International

The Syrian first lady, Asma al-Asad, suffers from leukemia

The Syrian first lady, Asma al-Asad, has been diagnosed with leukemia and will temporarily set aside her official agenda to receive treatment for the disease.

This was announced on Tuesday by the country’s Presidency, years after he had already recovered from breast cancer.

“After presenting several symptoms and clinical signs, and after a series of medical tests and extensive examinations, the first lady Asma al Asad has been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. Consequently, the first lady will adhere to a specialized treatment protocol,” the presidential body reported in a statement, in which she does not specify where she will be treated.

The process will include “strict” measures for the prevention of infections and “social distance”, so you must temporarily abandon “all” your commitments, according to the note.

“Along this phase, she remains determined and committed, supported by her strong will and faith in God,” concludes the Presidency.

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The news comes after in 2019 the Syrian first lady announced that she had “completely” recovered from a breast cancer that was diagnosed a year earlier.

That disease was detected when it was at an early stage, since it regularly underwent medical check-ups, in line with the message it used to spread among women as an activist in favor of early disease detection programs.

Asma was born in the United Kingdom and moved to Damascus at the end of 2000 to marry the Sirian president, Bachar al-Asad, with whom she has three children.

Since the beginning of the war in the country in 2011, it has been rumored on numerous occasions that Al Asad’s wife had left Syria for security reasons and, even, at the beginning of the conflict, the possibility was pointed out that she had left her husband due to his opposition to the conflict.

However, it is known that during all this time she has remained with her husband, to whom she has shown her support in numerous public events.

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International

Trump orders U.S. control of Strait of Hormuz after failed Iran talks

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that the United States will take control of the Strait of Hormuz“effective immediately,” following the collapse of negotiations with Iran held in Islamabad.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he had ordered the U.S. Navy to block vessels attempting to enter or exit the strategic waterway, a key route for global energy trade.

“The meeting went well, agreement was reached on most points, but the only really important one — nuclear weapons — was not approved,” Trump said, referring to the talks with Iranian representatives.

The president also stated that he had instructed authorities to intercept ships in international waters that had paid tolls to Iran to transit the strait, calling such payments “illegal.” He further accused Tehran of hindering an agreement by deploying mines in the area, describing the move as “international extortion.”

Trump added that the United States will undertake efforts to clear mines from the strait and expressed confidence that a future agreement ensuring free navigation could eventually be reached.

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The announcement came after Vice President JD Vance and special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner briefed the president on the outcome of the negotiations, considered the highest-level contacts between the two countries since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

While Trump acknowledged that enough progress had been made to maintain a temporary truce, he criticized Iran for remaining unwilling to abandon its nuclear ambitions, calling its position “very inflexible” on the central issue.

International

Child Found Malnourished in Van in France; Father Admits Confinement

French gendarmes discovered a child in a van in Hagenbach, in northeastern France, after a neighbor reported hearing what she described as “childlike noises” coming from the parked vehicle.

After unlocking the van, officers found the boy lying in a fetal position, unclothed and covered with a blanket, surrounded by garbage and near human waste, according to a statement from the Mulhouse prosecutor, Nicolas Heitz.

Authorities said the child appeared pale and severely malnourished. Due to prolonged confinement in a seated position, he was no longer able to walk. He was immediately taken to a hospital in Mulhouse for medical care.

The boy’s father, who lived with his partner and two daughters aged 10 and 12, admitted to keeping the child confined and depriving him of proper care.

According to the prosecutor, the man said he placed the child in the van in November 2024, claiming he wanted to “protect him” because his partner intended to have the boy admitted to a psychiatric facility.

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The suspect also stated that he allowed the child out of the vehicle in May 2025 and permitted him to enter the family apartment around mid-year, when the rest of the family was on vacation.

The man’s partner—who is not the child’s mother—also faces charges, including failure to report abuse. However, she has denied all accusations.

International

Europe Faces Jet Fuel Shortage Risk Amid Hormuz Disruption

The Airports Council International Europe has warned of a potential “systemic shortage” of jet fuel if maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is not restored within the next three weeks, according to a letter reviewed by AFP on Friday.

In the document, addressed to the European Commission and first reported by the Financial Times, the European airport lobby stated that a “systemic jet fuel shortage will become a reality” in the European Union unless stable and significant transit through the strait resumes soon.

The association, which represents around 600 airports across 50 countries, called on Brussels to implement “urgent monitoring of fuel availability and supply” over the next six months.

Jet fuel prices have surged amid the conflict in the Middle East and the ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global energy transport.

The conflict escalated on February 28 following joint U.S. and Israeli airstrikes against Iran.

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In response, Tehran imposed several countermeasures, including blocking maritime traffic through the strait, a route through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil, jet fuel, and gas supply passes.