WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has offered Iran a 15-point ceasefire plan aimed at temporarily halting the war in the Middle East, as the Pentagon simultaneously orders thousands of Marines, paratroopers and a warship to the region.

The plan presented to Iranian leadership Tuesday broadly included a 30-day ceasefire and sanctions relief for Iran in exchange for a laundry list of U.S. demands, according to the Associated Press and other outlets.

But Iran dismissed the proposal Wednesday, criticizing the White House’s terms as “excessive” and out of step with reality, according to Iranian state-run media.

Those terms included limitations on Tehran’s missile stockpiles, and the permanent end to its nuclear program, its support for regional militias including Hezbollah, and of its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, various outlets reported, citing Pakistani officials mediating the negotiations.

Several of those provisions have long been considered nonstarters for Iran, which sees its missile stockade and regional alliances as central to national security.

Iranian officials responded with defiance and skepticism.

“Iran will end the war when it decides to do so and when its own conditions are met,” an Iranian official told state media. “Not when Trump envisions its conclusion.”

The official outlined the Islamic Republic’s terms for ending the conflict, which included a halt to “aggression and assassinations,” an end to fighting on all fronts, enforceable guarantees that hostilities will not resume, compensation for war damages and a formal recognition of Iran’s sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has stated that Iran is not interested in a ceasefire but rather a comprehensive “end of war” on all fronts, including the lifting of sanctions and guarantees to allow Iran to pursue peaceful nuclear enrichment for energy and medical applications.

Iranian officials told state media that they believed the Trump administration’s diplomatic efforts were deceptive.

“You have reached a stage where you are negotiating with yourselves,” Iranian military spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaqari said in a televised address Wednesday. “Do not call your defeat an agreement.

Since the start of the conflict, Iranian leaders have voiced suspicion of any diplomatic talks with the Trump administration, pointing to prewar diplomatic efforts as evidence they were “tricked.” The Islamic Republic says it made clear in those talks that it had no interest in developing nuclear weapons, but Trump launched his military campaign nonetheless.

There have been conflicting media reports over Tehran’s exact position. Statements from Iranian officials and state-linked outlets have left open the possibility that elements of the proposal are still under review, while some reports frame the response as an outright refusal.

The Iranian response also conflicts with President Trump’s insistence that negotiations were progressing.

“We have had very, very strong talks,” he said Sunday in Florida. “We have points, major points of agreement. I would say almost all points of agreement will at some point very, very soon meet.”

Compounding the issue, Israel — which continues to carry out routine bombing campaigns over Iran — has stayed out of the talks.

Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke about the peace deal in a phone call Tuesday. In a televised address, Netanyahu said that Trump “believes there is an opportunity” to realize U.S.-Israeli war objectives in an agreement “that will safeguard our vital interests.”

“At the same time, we continue to strike both in Iran and in Lebanon,” Netanyahu said. “We will safeguard our vital interests in any scenario.”

The negotiations are being facilitated by Pakistan, with support from Egypt and Turkey — countries that have pushed to contain a conflict that has killed more than 2,400 people, further destabilized the embattled region and disrupted global oil markets.

As Washington pursued a diplomatic end to the conflict, the Pentagon deployed an additional 2,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Mideast. An additional 5,000 Marines and thousands of sailors are already en route to the region, where 50,000 more Marines are currently stationed.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told reporters on Wednesday that the deployment “sends a signal to Iran that they need to get their act together,” but denied any coming escalations by the American side. Johnson instead said that he believes “Operation Epic Fury is almost done.”

Now in its fourth week, the operation began with a series of intensive airstrikes that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, and dozens of other high-ranking officials. Since then, the U.S. and Israel have carried out over 9,000 strikes targeting Iranian military infrastructure and nuclear program.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters in the Oval Office Tuesday that while the president’s diplomatic envoys seek a peace deal, his department of war will continue to “negotiate with bombs.”

“The president has made it clear that you will not have a nuclear weapon. The War Department agrees,” Hegseth told reporters Tuesday in the Oval Office. “Our job is to ensure that, and so we’re keeping our hand on that throttle.”

Iranian retaliatory strikes have hit Gulf infrastructure and halted energy production and shipping in the region, spurring global fears of an enduring supply crunch. Meanwhile, Israel has expanded operations in Iran and sought to expand its borders into Lebanon.

Oil prices, which had surged above $120 per barrel earlier in the conflict, fell sharply this week on hopes that a ceasefire could ease supply woes.

In a statement Wednesday, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres demanded an end to the fighting, which he said “has broken past limits even leaders thought imaginable.”

He specifically called on the U.S. and Israel to end the war, as “human suffering deepens, civilian casualties mount, and the global economic impact is increasingly devastating.”

Times staff writers Ana Ceballos, in Washington, D.C., and Nabih Bulos, in Beirut, contributed to this report.

Jeff Webb, known as the “founder of modern cheerleading” for his role in turning the activity into a competitive sport, died Thursday following “a tragic accident,” a family spokesperson said Tuesday. He was 76.

A former yell leader for the University of Oklahoma cheerleading squad, Webb went on to form several organizations — including Varsity Spirit, the Universal Cheerleaders Assn. and the International Cheer Union — that helped him reshape what was once largely a sideline activity into an International Olympic Committee-recognized sport that features elements of gymnastics, stunts and dance.

Cheer Daily reports that an email sent by Varsity Spirit president Bill Seely to the company’s community said that Webb fell while playing pickleball earlier this month and suffered a severe head injury.

Webb was buried in a private ceremony for family on Sunday. A larger celebration of life will be held at a later date.

“Our father was, at his core, a man of inexhaustible energy, and he poured that energy into everything he did, from revolutionizing cheerleading to his never-ending — and constantly growing — list of activities,” Webb’s children said in a statement.

An avid outdoorsman, Webb managed a farm and hunting lodge and enjoyed offshore fishing and boating. He was also a pilot, author, publisher and guitar player.

“He brought that same spirit of dedication and encouragement to being a father and grandfather,” his children added. “To most people he is a legendary entrepreneur — to us, he was our soccer coach and on-demand comedian, our mentor and father-daughter dance partner, our solace and our source of strength.

“He taught us by example that a life well lived contains balance, that seriousness and silliness are not in fact opposites, that focus and discipline do not and should not preclude care and kindness.”

Through his organizations, Webb established hundreds of cheerleading competitions — including national championships that have been broadcast on ESPN for decades — and training camps. He was a pioneer in the manufacturing and marketing of cheerleading apparel and equipment and also played a role in establishing safety guidelines for the sport.

“The founder of modern cheerleading, [Webb] spent his life building the sport he loved and advocating for young people everywhere,” the International Cheer Union wrote on Facebook. “Our thoughts are with his family, friends and the entire global cheer community.

Varsity Spirit wrote on Instagram: “Join us in honoring the life and legacy of Jeff Webb, founder of Varsity Spirit and modern cheerleading. His impact has built a community that will continue to inspire generations to come.”

The Varsity Spirit post included a tribute video that featured an audio clip of Webb discussing the instant he realized just how much of an impact his efforts had on the sport.

“I was at UCA High School Nationals, and I looked out there — everybody had a smile on their face,” Webb said. “People think this is a little corny, but I had this almost epiphany experience. And it was just this emotion that came over me. It was, how lucky am I? How fortunate have I been to be able to have this idea and to build on it and have fabulous people kind of hook their star to my vision and for us together to build this great thing?”

Webb is survived by his wife, Gina, and his children, Jeffery and Caroline, and two grandchildren.

March 25 (UPI) — Environmental organization Oceana has accused the Mexican government of maintaining an opaque response to an oil spill that has affected at least 390 miles of coastline in the Gulf of Mexico.

The oil has largely impacted the southern part of Veracruz state and the northern part of Tabasco state since early March, with dozens of contaminated sites still not receiving attention.

The spill has lasted nearly three weeks without an identified cause or confirmed responsible parties, affects the southwestern Gulf of Mexico reef corridor, a key ecological area that stretches along the coast between both states.

President Claudia Sheinbaum said the Office of the Attorney General is investigating, with support from environmental and energy agencies, while an interdisciplinary team analyzes the causel.

Sheinbaum stated that the spill originated from a private vessel, not state-owned oil company Pemex.

Veracruz Gov. Rocío Nahle said she will meet with officials from Petroleos Mexicanos to evaluate the installation of containment barriers in coastal areas following requests from fishermen.

Nahle said cleanup efforts are intensifying and that specialized mesh barriers are being installed at strategic points along the coastline to contain residues, with plans to expand the work depending on marine current movements.

Oceana warned that the situation constitutes a “crisis of transparency and accountability,” noting that official information has been insufficient and contradictory compared to the scale of damage reported by coastal communities.

Greenpeace Mexico released an interactive map with real-time reports on the expansion of the spill, including citizen records of thick residues and their impact on wildlife and coastal ecosystems.

However, Veracruz governor downplayed the impact, saying in interviews that it involves “traces” or small “drops” of oil on beaches and asserting that reports of dead wildlife were false — an assessment that contrasts with reports from communities and environmental organizations.

Oceana called on the government to establish “transparent, agile and binding” interagency coordination mechanisms and to adopt structural measures to prevent the Gulf from facing another environmental crisis without responsible parties or clear information.

“The Gulf of Mexico and its communities cannot continue to be treated as an environmental sacrifice zone,” Terrazas said.

The U.S. Army says it hopes to see production of a finalized version of the next-generation M1E3 Abrams tank begin next year. The exact timeline will depend on the performance of early prototype tanks in testing by operational units, which is slated to kick off later this year.

