Portal:Current events/2026 April 30

April 30, 2026 (Thursday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Middle Eastern crisis
- 2026 Iran war
  - 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis
    - 2026 Strait of Hormuz campaign, Lithuania–United States relations
      - Lithuanian president Gitanas Nausėda says that his country may consider joining a U.S. campaign to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. However, he also states that it will need approval by the government and parliament. (RBC-Ukraine)
  - Antisemitism during the 2026 Iran war
    - 2026 London antisemitic attacks
      - The United Kingdom raises its national terrorism threat level to "severe" following a series of antisemitic attacks in London, with the most recent being a stabbing attack that injured two Jews in Golders Green yesterday. (CBS News)
- Hezbollah–Israel conflict
  - 2026 Lebanon war
    - 2026 Israel–Lebanon ceasefire
      - Israel carries out a series of airstrikes across multiple locations in Lebanon, killing at least 32 people. (Middle East Eye)
Mali War
- 2026 Mali attacks
  - Mali–Russia relations
    - Russia says that it will continue its military presence in Mali to provide assistance to the Malian government. (Reuters)
  - Niger announces that the Alliance of Sahel States conducted airstrikes in Mali against Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists and Tuareg separatists hours after the attacks began. (AFP via Indo Premier)
2026 Afghanistan–Pakistan war
- Talks between participants from the Taliban government in Afghanistan and Pakistan are held in Istanbul, Turkey under a Track 1.5 format in an effort to lower tensions between the two countries. (Islamabad Post) (Pakistan Today)
Boko Haram insurgency
- At least 18 militants are killed in operations by Nigerian troops across Borno State, Nigeria. (Reuters)
World War II bomb disposal in Europe
- More than 1,000 homes are evacuated in Plymouth, England, following the discovery of an unexploded World War II-era German SC250 bomb on a building site. (Sky News)

Arts and culture

61st Venice Biennale
- The jury of the Venice Biennale in Italy resigns ahead of the exhibition's opening, amid disagreement involving the government over Russia's participation. (CP via Lethbridge Herald)
Reporters Without Borders reports that global press freedom has declined to its lowest level since the index began in 2002, with more than half of countries classified under severe conditions and the share of the world's population living in countries with strong press freedom falling to below one percent. (AFP via France 24)

Business and economy

Tariffs in the second Trump administration
- United States president Donald Trump announces that he will lift tariffs on all whisky products, including Scotch whisky. (BBC News) (Politico)

Disasters and accidents

2026 Tuapse oil terminal disaster
- Residents of Tuapse in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, upload videos to social media appearing to show oil raining from the sky as authorities say the fire at the Tuapse oil terminal has now been extinguished after days of burning. (CNN) (Al Jazeera)
July 2025 Central Texas floods
- Camp Mystic in Texas, U.S., withdraws an application to reopen during the summer in the wake of the floods last year, which killed 25 campers and two counsellors. (NBC News)
Twenty people are killed after a jeep carrying pilgrims plunged off a cliff in Rolpa district, Nepal. (The Tribune)
Eight people are killed in a collapse at a coal mine in Magadan Oblast, Russia. (The Moscow Times)
Five people are killed when a Cessna 421 Golden Eagle airplane crashes into wooden terrain in Wimberley, Texas, United States. (Reuters)

International relations

United States–Venezuela relations, Aftermath of the 2026 United States intervention in Venezuela
- The first direct commercial flight from the United States to Venezuela in seven years arrives at the Simón Bolívar International Airport in Caracas. (AFP via NDTV) (AP)

Law and crime

Kampala school stabbing
- Thirty-eight-year-old Christopher Okello Onyum is sentenced to death by hanging for the murders of four children at a nursery school on April 2 in Kampala, Uganda. (BBC News)
China announces it will ban the sale or renting of commercial drones in Beijing, while existing drone owners will also be required to register their devices with the police, citing security concerns. (BBC News)
Myanmar's president Min Aung Hlaing orders the remaining prison sentence of deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi to be served under house arrest and announces a one-sixth reduction of sentences for all prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi. (AFP via CNA) (AFP via Taipei Times)

Politics and elections

2026 Antiguan general election
- Antiguans and Barbudans vote to elect 17 members of the House of Representatives. Incumbent prime minister and Labour leader Gaston Browne, who is running for a fourth term, is being challenged by United Progressive leader Jamale Pringle. (Reuters)
2026 United States federal government shutdowns
- The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously approves a bill passed by the Senate to fund the Department of Homeland Security, the Secret Service, the Coast Guard, FEMA, TSA, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in an effort to end the 76-day government shutdown. (AFP via SCMP) (AP) (Politico)
- The bill is signed by U.S. president Donald Trump, officially bringing an end to the shutdown. (BBC News) (PBS)
Arrest of Jair Bolsonaro
- The Brazilian National Congress overrides a veto by president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to reduce the sentence of former president Jair Bolsonaro for a coup-related conviction. (Reuters)
Censorship in Russia
- Russia announces the creation of a censorship council. (The Moscow Times in Russian)

Science and technology

The Pakistan Navy commissions the first Hangor-class submarine, the PNS/M Hangor, at a ceremony in Sanya, China. (Daily Pakistan)
American company Cloudflare states that Russian messenger app Max is a spyware app. (Ukrainian News)

Sports

2026 FIFA World Cup
- Iran at the FIFA World Cup
  - FIFA president Gianni Infantino confirms that Iran's football team will participate in the upcoming FIFA World Cup, including matches in the United States, despite the Iran war. (Time)