Sunday, September 27, 2026

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran is awaiting a definitive U.S. response to its seven-day proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, despite President Trump's public rejection, saying Trump's history of contradictory messaging means his rebuff may not be final. Iran said it will not soften its conditions. Trump has told aides he plans to resume strikes on Iran after the November midterm elections, according to UPI.

A powerful nor'easter battering the Northeast killed at least one person, a 56-year-old NYCHA employee crushed by a falling tree in Brooklyn, city officials said. About 100,000 customers lost power. Four people were hospitalized after a tree fell near a Sheepshead Bay playground, and a swimmer disappeared off Fire Island amid 18-foot waves. New York and New Jersey declared states of emergency; forecasters said the worst impacts could continue into Sunday.

Trump and Xi agreed to establish a channel focused on AI safety while continuing separate trade and military talks between the two countries. The White House said the leaders agreed to use the term "super intelligence" rather than "artificial intelligence" to describe the technology.

Following a summit between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington, the two countries agreed to reduce tariffs on $30 billion worth of "non-sensitive goods" traded between them. China will give favorable treatment to U.S. agricultural products, seafood, wood products, cosmetics and medical devices, while the U.S. will do the same for Chinese small appliances, toys and other goods. The deal was reached through the U.S.-China Board of Trade; further details are expected Monday.

Former Kennedy Center employees, in a letter to Congress sent Thursday, accused venue leadership of halting planned waterproofing repairs earlier this year despite known structural issues. Attorney David Seide, representing the whistleblowers, shared internal documents he said undercut the Kennedy Center board's claim that leaks required the venue's immediate closure.

President Trump said Saturday he approved new fuel economy standards that eliminate a 2024 electric vehicle mandate from the Biden administration, which had set pollution standards for automakers' fleets intended to push adoption of electric vehicles. Trump wrote that the standards "will take the waste out of building cars in America." The changes finalize lower vehicle fuel economy requirements.

The FAA is investigating a software glitch in some Boeing 737 Max jets that could cause an automated flight guidance system to disengage during an aborted landing. Boeing flagged the issue affecting a landing navigation feature. The scope of affected aircraft and any planned fix were not detailed.

British police arrested five men early Sunday near RAF Fairford, an air base in Gloucestershire used by U.S. forces in the war against Iran. Officers responded after a call about three suspicious vehicles near the base, arresting the men on suspicion of Explosives Act offenses and preparing a terrorist act. Around 85 households in Whelford were evacuated while the Army's bomb disposal unit examined vehicles.

An explosion leveled a building in Athens' Plaka district near the Acropolis on Friday, killing six people: four Americans and a British man and his Greek wife. The four Americans, believed to be two couples staying in the two-story building, had been expected to catch a 3 p.m. flight home but never showed up. Greek authorities said an initial investigation indicates a gas leak caused the blast. Three others were injured.

South African police said 17 people were killed late Saturday when eight gunmen with AK-47s and pistols opened fire at a bar in Wedela township near Johannesburg, then continued shooting inside. A separate shooting near Cape Town in the early hours of Sunday killed at least 10 more. No arrests have been made. The attacks came five days after a shooting near Durban killed at least 11 people.

Overnight Russian airstrikes killed at least four people across Ukraine and damaged a data center in Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. The strikes came after Moscow rejected German calls to de-escalate the conflict. Russia and Ukraine have continued exchanging strikes, with Ukraine previously targeting Russian energy infrastructure while defending against waves of Russian drones.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met German counterpart Johann Wadephul on Saturday on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, discussing Ukraine and bilateral ties in what is believed to be their first such meeting since Russia's 2022 invasion. Lavrov then addressed the assembly, defending Russia's war and accusing Europe of blocking peace talks. Both Russia and Ukraine have escalated attacks after what was called the deadliest summer since 2022.

Reports differ on the outcome of a planned Orange Order parade along the Garvaghy Road in Portadown. Some accounts say a Belfast High Court allowed the march to proceed, prompting calls for calm from Prime Minister Andy Burnham, while others report a judge issued an injunction blocking it, which the Orange Order is appealing, and that protesters physically blocked marchers from the Catholic area.