Brent Ingraham, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology, discussed current plans for the M1E3 program with TWZ and other outlets at a media roundtable on the sidelines of the Association of the United States Army’s (AUSA) annual Global Force Symposium yesterday. The Army officially unveiled the first early prototype M1E3 at the Detroit Auto Show in January, which was delivered years ahead of the program’s original schedule.

“That will again be this summer, early fall,” Ingraham said when asked about the schedule for M1E3 early prototypes arriving at so-called Transformation In Contact (TIC) units. These are operational formations that have been given a test role as part of the Army’s larger TIC effort, which is intended to help accelerate the fielding of new and improved capabilities, as well as tactics, techniques, and procedures to go with them.

Beyond that, the central goal for the M1E3 program is “to get to production as fast as possible,” Ingraham continued.

The Army’s top acquisition official added that “it’s going to depend on how well they [the early prototypes] perform,” but that “hopefully” production of the new tanks will then start “in the next 12 months or so.”

It also remains to be seen how the M1E3’s configuration may evolve between now and production start. Whether the next-generation tanks will be entirely new production vehicles is also not entirely clear. The early prototype shown at the Detroit Auto Show featured a substantially reworked hull and now uncrewed turret, but that was clearly still derived from the configuration of the latest M1A2 System Enhancement Package Version 3 (SEPv3) Abram variant. Prime contractor General Dynamics Land Systems had previously rolled out an AbramsX next-generation demonstrator with a much more significantly evolved design.

AbramsX Technology Demonstrator on the Move

That being said, the M1E3 early prototype does differ in a host of other very important ways from the M1A2 SEPv3. At the top of that list is a new hybrid propulsion in place of the fuel-hungry gas turbine found on previous Abrams models. The new propulsion configuration includes a modified Caterpillar C13D six-cylinder diesel engine and an ACT1075LP transmission from SAPA. Army officials have previously said the M1E3 will be between 40 and 50 percent more fuel efficient compared to previous versions.

The M1E3 also has new lightweight tracks from American Rheinmetall and a hydropneumatic suspension system understood to have come from Horstman Group. In a post on X in January, the latter firm noted that switching “to external hydropneumatic suspension” helps “free up crew space by removing torsion bars,” but did not explicitly confirm its involvement in the program. A suspension system of this kind, which has been tested on Abrams in the past, also allows for the hull of the tank to be raised and lowered in ways that can help improve survivability and offer other operational benefits.

The M1E3 tank employs an external hydropneumatic suspension system developed by Horstman, a company headquartered in Bath, United Kingdom. A defining feature of this suspension is that it eliminates the need for torsion bars.

This design frees up a significant amount of internal… https://t.co/OPglnoWxxY pic.twitter.com/jQkGj0h7oq

— 笑脸男人 (@lfx160219) January 26, 2026

The M1E3’s crew configuration differs significantly from existing variants, as well. The next-generation tank’s turret is intended to be entirely remotely operated, with the truncated three-person crew (instead of the traditional four) moved down into the front of the hull. The loader role is eliminated, and an autolaoder is set to be utilized instead. Historically, the U.S. military, as well as many Western armed forces, have eschewed autoloaders in their tanks. Soviet and now Russian tank designs, along with Chinese ones, have more typically had this feature. In terms of the M1E3’s main gun, the Army otherwise looks to be sticking with the same 120mm smooth-bore type used on Abrams variants now.

Interestingly, what has been seen so far of the expected crew compartment for the M1E3 is also similar in many broad respects to the design of Russia’s T-14 Armata. Despite having made its public debut in 2015, the T-14 has, at best, seen very limited operational service. In addition, the M1E3’s driver will operate the tank via a controller that looks like one that might come with a video game console, which the Army has said is a deliberate choice.

M1E3 used Fanatec Gaming Controller. Colonel Ryan Howell, Program Lead for the M1E3, said:“It now takes just 30 seconds to train a young soldier to drive that tank—something that used to take us days, even weeks……I’ll share a quote from one of the soldiers who helped us early… https://t.co/6y3VGXmVzU pic.twitter.com/fWNGyZ8AtO

— 笑脸男人 (@lfx160219) January 15, 2026

“It now takes just 30 seconds to train a young soldier to drive that tank – something that used to take us days, even weeks,” Col. Ryan Howell, the program manager for the M1E3, told Fox News back in January in Detroit. “I’ll share a quote from one of the soldiers who helped us early in the process. When we first sat him down at the crew station, he was already in the process of transitioning out of the Army, but he was assisting us by informing key design decisions. He told us, ‘If I had known I could work on a platform like this, I would have stayed in the Army.’”

These various design elements are key to the Army meeting its goals for the overall weight of the M1E3. The service has previously said that it hopes the next-generation tank will tip the scales at around 60 tons. Weight creep has been a major issue for the Abrams since it first entered service in the 1980s, with the latest M1A2 SEPv3 variant coming in at 78 tons.

“This next-generation Abrams is designed to transform how armored units operate globally,” Michelle Link, the Army’s Deputy Capability Program Executive for Ground Combat Platforms, had said in a press release in January. “By streamlining its sustainment needs and increasing deployment speed, the M1E3 Abrams ensures faster movement from ports to the front lines, making it more agile and accessible in any environment.”

In terms of other capabilties, the M1E3 early prototype presented in Detroit had a Leonardo DRS Stabilized Sight System (S3), which features a mix of electro-optical and infrared cameras, and a remote weapon station (RWS) from EOS on top of the turret. The RWS was armed with a 40mm automatic grenade launcher, a 7.62x51mm machine gun, and a Javelin anti-tank guided missile. The M1E3’s complete armament package could still expand, including with the addition of launchers for loitering munitions.

The Army currently says the M1E3 will be fitted with a version of the Israeli-design Iron Fist active protection system (APS). The service is already fielding that APS, which it has now designated as the XM251, on the M2A4E1 variant of the Bradley infantry Fighting Vehicle. It is also expected to be integrated onto 8×8 Stryker wheeled light armored vehicles and the future replacement for the Bradley family, tentatively designated the XM30. Iron Fist’s prime contractor, Elbit Systems, notably just recently disclosed that the system has at least some capability to defeat incoming kamikaze drones, as well as anti-tank guided missiles and other infantry anti-armor. The Army is also now pursuing add-on passive anti-drone armor for existing Abrams tanks and other armored vehicles, which could make its way onto the M1E3.

Iron Fist APS | Active Protection System for Armored Vehicles

In Detroit, other cameras were seen positioned at various points around the M1E3’s hull and turret, providing the crew with what looks to be a distributed vision system. This would allow the crew to ‘see’ through the hull of the tank while sitting nestled under its armor with all the hatches sealed. The camera feeds could be integrated into a helmet-mounted system and paired with augmented reality to create an overlay with various important data.

The next-generation tank is also expected to feature a variety of other advanced systems, including new targeting capabilities and other onboard sensors, as well as a networked communications suite.

The Army clearly expects the M1E3’s design to further evolve, at least to some degree, based on Soldier feedback and other data collected during testing that will start later this year. Time will tell how different the final configuration is from the early prototype the service unveiled in January.

If the core design performs well and the program otherwise keeps to its aggressive schedule, production of the Army next main battle tank could well start next year.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

Riz Ahmed has created and stars in a marvelous new series, “Bait,” premiering Wednesday on Prime Video. There are no worms in it, though viral video plays a part, and fame — the pursuit of which is a subject — is a lure.

But what’s in a name? A comedy by any other name would be as funny — if it was funny, and this one very much is, in a way that’s crazy and serious and human, built around a character in crisis who refuses to believe his life is out of control and is so invested in putting up a front that he’s begun to believe his own lies. Almost. It’s a series in which hallucinations, dreams, magical realism and memories, which punctuate and interfere with the “normal” business of the story, all amount the same thing, and in which the style of the filming shifts with the action.

Ahmad plays Shah Latif, a British Pakistani actor, who, owing to the exertions of his faithful, often frustrated agent, Felicia (Weruche Opia), is improbably auditioning to be the next James Bond. But he repeatedly forgets his line when his scene partner, a girl with a gun, asks, “Tell me, when it’s just you all alone, how do you live with yourself? Do you even know who you are?” establishing a theme. (The line he can’t recall: “I don’t live with myself, I live with whoever you need me to be.” Spies and actors!)

Leaving the audition, he contrives to be photographed by one of the paparazzi lurking outside, sniffing for a Bond scoop; his picture is published, which creates a stir and some racist blowback, culminating in a package thrown through the front window of his parents’ home. (It is not a window that opens.) What’s inside the package I’ll leave for you to discover, but it will play a part through the rest of the show.

The recurring question of who will be the next James Bond generates a lot of pop cultural heat in our world; just type “next James Bond” into your search engine of choice. At one point, you may recall, Idris Elba was regularly bruited as a potential 007, which occasioned enough anti-Black reaction that he officially took himself out of the unofficial running. It may have been on Ahmed’s mind here — Shah claims high purpose for his Bondean aspirations, that he wants “to show them that this too is what British looks like.”

On the one hand, Shah has had enough of a career to have been made into a “limited edition collectible action figure,” starred in a well-regarded but underseen small film, played “the translator in ‘Homeland’ series seven” and earned a rising star award from some French festival; on the other, he is, professionally speaking, no Idris Elba — not a nobody, but not too many rungs above it. (He’s not Dev Patel, either, with whom he’s repeatedly confused.)

At the top of the second episode, Shah is seemingly being interviewed on a podcast, “Sir Chatwick Stewart, with me, Sir Patrick Stewart” — played by the man himself, whom we hear but never see — about his ambitions, though it’s soon clear that Stewart is a mental projection, an inner critic and inquisitor. He’ll stick around through the series, offering barbed commentary and something like support: “If I humiliate you, it’s to save you from the bigger humiliation of remaining as you are.”

As a protagonist continually getting in his own way, Shah is a classic sort of comic character. He creates opportunities only to squander them; finds himself voiceless after forcing himself onstage at a black-tie gala or in an underground club (he was once a politically provocative MC). After a newsworthy mishap, his agent advises him to lie low, which is impossible for him to do; there is no itch he won’t scratch, and no good advice he’ll actually follow. Apart from a rival actor (Himesh Patel) he’s a protagonist without antagonists, excepting himself. He’s insufficiently grateful to the people he owes, and insufficiently apologetic to those he’s wronged.

Shah’s self-involvement will be challenged by ex-girlfriend Yasmin (Ritu Arya), encountered first by accident, then sought out — a writer, she has published an op-ed headlined, “No, Shah Latif, We Don’t Need a Brown Bond” — in which she accuses him of “exchanging his political art for vanilla distraction.” His family, whom he neglects to visit for months, includes warm-hearted cousin Zulfi (Guz Khan), who has started a Muslim ride share company; a no-nonsense sister (Aasiya Shah) — the name of her character is rendered as “Q” on IMDb and elsewhere, but in the series itself she’s called Ainy — doting mother Tahira (Sheeba Chaddha); and his skeptical father, Parvez (Sajid Hasan), who has not been keeping his doctor appointments and asks Shah, “What do you even do? I watch TV all day — you’re never on it.”

Appropriate to a character who lives for being onscreen, “Bait” plays with the language of film — gritty procedural, a burst of Bollywood, romantic comedy — though not necessarily to the usual ends. Frame-filling titles identify the London neighborhoods where the action takes place — Wembley, Kentish Town, Brick Lane, Ladbroke Grove — as Paris, Moscow and Mexico City might appear in an international thriller. The series is at once satirical and celebratory; “Bait” feels abundant, both in its presentation of a culture, which has the ring of documentary truth, and as a beautifully realized work of art.

Bond can wait.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court made it harder for music and movie makers to sue for online piracy, ruling Wednesday that internet providers are usually not liable for copyright infringement even if they know their users are downloading copyrighted works.

In a 9-0 decision, the justices threw out Sony’s lawsuit and a $1-billion verdict against Cox Cable for copyright infringement.

Lower courts upheld a jury’s verdict against Cox’s internet service for contributing to music piracy, which the company did little to stop.

Sony’s lawyers pointed to hundreds of thousands of instances of Cox customers sharing copyrighted works. Put on notice, Cox did little stop it, they said.

But the high court said that is not enough to establish liability for copyright infringement.

“Under our precedents, a company is not liable as a copyright infringer for merely providing a service to the general public with knowledge that it will be used by some to infringe copyrights,” Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for the court.

Two decades ago, the court sided with the music and motion picture producers and ruled against Grokster and Napster on the grounds their software was intended to share copyrighted music and movies.

But on Wednesday, the court said “contributory” copyright infringement did not extend to internet service providers based on the actions of some of their users

“Cox provided Internet service to its subscribers, but it did not intend for that service to be used to commit copyright infringement,” Thomas said. “Cox neither induced its users’ infringement nor provided a service tailored to infringement.”

In its defense, Cox argued that internet service providers could be bankrupted by huge lawsuits for copyright infringement, which they said they did not cause and could not prevent.

Puka Nacua has denied a woman’s claim that he made an antisemitic comment, says the Rams wide receiver’s attorney.

Madison Atiabi made the claim this week in an application for a temporary restraining order obtained by The Times.

Atiabi asserted in the court filing that during a group New Year’s Eve dinner, Nacua said “f— all the Jews … in a manner audible to [her] and others at the table.” Atiabi added that Nacua’s “vulgar, threatening, violent and harassing conduct” escalated as the evening progressed.

After dinner, Atiabi said she was in a car with Nacua and others when the Rams star bit her on the left shoulder, leaving a substantial bite mark that was photographed. Nacua also is alleged to have bitten the thumb of Atiabi’s friend “so forcefully that she screamed in pain,” according to the filing.

Nacua’s attorney, Levi McCathern, said he has spoken to witnesses — including other Rams players who were present — who didn’t hear Nacua make the antisemitic statement. He also said the bite was innocent “horseplay.”

“Puka denies these allegations in the strongest possible terms,” McCathern said. “We will pursue all available legal remedies in response to these false and damaging statements.”

The request for a temporary restraining order was denied by a Los Angeles Superior Court judicial officer and a hearing is scheduled for April 14.

“Our office was contacted with demands of millions of dollars in exchange for not publicizing these allegations,” McCathern told TMZ. “This is not a legitimate claim — it is blackmail.”

In December, Nacua apologized for an antisemitic gesture he made while appearing on a livestream with Adin Ross and N3on.

The livestreamers, with Nacua out of earshot, discussed whether Nacua would get in trouble if he performed a move that references an offensive stereotype about Jewish people. Ross is Jewish, but he often performs the move in his livestreams.

They suggested Nacua, who led the NFL with 129 receptions and was named an All-Pro in 2025, perform the gesture the next time he scored a touchdown.

“At the time, I had no idea this act was antisemitic in nature and perpetuated hateful stereotypes against Jewish people,” Nacua wrote in his post. “I deeply apologize to anyone who was offended by my actions as I do not stand for any form of racism, bigotry or hate of another group of people.”

The Rams distanced themselves from Nacua’s gesture in a statement.

“There is no place in this world for antisemitism as well as other forms of prejudice or hostility towards the Jewish people and people of any religion, ethnicity, or race,” the team said.

A high-ranking diplomatic source has confirmed that Iran received a 15-point plan from the United States aimed at ending the US-Israeli war on the country.

But the source told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that Tehran described the US proposal as “extremely maximalist and unreasonable”.

“It is not beautiful even on paper,” the source added, calling the plan deceptive and misleading in its presentation.

The comments come as US President Donald Trump has claimed – despite Iranian denials – that negotiations are under way between Washington and Tehran to reach an agreement to end the nearly one-month conflict.

The source explained that Iran has a clear understanding of what conditions it requires for a ceasefire and what it will reject.

The source also stated that there have been no direct Iran-United States talks since the war began – however, messages have been exchanged through a number of mediators.

The response from Iran came hours after sources confirmed to Al Jazeera that Pakistan had shared the US’ ceasefire demands with Iran.

Mediators are pushing for possible in-person talks between the Iranians and the Americans, as early as Friday in Pakistan, Egyptian and Pakistani officials said on Wednesday.

According to Al Jazeera’s Osama Bin Javaid, Pakistan is in a unique position as a mediator because it has a Shia minority, and relatively good ties with Iran including cross-border trade.

It also has a defence agreement with Saudi Arabia, and a Sunni majority that is closely aligned with the Gulf states, he said. Pakistan’s military leader also has a relationship with Trump, Javaid added.

“So, all of this puts Pakistan in a unique position to act between these two sides: it has no US bases on its soil, so Iran cannot accuse it of being used by the United States, and it is a state that has historically tried to mend relations between these actors,” he said.

⁠Egypt’s ⁠Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, meanwhile, said Cairo was ready ⁠to host any meetings related to Iran as long as ‌it serves de-escalation.

Abdelatty said in a news conference that Egypt supported ⁠Trump’s initiative to ⁠negotiate with Iran.

On Iran’s response to ⁠the US plan, ⁠he said “we ⁠have to continue our efforts, it’s all about ‌diplomacy and negotiations”.

Turkiye has also been been trying to position itself as a possible mediator, with Harun Armagan, a vice chairman for foreign affairs in Turkiye’s ruling AK Party, telling the Reuters news agency that Ankara has been “playing a role passing messages” between Tehran and Washington.

Iran counters with own conditions to end war

Iranian state television’s English-language broadcaster, Press TV, quoted an anonymous official also stating that Iran rejected the US ceasefire proposal.

“Iran will end the war when it decides to do so and when its own conditions are met,” Press TV quoted the official as saying.

The official offered Iran’s own five-point plan, which included a halt to killings of its officials, means to make sure no other war is waged against it, reparations for the war, the end of hostilities and Iran’s “exercise of sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz”.

Earlier, two officials from Pakistan described the 15-point US proposal broadly, saying it addressed sanctions relief, a rollback of Iran’s nuclear program, limits on missiles and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil is shipped.

An Egyptian official involved in the mediation efforts said the proposal also includes restrictions on Iran’s support for armed groups.

Israeli officials, who have been advocating for Trump to continue the war against Iran, were surprised by the submission of a ceasefire plan, the Associated Press news agency reported, citing an anonymous source.

Iran remains highly suspicious of the United States, which twice under the Trump administration has attacked during high-level diplomatic talks, including with the February 28 strikes that started the current war.

Iran’s rejection of the US proposal came as Israel launched air attacks on Tehran and Washington deployed paratroopers and more Marines to the region.

Iran, meanwhile, launched more attacks on Israel and Gulf Arab countries, including an assault that sparked a huge fire at Kuwait International Airport.

With the war on Iran disrupting the global supply of oil, could this be the moment Africa breaks its dependency on foreign energy?

Guests: Rolake Akinkugbe-Filani of EnergyInc Advisors and Cheta Nwanze of SBM Intelligence.

Victoria Pedretti was fresh out of Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Drama when she was cast in Mike Flanagan’s acclaimed 2018 horror series, “The Haunting of Hill House.”

In her breakout role as Nell Crain, the youngest and most sensitive of five adult siblings reckoning with wounds from a childhood summer spent in a cursed home, Pedretti became the undisputed heart of “Hill House,” anchoring the show with a spellbinding performance that christened her as a scream queen. Her subsequent appearances in “The Haunting of Bly Manor” and “You” were characterized by a similar dramatic intensity, solidifying her renown in the horror genre.

But in Pedretti’s new “Forbidden Fruits,” a horror-comedy directed by Meredith Alloway making her feature debut and produced by “Jennifer’s Body” screenwriter Diablo Cody, the actor shines in all-new soapy splendor.

Set in a Dallas shopping mall, “Forbidden Fruits” revolves around an elite clique of retail employees who run a witches’ coven out of the basement of their boho boutique Free Eden. Pedretti stars alongside Lili Reinhart, Lola Tung and Alexandra Shipp.

Victoria Pedretti in the movie “Forbidden Fruits.”

(Sabrina Lantos / Independent Film Company and Shudder)

Initially asked to look at both the roles of whimsigoth physics buff Fig and the bubbly yet emotionally complex Cherry, described by Alloway as a “Texas Brigitte Bardot,” Pedretti fell hard for the latter.

“She really popped off the page,” Pedretti, 31, says on a recent Zoom interview she takes while on a sandwich run in L.A. “I entered into this glorious flow state.”

“I can’t say I’ve had any experience quite like it, where I really didn’t spend a lot of time questioning myself,” the actor says. “She kind of took over.”

That confidence was perhaps the product of Pedretti performing in two stage plays before “Forbidden Fruits” — or maybe it was the nighttime filming schedule. Either way, Pedretti says she improvised constantly and always kept swinging until somebody said, “Cut.”

The result: Pedretti in Alloway’s instant cult classic is a laugh-out-loud-funny unending well of charm, packing humor into even her most routine dialogue. In her best quotable moments, she seamlessly infuses her sometimes shrill timbre with a dash of Southern drawl. One of her most iconic facial expressions in the film is already circulating as a reaction meme online.

“I was enjoying being in this character so much, I just wouldn’t stop,” Pedretti says, adding that Alloway, who was sensitive to cast members’ interpretations of their roles, supported experimentation.

Alloway praises the Philadelphia-born Pedretti for nailing Cherry’s comedic moments yet also grounding the character in a traumatic backstory — a balancing act the director knew she was capable of after watching “Hill House.”

“I saw her in that show and I was like, ‘Who is that?’” Alloway says. “She is magnificent and so raw. I didn’t feel like I was watching someone acting. I was worried for her.”

After later watching Pedretti nail her role in “You” as Love Quinn, a wealthy, charismatic chef who hides a psychopathic nature, Alloway was convinced of her star power.

Victoria Pedretti in the movie “You.”

(John P. Fleenor / Netflix)

Cody was most familiar with Pedretti’s performance in “You,” pegging the actor as an “intense brunet” that didn’t square at first with her interpretation of Cherry as an Anna Nicole Smith type.

“Then I see the movie and I’m like, oh my God, she has that fragility,” Cody recalls. “She has that humor. She has that sexuality. She has all of it.

“Victoria brought all of those layers and I’m really blown away by her,” the Oscar-winning “Juno” screenwriter adds.

Cody says she wasn’t surprised that the film drew such talent. From the moment Alloway and Lily Houghton, who wrote the play “Forbidden Fruits” is based on and cowrote the film’s screenplay, brought the material to Cody and her producing partner Mason Novick, she became obsessed.

“It feels spiritually like a film that I would want to be part of my body of work,” Cody says. She remembers being especially delighted by the echoes of “Jennifer’s Body” present in Alloway and Houghton’s screenplay.

“Jennifer’s Body” was widely considered a box-office flop and critical failure upon its release in 2009 — grossing only $31 million worldwide against a $16-million budget — but in recent years has enjoyed a reappraisal as a stealth-feminist essential, reclaimed by superfans.

“I don’t think that the world was ready for these kinds of themes,” Cody says of the movie’s ideas, including the cost of toxic femininity, the nuances of female friendship and the pervasiveness of the male gaze.

When it came to promoting “Jennifer’s Body,” the producer adds, “there was a huge emphasis on trying to market it to straight men, based on Megan [Fox] being attractive, and that was not at all the point of the film, so that was frustrating.” Conversely, “Forbidden Fruits” speaks intimately to the female experience and “doesn’t attempt to pander to any other demographic.”

“The current zeitgeist is a great place for a movie like this,” she says. “This movie is for the girls, gays and theys, as they say.”

Alloway, a trained actor who worked as a film journalist before moving into directing, was struck with a similar feeling when she first discovered Houghton’s play, right around the time she was consuming copious media about women criminals, such as Tori Telfer’s 2017 book “Lady Killers: Deadly Women Throughout History.”

“I was so entrenched in why women commit acts of crime,” Alloway said, adding that she was disappointed to find that revenge films on the subject still often revolved around men.

Picking up Houghton’s script, the director recalls feeling relieved. “Oh, this is just about women,” she says, her face brightening. “This is about women friendships, women being pitted against each other.”

In an early meeting with Houghton, Alloway told the playwright she’d like to bring a genre lens to “turn up the dial on the emotions that you feel reading the play and make them accessible to people who haven’t had these experiences — or validate people who have.”

Outside of the opportunity to work with so many other young women, Pedretti said she was drawn to “Forbidden Fruits” because of its use of style and tone.

“It asks a lot of people to try to step into a world like this one,” the actor says of the unabashedly histrionic screenplay. “And as nerve-racking as it may be to take that big swing, you gotta take the big swing.”

“She has that fragility,” says producer Diablo Cody of Pedretti. “She has that humor. She has that sexuality. She has all of it.”

(Evelyn Freja / For The Times)

And swing she does: Pedretti plays up Cherry’s emotional volatility, giving her a full-bodied form of expression. The actor even did her own onscreen makeup (as did Reinhart) and collaborated heavily with costume designer Sarah Millman on Cherry’s wardrobe and styling. Plus, she performed her first topless scene — in a sequence that doesn’t involve men or even sex.

“I’m really proud of the way we use nudity to show a certain kind of unspoken comfortability among women,” she continues. “I remember always getting such a thrill at the comfort level of a girl being like, ‘We’re going to the bathroom together,’ and to me, that is that moment.”

It’s a perfect example of a scene that doesn’t try to speak to anyone except those it’s specifically written for, and one that you only get with women at the helm of a production.

Reflecting on the agency she had to shape Cherry, Pedretti says she is more inspired to explore directorial projects of her own.

“I am so interested in protecting these spaces to be positive, creative experiences for everyone involved,” she says.

Whenever Pedretti does make her feature debut behind the camera (she’s already made a short or two), perhaps Cody will pick up the phone.

YOU can explore a Santorini-like island with whitewashed villages for a fraction of the price of the real deal.

Folegandros is an island in the Cyclades known for both pretty beaches and cheaper hotels than its sister island.

Unlike its neighbours Mykonos and Santorini, Folegandros doesn’t have an airport or huge hotels – the island didn’t even have electricity until 1974.

It’s been dubbed an ‘under-the-radar Greek island’ seeing much fewer visitors.

Santorini gets around 3.4million visitors each year, meanwhile Folegandros gets 50,000.

There’s still lots to see and visitors will find most of the island’s life in the main town of Chora of which is perched on a cliff around 200 metres high.

GET IT BOOKED

The ‘cheap luxury’ beach resorts under 4 hours from UK with breaks from £75pp

HOT LIST

Where our travel experts will holiday this year – and how we found the best deals

It’s where most of the shops, restaurants, cafes and tavernas are found.

Make sure to try Matsata, which is a handmade fresh pasta, which looks similar to tagliatelle, that was founded on Folegandros.

Usually it’s served with cooked meats like rooster, rabbit, or goat in a rich tomato sauce and topped with grated cheese.

For those who want the best island view, take the steep, winding path up to the Church of Panagia.

CNN listed Chora in their top seven most beautiful villages in Europe, writing: “Santorini’s streets sag with admirers.

“But on Folegandros, a nearby island, you’ll find similar architecture—streets paved in slate, whitewashed buildings decorated with colourful flowers, the occasional Greek Orthodox church with a bright blue dome—without the crowds.”

Being a Greek island in the Aegean Sea, Folegandros has plenty of beautiful beaches and has been praised for its “emerald-blue” waters.

Some of the island’s top ones include Katergo Beach which has white sands and blue waters.

Visitors have gone as far as to say it’s the “prettiest beach on Folegandros.”

Another is Livadaki Beach which most visitors access by boat rather than foot.

Its remote location means it is less busy than other beaches on the island and it’s said to be an ideal spot for snorkelling.

Agios Nikolaos Beach is family-friendly with a small bar and taverna on the shoreline.

Depending on the season, the average price of a hotel in Santorini varies but typically ranges from £143–£251 per night – but luxury stays can be as high as £1,000.

While Folegandros does have some luxe stays, there are some more affordable stays too.

The Beachfront Cycladic House can be booked from £74 per night on Booking.com.

The holiday home has a bedroom, a bathroom, a living room, a balcony and it’s just minutes’ walk away from multiple beaches.

Rooms at the Kallisti Hotel which is built in the style of a small village can be booked from £82 per night.

It has a swimming pool, bar, breakfast room and rooms with balconies with beautiful island views.

The easiest way for Brits to get to Folegandros is by a ferry from Athens which takes around four hours.

Brits can also fly from the UK to Athens in under four hours from as little as £22.

For more beautiful Greek islands, here are four better value islands where locals go on holiday with Santorini-like houses and secluded beaches.

And here are the alternative Greek islands that could save you £1,000 – including two spots everyone thinks are expensive.

