Basel, Switzerland at 9pm CEST (3pm ET). It’s part talent show, part geopolitical popularity contest, and fully unhinged fun. Eurovision is officially “non-political,” but that’s never really the case: Ukraine won in 2023 after Russia’s invasion; Israel’s 2024 entry was about the Oct. 7 attacks.

Unlike in the past two years, politics is taking a relative backseat this time out. Nonetheless, this year’s entries include not one but two European diss tracks. Here are a few standouts.

Read moreShow less

2024: Ten big moments when politics and culture collided

The line between entertainment and politics seems blurrier than ever these days, and not only because the most powerful leader in the world is once again going to be, among many other things, a former reality TV star.

The ubiquity of social media, the bitterness of political polarization, and the ferocity of the culture wars leaves almost no aspect of our societies untouched by politics these days.

Here’s a look at ten big moments from 2024 when popular culture shaped, or was shaped by, the biggest political stories of the year.

Read moreShow less

Municipality workers remove debris from the streets after flooding in Sheikh Jalal district, Baghlan province, Afghanistan May 12, 2024.

REUTERS/Sayed Hassib

Hard Numbers: Devastating floods, COVID reporter released, Catalonia votes, Swiss contestant wins Eurovision

315: At least 315 people in northern Afghanistan have died in severe floods that also injured over 1,600 others, wiped out thousands of homes, and devastated livestock herds that feed the region. Aid agencies expect chaos. It’s been a bad month for floods worldwide — similar inundations in southern Brazil and Kenya have killed hundreds in recent weeks.

Read moreShow less

An Israeli delegation reacts to their advancing the ESC finale during the second semi-final of the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest, in Malmo, Sweden, May 9, 2024.

REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger

Politics take center stage at Eurovision

As musicians from around the world prepare to represent their country in the Eurovision Song Contest, thousands of demonstrators waving Palestinian flags are flooding the host city of Malmö, Sweden, to protest Israel’s participation.

Politics are always present alongside the kitschy revelry, over-the-top costumes, and sometimes unpleasant song choices at Eurovision. But this year, amid growing protests against the war in Gaza, politics are taking center stage.

Read moreShow less

Lots of foreign traveler are seen at Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine in Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture on April 20, 2023. The number of tourists coming to Japan is increasing as the pandemic of new coronavirus COVID-19 has calmed down.

Michihiro Kawamura / The Yomiuri Shimbun via Reuters Connect

Hard Numbers: Foreign travel to Japan surges, Ethiopian diplomat expelled, Safari turns deadly,  ABBA’s winning ‘Waterloo’

89: Japan’s weak yen is leading to a tourism surge, with foreign visitors jumping a whopping 89% in February — to 2.78 million people — compared to a year ago. Hotels, in turn, are fuller, and the day rates for stays are up roughly 25% since last year.

72: Ethiopia's ambassador has 72 hours to leave Somalia amid a spat over Ethiopian plans to build a naval base in the de facto autonomous region of Somaliland. Mogadishu is also closing two Ethiopian consulates and pulling its ambassador from Addis Ababa. Tensions between the two countries boiled over when Ethiopia offered possible recognition of Somaliland as part of the port deal, which Somalia sees as a move to annex part of Somalia to Ethiopia.

Read moreShow less

Noa Kirel from Israel performs during the grand final of the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool, Britain, May 13, 2023.

REUTERS/Phil Noble

Could Israel be disqualified from Eurovision 2024?

The search is underway for representatives from each of the 37 countries participating in the 2024 Eurovision song contest. The competition’s slogan might be United by Music, but as always, politics are never far from the stage.

This year, the controversy concerns Israel. Calls are growing for the country to be kicked out over its assault on the Gaza Strip, which has drawn accusations of war crimes and genocide. Many are citing as a precedent the 2022 expulsion of Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

Israel’s entry: 20 year oldEden Golan was selected after performing Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” to a hall of empty chairs, meant as a tribute to the Gaza hostages. Israel has been in Eurovision since the 1970s and has won four times — most recently in 2018.

Could Israel be expelled? Entries can be fined or disqualified for bringing politics onto the stage. But Israel’s expulsion is unlikely at this point. The final say rests with Eurovision officials, and so far they’re singing an evasive tune, saying, “Comparisons between wars and conflicts are complex and difficult and, as a nonpolitical media organization, not ours to make.”

Subscribe to our free newsletter, GZERO Daily

Latest