Montenegro moved closer to becoming the European Union’s next member Friday as EU leaders signaled the Balkan nation could join the bloc by 2028, while officials also reflected on lessons learned from Hungary’s years of democratic backsliding under former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

Armed conflict intensified across the Middle East on Saturday as U.S. forces struck Iranian coastal radar sites after intercepting drones and missiles launched by Iran toward Arab Gulf states, while Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon killed at least nine people, including three members of the Lebanese military, officials said.

What began as a social media joke among India’s Generation Z, or Gen Z, has evolved into a growing protest movement challenging the country’s political establishment.

Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s call for direct peace talks Friday, even as rare public criticism emerged from members of Russia’s political and business elite over the direction of the country’s wartime economy.

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem on Thursday rejected a U.S.-brokered ceasefire framework between Israel and Lebanon, warning that the Iran-backed terrorist group would continue attacks as long as Israeli military operations continue in Lebanon.