Published on
25/03/2026 – 15:39 GMT+1

Lille will host the European Custom Authority, a new decentralised agency tasked with supporting and coordinating national customs administrations across the bloc.

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

The decision was made on Wednesday in Brussels, after EU lawmakers from the European Parliament and the Council of the EU voted on the matter in three rounds.

“France is one of Europe’s leading customs nations, [considering] one in three parcels entering the EU passes through French territory,” Dutch MEP Dirk Gotink, rapporteur on the customs reform, said in a press statement.

“Lille’s strategic location at the crossroads of Europe makes it the natural hub for this authority,” the EU lawmaker continued.

Italy, with Rome as its candidate, was the runner-up in the voting rounds.

Other contenders included Belgium with Liège, Croatia with Zagreb, the Netherlands with The Hague, Poland with Warsaw, Portugal with Porto, Romania with Bucharest, and Spain with Málaga.

Customs management and trade have taken on renewed urgency after former US President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs shortly after taking office.

Amid growing global trade uncertainty, the EU has stepped up engagement with international partners. This week, it signed a new agreement with Australia, while the EU–Mercosur deal is set to apply provisionally from 1 April.

The establishment of the new authority is part of the overall reform of the EU customs framework, with key negotiations expected to take place on Thursday.

The reform also aims to tackle the rising pressure from increased trade flows, fragmented national systems and the rapid rise of e-commerce.

The agency is expected to be set up in 2026 and could become operational in 2028 according to a draft schedule which is still be subject to significant changes.

A woman in Indiana who put off dental surgery because she doesn’t know if she can afford the copay. A Florida couple with young children who are depleting their savings. A grandmother in Idaho who plans to sell her car to pay the rent.

They are among about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers expecting to receive another $0 paycheck this week. A dispute in Congress over funding the Department of Homeland Security has held up their salaries since mid-February. With monthly bills coming due, many of these federal employees, who screen passengers and luggage at airports across the U.S., are making difficult choices about how to make ends meet.

High absentee rates at some major airports have produced long lines and frustrated passengers at understaffed security checkpoints. Union leaders and federal officials say empty gas tanks, child care expenses and the threat of eviction keep more screeners from showing up the longer the shutdown continues. At last count, more than 455 had quit instead of weathering the ongoing uncertainty, according to DHS.

“Stop asking me about the long lines. Ask me if somebody’s gonna eat today,” Hydrick Thomas, president of the national American Federation of Government Employees union council that represents TSA employees, told reporters Tuesday.

Indiana TSA agent turns to food pantry for groceries

Before starting her shift at Indianapolis International Airport on Monday, Taylor Desert stopped at a food bank for meat, eggs, vegetables and dairy products.

“I never thought I would be in a position where, working for the federal government, I would need to go to a food bank to supplement my groceries,” she said as she loaded bags into her car.

Desert, who has been a TSA officer for seven years, said her last full paycheck came on Feb. 14, the day the shutdown started.

She had some savings to draw on despite a record 43-day shutdown last fall but put some personal plans on pause.

For example, Desert needs to get her wisdom teeth removed but says the TSA isn’t approving time off during the shutdown. She also worries about costs from the surgery not covered by insurance.

Wednesday was the 39th day of the DHS funding lapse. If it goes another 21 days, Desert said she would seek another job.

“I don’t want to have to spend my entire savings just to afford to keep living,” she said.

Florida TSA couple worry about their young children

Oksana Kelly, 38, and her husband, Deron, 37, both work as TSA agents at Orlando International Airport. They have two young children and don’t know how they will keep supporting their family without any income coming in.

Kelly said they’re dipping into savings for now, but it’s running dry. If the shutdown persists, they will ask relatives for help or take out a loan, which she worries would put them deeper in debt.

Her husband has worked as a DoorDash delivery driver in his spare time since the shutdown in October and November. He’s considered resigning from the TSA to put the couple on more stable financial footing.

“It’s very mentally exhausting,” said Kelly, who is an organizer for the labor union representing TSA workers across central and northern Florida. “How do we even decide between being able to feed our kids or come to work?”

Kelly said strangers might criticize the couple for “putting all eggs in one basket” since both choose to work for the TSA for the past decade.

“All we want is to pay our bills and get the pay we deserve,” she said.

A veteran officer in Idaho fears homelessness

Rebecca Wolf cries every day. She tries to hide it from her grandchildren, ages 11 and 6.

“They don’t understand why grandma’s crying,” Wolf said. “I try not to cry in front of them, but sometimes it’s just too much.”

The 53-year-old TSA officer and union leader in Boise, Idaho, joined the agency soon after its creation in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. She was homeless at the time but turned her situation around with steady work and the benefits of federal employment.

Now, Wolf can’t help but dwell on where she was 24 years ago. “I don’t want to be in that position again,” she said.

Her Feb. 28 paycheck amounted to $13.53, sending her “into a spiral right away.”

With no savings to fall back on, she is preparing to sell her car to cover her rent due in a week. She calls nonprofits daily seeking rental assistance, but hasn’t had any luck.

Supporting six family members — four children and two grandchildren — has always been challenging, but the repeated shutdowns have made it nearly unsustainable.

Wolf, who serves as president of AFGE TSA Local 1127, is hesitant to walk away from both the job that turned her life around and her role advocating for fellow officers.

“I worked hard to get to where I am now, and the thought I might lose it all scares me,” she said, her voice breaking as she tried to stifle the sound of weeping.

Massachusetts agent digs into savings to get by

Mike Gayzagian, a TSA officer at Boston’s Logan International Airport, says long stretches without pay have become enough of a “new normal” that he’s prepared for them.

The 56-year-old says he has a financial cushion of about six months to tap but that his situation is “an exception to the rule.”

“The majority live paycheck to paycheck and don’t have those kinds of reserves available,” said Gayzagian, who is president of his local TSA union chapter.

It shouldn’t be this way for federal workers, he said.

“The financial situation adds an additional burden to what is already a stressful job,” Gayzagian said. “I didn’t go into public service to make a lot of money. I went into public service because it has a certain stability and reliability and predictability that other jobs don’t have.”

A father in Utah leaves TSA

Robert Echeverria quit his job as a TSA agent at Utah’s Salt Lake City International Airport about two weeks into the current shutdown.

The 45-year-old, who has a wife and three children, counted five government shutdowns in the nine years he worked for the agency. The toughest was last year’s record shutdown that ended in mid-November around the start of the holiday season.

Echeverria said his family skipped Christmas and took months to recover financially. He began looking for a new job in February when it became clear Congress was headed for another budget battle.

“Emotionally I was already distraught,” Echeverria said last week. “We were barely recovering from the last shutdown.”

He now works for the department that manages the airports in Utah’s capital. Leaving federal service “was a hard decision for me,” Echeverria said.

“I really believed in the mission of the TSA,” he said. “We took an oath, and it was a way for me to give back to the country that gave me so much.”

He’s still based at Salt Lake City International, where his 20-year-old daughter works as a TSA agent, and says that seeing his former colleagues struggling is difficult.

“They all feel betrayed by their government because they’re showing up to work,” Echeverria said. “They’re there, but they feel that the government doesn’t care for them,” he said.

Marcelo, Lamy and Yamat write for the Associated Press. Marcelo reported from New York, Lamy reported from Indianapolis and Yamat reported from Las Vegas.

Dodgers fans generally hiss at the mention of Frank McCourt — the former owner took the team into bankruptcy, after all — but today is about tipping our cap to him.

Without him, fans would have no option to take public transit directly to Dodger Stadium. On his watch, the Dodgers helped secure government funding for the shuttle buses that provide free rides between Union Station and Dodger Stadium.

Sixteen years later, beyond the addition of a sister shuttle from the South Bay, that’s it.

The Dodgers boast the best team in the world. Shohei Ohtani is a tourist attraction. So is their historic ballpark. The Dodgers sold a record 4 million tickets last year.

In 1990, the last year Fernando Valenzuela pitched for the Dodgers, Los Angeles County unveiled a report that suggested ways to improve access to Dodger Stadium “for those who cannot or do not wish to drive.”

The options: a monorail, people mover, or light rail extension from the Chinatown Metro station; the shuttle buses that McCourt and Metro launched 20 years later; the gondola that McCourt first pitched in 2018 and continues to pursue; and a walking path.

A passenger exits the Chinatown Metro station in January.

(Etienne Laurent/For The Times)

L.A. is all about the car. You will most likely drive to Dodger Stadium, and so will your children.

For decades, the Dodgers have promised to ease traffic by adding amenities that encourage fans to come early and stick around after the game. That has not materialized, and notorious congestion within and around the stadium is as much a tradition as Dodger Dogs.

What if you could walk, for real? What if you could head into the stadium along a beautifully landscaped and wide Dodgers-themed path, a blue ribbon of fans coalescing into a community, with decorations and food carts, shade and lighting, and chants of “Let’s Go Dodgers!” along the way?

You can walk now, sort of. It’s about a mile.

There’s a map at the Chinatown Metro station displaying the pedestrian path toward Dodger Stadium.

(Etienne Laurent/For The Times)

At one end of the Chinatown station, there is a map with a pedestrian route, in a glass case that faces away from Dodger Stadium. If you walk out of the station at the other end, or if you just start heading in the direction of Dodger Stadium, good luck finding the map.

There are Metro signs leading you back to the station from Dodger Stadium, but none leading you along the route there.

The Dodgers actually would prefer you did not take that route, or at least the last part of it. I walked it with Alissa Walker, whose Torched newsletter is the go-to place to learn how major sporting events impact the everyday lives of Angelenos.

We entered the Dodger Stadium property at an intersection with no crosswalks, where cars enter and exit the 110 freeway. We stood atop a dirt patch next to a crumbling curb.

“To go a very short distance safely with a feeling that you’re not going to die,” Walker said, “is very difficult.”

With Game 3 of the World Series underway at Dodger Stadium last October, a few folks scurried across a pedestrian bridge with LED lights and blue glow sticks.

The bridge connects Chinatown with Dodger Stadium, traversing the 110. Without this bridge, there is no walking path to Dodger Stadium.

At night, the bridge offers magnificent views of downtown lights. But it had no lights of its own, so the volunteers used the LED lights and glow sticks to attach homemade Dodgers-themed signage to the fence that encloses the bridge.

“Our goal was, just by adding some lights, to make the really dark path at the top of the bridge at night a little bit brighter, so that it felt a little less scary,” transit advocate Jeremy Stutes said, “and to add a little bit of fun and whimsy.”

Glow sticks forming the “LA” logo of the Dodgers were placed on a pedestrian bridge over the 110 Freeway connecting Chinatown to the area where Dodger Stadium is located during the World Series and for several months after. As of last week, the glow sticks were no longer there.

(Etienne Laurent/For The Times)

From the Chinatown Metro station, the bridge is three blocks up College Street and one block down Yale Street. It’s an easy walk, and for now you pass an elementary school, a church, a row of Chinese restaurants, a dirt lot where a hospital once stood, parking lots, and an auto repair facility with a Dodgers flag hung on a wall.

When I did the walk last week, the trash at the foot of the bridge included a plastic cup, socks, a piece of rotting fruit, a half-full bottle of tequila, and half of a turkey sandwich, peeking out from torn plastic wrapping that indicated the sandwich had gone bad three days earlier. On the bridge: shopping bags, a pair of flip-flops, stray clothes scattered at one end, and graffiti everywhere.

A sign painted on the sidewalk indicates the direction toward the Chinatown Metro station.

(Etienne Laurent/For The Times)

That was the point those volunteers made last October: Clean up the bridge and light up the bridge — as they did for three days — and fans will walk there.

“It’s not that it’s not used,” Stutes said. “It’s not designed to be a safe space to use as an alternative to driving.”

When you cross the bridge, you can turn right or left along Stadium Way to get to a stadium entrance.

Turn right, as the map tells you to do, and you’ll encounter decaying sidewalks, with cracked and buckled concrete that turns a modest uphill walk into an obstacle course. Once you get onto the stadium grounds, the paint is fading along the pedestrian path, which offers you no protection from passing cars.

Turn left, and you’ll have to walk part of the way in the street, on an unprotected bike lane. You also could walk along the road behind the Fire Department training center, a path with no sidewalks and passing fire trucks. Either route takes longer than the one on the map, but you would enter Dodger Stadium through a pair of protected and brightly painted pedestrian paths. (That entrance, along Vin Scully Avenue, is a quarter-mile from Sunset Boulevard, where two Metro bus routes stop.)

If the primary choices for getting out of Dodger Stadium after a game are car congestion or Dodger Stadium Express shuttle bus congestion, a downhill walk to Chinatown Metro station — 12 minutes, Metro says — would be a nice option. That’s why those folks lit up the bridge over the freeway during the World Series.

“The lights were just a fun way,” transit advocate Kevin Dedicatoria said, “to show, ‘Hey, here’s a bridge so you don’t have to play, ‘Dude, where’s my car?’ or have to worry about waiting for the bus.’”

McCourt hails from Boston, where the local subway drops Red Sox fans a few short blocks from Fenway Park. When McCourt owned the Dodgers, I asked him if he could envision a subway or light rail extension to Dodger Stadium.

He’d love it, he said then, but the Dodgers were a private business, and government should pay for public transit.

Homes line a street in Eylsian Park, where Dodger Stadium is located.

(ETIENNE LAURENT/For The Times)

It was a fair point. The Dodgers pay taxes. In an era where teams regularly demand stadium and arena deals that exempt them from property tax, the Dodgers have paid $12.8 million in property taxes over the past three years, according to Los Angeles County tax collection records.

Would demand for public transit amid a car culture justify the investment? The Dodger Stadium Express indicates it could: Ridership has just about quadrupled since its inaugural season, from 122,273 in 2010 to 463,147 last year, according to Metro.

Even along the poorly maintained, poorly lit and poorly advertised pedestrian path, Metro said more than 700 riders returned to the Chinatown station on each of the three nights of World Series home games last year.

“As seen in social media videos during the 2025 postseason, the walking path continues to explode in popularity,” Metro spokesman Jose Ubaldo said.

Next steps?

“It’s astonishing to me that the Dodgers have not taken it upon themselves, as this great community partner, to fix this problem,” Walker said. “It is the city’s responsibility, but the Dodgers should be doing this, as part of what they want to represent to this community.”

The walking path includes segments along city streets, a Caltrans bridge, and Dodger Stadium property. Just who is the responsible party?

A Caltrans spokesman said the city is responsible for maintaining the bridge. A spokesman for the city’s department of street services did not provide an answer. A spokesman for the Dodgers declined to comment.

You could almost hear the sigh from city councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez, whose district includes Dodger Stadium.

“That’s what my job is: to bring people and agencies and organizations together to accomplish a goal,” Hernandez said. “We’re already in conversation with all these entities.

“We’re looking at some of the things we can enhance to make this a more walkable and accessible option for people.”

City Council member Eunisses Hernandez, center, talks with Circle outreach workers in Los Angeles.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

How much might those enhancements cost?

Without a look at a city-commissioned Dodger Stadium traffic mitigation study, expected to be completed this fall, Hernandez said she could not put a price tag on it.

“What I can tell you,” she said, “is that it will be less than half a billion dollars, for sure.”

By year’s end, the Los Angeles City Council is expected to vote on McCourt’s gondola project, estimated to cost $500 million and proposed as privately financed. Last November, the council voted 12-1 to urge Metro to kill the project.

Metro granted its approval, but with conditions that included a requirement to explore supplementing the gondola with other Dodger Stadium transit options, including more buses along Sunset Boulevard and a designated walkway from there to the stadium.

The walking path proposed in that 1990 study would have avoided Sunset Boulevard and the current Stadium Way routes — the ones with crumbling sidewalks, or no sidewalks at all — by using escalators and walkways to get fans up and down the hill between Lookout Drive, just off Stadium Way, and Dodger Stadium.

“Pedestrians could be directed through Chinatown,” the study read, “where numerous restaurants, shops and pedestrian amenities are provided.”

It’s hard to sell Chinatown businesses on the benefits of the gondola when fans would ride between Union Station and Dodger Stadium, soaring over Chinatown. It would be easier if a walking path led at least some of those fans through Chinatown, even if only on the way back from the game.

Even if the gondola system really can accomplish what its proponents say it can — loading 35 people into a cabin every 23 seconds — thousands of riders leaving when the game ends could mean a long line to board.

One of the entrances to Dodger Stadium on Stadium Way, the easiest access when walking from Chinatown Metro station.

(Etienne Laurent/For The Times)

“Also,” the 1990 study said, “passenger waiting following a game is psychologically perceived as being three to four times longer than actual waiting time.”

From this perspective, McCourt might win a few council votes by funding a first-class walking path. The cost, I’m told, would depend on what the enhancements include: signs, lights, trees, shade canopies, sidewalk repairs, escalators, and so on. For something close to $5 million — one one-hundredth of the projected cost of gondola construction — McCourt likely could do an exceptional job.

Is there any sign of progress here? Happily, yes.

In an internal report last December, Metro said Zero Emissions Transit (ZET) — the nonprofit organization now shepherding the gondola project — is pursuing ways to link pedestrians and bicyclists to the transit system and to Dodger Stadium. Those potential improvements include sidewalk repairs and a revitalized pedestrian pathway from the Chinatown Metro station to the bridge across the 110 and then across Stadium Way, to Lookout Drive and the hill above.

“Dodger Walk is envisioned as a series of switchbacks,” the report said, “inspired by the original walking path up Lookout Mountain that existed prior to the construction of Dodger Stadium.”

Whether such switchbacks would make the walk to the stadium longer or shorter than the current path remains to be determined.

In a statement, ZET said: “We embrace and include active transit solutions to increase pedestrian and bike access throughout the project area.” In particular, ZET said, it was “supportive” of a walking path to Dodger Stadium.

The Metro report cautioned the concepts “are in the early planning stage,” so L.A. might get an extravagant walking path, a utilitarian one, or none at all.

Here’s hoping McCourt gives us a path of some kind — whether the city approves the gondola or not — because a pretty walk generations can enjoy would be a prettier civic legacy than driving a team into bankruptcy.

March 25 (UPI) — Dutch scientist Huub Lilieveld has been named the recipient of the 2026 World Food Prize Wednesday for leading a food safety movement across 113 countries.

For six decades, Lilieveld has researched and advocated for food safety, using scientific evidence to inform regulations and legislation across the globe. His work has culminated in establishing modern global food safety, security, trade and aid standards.

The World Food Prize Foundation is recognizing Lilieveld’s contributions with a $500,000 award.

“Lilieveld lives by his conviction that access to safe food is a universal right — a philosophy shared by the late Dr. Norman Borlaug,” Mashal Husain, president of the World Food Prize Foundation, said in a statement. “Through his lifelong commitment to harmonizing regulations, he has lowered trade barriers, prevented the unnecessary destruction of safe food, promoted innovative food safety technologies worldwide and reduced the risk of foodborne illness outbreaks.”

