Japan eases arms export rules to enable weapons sales The Japanese government revised limits on defense equipment exports Tuesday to enable the sale of weapons overseas, as it seeks to boost security cooperation with partner countries.

Japan eases arms export rules to enable weapons sales

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Another Democrat exits crowded campaign for California governor Another Democrat is exiting the crowded contest for California governor. Former State Controller Betty Yee announced Monday that she was suspending her campaign.

Former State Controller Betty Yee announced that she was suspending her campaign for California governor.

Exclusive: Pakistan places $1.5 billion Sudan weapons sale on hold after Saudi objection, sources say Pakistan has put a $1.5 billion deal to supply weapons and jets to Sudan on hold after Saudi ​Arabia asked for the agreement to be terminated and said it would not finance ‌the purchase, two Pakistani security sources and a diplomatic source said.

Exclusive: Pakistan places $1.5 billion Sudan weapons sale on hold after Saudi objection, sources say reut.rs/4mLl7VY

France and Germany plan ‘symbolic’ EU membership benefits for Ukraine Berlin and Paris say no to Kyiv accessing bloc’s budget and having voting rights until it becomes a full member

France and Germany plan ‘symbolic’ EU membership benefits for Ukraine ft.trib.al/o2FtN8o

Kuwait declares force majeure on oil shipments amid Hormuz blockade, Bloomberg News reports Kuwait has declared force majeure on ​shipments of crude oil ‌and refined products after a blockade of the ​Strait of Hormuz ​prevented some vessels from entering ⁠the Persian Gulf, ​hindering its ability to ​meet certain customer commitments, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, citing ​a document.

Kuwait declares force majeure on oil shipments amid Hormuz blockade, Bloomberg News reports reut.rs/4u2b5Cf

Hungary Must Arrest Visiting Leaders Sought by ICC, Magyar Says Hungary’s incoming Prime Minister Peter Magyar said he would halt the departure from the International Criminal Court that his predecessor Viktor Orban initiated, affirming that Hungary would respect ...

After Netanyahu's office claimed that Peter Magyar had invited him to visit Hungary, the PM-elected says that he will enforce all ICC arrest warrants once the country re-enters the Rome Statute.

[Hungary will] "have a legal obligation to enforce the ICC rulings and I'm sure [Netanyahu] knows this".

Myanmar military regime widens sanitary towel ban, claiming rebels use them for first aid Activists say clamp down on period products to target insurgents is gender-based violence and violates rights

Myanmar military regime widens sanitary towel ban, claiming rebels use them for first aid

Israel never talked me into the war with Iran, the results of Oct. 7th, added to my lifelong opinion that IRAN CAN NEVER HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON, did. I watch and read the FAKE NEWS Pundits and Polls in total disbelief. 90% of what they say are lies and made up stories, and the polls are rigged, much as the 2020 Presidential Election was rigged. Just like the results in Venezuela, which the media doesn’t like talking about, the results in Iran will be amazing - And if Iran’s new leaders (Regime Change!) are smart, Iran can have a great and prosperous future! President DJT

Trump on his historically dismal approval numbers: "The polls are rigged, much as the 2020 Presidential Election was rigged"

Cuban Americans split from Trump on deportations, treatment of Cuban migrants, poll shows A poll found that South Florida Cubans do not agree with Trump deporting undocumented Cubans without records and that Trump should let Cubans legally migrate

Cubans and Cuban Americans living in South Florida want the Trump administration to ease up its aggressive crackdown on immigrants from the island, according to a new Miami Herald poll, signaling a rift over immigration policy between the president and some of his staunchest supporters.

Scoop: NSA using Anthropic's Mythos despite blacklist The government's cybersecurity needs are outweighing the Pentagon's feud with Anthropic.

The National Security Agency is using Anthropic's most powerful model yet, Mythos Preview, despite top officials at the Defense Department,— which oversees the NSA — insisting the company is a "supply chain risk," 2 sources tell Axios.

Iowa went all-in on school choice. It's hurting this city's public schools With school choice programs ascendant not just in Iowa but across the U.S., Cedar Rapids offers a preview of who wins and who loses when education meets the free market.

With school choice programs ascendant not just in Iowa but across the U.S., Cedar Rapids offers a preview of who wins and who loses when education meets the free market.

New: We found out how much money Nick Fuentes makes from "superchats": $900,000 since the start of Trump's second term. Here's the story of Kristine in Ohio, a food-truck operator who became his most frequent donor, despite not making much money herself: wapo.st/4mERkhv

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New Documents Undermine Trump Administration’s Claims About Offshore Wind Deal There was no new investment required from TotalEnergies, according to newly disclosed terms.

Trump’s offshore wind deal didn't actually require new investment from TotalEnergies, according to newly disclosed terms.

Families left reeling after hospitals in blue states drop transgender care for youth Massachusetts passed laws and joined lawsuits to protect access to gender-affirming care for minors. But faced with the Trump administration's threats, some hospitals voluntarily stopped care.

