Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for April 23rd, covering the latest developments you need to know.
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev held expanded meeting with President of China Xi Jinping
On April 23, Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, held an expanded meeting with Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, in Beijing.
Attack on tourists in India's Kashmir kills 26, injures 17, police say
Suspected militants gunned down tourists in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, on Tuesday, leaving 26 dead—including a Nepali national—and 17 injured, police said. A group calling itself “Kashmir Resistance” claimed responsibility, citing anger over the settlement of some 85,000 “outsiders” since India revoked the region’s special status in 2019.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi cut short a visit to Saudi Arabia to return to New Delhi, while Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman halted overseas travel “to stand with the nation.” Local organisations called for a shutdown, schools closed, and airlines added flights as tourists fled Srinagar.
The gun attack is India’s worst on civilians since the 2008 Mumbai siege and a rare strike on holiday-makers in Kashmir, where violence had ebbed in recent years.
Russian drone attack on Ukraine's Marhanets kills 7 people, governor says
A Russian drone strike on Marhanets in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region has left seven dead and six wounded, the regional governor announced Wednesday on social media.
Brazil urging tougher emissions goals ahead of climate summit, sources say
Brazil, host of November’s COP30 summit in Belém, is pushing Europe, China and other major economies to tighten their climate pledges so global warming stays “well below” 2 °C, sources told Reuters.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and UN Secretary-General António Guterres will hold a closed virtual meeting on Wednesday with leaders of the 35 largest economies to press for stronger Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
Andre Correa do Lago, Brazil’s ambassador and COP30 president, discussed the issue in Beijing last week, urging Chinese officials—and all nations—to align their targets with the Paris Agreement. “We’re not where Paris recommended,” he said. “We hope the numbers come closer.”
Current pledges put the planet on course for roughly 2.6 °C of warming—far above the Paris ceiling and a level scientists warn could trigger irreversible ecological damage. Brazilian diplomats, working with the UN, want revised NDCs filed by September so that COP30 can be recorded as the summit that finally brought commitments under 2 °C, and ideally toward 1.5 °C.
Securing deeper cuts will be challenging: the United States withdrew from the Paris Accord under President Donald Trump, and China—the world’s top emitter—has shown no sign it will raise its own target amid economic strains and ongoing trade tensions with Washington. Lula plans at least two meetings with President Xi Jinping before September, including the June BRICS summit in Brazil, to press the case.
Musk, facing criticism and falling Tesla sales, to cut back DOGE work
Musk told analysts he has “done the heavy lifting” at DOGE and will now devote more time to his companies, though about 40 % of his schedule will still go to the federal initiative.
Tesla shares rose 5.5 % after-hours on the news; they remain roughly 50 % below December highs.
Quarterly results beat profit forecasts and confirmed plans for a cheaper EV, but Tesla may trim its growth outlook next quarter amid trade and political uncertainty.
Tariff cross-fire with China has led Tesla to halt some Chinese parts imports and suspend new Model S/X orders there.Musk warned that economic jitters are delaying big-ticket purchases: “Tesla isn’t immune to macro demand swings.”
Pope Francis’ funeral to be held on April 26, many world leaders expected
The Vatican has announced that Pope Francis’ funeral will take place on the morning of April 26 in St Peter’s Square, drawing global leaders and faithful for what is expected to be a solemn and historic farewell.
Pope Francis, aged 88, passed away unexpectedly on April 21 following a stroke and cardiac arrest, according to the Vatican. His death marks the end of a papacy defined by both reform and resistance, as he often challenged Church traditionalists while advocating for the poor and marginalized.
The pontiff’s death certificate cited a stroke leading to a coma and irreversible heart failure. On April 23, his body will be brought to St Peter’s Basilica in a procession led by cardinals, where mourners will have the opportunity to pay their final respects to the first pope from Latin America.
The funeral will begin at 10 a.m. on April 26 in St Peter’s Square, in front of the basilica he helped shape during his time as spiritual leader.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who had notable disagreements with Pope Francis on issues such as immigration, confirmed that he and his wife would attend the funeral in Rome.
