Spring is officially upon us in the Northern Hemisphere! We hope you’ve taken some time to step outside and smell the flowers amid a torrent of decidedly less appealing global headlines.

Have feedback? Email [email protected] to let me know your thoughts.

Spring is officially upon us in the Northern Hemisphere! We hope you’ve taken some time to step outside and smell the flowers amid a torrent of decidedly less appealing global headlines.

1. A referendum held on Sunday and Monday in Italy failed, delivering a blow to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government. What did the vote address?

Immigration restrictions

Reorganizing Italy’s voting districts

Meloni had hoped to keep a low profile ahead of the vote to prevent it from becoming a test of her own popularity, Giorgio Ghiglione wrote last week.

2. A temporary cease-fire between Afghanistan and Pakistan that began last week ended on Monday. What was the reason for the truce?

To allow refugees to cross the countries’ shared border

To discuss permanent peace terms in Qatar

To recover the dead from a recent hospital bombing

To celebrate the Islamic Eid al-Fitr holiday

Neither side used the opportunity to discuss terms for a longer-lasting cease-fire, showing how difficult it will be to de-escalate the conflict, FP’s Michael Kugelman writes in South Asia Brief.

3. Thousands marched in Buenos Aires on Tuesday to commemorate 50 years since what event?

The beginning of Argentina’s military dictatorship

Argentina’s first World Cup victory

The end of the Falklands War

The death of former first lady Eva Perón

Civil society efforts to remember the regime’s brutality have been complicated by the rise of Argentine President Javier Milei, who has at times downplayed its legacy, Lautaro Grinspan wrote in December 2023.

4. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday called for immediate peace talks in which conflict?

Renewed fighting between Thailand and Cambodia

The Russia-Ukraine war

Beijing’s expressed desire for peace is sincere as it stares down a looming energy crisis, FP’s James Palmer writes in China Brief.

5. South Africa’s top cop was served with a warrant on Wednesday to appear in court as part of an investigation into an allegedly corrupt contract to provide police officers with what?

Military-grade weapons and gear

Training on using AI surveillance tools

Health and well-being services

Opportunities for extra overtime pay

The latest scandal comes on the heels of a variety of corruption allegations in South Africa last year, which Max Meizlish and David May wrote about in November.

6. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was appointed to lead government coalition talks on Wednesday despite what outcome in Denmark’s snap parliamentary elections a day prior?

The revelation that some precincts had thrown out votes

The right-wing Danish People’s Party saying the election was rigged

Her Social Democrats party winning a majority of seats

Her Social Democrats party suffering a major defeat

The result was the Social Democrats’ worst performance since 1903, dropping from 50 seats to just 38 in the 179-member parliament, FP’s Alexandra Sharp reports in World Brief.

7. Israel on Thursday said it had killed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander Alireza Tangsiri, who Israel said had been responsible for bombing operations that blocked ships from crossing the Strait of Hormuz. Which arm of the IRGC did Tangsiri lead?

The Trump administration has attempted to project a sense of control over the Strait of Hormuz, but its empty rhetoric will not resolve the war or reopen the waterway, Maisoon H. Kafafy writes.

8. Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko presented North Korean leader Kim Jong Un with a gift on Thursday “just in case any enemies show up.” What did Lukashenko give Kim?

A semiautomatic pistol

A ceremonial sword and medieval helmet

A Cold War-era hand grenade

An assault rifle manufactured in Belarus

The meeting between the two allies is a further demonstration of Pyongyang’s decision to stop hedging and firmly align with Moscow and Beijing, as Sangsoo Lee wrote about in July 2025.

9. Which global music phenomenon performed in South Korea on Saturday ahead of a world tour set to begin on April 9?

While Saturday’s crowd fell short of projections, groups like BTS bring a windfall of tourism revenue for cities they play in, Reuters reports.

10. On Wednesday, Sarah Mullally became the first woman leader (after 1,400 years) of which Christian denomination?

The Church of England

The Armenian Apostolic Church

The Church of the East

United Methodist Church

The new archbishop used her sermon on Wednesday to extol the power of hope while acknowledging the struggles people face in their daily lives, the New York Times reports.

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