"The American Academy of Pediatrics — which has come out in favor of gender-affirming treatment for minors —declined NPR's request for an interview. The group's media representative said every pediatrician she approached was too scared of retaliation to comment publicly." www.npr.org/2026/04/17/n...

For U.S. medical researchers, shrinking labs and bare budgets are the new reality The Trump administration has slashed the number of grants from the National Institutes of Health, with far fewer focused on women, cancer and mental health.

American science is shrinking.

A Post analysis found that, halfway through this fiscal year, the number of competitive grants awarded by the National Institutes of Health is down by more than half compared with the same period last year. https://wapo.st/3OgoHKV

Russian economy is faltering despite oil windfall, Sweden warns Stockholm’s military intelligence head says Moscow is manipulating data to make its economy look better

Exclusive: Sweden has intelligence indicating Russia's systematically manipulating data to fool Ukraine’s western allies into believing its economy has withstood the strain of its war spending & western sanctions, Thomas Nilsson, head of Sweden Military Intelligence, told me & @maxseddon.bsky.social

Welcome to Miami: America’s Most ICE-Besieged City The new mayor explains why mass deportation is more “insidious” in South Florida.

In Miami, "safety in numbers" does not apply to immigrants and mixed-status families.

Brussels pushes remote working to ease energy crisis European Commission also recommends heat pumps and public transport subsidies

The European Commission will encourage remote working and public transport subsidies to cut fossil fuel use, as countries grapple with the energy price shock from the war in the Middle East.

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many people i worked with aren't inmates, but they are part of the forensic mental health system and detained but not convicted of a crime and not residing in a detention facility. inmates is wrong, detainees is right but confusing, patients is respectful but fails to capture the involuntary nature

Syrian Billionaires Needed a Favor in Washington. They Invoked the Trump Name.

NYT INVESTIGATION: As the Trump administration & Congress last year moved to repeal sanctions on Syria, the Qatar-based family that most stood to benefit was privately negotiating a real-estate partnership with Jared Kushner and proposing a Trump golf course in Syria www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/u...

Behind Trump’s Public Bravado on the War, He Grapples With His Own Fears The president’s impulsive style has never been tested in a sustained military conflict, and he’s been ruminating on Jimmy Carter’s failure in Iran.

Props to the WSJ, they managed to pack almost every Trump decision-making pathology into a single story. It’s all here:

1) Short attention span
2) Impulsive behavior
3) Knowledge deficits
4) Gambling for resurrection
5) Belief in the madman theory

www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

US senators urge Taiwan to ‘invest in defense’ to deter Chinese aggression U.S. lawmakers asked counterparts in Taiwan to procure more American weapons and boost the island democracy’s production of drones and missile-defense systems.

U.S. lawmakers have asked counterparts in Taiwan to procure more American weapons and boost the island democracy’s production of drones and missile-defense systems.

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Europe's far right leaders gather in Milan rally against immigration Several thousand people gathered in Milan on Saturday for a large rally attended by several European far-right leaders who spoke on immigration, security, and against EU regulations.

Europe's far right leaders gather in Milan rally against immigration

Lithuania, Latvia bar Slovak prime minister from using airspace for travel to Moscow Lithuania and Latvia will not let Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico use their airspace to travel to Moscow for Russia's Victory Day celebrations in May, he said April 18.

⚡️Lithuania, Latvia bar Slovak prime minister from using airspace for travel to Moscow.

Lithuania and Latvia will not let Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico use their airspace to travel to Moscow for Russia's Victory Day celebrations in May, he said April 18.

Bodies of 50 infants dumped at Trinidad graveyard Police say a preliminary investigation shows it may be a case of an "unlawful disposal of unclaimed corpses".

Bodies of 50 infants dumped at Trinidad graveyard

Cash shortages grip Yemen despite currency stabilisation Cash-strapped Yemenis face rising frustration as exchange firms limit currency conversion amid ongoing liquidity crisis.

Cash-strapped Yemenis face rising frustration as exchange firms limit currency conversion amid ongoing liquidity crisis.

First deportees from US arrive in Congo capital, sources say The first migrants deported from the United States ​under a recent bilateral agreement arrived in Democratic Republic of Congo early on Friday, according ‌to one of the migrants, a lawyer in contact w...

First group of migrants deported from the US ​under recent third country deportation with DRC have now been forcibly shipped off to Kinshasa. Deportees are originally from Colombia, Peru, Ecuador.

This deportation agreement follows a partnership granting US preferential access to Congo's minerals.

At a time of declining support among Democrats and Republicans, the State of Israel receives high praise from President Trump on Truth Social.

Editor’s Note | We Unknowingly Published an AI Column. The editorial team at the Mississippi Free Press discovered we published a column written by a fake author using artificial intelligence.

The Mississippi Free Press got inundated with a raft of AI-generated opinion pieces—which we pay writers for—from people who don't exist pretending to be Mississippians.

One of those columns made it to publication before we caught the scam.

Kevin Edwards, editor for our Voices section, explains: