Massive plume of smoke rises from Kuwait refinery after drone attack

Rory McIlroy only found five of 14 fairways in Thursday's first round of the Masters but still managed to grab a share of the lead with his best Augusta start since 2011.

The 36-year-old from Northern Ireland fired a five-under par 67 to match American Sam Burns atop the leaderboard by relaxing and counting on skill to rescue him no matter where tee shots land.

"I couldn't have got a lot more out of my round. I feel like I leaned heavily on my experience out there to do that," he said.

"My hope was to get off to a solid start. I feel like, the way I played, five-under exceeded where I thought I would be."

Defending champion McIlroy reached 13 of 18 greens in regulation despite his woes off the tee with his only better Masters start a 65 in 2011.

Not since Hideki Matsuyama in 2021's third round had anyone found only five Masters fairways and scored so well, with the Japanese star shooting 67 and winning the green jacket the next day.

"Winning a Masters makes it easier to win your second one," McIlroy said. "There's still shots out there that you feel a little bit tight with, and you just have to stand up and commit to making a good swing and not worry about really where it goes.

"It's easier for me to make those swings and not worry about where it goes when I know I can go to the Champions locker room and put my green jacket on and have a Coke Zero at the end of the day."

McIlroy said he measures success not in scores but in how he plays the game.

"I still have high expectations of myself, but my expectations are more did I make good decisions today? Was I committed? Was I trusting?" McIlroy said.

"It wasn't my expectations of I'm going to go out and shoot 65 and did I do it?"

Trusting the process did not come quickly or easily.

"It took me a while to get to that point where, if I focus on the process and the little mini goals of not compounding errors like hitting it in trees and trying to be a hero, making good decisions, thinking my way around the golf course, those are the expectations I have for myself," McIlroy said.

"And if I can live up to those expectations, then the scores and the results should take care of itself."

- Fairways a good thing -

Still, after finding himself under the Georgia pines all too often in round one, McIlroy is aiming to land the ball in the short grass much more often on Friday, when he has a late start.

"Getting the ball in the fairway a little bit more I think would be a good thing," he said. "I'm going to be playing later in the day when the greens are at their fastest and firmest.

"Just being very aware of hole locations and making sure I'm trying to put the ball in the right spots on the greens."

McIlroy's 67 was lower than any of the first-round scores by any of the reigning champions who successfully defended their Masters crowns -- Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Nick Faldo.

"Felt like I got a lot out of my round," McIlroy said. "It started pretty scrappy. I was hitting out of the trees a little bit the first seven holes.

"I was trying to just get it up around the green and rely on my short game to get it up-and-down and move on. That's a big part of what you have to do around this golf course. Stayed really patient when I needed to."

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Ukraine and Russia will cease fire for the Orthodox Easter holidays, the warring countries' leaders said on Thursday, announcing a rare 32-hour halt in fighting. 

The four-year war previously saw limited and short truces, but Moscow and Kyiv were quick to trade accusations of violations. 

With talks on ending the four-year-old conflict derailed by the Middle East war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this week that he had made a holiday truce proposal through the United States.

In a statement late on Thursday, the Kremlin said that "a ceasefire is declared from 16:00 (13:00 GMT) on April 11 until the end of the day on 12 April 2026" by Russian President Vladimir Putin, "in connection with the approaching Orthodox feast of Easter." 

The Kremlin's statement made no mention of Kyiv's initial proposal.

Hours later, Zelensky responded that "Ukraine has repeatedly stated that we are prepared to take reciprocal measures. We proposed a ceasefire this year during the Easter holidays and will act accordingly."

"People need an Easter free from threats and real progress toward peace, and Russia has a chance to avoid returning to hostilities after Easter," he added. 

Putin have instructed the Russian General Staff "to cease combat operations in all directions for this period," the Kremlin said, adding that troops were ready to "counter any possible provocations by the enemy".

"We assume that the Ukrainian side will follow the example of the Russian Federation." 

The war has cost hundreds of thousands of lives and forced millions to flee their homes, making it Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II.

- Slow advances -

Over the past few years, fighting on the front has come to a near standstill. Russia has made small territorial gains at a high cost.  

But Kyiv recently managed to push back in the southeast and Russian advances have been slowing since late 2025, according to the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Apart from Ukrainian counter-attacks, analysts attributed the slowdown to Russia being banned from using SpaceX's Starlink satellites and Moscow's own efforts to block the Telegram messaging app. 

The satellite and the messaging app were widely used by troops for communications, especially for coordinating drone attacks that have come to dominate the war.

The situation is, however, unfavourable for Ukraine in the Donetsk region, towards the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, according to the ISW. 

Moscow wants Ukraine to pull troops from both cities without a fight as part of any peace accord. 

Ukraine has in recent days stepped up assaults on Russian energy targets, especially oil-exporting ports after prices spiked on the back of the Middle East war. 

Several rounds of US-led talks have failed to bring the warring sides closer to an agreement and US attention is now focused on Iran. 

The negotiations have become deadlocked, with Moscow demanding territorial and political concessions that Zelensky has ruled out as tantamount to capitulation.

Moscow occupies just over 19 percent of Ukraine, most of which was seized during the first weeks of the conflict.

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Groundbreaking US hip-hop artist and DJ Afrika Bambaataa, known for his 1982 hit "Planet Rock," has died at age 68, his former record label said Thursday.

"With his passing, we reflect on his contributions to the genre and broader culture, which continue to this day," Tommy Boy Records said in an Instagram post alongside a picture of Bambaataa.

Celebrity news site TMZ, citing unnamed sources, reported that Bambaataa died from complications of cancer at about 3:00 am (0700 GMT) Thursday in Pennsylvania.

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Russia banned the Nobel Prize-winning human rights group Memorial and raided the offices of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta Thursday, in fresh blows to already diminished civil liberties in the country. 

Memorial and Novaya Gazeta, both founded around the collapse of the Soviet Union, are Russia's two most reputable and renowned organisations reporting and documenting human rights abuses.

Since sending troops against neighbouring Ukraine four years ago, the Kremlin has not only suppressed opposition to the war, but also launched a wider crackdown on  dissent, something unseen since Soviet times.

Memorial was founded in the late 1980s to document victims of Soviet-era political repression during which millions of people perished in the Gulag penal system.

Under pressure from the government almost since its birth, it was formally liquidated by Russia's Supreme Court in 2021 and since then has largely operated from abroad.

Thursday's court ruling to label Memorial as "extremist" effectively outlaws any cooperation with the rights group and makes its supporters subject to prosecution. 

Novaya Gazeta, established in 1993, was for years Russia's leading independent outlet and was targeted heavily for its critical reporting and investigations into rights violations and corruption. 

On Thursday, Russian law enforcement agents raided its offices and detained one of its top investigative journalists, the outlet said.  

The paper, which used to be published several times a week, cut down production inside the country after the war began, but its online version was still available despite court orders. 

Some of its staff were forced into exile and founded the online outlet Novaya Gazeta-Europe.

- Symbol of hope - 

Memorial's first chairman was the Nobel Prize-winning Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov and the group established the largest publicly available database on Gulag victims.

A symbol of hope during Russia's chaotic transition to democracy in the 1990s, it has since documented the country's slide into authoritarianism under President Vladimir Putin.

It has listed hundreds of political prisoners in modern Russia, among them critics of Putin and opponents of the Ukraine war.

Memorial has also documented rights violations linked to Russia's brutal wars in Chechnya and Syria, the plight of Ukrainian prisoners of war and kept a list of prisoners persecuted for their religion, including more than 200 Jehovah's Witnesses.

It counts more than 1,000 political prisoners in Russia as of 2026 -- up from 46 in 2015, amidst a crackdown on dissent during the Ukraine war.

The head of Memorial's legal department, Natalia Sekretaryeva, told AFP the Supreme Court's ruling was "absurd" but expected.

- 'Lawlessness' -

Novaya Gazeta was founded by Dmitry Muratov, its long-standing editor-in-chief who jointly won a Nobel Peace Prize in 2021.

He had to formally step down from the post two years later after being declared a "foreign agent," a label akin to being an enemy of the state.   

One of the early investors in the newspaper was Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the USSR and the father of the perestroika liberal reforms.

After Thursday's raids, which started in the morning were still ongoing well into the night, the police detained one of the paper's top investigative reporters on alleged illegal personal data use, Novaya Gazeta said. 

The journalist, Oleg Roldugin, reported on corruption in Russia's top brass, including former President Dmitry Medvedev and the influential head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov.

"We are concerned about the condition of our colleagues and demand an end to this lawlessness!" the paper said on social media.

Several Novaya Gazeta reporters have been murdered in killings widely seen as retribution for their work.

They include Anna Politkovskaya, who spent years investigating allegations of abuses by Russia's military during its campaigns in Chechnya.

She was found dead in her apartment block on President Vladimir Putin's birthday in October 2006.

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The Pentagon on Thursday denied a report that the Vatican's US envoy was summoned in January for a "bitter" dressing down over remarks by Pope Leo that were seen as criticizing the Trump administration’s use of military force.

According to The Free Press, which shares common ownership with CBS News, Cardinal Christophe Pierre was given a "bitter lecture" by US Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby.

Colby reportedly told the Vatican representative that the United States "has the military power to do whatever it wants -- and that the Church had better take its side."

In a speech in January, Pope Leo XIV, the first American pontiff, denounced what he called "diplomacy based on force" and in his Easter blessing he urged "those who have the power to unleash wars" to "choose peace."

The Pentagon and the US ambassador to the Holy See denied The Free Press's account of the January meeting between Colby and Pierre, who has since retired.

"Recent reporting of the meeting is highly exaggerated and distorted," the Pentagon said on X. "The meeting between Pentagon and Vatican officials was a respectful and reasonable discussion."

"They discussed a range of topics, including issues of morality in foreign policy, the logic of the US National Security Strategy, Europe, Africa, Latin America and other topics," the post said.

Brian Burch, the US ambassador to the Vatican, said he had spoken on Wednesday with Pierre regarding the January meeting and the reporting about it "does not reflect what happened."

"The Cardinal emphatically denied the media's portrayal of his meeting with Colby," Burch said. "He described the meeting as 'frank, but very cordial' and a 'normal encounter.'"

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The International Monetary Fund's chief urged governments on Thursday to "do no harm" as they face the massive economic shocks caused by the Middle East war, calling for "targeted" and disciplined fiscal actions.

In an interview with AFP, Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the shocks of a surge in energy prices and supply chain disruptions "inevitably bring pain."

"There is no way around it," she said, pointing to the effects on the most vulnerable on the planet, particularly those in low-income countries with limited budgets to take on the crisis.

She called for "restrictive, targeted, temporary actions" by governments, rather than wide-ranging price controls, subsidies or export restrictions.

The US-Israeli war on Iran, launched on February 28, has engulfed the Middle East in violence, snarled supply chains and sent oil prices surging after Tehran virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz.

Tehran and Washington have traded accusations of violations of a temporary ceasefire, with talks aimed at a more durable peace slated for Saturday.

The IMF chief said financial policymakers were in a difficult situation, having to choose between alleviating pain for citizens and possibly forcing central banks to then adopt restrictive monetary policy, delivering a demand shock.

"I feel for them, because they're now faced with bad or worse. There is no upside scenario at that moment," she said, speaking on the sidelines of the kickoff of the IMF's Spring Meetings, which brings together top policymakers from around the globe.

"My message is going to be: have the discipline on the fiscal front. You don't have much fiscal space. Use it very wisely, don't make the job of central bankers harder."

Governments must take measures that prioritize the most vulnerable, she said, rather than putting blanket subsidies in place. 

The topic of how to handle the crisis will be the primary focus of the Spring Meetings, which begin in earnest next week.

"It's a very hard job, so if we can use the meetings for people to build their courage together, that would be a very good outcome," Georgieva said.

- Immediate IMF aid -

Earlier Thursday, the IMF chief flagged in her opening remarks that the Fund expected to provide between $20-$50 billion in immediate assistance to vulnerable member states due to the war.

"We have received, so far, two requests for emergency financing," she disclosed to AFP, without identifying the countries in question.

"And we have a number of countries signaling that they may want to work with the Fund," she added, with emergency assistance and fuller reform programs both on the cards.

She identified countries in Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and small island states as being in particular need.

The coming week would see "intensive, country by country" discussions on the crisis and what the IMF can do to assist.

In some cases this will involve adjusting existing loan programs, including by accelerating disbursements or providing additional financing. 

Georgieva said the Fund was already in talks with Sri Lanka on how to "calibrate" an existing program to meet the country's needs. 

Other countries with whom talks are ongoing included Bangladesh, Egypt, Jordan and Pakistan. 

The IMF chief signalled in her opening remarks that the Fund would downgrade its global growth forecast due to the war, and she had a stark warning:

"The impact of this shock is already baked in, even if the war stops today, this five-plus weeks of missing supplies of oil and gas, they are already disturbing economies," she said.

To face the shocks with fiscal discipline would be difficult, but must be done, she argued.

"In a world of more shocks, of exogenous forces, they have no control over, what they have control over is getting the economy in good shape," she told AFP.

"It is hard, but countries have to face it."

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Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with appendicitis and was scheduled for surgery in Houston on Thursday, the team said hours before their NBA game against the Rockets.

"Further updates will be provided as appropriate," the Sixers said in a brief statement.

The 76ers went into Thursday's game in eighth place in the Eastern Conference. But at just one game behind the sixth-placed Atlanta Hawks they could still rise in the standings enough to escape the play-in tournament that will see the seventh- through 10th-placed teams battle for the last two playoff spots.

After Thursday's game in Houston they close out the season with a game against the Pacers in Indiana and a home game against the Milwaukee Bucks.

It's not clear if Embiid when Embiid will be able to return to action.

The Cameroonian-born center, the NBA Most Valuable Player in 2023, is averaging 26.9 points and 7.7 rebounds in 38 games this season.

The 32-year-old has steadily returned to his top form this season while still missing multiple games to manage long-term injuries as well as new injuries including an oblique strain and a stress reaction in his right shin.

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Iran's imposition of a toll for ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz looks set to be a key point of contention at talks opening in Pakistan Friday.

When the United States and Israel launched their attack on Iran on February 28, Iran responded by blocking passage through the key Strait to all but a handful of vessels.

While Iran agreed to reopen the thoroughfare during the two-week truce with the United States, it has also spoken of a toll system to fund reconstruction following punishing US-Israeli attacks.

The European Union was quick to denounce the idea Thursday. US President Donald Trump's position however appears more ambivalent.

The stakes are high, given that a fifth of the world's oil as well as vast quantities of natural gas and fertiliser pass in peacetime.

Bloomberg News has reported that shipping companies would be expected to pay up to $2 million per vessel. 

The Financial Times said the price to pay would be a dollar a barrel of oil, paid in crypto-currency or yuan, China's currency.

- Iran maintains control -

The temporary reopening of the Strait was announced Tuesday as part of the US-Iran ceasefire deal. Nevertheless, insurance specialists Lloyd's List noted: "Iran's approval regime for Hormuz transits remains intact."

At least some vessels, they added, faced "a slow, opaque verification process and, in many cases, multimillion dollar toll demands".

One of the points on the 10-point plan for ending the war that Iran sent to Washington was that Tehran would maintain control of the Strait of Hormuz.

An Iranian diplomatic source told journalists "There is a new mechanism according to which there has been and there will be a right of passage" organised with Oman, which also borders the Strait.

Freedom of circulation is a cardinal principle of maritime law. The only points of passage that have tollbooths are the Suez and Panama canals, both of which are artificial constructions that require maintenance.

"Paying a toll legitimises Iran's coercion and sets a precedent under international law that other regimes may want to pursue," wrote Guntram Wolff, senior researcher at the Brussels-based Bruegel think tank.

