Top World News

President Donald Trump's impersonations of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer have led to a damaged relationship "beyond repair" between the two countries amid the ongoing Iran war, according to reports on Friday. Trump had mocked Starmer and ridiculed him during an Easter lunch speech at the White House, saying the UK was "not our best" ally after Starmer had reportedly consulted his team about military actions, according to The Guardian. He was apparently angry over the prime minister's decision to deny the U.S. military use of British military bases during the launch of its air strikes on Iran. "Following the latest attack on Starmer, diplomatic and political figures said he was right to brush off the criticism but added that the relationship was very damaged and he would need to redouble efforts to built international relations elsewhere," The Guardian reported.Trump had also claimed that he had asked the UK for help, but said he was denied that assistance. "However, Downing Street sources said Trump had never asked the UK for the vessels and Britain had not offered them," according to The Guardian. "In previous criticism of Starmer two weeks ago, Trump said Starmer had asked to consult his team about sending minesweepers – not aircraft carriers."Now, Starmer has started to look at improving other diplomatic ties. "One senior diplomat said Starmer was right to 'essentially ignore' Trump and must now attempt to build ties with Canada, Australia and mainland Europe instead as it was hard to see how the relationship could recover," The Guardian reported. Starmer called Trump's comments "quite rude" and shared his thoughts. "I’m utterly focused on what is in the best interests of our country and I am unapologetic about that," Starmer said. "Notwithstanding the pressure that comes from elsewhere, I will remain laser focused on what is in the British national interest.“And a lot of what is said or done is undoubtedly said and done to put pressure on me, I have no doubt about that. I understand what is going on. But I am not going to be wavering on this.”

President Donald Trump joked about confiscating Iran's oil as search crews were desperately trying to find a fighter pilot who was downed in the war-torn country."KEEP THE OIL, ANYONE?" Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday while the search was underway.Hours earlier, an F-15E crashed in southern Iran. One pilot was rescued, and a search for the second pilot was reportedly in progress.Iran was reportedly offering its citizens a reward valued at about $76,000 U.S. dollars to find the missing pilot alive, CNN reported.A second combat aircraft, an A-10 Warthog, crashed in the Persian Gulf at about the same time, officials told The New York Times.

An American's whereabouts were unknown on Friday after Iran shot down a U.S. fighter jet, as questions mounted online over what happened to the missing service member and if the Trump administration would comment on it. President Donald Trump had not yet responded to the attack, which was the first time an American jet had been shot down since the military strikes launched five weeks ago. It was unknown what had happened to the missing pilot. The president has apparently been briefed on the situation, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN. Iran was reportedly offering its citizens a reward valued at about $76,000 U.S. dollars to find the pilot alive, CNN reported. People reacted online and called out the Trump administration for the dangerous situation. "Donald Trump had time to take Tiger Woods' call after he crashed his car again, but I don't see him addressing the American people after a U.S. fighter jet was shot down in Iran and there's a desperate search to find the pilots. I guess daddy's not home today," entrepreneur and Democratic strategist Mike Nellis wrote on X."Are they briefing Trump on the fighter jet being shot down, or just soothing him with boom boom TikToks?" Journalist Aaron Rupar wrote on X."Early reports from Iranian media suggesting US pilot in custody. Would take this with a large grain of salt, and hope it’s not the case. As it would be a significant escalation," Adam Cochran, professor, policy consultant and journalist, wrote on X."The escalation is why Trump will do if they have an American in custody. You don’t have to think the US actions there, were good or justified, in order to recognize that an American POW complicates the situation, and makes off-ramps less likely," Cochran added."These two things, I can’t help but read them together. Trump, threatening war crimes, and now, a possible POW. This stupid, bad-faith behavior puts our people at greater risk of mistreatment. Praying for the safety of our soldiers at all levels," John Jackson, U.S. veteran of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, wrote on X."Really really hope this doesn’t become a hostage situation," political scientist and author Ian Bremmer wrote on X."Iran ministry of foreign relations has put out at least one statement indicating us soldiers will be regarded as prisoners of war under geneva convention…but only if the united states reciprocated. secretary of defense pete hegseth has said 'no quarter, no mercy' for us enemies," Bremmer added later in a separate X post."You’re absolutely right — the correct term is POW. Let’s just hope Iran sees it that way — considering Trump has said repeatedly that it’s NOT a war," Democratic strategist Jon Cooper wrote in response to a comment on an X post.