A tragic plane crash early Thursday morning shook a quiet residential neighborhood in San Diego, California. According to officials, there are two dead, eight injured.
Adidas and Puma are expected to raise prices in the U.S. after Nike increased footwear costs, as rising import tariffs push up expenses across the sportswear industry.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu harshly criticized UK’s Starmer, France’s Macron, and Canada’s Carney for urging a halt to Israel’s military action in Gaza, accusing them of siding with Hamas and undermining justice.
The second meeting of customs leaders from Central Asia and China was held in Almaty, focusing on digitalization, AI integration, border crossing agreements, and expanding cooperation to strengthen regional trade and logistics.
Azerbaijan’s Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov has been appointed Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Islamic Development Bank Group, with the 2026 Annual Meeting set to take place in Azerbaijan.
Northern France sees major farmer protests as key agricultural reforms face parliamentary review, sparking road blockades and rising tensions.
The Trump administration is moving toward lifting sanctions on Syria, but officials caution that coordinating between government agencies means the process will take longer than initially expected.
The 7th Ethnosport Culture Festival kicked off in Istanbul with Azerbaijan’s 100-member team and famed Karabakh horses drawing major attention.
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araqchi declared that the United States would bear legal responsibility if Israel launches an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, amid reports of potential Israeli military action and ongoing nuclear negotiations in Rome.
A rare naval misstep has shaken North Korea’s tightly choreographed military image, prompting an urgent internal probe and public scolding from Kim Jong Un.
Tensions flare in the India-France Rafale deal as France refuses to share the fighter jet’s source code, limiting India’s ability to integrate indigenous weapons and reducing its combat autonomy.
France has rejected India’s request to share source codes needed to integrate indigenous weapons into Rafale fighter jets. Despite repeated appeals, French manufacturer Dassault Aviation has refused to compromise on the issue
Anton Kobyakov, adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin, claimed at the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum that the USSR’s dissolution was legally invalid and that the Soviet Union still exists under constitutional law, framing the Ukraine war as an “internal process.”
AnewZ and Kazakhstan’s Jibek Joly/Silk Way TV channel co-hosted a special AnewZ Talks in Astana at Maqsut Narikbayev University (MNU), uniting global experts and young leaders at Silk Road Media Group’s journalism school to explore the growing intersection of media and diplomacy.
The Tehran Dialogue Forum 2025, scheduled for May 18–19, will host 200 international guests, including 40 current and former European officials.
Meta has signed another major solar energy agreement, acquiring 650 megawatts (MW) of clean power capacity across Kansas and Texas to support the rapid expansion of its AI-driven data centers, the company confirmed Thursday.
Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said Thursday that tariffs were a key point of discussion during the G7 finance ministers’ meeting, despite the issue being omitted from the final communique.
Northern France sees major farmer protests as key agricultural reforms face parliamentary review, sparking road blockades and rising tensions.
The Trump administration is moving toward lifting sanctions on Syria, but officials caution that coordinating between government agencies means the process will take longer than initially expected.
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araqchi declared that the United States would bear legal responsibility if Israel launches an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, amid reports of potential Israeli military action and ongoing nuclear negotiations in Rome.
Northern France sees major farmer protests as key agricultural reforms face parliamentary review, sparking road blockades and rising tensions.
The Trump administration is moving toward lifting sanctions on Syria, but officials caution that coordinating between government agencies means the process will take longer than initially expected.
The 7th Ethnosport Culture Festival kicked off in Istanbul with Azerbaijan’s 100-member team and famed Karabakh horses drawing major attention.
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araqchi declared that the United States would bear legal responsibility if Israel launches an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, amid reports of potential Israeli military action and ongoing nuclear negotiations in Rome.
A rare naval misstep has shaken North Korea’s tightly choreographed military image, prompting an urgent internal probe and public scolding from Kim Jong Un.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment