April 9, 2026

U.S., ISRAEL, IRAN WAR | Day 41.

• Ahead of tomorrow's expected U.S.-Iran peace talks in Pakistan and amidst ongoing uncertainty over the terms and status of a two-week cease-fire, U.S. President Donald Trump said in a social media post today that U.S. forces will remain in the Persian Gulf region until a definitive agreement with Iran is reached and "fully complied with." [more]
• Israel carried out its largest strikes of the war on Lebanon yesterday, with reports saying more than 200 people were killed and more than 1,000 were injured in large-scale airstrikes on central Beirut and other areas of Lebanon. Iran has insisted that a halt to Israeli attacks on Lebanon was part of the cease-fire agreement with the United States, which both the U.S. and Israel have denied. Iranian officials today warned of "explicit costs and strong responses" if attacks on Lebanon continue. [more]
• Reports cite maritime intelligence companies as saying just three ships transited the Strait of Hormuz on the first full day of the U.S.-Iran cease-fire, all of which had current or past links to Iran. [more]
• Mohammad Eslami, the head of Iran's nuclear agency, said today that protecting Tehran’s right to enrich uranium is 'necessary' for cease-fire talks with the United States. [more]

U.S. FERTILITY RATE | According to provisional data published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today, there were about 53 births for every 1,000 women of reproductive age in the U.S. in 2025 – down about 1% from 2024 and 20% lower than the rate seen 20 years ago. The report notes that birth rates among women 30 and older increased between 2024 and 2025, but not enough to offset a sharp decline in births among those younger than 30. [full CDC report] [more]

EPSTEIN INVESTIGATION | The U.S. Department of Justice said yesterday that former Attorney General Pam Bondi will not appear for a scheduled deposition next week before the House Oversight Committee to answer questions regarding the Department's handling of investigations into Jeffrey Epstein. DOJ officials contend the Committee subpoenaed Bondi in her capacity as attorney general, not as an individual, and that the subpoena is no longer valid since she no longer serves in that role. [more]

U.S. MILITARY AND AI | Contrasting with an earlier and separate federal court ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. yesterday rejected a request to temporarily block the Department of Defense from taking action to limit government use of AI company Anthropic's products over a dispute about how the company's artificial intelligence models could be used. Additional hearings before the appeals court are scheduled for May 19. [more]

U.S. CLASSIFIED INFORMATION | The Department of Justice announced the arrest and indictment of Courtney Williams, 40, of Wagram, North Carolina, yesterday on charges of transmitting classified national defense information to individuals not authorized to receive it, including a journalist. Reports suggest Williams shared classified information relating to the operations of U.S. military special operations units obtained in her civilian support role for the units during cooperation with a journalist's investigation into sexual harassment in the military. [DOJ press release] [more]

U.S. IMMIGRATION | Boston-based U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy yesterday blocked a Trump administration plan to end temporary protected immigration status for more than 5,000 Ethiopians previously given permission to live and work in the United States, saying the Department of Homeland Security disregarded the statutory procedures Congress enacted that govern Temporary Protected Status. [more]

U.S. AND NATO | Following a meeting yesterday with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, President Donald Trump reiterated his frustration over members of the defensive military alliance not taking part in operations against Iran, saying "NATO wasn't there when we need them, and they won't be there if we need them again." [more]

GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN AID RISK | Speaking before the United Nations Security Council yesterday, U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said that more than 1,000 humanitarian aid workers have been killed worldwide in the past three years – nearly three times the number killed in the previous three-year period. Reports note that the locations in which most of the deaths took place were Gaza, the West Bank, Sudan, South Sudan, Ukraine, and Congo. [more]

U.K. AND RUSSIA | Defense Minister John Healey said today that the U.K. carried out a month-long deployment of military vessels this year to prevent attacks on undersea cables and pipelines by Russian submarines that he said used the distraction of the Middle East war to conduct covert operations in an around British waters. [more]

NORTH KOREA | Weapons testing and demonstrations over the past three days in North Korea have included new anti-aircraft weapons, electromagnetic weapons systems, and ballistic missiles armed with cluster-bomb warheads, according to the country's official Korean Central News Agency. [more]

RUSSIA | Reuters cites analysis of available data as indicating that Russia will see revenue from its largest oil tax double to $9 billion this month due to the oil and gas crisis triggered by the U.S.-Israel-Iran war. [more]

VENEZUELA | Ahead of today's planned worker demonstrations in the capital Caracas to demand wage increases, Venezuelan acting President Delcy Rodríguez said in a nationally televised address that a wage increase will be implemented on May 1 and urged her country's citizens to be patient as the government works to improve Venezuela's overall economy. [more]

AUSTRALIA | Prime Minister Anthony Albanese warned today that increases in fuel prices due to the Middle East war are likely to last a "considerable period of time" and said his government has agreed to underwrite contracts for gasoline and diesel by the country's two largest fuel suppliers. [more]

FUEL INDUSTRY | Oil and gas giant Chevron said today that it expects upstream revenue increases of between $1.6 billion and $2.2 billion as a result of surges in oil and gas prices linked to the Middle East war. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1865, General Robert E. Lee, commander of the Army of Northern Virginia of the Confederate States of America, signed a treaty of surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the American Civil War. [more history]