Foodborne illnesses kill 420,000 people annually. There are about 600 million cases of foodborne illnesses per year.

Lelieveld established the Global Harmonization Initiative in 2004, to connect volunteers and food safety experts around the world to combat safe food insecurity and improve the distribution of safe foods.

“Companies large and small, as well as all consumers are negatively affected by unjustified differences in regulations,” Lelieveld said in a statement. “The Global Harmonization Initiative, therefore, strives not only to reach scientific consensus but also to ensure that findings are accessible to everyone, requiring simplification without compromising scientific accuracy and translation into local languages.”

As the United States-Israeli war on Iran rages on, schools across Israel have been closed, cultural venues shuttered and large gatherings cancelled under police orders.

Dissent against the war, if there is much at all, has little chance of being aired.

A few demonstrations against the war, such as those staged by the Israeli-Arab activist group Zazim, still flicker through central cities, but they do so under heavy supervision, with officers warning crowds to disperse when sirens sound or when assemblies grow beyond what commanders deem safe.

The effect is a public sphere constrained less by decree than by the constant threat hanging overhead.

“Kids aren’t going to school, while employers are insisting their parents go to work,” Zazim’s co-founder and executive director, Raluca Ganea, says. Everyone is too overwhelmed by the daily grind to voice any dissatisfaction, she adds.

“We’re enduring multiple missile attacks daily, which means people aren’t sleeping. It’s like a manual for tyrants. It’s how you suppress protest or opposition and it’s working so far,” she added.

“We’ve attempted a couple of protests, but people are just too tired to engage,” Ganea says of Zazim’s efforts to resist the war. “It’s not so much that people are telling you that you can’t so much as protesting becomes impossible when a missile attack could happen at any time.”

Support for the war on Iran has remained strong in Israel, a fact borne out by polls. But as exhaustion grows and resentment builds over having their fates decided by often distant leaders such as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump, who have shown little investment in their welfare, the societal fractures that came to define the war on Gaza are almost inevitable, she warns.

“It’s depressing,” she says. “The only response people have is to feel helpless when their fate is in the hands of people like Trump and Netanyahu, who really don’t care about them.”

Those who have put their heads above the parapet to object openly to the war are shunned anyway, as 19-year-old Itamar Greenberg knows only too well. People spit at him in the street.

“It comes in waves,” he says of the criticism he faces for his opposition to the war on Iran on the streets of his hometown, near Tel Aviv. “Sometimes they follow me, shouting ‘traitor’ or ‘terrorist’.”

Itamar is clear enough that he isn’t a terrorist, though he seems ready to accept the label of traitor if it means halting the war on Iran.

“At my university, everywhere, they say my opposition to the war on Iran is somehow crossing a red line. For instance, because of the [danger to the Israeli] hostages, some people could understand opposition to the genocide on Gaza, but opposing the war on Iran, the great evil, is somehow too much,” he says.

Rising censorship

Across Israel, journalists and activists like Itamar describe a pervasive atmosphere of self-policing and censorship that, they say, has left people less informed about the consequences of the war than the citizens in Iran, whom many in their media encourage them to pity.

In a country largely unified against a threat that, for generations, politicians have told them is existential, criticism, dissent or opposition is, for the majority, beyond the pale.

This way of thinking is baked into Israeli society. The systems employed by the country’s military censor today to curtail media reporting predate the establishment of Israel in 1948.

Furthermore, new wartime restrictions on what can and cannot be broadcast of the Iranian missile barrages targeting Israel, where they land and what damage they have done – introduced on March 5 – mean these largely go entirely unreported, Israeli journalists say.

Reporting on the new media restrictions in mid-March, the Israeli magazine +972 documented one instance when journalists were permitted to report on debris that had hit an educational facility, but did not mention the actual strike by an Iranian missile, which had successfully hit its intended target nearby. Nor were they allowed to examine the site.

In another case reported by +972, journalists photographing damage to a residential block said they were approached by a man they believed to be linked to a security agency. He asked police to stop reporters from recording the real target of the attack, which was located behind them. The police officer replied that the journalists would not have noticed that site at all had it not been pointed out, since the visible destruction was concentrated on the civilian building.

The censorship, which had been growing more relaxed in recent years, had been tightened once more during the current war, Meron Rapoport, an editor at +972’s sister paper, Hebrew language Local Call, told Al Jazeera, “We don’t really know what is being or with what explosives,” he said, “The IDF [Israeli army] announcements always refer to strikes being on ‘uninhabited areas,’ which is peculiar, because there aren’t that many uninhabited areas in Tel Aviv. It’s a very compact city.”

Indeed, Iran has launched multiple missiles at Tel Aviv, some of which have resulted in damage and injuries – either by the missiles themselves or by debris falling following interception. Most recently, on Tuesday, missiles triggered air raid sirens in the city, where gaping holes were ripped through a multistorey apartment building.

Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency medical service said: “Six people were lightly injured at four different sites.”

“It’s curious,” Rapoport says. “Israeli commentators are always saying how the Iranian public has no real idea how badly they’re being hit. The irony is that they probably have a better idea of how hard Israel is being hit than most Israelis.”

Netflix has confirmed the third season of one of their most popular shows is now in production

Netflix has announced the third series of popular rom-com Nobody Wants This is presently in production.

Featuring Adam Brody as rabbi Noah and Kristen Bell as agnostic podcast presenter Joanne, the programme chronicles the duo as they begin an unexpected romance.

The second series wrapped up with Joanne choosing to convert to Judaism while Noah comes to terms with wanting to be with her regardless.

Series three is consequently expected to commence with their relationship more solid than ever, though there will inevitably be additional drama to unfold with Joanne’s sister, Morgan (portrayed by Justine Lupe) and Noah’s brother, Sasha (Timothy Simons), and sister-in-law, Esther (Jackie Tohn).

Showrunners Jenni Konner and Bruce Eric Kaplan informed Netflix: “We are so grateful to Netflix and 20th for giving us another season of Nobody Wants This”, reports the Express.

They continued: “This job is criminally fun. Working with the uniquely gifted Erin Foster [creator], this unbelievable cast of talented, hilarious pros, amazing writers, and incredible crew has been a truly great experience.”

Foster shared with the streamer when the third series was originally announced: “I couldn’t be more excited to head into a third season of this show.”

She added: “It is a privilege to be able to write about my favourite couple on a scale like this. As long as it doesn’t take too much time away from me watching reality TV at night, I’ll do it for as long as they want me to!”

The second season of Nobody Wants This demonstrated even greater triumph than the first, accumulating 18 million views within its initial 11 days and securing a position in Netflix’s Top 10 chart across 82 countries.

Netflix and lead actress Bell ignited excitement amongst devotees with a collection of behind-the-scenes photographs as production commences in Los Angeles, California.

“Can’t wait to see them be silly and cute on my screen again,” responded one user beneath Bell’s Instagram post.

Someone else declared: “Hurry!!! We can’t wait for season 3.” Another stated: “Best series in the world ever.”

Get Netflix free with Sky for Bridgerton Season 4

This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more

from £15

Sky

Get the deal here

‘Dearest gentle reader’, as the fourth season of Bridgerton follows second son Benedict love story, there’s a way to watch this fairytale-like season for less.

Sky is giving away a free Netflix subscription with its new Sky Stream TV bundles, including the £15 Essential TV plan. This lets customers watch live and on-demand TV content without a satellite dish or aerial and includes the new season of Bridgerton.

And a final fan enthused: “Finallyyyyyy!!! We have been waiting for this!!”

Season two featured numerous thrilling guest stars, including Seth Rogen, Kate Berlant, and Leighton Meester, so devotees are anticipating further major names could participate in the entertainment for season three.

A launch date for the third season remains unconfirmed, but as the previous instalment commenced filming in March 2025 and was released later that same year, viewers could anticipate the series to return in October or November 2026.

Nobody Wants This is available to stream on Netflix.

AN American airline’s plan for new couches in economy has been hailed as a “game changer.”

It means a far more comfortable flight for travelers seeking additional space to sleep.

United Airlines has announced a “relaxed row” to allow travelers to stretch out and have a better rest in economy class.

It involves transforming economy seats into a couch between two rows of seats.

The initiative will provide more comfortable international travel, the airline said yesterday.

“Customers will get a custom-fitted mattress pad, specially sized blankets, extra pillows and a stuffed plush for children to help create a cozy, tranquil environment,” the carrier explained.

CRUISE CONTROL

Royal Caribbean ‘cancels multiple scheduled cruises for 2027’

“Sounds like heaven to me,” said one thrilled customer.

United‘s relax row option is expected to be available from 2027.

Prices for the perk haven’t been released as yet.

“Customers traveling in United economy on long-haul flights deserve an option for more space and comfort, and this is one way we can deliver that for them,” said Andrew Nocella, executive VP.

Once available, United will be “the first North American airline to offer this kind of seating option and holds North American exclusivity on the design,” the carrier said.

The lie-down couch-style seating will eventually be rolled out across some 1,000 United planes by 2030.

More on United Airlines’ ‘relaxed row’ economy seats that transform into a couch

The option will be available for United customers traveling in the economy cabin on long-haul flights from 2027

A new, dedicated row of three seats will be outfitted with individually adjustable leg rests that fold up at a 90-degree angle.

The formation of the couch will create more room to sleep, stretch out or watch a movie.

Customers traveling in United relax row will receive additional amenities for their international flight.

This includes a custom-fitted mattress pad, a specially sized plush blanket, two additional pillows, as well as a plush toy and children’s travel kit for families.

The airline plans to offer it on more than 200 Boeing 787 and 777 widebody aircraft by 2030.

