Top World News

Singer Katy Perry denied allegations that she had sexually assaulted actress Ruby Rose, according to reports on Monday. The "Orange is the New Black" actor accused the pop singer of sexually assaulting her at a nightclub in Melbourne, Australia, while Rose was in her early 20s, TMZ reported. She made the graphic comment in a post on Threads on Sunday. Perry's representative released a statement in response to the allegation: "The allegations being circulated on social media by Ruby Rose about Katy Perry are not only categorically false, they are dangerous reckless lies. Ms. Rose has a well-documented history of making serious public allegations on social media against various individuals, claims that have repeatedly been denied by those named."

Brian Hooker says wife Lynette fell overboard from dinghy but family members have cast doubt on that accountPolice in the Bahamas on Monday were set to again interview a US man who said his wife fell overboard from their boat.In a statement on Sunday to the Guardian, Brian Hooker’s attorney, Terrel Butler, said: “The police have requested another interview with [Brian Hooker] tomorrow.” Continue reading...

Democratic efforts to constrain Donald Trump's Iran war are gaining unexpected momentum. More Republican lawmakers are privately signaling they're ready to join Democrats on a war powers resolution — and the defections may accelerate dramatically by month's end.According to MS NOW, Democrats believe "there's a pathway to success" on forcing votes this week that would dampen hostilities in Iran.The political math is shifting in Democrats' favor. While they would need a two-thirds majority in both chambers to override Trump's almost-certain veto, a privileged war powers measure only requires a simple majority to pass — a threshold that appears increasingly achievable as GOP support erodes, MS NOW reported.The breaking point could happen on April 29. One House GOP lawmaker, granted anonymity, told MS NOW that "a lot of Republicans" would be ready to support a war powers resolution by then."This issue is already coming ripe at the end of this month, and if they don't come to us by then, they're in violation of the law. And that's when you'll see many of us saying no más," they told MS NOW.Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) framed the political stakes sharply: "Every day that Republicans stand in the way of Democratic efforts to end this war is another day that they own the chaos, the bloodshed and the economic volatility that has resulted."Senate Republicans are already showing cracks. So far, only Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has voted with Democrats on three separate Iran war powers resolutions over the past month. But Trump's apocalyptic rhetoric is pushing other Republicans toward the exit, MS NOW reported.Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) directly rebuked Trump's threat to wipe out a "whole civilization." "It cannot be excused away as an attempt to gain leverage in negotiations with Iran. It undermines our long-standing role as a global beacon of freedom and directly endangers Americans both abroad and at home," Murkowski wrote.Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) was equally damning about Trump's Easter Truth Social posts threatening to annihilate Iran's infrastructure and demanding Tehran open the Strait of Hormuz in a social media post loaded with obscenities."Completely inappropriate," Collins said of the threats. "And the subsequent post in which he threatened to essentially annihilate the whole country of Iran is also not conducive to the negotiations that will shortly be underway."

The 40-day war with Iran is becoming a political millstone around both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump's necks — and Israeli public opinion shows that the nation believes the operation has spectacularly failed to deliver on its promises.According to the New York Times, new polling reveals widespread Israeli disillusionment with the conflict and its meager results. The war in Iran and the ongoing conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon have left Israelis despairing over how little was actually accomplished compared to what leaders promised.The scorecard is devastating.Regime change in Iran? Senior government and military leaders have been killed, but it is still the same regime. Destruction of Iran's nuclear program? Damaged or delayed, perhaps, but not ended. Elimination of Iran's ballistic missile threat? Reduced, perhaps, but still a threat. The strategic damage extends beyond military failure, the Times reported. Israel has been reduced to a subordinate position, forced to accept whatever Washington decides. When Israel conducted a furious wave of airstrikes on Beirut on Wednesday that violated the day-old ceasefire, Trump scolded the country — demonstrating Israel's lack of independent agency, the Times wrote.According to an opinion poll released Sunday by the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, barely a third of Israelis believe that when Israel and the United States disagree, Israel can act on its own judgment.A separate poll from Agam Institute and Hebrew University of Jerusalem found even more damning results: "Three times as many Israelis see the war as a failure than a victory," the Times reported. Even more striking, 70 percent believe the ceasefire reflects an American concession to Iran, and two-thirds oppose it.The psychological toll is equally severe. "Many Israelis have become pessimistic, fatigued, disillusioned and distrustful of the information that they are receiving," according to the Agam-Hebrew University survey.Israeli analyst Yaakov Katz, co-founder of the Middle East-America Dialogue, said, "What's the Israeli story today? It's a narrative of a country that's constantly fighting, and presents no alternatives except for more war."

The internet was mocking MAGA followers over how they could respond to a potential loss for Hungary's authoritarian prime minister Viktor Orbán, a far-right symbol. Orbán has served four consecutive terms as prime minister in the Eastern European country since 2010 and MAGA was looking to the Sunday election as a signal of what could happen during midterms in the United States. Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump have also been vocal supporters, with Vance even heading to Hungary to stump for the prime minister and Trump making multiple endorsements of Orbán, who has been referred to as a dictator by outside observers. People offered their predictions of what they think MAGA would do if Orbán is not elected again. "The tears of MAGA will flow like a bitter ocean if their role model Orbán loses," Wajahat Ali, writer, political commentator and host of the "Democracy-ish" podcast wrote on X."The palpable desperation of this… shows you how much MAGA have staked on Orbán being their guy in Europe," commentator Mike Galsworthy, Chair of European Movement UK and founder of Bylines Network and Scientists for EU, wrote on Bluesky. "For Trump and Vance, Orbán must win, because there must only be one inevitable path of history, towards right-wing oligarchy and the end of democracy," Timothy Snyder, University of Toronto professor and modern European history expert, wrote on Bluesky. "When Orbán loses, that exposes the weaknesses of MAGA: talk of peace but need for war; talk of prosperity but fleecing of the working classes; talk of the nation but dependence on an international oligarchical network," Snyder added. "This. Viktor Orbán’s far-right extremist agenda is a model for MAGA. Trump and Vance are all-in on this election. If Orbán loses it would also be a political and ideological loss for the Trump regime and MAGA," Tom Joscelyn, Senior Fellow at Just Security, wrote on Bluesky. "Why does Vance care whether Orban wins? Because if he loses, it will challenge the MAGA belief that history flows in only one direction," Anne Applebaum, staff writer at The Atlantic, wrote on Bluesky.

Retired Army Gen. Jack Keane insisted it was time for President Donald Trump to end the stalemate over the closed Strait of Hormuz and drop a serious ultimatum, according to reports on Saturday. Keane told "Cats & Cosby" radio show hosts John Catsimatidis and Rita Cosby the United States should prevent Iran's oil-carrying ships from heading to their destinations in China, India, Pakistan and Turkey, The Hill reported. "The president should call [Chinese] President Xi [Jinping] and tell him, ‘This is what I’m going to do, I need you to call the Iranians and tell them that they have to give up control of the Strait of Hormuz or I have to do this. This is not something I wanna do, but something I’m going to do,'" Keane said.The move could push Iran to attack American targets and energy infrastructure throughout the region, which they have done in the past. They could also "stalemate us," Keane added. "The president has all this economic pressure on him and this political pressure, which they believe is the reason why he went through a ceasefire to start combat operations," Keane said. Keane argued it might become a situation where the U.S. has to "forcibly open up" the vital trade channel. He said this option could be "very, very doable." He also added that he has spoken with Trump himself and that the president was aware of "what he's getting into" in terms of the war with Iran. "At some point, we are going to open the Strait of Hormuz," Keane said. "We’re still going to do negotiations to see what the Iranians really have to offer. Is there something real there, or is this fabrication so they can just delay, delay and delay what’s happening and put off returning to combat operations? That is the pulse of where we are."

President Donald Trump was irritated on Saturday after a reporter asked him about the ongoing Iran negotiations over reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Trump spoke with reporters before leaving the White House to head to Joint Base Andrews, snapping at a female NBC News reporter who asked about the stalemate."Why do you say that? You don't know anything!" Trump said. He demanded to know who the reporter was reporting for, saying "well, that's fake news." "We win, no matter what," Trump added. "We've defeated their military. They have no navy. They have no radar. They have no air force. Their leaders are all dead. Khamenei is gone. For many years he ruled; he's gone. With all of that, let's see what happens — but from my standpoint, I don't care."Talks between the U.S. and Iranian teams reached the 15-hour mark on Saturday in Islamabad, Pakistan, and were likely to continue on Sunday. More than a month after the war started, these historic high-level talks became the first between the two countries since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.Much of the negotiations still hinged on the United States' demands to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial waterway and chokepoint amid the military operation. However, Iran had doubled down during the talks on its stance that the economically vital channel would open only once a final peace deal has been reached. “You don’t know anything” — Trump snaps at a female reporter pic.twitter.com/Ip4UD4KILU— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 11, 2026

Talks between the U.S. and Iranian teams reached the 15-hour mark on Saturday and were likely to continue on Sunday, according to The New York Times. IRNA, Iran's state news agency, and two senior Iranian officials apparently confirmed the negotiations had hit a deadlock. "The Strait of Hormuz remains a sticking point in the talks, with the U.S. demanding an immediate opening of the chokepoint and Iran doubling down on its stance that the economically vital passageway will re-open only after a final peace deal is reached, according to the two officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity," The Times reported.The American delegation has not yet commented on the status of the ongoing negotiations. More than a month since the war started, the historic high-level talks were the first between the two countries since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.