Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated on Wednesday that his country has no intention of building a nuclear weapon and even opened the door to potential U.S. economic involvement, should a nuclear agreement be reached.
His remarks came ahead of anticipated negotiations in Oman this past weekend concerning Iran’s controversial nuclear ambitions. The talks follow U.S. President Donald Trump’s return to office and his ongoing warnings that he would take military action against Iran to stop it from acquiring nuclear arms if needed.
“We are not after a nuclear bomb,” Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a speech in Tehran. “You [in the West] have verified it 100 times. Do it 1,000 times again.”

Slightly more Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, but the labor market remains broadly healthy despite an ongoing trade war. Jobless claim filings inched up by 4,000 to 223,000 for the week ending April 5, the Labor Department said Thursday. That’s less than the 225,000 new applications analysts forecast. Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered a proxy for layoffs, and have mostly ping-ponged between 200,000 and 250,000 for the past few years. Even though President Donald Trump put a 90-day pause on most of his widespread tariff hikes Wednesday, concerns remain about a global economic slowdown that could upend what has been an incredibly resilient labor market.

Chabad Headquarters marked the 123rd birthday of the Rebbe—with Rabbi Mendy Kotlarsky announcing the next round of thirty-five new Shluchim couples who will be supported with seed grants to expand the Rebbe’s life’s work in some of the most unexpected corners of the world. From Mykonos to Kenya, West Adams to Tanzania, they are planting seeds of Jewish life—some where Jewish infrastructure once existed, others where it never did. Each of these couples is receiving seed funding from Keren Hashluchim to help establish new Chabad centers and build Jewish communities, carrying forward a vision that has, for generations, redefined what it means to be there for another Jew. Yud Aleph Nissan has long served as a catalyst for expansion.

The European Union’s executive commission said Thursday it will put trade retaliation measures on hold for 90 days to match President Donald Trump’s pause on his sweeping new tariffs and leave room for a negotiated solution. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the commission, which handles trade for the bloc’s 27 member countries, “took note of the announcement by President Trump.” New tariffs on 20.9 billion euros ($23 billion) of US goods will be put on hold for 90 days because “we want to give negotiations a chance,” she said in a statement.

Sinmyah Amera Ceasar, a 30-year-old U.S. citizen from Brooklyn, NY, was sentenced Wednesday to 230 months in federal prison—nearly 19 years—for recruiting people to join the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), obstructing justice, and failing to appear in court. Ceasar pleaded guilty to the three federal charges in 2017, 2019, and 2022, respectively. ISIS is officially designated as a terrorist organization by the United States government. “Today’s resentencing marks the end of a righteous journey that began a decade ago,” said Sue Bai, head of the Justice Department’s national security division.

The IDF and Shin Bet confirmed Thursday that Haytham Sheikh Khalil, commander of Hamas’s Shuja’iyya Battalion, was killed in an airstrike on a Hamas command center in Gaza City. Khalil played a central role in the October 7 attack on Nahal Oz and was responsible for directing assaults on Israeli forces, as well as overseeing Hamas’s explosives and tunnel operations. He assumed command of the battalion following the deaths of its previous leaders. The IDF said the targeted strike was carried out based on precise intelligence and surveillance, stressing its efforts to minimize civilian harm. Meanwhile, Israeli ground forces expanded operations across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, with a major focus on the Tel al-Sultan and Shaboura neighborhoods of Rafah, as well as the Morag Corridor.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan confirmed on Wednesday that Turkey is working with Israel at an operational level in Syria to ensure that military activities do not clash, according to Reuters.
His statement came after a spike in Israeli air raids within Syria, which Israeli authorities said were aimed at stopping a Turkish military operation in the area.
As reported by Reuters last week, Turkey had conducted reconnaissance missions over several airbases in Syria as part of early-stage plans for a possible joint defense strategy. Those same locations were later struck by Israel.