A second Air Force combat aircraft reportedly crashed on Friday at the "same time" that an F-15E fighter jet went down in Iran. The New York Times reported that the second aircraft went down in the Persian Gulf near the Strait of Hormuz. The pilot was recovered, the report said. An A-10 Warthog attack plane was said to be involved in the crash.According to the Times, the A-10 went down "about the same time that an Air Force F-15E was shot down over Iran, the officials said.""Officials provided scant details about the A-10 crash, including how and where it happened," the report noted.

Dozen people arrive under new deal but legal challenges expected with scheme criticised as ‘dehumanising process’A flight carrying people being deported from the US has landed in Uganda, as Donald Trump’s administration pushes on with its strategy of expelling migrants to countries they have no ties to.The deported people would stay in the east African country as “a transition phase for potential onward transmission to other countries”, an unnamed senior Ugandan government official told Reuters. Continue reading...

National security experts were concerned that President Donald Trump has ignored important briefings and instead prefers to watch videos of explosions from the Iran war, according to an analyst on Thursday. Salon's Chauncey DeVega described how Trump has started to treat the war — which has killed 13 American troops and nearly 1,500 Iranians — as entertainment. In the past, presidents have sought information from daily security briefings. Trump, however, has not followed this method. "As the war progresses, Trump is reportedly being shown daily compilation videos of 'stuff blowing up' — two-minute highlight reels of death and destruction, curated to hold his attention due to his famously short attention span," DeVega wrote. This has impacted how he views the war and what comes next. "Trump’s reliance on the videos risks creating an echo chamber effect where he is not getting the best advice," DeVega wrote. "Pushing back against the reports, the administration claims the president receives advice throughout the day from senior military leadership, the intelligence community, diplomats and foreign leaders. He also watches the news. But this does not appear to be reflected in the planning and execution of the war, or its long-term strategic implications for American power and global stability."NBC News reported that these montages have added to the president's "increasing frustration" with how the media covers the war and skewed his views. "Trump has pointed to the success depicted in the daily videos to privately question why his administration can’t better influence the public narrative, asking aides why the news media doesn’t emphasize what he’s seeing, one of the current U.S. officials and the former U.S. official said," according to NBC News. Steven Cash, the executive director of the nonprofit the Steady State, an organization of more than 360 former national security and diplomacy experts promoting American democracy, told DeVega that Americans expect the president to listen to a range of expert voices to guide military actions. "This does not appear to be what is happening," DeVega wrote. "Instead, the process has been reduced to a closed circle of advisers reinforcing Trump’s instincts while screens display short, dramatic clips of explosions and destruction. War, Cash observed, 'is not a spectacle, and it is certainly not a form of entertainment. Treating it that way is both obscene and dangerous.'"Cash said the repercussions have been clear. "The president has publicly suggested that basic strategic realities — such as the central importance of the Strait of Hormuz to the global economy — were somehow overlooked by ‘the experts,'" Cash said. "That is simply not true. These are among the most well-established facts in international security. When a president appears unaware of such fundamentals, it raises serious concerns about whether he is receiving — or is willing to absorb — the information he needs."

Quake with epicentre west-north-west of Ternate island shakes cities and prompts regional tsunami warningOne person has been killed after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia’s Ternate island, damaging buildings and triggering small tsunami waves.The quake, which had a depth of 35km, occurred on Thursday at 6.48am local time, according to the United States Geological Survey. Its epicentre was 127km (79 miles) west-north-west of Ternate, an island in Indonesia’s North Maluku province. Continue reading...

Foreign ministers Ishaq Dar and Wang Yi met in Beijing as Pakistan pushes for peacemaker roleMiddle East crisis – live updatesPakistan and China have released a joint five-part proposal for peace in the Middle East, after Pakistan’s foreign minister flew to Beijing on Tuesday to seek Chinese support for the country’s faltering efforts to negotiate an end to end the war.The one-day meeting between Ishaq Dar and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, came as Pakistan continues to push for the role of peacemaker between the United States and Iran, even as the war shows little sign of relenting. Continue reading...