Good afternoon,

Today’s news: Globally, updates from Iran, Russia, and the latest on the Gaza ceasefire. Locally, CCI meeting today over the Cholistan canal protests, India and Pakistan trade fire for a fourth night, and a military operation at the Pak-Afghan border. 

☕ Grab your chaye, let’s go.

P.S. First time reading? Subscribe here for free.

Around The World

Ceasefire when? Qatar's prime minister says there has been progress in efforts to broker a new ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, but that there was still no answer for the ultimate question: “how to end this war.” Speaking in Doha, Turkey's foreign minister also said that Hamas appeared to be more receptive to negotiating a lasting solution to the war.

Hamas has suggested it could consider disarming as part of such a tradeoff, but only if Israel were to pull all its forces out of Gaza. The Israeli government appears to have no intention of doing this. 

Israel imposed a complete blockade on Gaza in early March and resumed air and ground attacks later in the month. The Gaza health ministry says 2,151 Palestinians have been killed since then, including 51 in the 24 hours into Sunday morning. 

Update from Iran. A massive explosion tore through Iran’s largest commercial port on Saturday, killing at least 25 people and wounding nearly 800 others. The blast occurred at Shahid Rajaei Port in southern Iran’s Bandar Abbas city near the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil output passes. 

The port’s customs office said that the explosion probably resulted from a fire at the hazardous and chemical materials storage depot. Saturday’s explosion came amid high-level Iran-US talks in Oman on Tehran’s nuclear programme, with both sides reporting progress.

Friends in need. North Korea has confirmed for the first time that it sent troops to fight for Russia against Ukraine and to help Russian forces "completely liberate" the Kursk border region, according to an order given by leader Kim Jong Un. Pyongyang's announcement comes just days after Russian Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov praised the "heroism" of North Korean troops, the first time Moscow has publicly acknowledged their involvement. Responding to the statement, the US said North Korea must now bear responsibility for perpetuating the war.

Pakistan

Pressure, pushing down on me. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called an urgent Council of Common Interests (CCI) meeting today, following Sindh’s request to address the Cholistan canal project. Originally scheduled for May 2, the meeting was advanced due to mounting protests in Sindh. Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon said a decision on the project is expected today. 

The Rs. 211.4 billion project has triggered widespread sit-ins, disrupting trade and transport between Sindh and Punjab. Despite PM Shehbaz’s earlier assurance to Bilawal Bhutto Zardari that no new canals would proceed without consensus, protests have continued. Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and other officials will represent the province at today's meeting, where the government hopes to resolve the issue through dialogue and end the province-wide protests.

Line of fire. For the fourth night in a row, India and Pakistan exchanged small arms fire along the de facto Kashmir border. India says it responded to "unprovoked" shooting from Pakistan but reported no casualties. Meanwhile, the US State Department said it is closely monitoring the situation and remains in contact with both governments at multiple levels. While Washington has publicly expressed strong support for India and condemned the attack, it has stopped short of criticizing Pakistan. Experts warn that the US may be reluctant to intervene directly, given its current global focus on conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza. 

From all sides. Pakistani security forces neutralised 71 terrorists between April 25 and 27 during operations near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, ISPR has announced. Initially, 54 terrorists were killed while trying to infiltrate from Afghanistan. The following night, another 17 militants — described by ISPR as acting "at the behest of Indian masters" — were eliminated. Weapons, explosives, and ammunition were also recovered during the operations. ISPR said this was the highest number of terrorists killed in a single engagement in Pakistan’s fight against terrorism so far. ISPR also pointed out that these attacks are happening at a time when India is leveling baseless accusations against Pakistan.

What Else Is Happening?

⚽Liverpool have won their 20th top-flight league title with a thumping 5-1 win over Tottenham, their first Premier League title since the 2019-20 Covid campaign.

🎨Scientists in the US claim to have discovered a new color that humans cannot see without the help of technology, and said they were able to “experience” the color, which they named “olo”, by firing laser pulses into their eyes.