Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 18th of March, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Ilia II, the Catholicos-Patriarch who led the Georgian Orthodox Church for over four decades, has died at the age of 93 following a sudden hospitalisation for massive internal bleeding. Elected in 1977 during strict Soviet control, he steered the institution through the collapse of the USSR and Georgia’s subsequent independence, overseeing a profound expansion of the church's influence and the reopening of hundreds of monasteries. Highly revered across the nation, Ilia II occasionally served as a crucial mediator during periods of political instability, cementing the Georgian Orthodox Church as one of the country's most powerful and constitutionally recognised institutions.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially stripped Senegal of their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title, declaring Morocco the tournament champions following a dramatic appeal. The ruling relates to January's final in Rabat, where the Senegalese team temporarily walked off the pitch in protest over a stoppage-time penalty awarded to Morocco; although Senegal returned after 17 minutes and eventually won 1-0 in extra time, CAF determined their initial refusal to play violated Article 82 of the tournament regulations. Consequently, the match result has been overturned to a 3-0 forfeit in favour of Morocco, a decision the Senegalese Football Federation has branded "unfair and unacceptable" as they prepare an immediate appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Survivors of Monday night's devastating airstrike on a Kabul drug rehabilitation centre have described apocalyptic scenes, recounting how patients were engulfed in flames as explosions tore through the 2,000-bed facility. Afghan officials report that over 400 people were killed and 250 wounded when the state-run Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital—housed in a former NATO military base—was bombarded just as residents concluded their evening prayers. While Kabul insists the site was a strictly civilian medical facility, Pakistan has rejected the accusations as "false and misleading", maintaining that its forces precisely targeted terrorist infrastructure and military installations amidst both countries' fiercest cross-border fighting yet.
Tensions in the Middle East have reached boiling point once again as Iran vows a "decisive" response following the assassination of its top security chief, Ali Larijani, in overnight Israeli airstrikes. The Basij Militia commander Soleimani, Larijani's son and his deputy, Alireza Bayat were also killed in Monday night's attack. The targeted killing of the senior official marks yet another significant escalation in the ongoing regional conflict, further inflaming hostilities between Tehran and the US-Israeli alliance as the war approaches its third week.
Joseph Kent, the head of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center, has dramatically resigned, becoming the most senior official in the Trump administration to step down over the ongoing war in Iran. In a blistering resignation letter posted on X, Kent stated he "cannot in good conscience support" the conflict, asserting that Tehran posed no imminent threat to the United States and claiming the war was launched due to pressure from Israel and its powerful lobbying network. The resignation has stunned intelligence circles and highlights deepening internal dissent regarding the legal and strategic justification for President Donald Trump's military campaign.
A drone hit a petrol station in Ukraine's capital of Kyiv early on Tuesday, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the...
U.S. President Donald Trump has again said Iran is keen to reach a deal quickly, but a senior Iranian security official rejected the claim, saying ...
Hundreds of thousands of deep-diving turtles, known as olive ridley sea turtles, have arrived on Mexico’s southern coast for one of nature&rs...
Maritime trackers received new reports of an attack on a ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), adding to concerns about energy supplies after Saudi Arabia shut down a vital oil pipeline on Saturday.
A Kyiv-Warsaw train was struck near the Polish border, Ukraine's state railway firm said on Sunday. No passengers were injured. Ukrainian Railways said that the country's railways were facing systematic attacks for a second day and warned of widespread delays.
U.S. Central Command said 101 commercial vessels have been redirected in the Strait of Hormuz, while oil prices rose more than three per cent amid fresh regional attacks and supply concerns.
A Russian strike on a farm warehouse in Pryluky, north-central Ukraine, has killed at least three people, local police said. Meanwhile, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said an attack on a train near the Polish border was an attempt to intimidate Ukraine's allies.
China will lead the creation of an open source platform among BRICS members to promote cooperation on large language models, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Sunday.
A drone hit a petrol station in Ukraine's capital of Kyiv early on Tuesday, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the Telegram messaging app, adding that there was also a strike on warehouse facilities in another part of the city.
Every day since a torrent of mud and rocks destroyed a Nepal-China border crossing high up in the Himalayas last month, Arushi Gupta's parents have called and messaged their missing daughter hoping she somehow survived.
Foreign ministers of Cambodia and Thailand delivered opening statements on Tuesday at the first meeting of a UN arbitration process to resolve a long-running maritime dispute between the two Southeast Asian neighbours.
A federal judge has halted a Trump administration immigration policy that would have significantly changed how long foreign students, exchange visitors and international journalists can remain in the United States.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has expressed cautious optimism about ongoing discussions with the United States regarding Greenland, signalling that Copenhagen believes a cooperative solution can be reached despite years of political tensions surrounding the strategic Arctic territory.
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