Headlines: 16-22 March 2026

Tuesday, 17 March 2026

Israel says it killed 2 top Iranian security officials — 17 March q2026 (LINK)

Pakistan air strike kills at least 100 at Kabul drug rehab centre — 17 March 2026 (LINK)

Monday, 16 March 2026

Russia has taken 12 settlements in Ukraine as part of general advances, Moscow's top general says. In Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the country's armed forces had disrupted Russian plans for an offensive, with Moscow failing to reinforce its troops — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Kenya and Russia agree no Kenyans will be recruited for Ukraine war — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Sean Penn misses 15 March Oscars to visit Ukraine, meets Zelensky in Kyiv — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

U.S. considers withholding H.I.V. aid to Zambia unless it expands minerals access — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Trump vents frustration with allies over strait of Hormuz; UAE closes its airspace — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Iran still exporting millions of barrels of oil through Strait of Hormuz even as other traffic paralyzed — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Cuba's power grid collapses after weeks of US oil blockade — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

BBC asks UK judge to toss Trump's $10 billion defamation case: not aired in US — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

— The network said the president's claims over the way his Jan. 6, 2021 speech was edited fall "well short of the high bar of actual malice".

Last protester in immigration detention after Trump’s campus crackdown has been released on $100,000 bond after a year in custody — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Kennedy Center votes to shut down operations for 2 years and names a new president — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

— Trump hosted the board meeting at the White House in a reminder of the influence he has held over the Kennedy Center during his second term.

Unclear if Iran's leader Mojtaba Khamenei is 'dead or not,' Trump tells reporters — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Sri Lanka brings in four-day week to eke out stocks of oil and gas hit by Iran war: Bangladesh, India and Pakistan have also brought in crisis measures — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

War-driven energy price spikes highlight value of renewables: UN climate chief — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

El Salvador has arbitrarily detained nationals deported from the US and 'disappeared' into prison system, Human Rights Watch says — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

French national jailed for 10 years in Azerbaijan for spying — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

— Martin Ryan was accused in December 2023 of spying on behalf of Paris and collecting secret information about Baku's military co-operation with Turkey and Pakistan. He was also accused of helping recruit French-speaking Azerbaijanis to co-operate with French intelligence. Both France and Ryan have repeatedly denied the spying allegations. An Azerbaijani citizen, Azad Mamedli, was sentenced to 12 years for treason, AFP news agency reports.

UN report says Israeli 2025 air strike on Iran prison is a war crime — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Encyclopedia Britannica is the latest giant to sue OpenAI — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

A 100-year-old theory might explain what's wrong with quantum mechanics: physicist is on a mission to get scientists to look into Louis de Broglie’s pilot wave theory — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Switzerland faces worst housing shortage for renters since 2014 — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Swiss cinema admissions fall to lowest level in half century: 9.47 million admissions, 8% less than the previous year — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Swiss study finds the beaver is best ally for restoring biodiversity — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

Len Deighton, author of bestselling spy thrillers, dead at 97 — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

— Deighton was food correspondent for The Observer newspaper in the 1960s and wrote several cookbooks aimed at men — a then-novel idea.

The US stock market sounds an alarm for the first time in 25 years. Here is what history says the S&P 500 will do in 2026 — 16 March 2026 (LINK)

— Currently, the CAPE (cyclically adjusted price-to-earnings) ratio stands at 39 — more than double its long-term average and inching closer to its all-time high. The only other times in history when the CAPE ratio was near its current level were in the late 1920s and in 2000. Right now, the stock market remains elevated relative to historical levels, driven by tailwinds from demandq for artificial intelligence (AI). Opt for blue chip stocks with durable, diversified business models. In addition, complementing high-conviction positions with cash will further insulate you from any downturns while providing you the flexibility to buy the dip.