US President Donald Trump has suggested that the United States and Iran could run the system in a "joint venture". 

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt nevertheless cautioned that Washington had not yet taken a definitive position on the matter.

But Trump, she added "wants to see the Strait reopened immediately without limitation, and that's something we're going to hold them to".

- 'A legitimised tollbooth' - 

For several analysts, the most credible scenario is some kind of partnership between Oman and Iran, the two countries bordering the vital maritime passage.

"If Iran and Oman can come to a solution and create some sort of legitimised toll booth, a structure where ships can come through the Strait, it would give Iran money for reparation," said Michelle Brouhard, an analyst with global markets specialists Kpler.

JP Morgan bank, working off estimates made by Bloomberg, said the receipts from such a system could bring Iran $70 billion to $90 billion a year.

The Strait of Hormuz has become "more important for Iran than enriched uranium", Amir Handjari, an analyst with the US Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, told AFP.

"That's the real security guarantee to prevent Israeli and US attacks in the future," he argued.

"Oman gets more strategic relevance and a revenue stream they really need," he added. In a video posted Wednesday, Transport Minister Said bin Hamood bin Said Al Maawali said that international conventions signed by Oman forbade taking tolls for passage, but that talks were ongoing with the foreign ministry. 

The video was subsequently deleted.

Oman's policies towards Iran are not "in sync" with those of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), said the analyst, Handjari. The GCC comprises the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman.

As for the United States, he said, they might agree to tolls provided the payments were made in dollars and not yuan.

- Gulfs states divided -

The other gulf monarchies would take the imposition of a toll badly, said Amena Bakr, another analyst with Kpler.

"When it comes to Hormuz, the position is very clear from the GCC side... They will not accept Iran controlling the flow," she said.

Nor was it clear how such a toll would be determined, she added.

Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, head of the United Arab Emirates's state energy company ADNOC and the UAE Industry Minister, denounced any question of a toll.

"The weaponisation of this vital waterway, in any form, cannot stand," he insisted Thursday. "The Strait must be open -- fully, unconditionally and without restriction."

The EU took a similar line on Thursday. Freedom of navigation, Commission spokesman Anouar El Anouni told journalists, means "basically no payment or toll whatsoever".

But for Handjari, at the Quincy Institute: "It really comes down to three parties.

"The United States, Oman and Iran will determine the fate of the Straits of Hormuz. And the US has the weakest hand there."

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Democrats are clashing this week over the influence of pro-Israel lobbying on American politics and the US ally's military actions in the Middle East at a key strategy gathering ahead of November's midterm elections.

Attendees at the three-day Democratic National Committee (DNC) conference in New Orleans on Thursday began weighing resolutions to recognize a Palestinian state, restrict military aid to Israel and denounce the "growing influence" of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

The resolutions committee quickly killed the anti-AIPAC push, but the debate highlighted a persistent rift between party leaders and progressives angered by Israel's bombing of Gaza and its US-backed conflict with Iran.

The meeting comes as Democrats reassess their stance on Israel, after former president Joe Biden's Gaza policy was seen as having hurt his vice president Kamala Harris's bid to succeed him in 2024.

AIPAC's spending in congressional races has raised eyebrows, particularly a reported $22 million it shelled out in Illinois this year on Democratic primary contests to select candidates for November's midterm elections. 

"The DNC made clear today that all Democrats, including millions who are AIPAC members, have the right to participate fully in the democratic process," AIPAC said in a statement to AFP. 

"And we plan to do just that." 

The failure of the resolution had been expected -- especially as the resolutions committee was mulling, and ultimately passed, a broader resolution that targeted dark money groups but didn't single out any organization.

But Democratic opinion has been shifting against Israel, a nation of 10 million that is around three-quarters Jewish.

A new Pew Research survey found 80 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents view the country unfavorably, up from 69 percent last year and 53 percent in 2022.

An NBC poll, conducted in the opening days of the Iran war, put negative views at 57 percent -- up 22 points since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.

The anti-AIPAC resolution cited "undue influence" and its multi-million-dollar spending in primaries. 