The seats will be located between United economy and premium plus, with up to 12 relax row sections on each plane.

They aren’t just available for families, as single travelers can also purchase the row, added United.

Source: United Airlines YouTube

Around nine to 12 couches will be available per aircraft.

The seats will have individually adjustable, flip-up leg rests.

These can then be angled to create more room to sleep, stretch out or watch a movie.

Their provision follows a similar option offered by Air New Zealand, which already offers a row of economy seats that convert into a lie-flat couch after takeoff.

Travelers commenting on United’s version have said that it will be worth the extra money.

“I’ve used the sky couch a bunch, and for traveling with young kids on long haul flights it’s an absolute game changer, worth every penny,” raved one flyer on Reddit yesterday.

“I love the skycouch on Air New Zealand and have used it multiple times between the US and Auckland,” wrote another traveler.

“Obviously you don’t get the bells and whistles of a first class seat, but the lie flat feature is the only thing that allows me to sleep on airplanes so for me it’s perfect.”

“Family and I use the Air NZ sky couch every time we travel between NZ/US,” shared one parent.

“It’s a game changer and we always choose Air NZ for that reason. Will start looking seriously at UAL now for our travels.”

Behind a network of fake YouTube newscasts spreading propaganda in favor of Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, lies a hidden digital structure made up of dozens of websites and social media accounts. It is a much larger and still-active operation than initially believed, designed to distribute content as if it came from independent regional outlets.

In two previous reports, Cazadores de Fake News named this influence operation “Hispan Online.” The first revealed part of the network of YouTube channels whose videos appeared as ads on Venezuelan screens, pushing narratives favorable to the Rodríguez administration. The second report confirmed that the “anchors” were not journalists, but more than 20 actors living in Argentina who were hired through an intermediary agency. The videos racked up millions of views.

The channels mimic Spanish-language news outlets, presenting their content as if it were multiple spontaneous local coverages. So far, Cazadores has identified: Hispan Online (the most prolific producer and the network’s central amplification node), Nación Argentina, Colombia Actual, Panorama Colombiano, La Perspectiva Global, México en Datos, Informe Mexicano, United Data News, Continental Report, Nación Digital MX, Chile en Datos, Argentina en Perspectiva, EC En Análisis, and El Informe Europeo. All of them are part of the network identified so far as the YouTube arm of the operation.

But Venezuelans exposed to those videos are largely unaware that the operation extends far beyond YouTube. At least 30 websites were created as part of it, publishing more than 11,000 articles in just one month. Each site links to Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube accounts bearing the same names as the fake newscasts.

Domain records for some of these websites identify QSocial, an Argentine political communications firm, as the registrant of several of them. A separate investigation by La Nación points in the same direction.

YouTube channels as the tip of the iceberg

The propaganda videos promoted through YouTube ads amassed millions of views, but the 14 channels that initially hosted them hardly resembled real news outlets. Most displayed little more than a logo, and their videos were often not publicly listed.

Some channels, however, included short descriptions and, in some cases, a website address—such as colombiaactual.co for “Colombia Actual” and nacionargentina.info for “Nación Argentina.”

Ongoing monitoring of F. G. Medios S.A. (the company that paid for the YouTube ads) through Google’s Ads Transparency Center led to the identification of 30 distinct YouTube channels. Together, they published at least 90 videos and amassed more than 47.5 million views. Following the pattern of the web addresses, additional associated sites were expected: Manual searches confirmed 30 corresponding websites.

At least five of these sites embedded YouTube playlists or windows featuring the same fake “journalists” seen in the ads.

All 30 domains with known registration dates were created within just nine days, between February 17 and 25, 2026. Fourteen were registered on February 20 alone. This pattern mirrors the creation of the YouTube channels, which appeared between February 18 and early March. The clustering of dates is one of several technical indicators of coordination in this influence operation.

The sites also share a common technical architecture. All run on WordPress, use Cloudflare servers, were registered via Dattatec or DonWeb, use themes developed by Ansar, and have the same Jetpack plugin installed. Articles across all sites are published by the same three WordPress users: “administrador,” “periodista 1,” and “periodista 2.”

This is not a network of independently built websites. It is a single model replicated 30 times and operated by the same group. In total, the network includes more than 90 social media accounts: 30 YouTube channels, 32 Instagram accounts, and 29 Facebook pages. As of publication, most have minimal activity and almost no followers—but the infrastructure is in place and regularly updated.

Venezuela content stands out

With 30 active websites identified, the next step was to analyze their content. Reviewing each article manually was not feasible at that scale.

To do so, Cazadores de Fake News developed a tool—with assistance from generative AI—capable of automatically downloading all articles published across the 30 sites, including full text and images. The result was a database of 11,391 articles produced in just one month.

While most articles are not about Venezuela, it is the most frequently referenced country. With 1,912 pieces, Venezuela accounts for 16.79% of all content, ahead of Brazil (14.30%), Colombia (8.83%), Mexico (8.79%), and Argentina (8.12%). The rest covers other countries, helping each site appear as a regional outlet with its own editorial agenda.

Much of the Venezuela-related content mirrors the narratives promoted in the YouTube ads: favorable coverage of Delcy Rodríguez and her brother Jorge Rodríguez (who presides the Venezuelan parliament), reporting on the new amnesty and hydrocarbons laws, and stories highlighting positive economic projections and the oil sector.

The analysis also revealed another pattern: the same article often appeared across multiple sites with different headlines and slight rewrites tailored to each country, but with nearly identical core narratives. It is a form of serial production, where one base story is rewritten and redistributed to simulate independent local coverage.

One example is coverage of joint ventures between PDVSA and US oil companies. Articles published on March 16–17 across republicahoy.do, pulsonacional.mx, and panoramabrasil.info repeat identical figures (250,000 barrels per day, 22% of national output) while adapting their framing. The Dominican version adds references to Caribbean fuel prices. The Mexican version mentions the Dos Bocas refinery and the Energy Ministry. The Brazilian version refers to the Palácio do Planalto and investment opportunities for Brazil.

The texts share repeated transitional phrases—“in this context,” “on the other hand,” “diante deste cenário”—and identical section structures. The Brazilian version also contains errors suggesting automated translation, such as “empresas americana” instead of “americanas” and leaving “barriles” untranslated.

Although headlines and wording vary, these articles share one constant: they use exactly the same featured images. By comparing images across all 11,391 articles, the tool identified hundreds of such clusters. Contents largely consist of one base story, adapted and republished across multiple sites with the same photo.

This is the first time Cazadores de Fake News has documented evidence suggesting the use of automation or generative AI to sustain an influence operation of this scale targeting Venezuelan audiences. Producing more than 11,000 articles in one month, localized by country and language, would have been unfeasible for a small team of human writers.

The websites have so far attracted little traffic. But the infrastructure is active, content continues to be published, and the material already looks credible enough to be mistaken for real journalism.

The trail leads to QSocial

Despite the scale of the operation (30 websites, three social media platforms, and thousands of articles) those who registered the domains left traces. At least five domains lacked privacy protection, exposing registrant names and emails.

Three “.com” domains—brasilemdados24.com, ecuadorenanalisis.com, and panamaestrategico.com—list “QSN Big Data” as the registrant, linked to the email [email protected].

Two Dominican domains—diariocaribedigital.do and republicahoy.do—were registered on February 20 at the exact same second. Their records list “QSocial” as the registrant. These are different names pointing to the same corporate ecosystem.

QSN Big Data and QSocial are names used by the same Argentine political communications firm, which has also operated as QSocialNow. According to a March 23 investigation by La Nación, the company—led by former Chubut governor Martín Buzzi—produced the fake newscast videos. The outlet reported that the videos were recorded at the company’s offices in Buenos Aires, where actors were recruited through a casting process.

The firm also has a documented history within Venezuela’s propaganda ecosystem. After the July 2024 presidential election, it produced a poll under the name QSocialNow backing a decision from Venezuela’s Supreme Tribunal to declare Nicolás Maduro the winner, despite widespread independent evidence of electoral fraud.

All domains in the network were registered through the same Argentine provider, within the same time frame, and using the same servers. However, this investigation could not determine whether QSocial itself entered the domain registration data or whether it was done by a third party.

Cazadores de Fake News and Argentine fact-checking outlet Chequeado contacted QSocial for comment. The company had not responded at the time of publication (March 24).

An unprecedented operation in Venezuela

Although QSocial director Martín Buzzi denied involvement to La Nación, the technical records documented in this investigation and the newspaper’s sources point to the same company. Who commissioned the operation and how it was financed remain unanswered questions.

It is also unclear whether the thousands of articles about Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, and other countries are merely camouflage for the pro-Rodríguez campaign or part of parallel influence operations using the same infrastructure.

There is no recent precedent in Venezuela for an influence operation of this scale deployed in such a short period.

Before Google, Meta, or the operators themselves took down most of the YouTube channels and 15 Instagram accounts, the propaganda videos had already surpassed 47.5 million views. At the time of publication, all Facebook accounts and the 30 websites remain active.

In a sharp escalation in the Middle East conflict, energy production itself is now in the firing line.

Iran targeted facilities across the Gulf – including the world’s largest liquefied natural gas hub in Qatar.

It was retaliation for an Israeli strike on an Iranian gasfield hours earlier.

Energy prices are soaring, and countries from Asia to Europe are scrambling for alternative supplies.

But, for Asia – the world’s largest LNG buyer – this is a severe energy shock.

The region depends on Gulf supplies to keep its lights on, its factories running, and its people fed.

Israel has been trying to make the case for its war on Iran by portraying the country as a threat to European cities, warning Iranian missiles could reach capitals like London and Paris.