Loyalists rush to defend president for ‘outsmarting the critics’ but others decry deal as ‘a negative for our country’Donald Trump’s acceptance of a two-week ceasefire in Iran has exposed fresh divisions in his Make America Great Again (Maga) movement, with some supporters expressing vindication and others accusing the US president of betrayal.The US and Iran both claimed victory after the two countries agreed to pause hostilities following more than a month of war. But the strait of Hormuz remained closed on Wednesday and fighting was still taking place as Israel launched its biggest attacks yet on Lebanon. Continue reading...
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Success or surrender? Iran ceasefire exposes rift in Trump’s Maga movement
The Guardian World
April 08, 2026
20:30 GMT
Loyalists rush to defend president for ‘outsmarting the critics’ but others decry deal as ‘a negative for our country’ Donald Trump’s acceptance of a two-week ceasefire in Iran has exposed fresh divisions in his Make America Great Again (Maga) movement, with some supporters expressing vindication and others accusing the US president of betrayal. The US and Iran both claimed victory after the two countries agreed to pause hostilities following more than a month of war. But the strait of Hormuz remained closed on Wednesday and fighting was still taking place as Israel launched its biggest attacks yet on Lebanon. Continue reading...
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Australia news live: ‘deeply concerned’ Penny Wong says Lebanon should be included in ceasefire and calls for aid workers to be protected
Foreign affairs minister releases a joint statement with other countries, urging an end to hostilities in Lebanon. Follow updates live Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Shadow defence minister ‘reluctant’ to listen to Iran over Lebanon’s inclusion in ceasefire deal James Paterson, the shadow minister for defence, said he is “reluctant” to listen to Iran on whether or not Lebanon was included in a ceasefire deal announced yesterday as Israel continues to bombard the country. On the one hand, the United States and Israel say that the ceasefire did not include Lebanon, and on the other hand, the Islamic Republic of Iran is saying that it did include Lebanon. I am personally reluctant to endorse claims made by a country which has sponsored terrorist attacks on Australian soil. Australians are seeing what is happening in a number of countries in the Middle East and responding with compassion. We recognise this is a time when Australians are also doing it tough and we appreciate how they are recognising the depth of the humanitarian crisis and responding. Continue reading...
The Guardian World•Apr 08, 2026
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Middle East crisis live: ceasefire must include Lebanon or war will continue, Iran’s foreign minister says
As Israel attacks on Beirut continue, Abbas Araghchi points to announcement that says ceasefire includes Lebanon while JD Vance says US never promised that Middle East ceasefire in serious doubt as Israel assaults Lebanon and Iran blocks oil tankers Will shipping in the strait of Hormuz – and oil prices – return to normal? A genocidal threat, and then the US president, Donald Trump, blinked – without any apparently meaningful concessions from Iran. As in so much concerning the second Trump administration, the two week ceasefire “deal” that will see the strait of Hormuz reopened – if it can be described as such – is maddeningly vague and short on detail, apparently kicking the can on key issues down the road. Iran’s nuclear issue, Trump said, would be solved “perfectly.” “It was a big day for world peace”, Trump posted on Truth Social. “Iran can start reconstruction” he added. “Big money” could be made. Yada. Yada. Yada. Continue reading...
The Guardian World•Apr 08, 2026
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Anthropic keeps latest AI tool out of public’s hands for fear of enabling widespread hacking
AI company says purpose of its Claude Mythos model is to bolster defenses against hacking in common applications Anthropic on Tuesday said its yet-to-be-released artificial intelligence model called Claude Mythos has proven keenly adept at exposing software weaknesses. Mythos has laid bare thousands of vulnerabilities in commonly used applications for which no patch or fix exists, prompting the San Francisco-based AI startup to form an alliance with cybersecurity specialists to bolster defenses against hacking and withhold wide distribution. Continue reading...
The Guardian World•Apr 08, 2026
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Middle East ceasefire threatens to unravel as Israel assaults Lebanon and Iran blocks oil tankers
Inclusion of Lebanon is significant difference in interpretation of truce agreed at 11th hour on Tuesday Middle East crisis – live updates The fate of the two-week ceasefire in the Iran conflict looked in peril on Wednesday as both sides gave divergent versions of what had been agreed, Israel intensified its bombing campaign in Lebanon and Iran halted the passage of oil tankers because of an alleged Israeli ceasefire breach. Iran and Pakistan, which brokered the 11th-hour truce, both asserted that the ceasefire included Lebanon. Continue reading...
The Guardian World•Apr 08, 2026