The traditionally bipartisan organization, which seeks to work towards a majority pro-Israel US Congress, saw mixed success in Illinois, with two of its four preferred candidates winning their primaries.

- 'Asleep at the wheel' -

Rejecting AIPAC money has become a marker of ideological purity in some Democratic strongholds, with candidates like former presidential hopeful and Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey swearing off the group.

Other high-profile Democrats vowing never to take AIPAC cash include Gavin Newsom, Josh Shapiro and Andy Beshear -- the respective governors of California, Pennsylvania and Kentucky.

AIPAC only spends on federal races, but all three are seen as potential future presidential candidates.

Billionaire Illinois Governor JB Pritzker -- another rising Democratic star with White House ambitions -- told The New York Times he broke with AIPAC around 2015 when, in his view, it shifted to the political right. 

"I still believe it is significantly MAGA-influenced," he said, in a reference to President Donald Trump's right-wing Make America Great Again movement.

Party officials concluded after the 2024 election that support for Israel in its military campaign in Gaza had cost Democrats votes, although DNC Chair Ken Martin blocked the report's release.

Separate proposals in New Orleans on placing conditions on military aid to Israel and recognizing a Palestinian state were referred to the DNC's Middle East Working Group.

Pro-Palestinian groups, including the Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU), had urged support for the arms resolutions, arguing that most Democratic voters oppose US weapons for Israel.

IMEU Policy Project Executive Director Margaret DeReus accused Democrats who voted against the AIPAC resolution of being "asleep at the wheel."

"In 2024, AIPAC was the largest source of Republican money in Democratic politics. Its mega-donors like Miriam Adelson and Paul Singer are deeply invested in ensuring Republicans defeat Democrats this November," she said.

The DNC's Resolutions Committee was reviewing 32 measures ahead of a final vote of the full DNC on Friday. 

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US First Lady Melania Trump made a surprise statement on Thursday denying any knowledge of Jeffrey Epstein's abuse, or that she herself was a victim of the convicted sex offender.

The 55-year-old's rare on-camera remarks at the White House came out of the blue, in an extraordinary intervention in a scandal that has long haunted her husband President Donald Trump.

"The lies linking me with the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein need to end today," she said. "The individuals lying about me are devoid of ethical standards, humility and respect."

It was not clear why the Slovenian-born former model decided to give the public statement, and she did not detail any specific allegations about her and the late, convicted sex offender.

Melania and Donald Trump had previously been photographed with Epstein, but she said that she had met her husband independently two years prior to meeting Epstein.

"I am not Epstein's victim. Epstein did not introduce me to Donald Trump," Melania Trump said.

She said "fake images and statements about Epstein and me" had been circulating on social media "for years now. Be cautious about what you believe: these images and stories are completely false."

The first lady also urged Congress to hold a public hearing for survivors of Epstein's abuse to "give these victims their opportunity to testify under oath." 

Epstein died in federal custody in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges involving minors, but the scandal has repeatedly overshadowed Trump's second presidency.

- 'Epstein's abuse' -

The US Justice Department has over the past year released huge tranches of files related to Epstein. Trump, 79, has also denied any link to Epstein's crimes.

One widely-seen picture in the files showed Donald and Melania Trump at their Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida along with Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.

"I have never had any knowledge of Epstein's abuse of his victims. I was never involved in any capacity. I was not a participant. Was never on Epstein's plane, and never visited his private island," Melania Trump said.

"I have never been legally accused or convinced of a crime in connection with Epstein sex trafficking, abuse of minors and other repulsive behavior."

Speculation ran riot on social media about why the US first lady had decided to put the Epstein scandal back in the headlines after weeks of relative quiet.

It comes just two days after her husband announced a ceasefire in the US-Israeli war on Iran, which critics say has left the crucial Strait of Hormuz still largely shuttered by Tehran.

But Melania Trump has long been an elusive and often mysterious presence at the White House, who only rarely gives public remarks of the kind she delivered on Thursday.

The last time she was seen with her husband was at an Easter Egg Roll with hundreds of children on Monday.

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