A nationwide internet blackout was reported in Iran on Thursday, global monitoring group NetBlocks said. Protests have been erupting across the country since late December, prompted by hyperinflation and an enduring economic crisis in the sanctioned Islamic republic.

A viral post on X jokingly suggested marrying Donald Trump’s son Barron Trump to Denmark’s Princess Isabella as a “diplomatic solution” to the Greenland dispute. The tongue-in-cheek proposal has drawn millions of views and amused social media users.

A U.S. immigration agent shot and killed a 37-year-old woman in her car in Minneapolis yesterday amid an immigration enforcement surge, according to local and federal officials, the latest violent incident during President Donald Trump’s nationwide crackdown on migrants.

Saudi Arabia has accused the United Arab Emirates of secretly extracting Yemeni separatist leader Aidarous al-Zubaidi from the country and flying him to Abu Dhabi, escalating tensions between the two Gulf allies as their partnership in the Yemen war fractures.

U.S. President Donald Trump has approved a bipartisan sanctions bill that could impose tariffs as high as 500% on countries purchasing Russian oil or uranium. India, China, and Brazil are among the nations under scrutiny.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are discussing converting about $2 billion of Saudi loans into a JF-17 fighter jet deal, a move that would deepen defence ties and ease Pakistan’s financial strain following last year’s mutual defence pact.

Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the country is recording a surge in fighter jet and aircraft orders following the May 2025 military escalation with India, expressing hope that defence exports could eliminate Pakistan’s dependence on the International Monetary Fund.

U.S. President Donald Trump claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally approached him over delayed Apache helicopter deliveries and expressed unhappiness with U.S. tariffs tied to India’s Russian oil imports.

Despite renewed diplomatic activity, Iran’s influence in Central Asia remains limited, with cultural ties failing to translate into strategic power. Decades of sanctions, policy inconsistency, and competition from stronger actors have left Tehran a secondary regional player.

India’s growing use of Oman’s Duqm port provides a politically safer, sanctions-insulated hub for its western Indian Ocean operations, reducing reliance on Iran’s Chabahar without replacing its unique overland access to Central Asia.

Iran’s BRICS membership has given Tehran symbolic legitimacy but little practical economic relief, as sanctions, dependency on China, and limited access to BRICS financial mechanisms continue to constrain its leverage.

Patience Quill’s fable shows how influence and authority can be manipulated: power can coerce, exploit, and control even the most celebrated voices.

Dubai is set to host the 2025 Asian Youth Para Games from December 10–13, bringing together 1,500 young para-athletes from 35 nations in a powerful celebration of resilience and inclusion

Authors takes a closer look at how the 27th Amendment created a five-star defense post without tenure, rules, safeguards, or global precedent — and why the delayed notification threatens constitutional coherence.

A new quiet resistance is emerging, one that honors lives over slogans and truth over heroism, as Iranians increasingly refuse to participate in the state’s staged remembrance.

Iran’s geographic advantage has been offset by sanctions, regulatory instability, and logistics concerns, leading Central Asian states to quietly pivot toward more predictable trade networks.