🇮🇳 INDIA–PAKISTAN TENSIONS ESCALATE AFTER TERROR ATTACK IN KASHMIR
Once again, terrorism rooted in Pakistan has shaken India. On April 22, a heinous attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, claimed the lives of 26 innocent Indian tourists. The Resistance Front—a proxy group linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba—claimed responsibility for the bombing.
India, losing patience with repeated provocations, responded swiftly by suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty and expelling senior Pakistani diplomats. Pakistan hit back by canceling the Simla Agreement and closing its airspace to Indian aircraft.
Skirmishes have resumed along the Line of Control, raising fears of a larger conflict.
Commentary: These attacks are tragically familiar. Despite India’s consistent pursuit of peace, terrorist activities by Pakistan-based outfits continue to sabotage stability in the region.

✝️ FAREWELL TO POPE FRANCIS: A WORLD MOURNS
The world bid goodbye to a beloved spiritual leader. Pope Francis, who led the Catholic Church for over a decade, passed away on April 21 at the age of 88 due to a stroke and cardiac arrest.
More than 150,000 mourners, including Donald Trump, Emmanuel Macron, and Volodymyr Zelensky, attended his state funeral at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City.
As the global Catholic community grieves, the Vatican has announced that the conclave to elect the next Pope will take place from May 6 to 12.

🕊️ U.S. ENVOY MEETS PUTIN AMID UKRAINE CONFLICT; RUSSIAN GENERAL KILLED
In a surprising diplomatic development, U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss a U.S.-proposed peace initiative for Ukraine.
The high-stakes meeting came just days after a car bomb near Moscow killed Russian Lt. Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik—a strike the Kremlin labeled a terrorist attack.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s President Zelensky reaffirmed his nation’s refusal to give up any territory to Russia, signaling continued resistance against Moscow’s demands.

🌊 GLOBAL CORAL BLEACHING HITS 84% OF WORLD’S REEFS
The Earth’s reefs are in crisis. The ongoing global coral bleaching event has now affected an estimated 84% of coral reef ecosystems around the world, making it the largest and most destructive bleaching episode ever recorded.
The bleaching, caused by sustained ocean warming due to climate change and El Niño conditions, is wiping out biodiversity and impacting millions who depend on reefs for food and income.

🚢 TRUMP’S TRADE WAR DISRUPTS GLOBAL SHIPPING
President Donald Trump’s aggressive trade war with China is causing serious disruptions in global supply chains.
Shipping experts report record-breaking cancellations of cargo shipments from Chinese ports to North America. The decline in trade has left containers stranded and ports backlogged.
Retail giants such as Amazon, Walmart, and Target are already facing ripple effects in inventory and logistics, drawing comparisons to the chaos seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.

🏢 MASS LAYOFFS HAMMER GLOBAL COMPANIES
Economic pressure and automation are reshaping the workforce. In 2025 alone, tens of thousands of jobs have been cut across industries like tech, finance, education, and manufacturing.
Major companies such as Meta, Johns Hopkins University, Chevron, Morgan Stanley, and BlackRock have all announced layoffs, citing cost-cutting, market volatility, and artificial intelligence as key factors.

✊ U.S. IMMIGRATION PROTESTS INTENSIFY NATIONWIDE
Resistance to President Trump’s hardline immigration policies is gaining momentum. The “Hands Off” movement—launched earlier this month—has now seen over 1,400 demonstrations across every U.S. state.
More than 150 grassroots organizations are involved, protesting policies that they say target minorities and erode human rights. The White House has dismissed the protests, but civil society groups vow to continue nationwide pressure.

🇧🇩 BANGLADESH’S MARCH FOR GAZA SEES 100,000 PROTESTERS
A massive demonstration took place on April 12 in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where 100,000 people marched in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
Protesters demanded an end to Israeli military operations and called on Muslim-majority countries to cut both economic and diplomatic ties with Israel.
The march, one of the largest in recent years, reflects growing outrage in the Muslim world over the situation in Gaza.

🔥 DEADLY HEATWAVE GRIPS INDIA AND PAKISTAN
Temperatures in South Asia have soared to dangerous extremes. India’s Barmer district in Rajasthan hit a scorching 46.4°C (115.5°F) on April 8, and neighboring regions in Pakistan are facing similar heat stress.
The heatwave has led to dozens of deaths, severe dehydration cases, power outages, and failing crops, particularly in rural agricultural areas.

🤖 BAIDU SHIFTS FOCUS TO MULTIMODAL AI AS MARKET EVOLVES
As text-based AI tools lose steam, Chinese tech giant Baidu is betting on multimodal AI to stay ahead.
At its annual developer conference, Baidu unveiled Ernie 4.5 Turbo and X1 Turbo—AI models capable of processing not just text but also images, audio, and video.
CEO Robin Li openly criticized the stagnation of traditional large language models, declaring Baidu’s intent to lead China’s next AI leap.