At least 2 ships attacked in Strait of Hormuz as peace talks remain stalled

At least two ships have come under attack in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the British military, one cargo ship and one container ship, potentially jeopardizing efforts to resume peace talks between the U.S. and Iran.

The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO) reported early Wednesday that the an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)"gun boat" had fired at a container ship15 nautical miles northeast of Oman. There was no radio warning before the boat "fired upon the vessel," according to the British Royal Navy-led UKMTO, causing "heavy damage to the bridge" but with all crew "reported safe."

Three hours later, the UKMTO reported asecond incident, this time 8 nautical miles west of Iran, in which a cargo ship said it had been fired on and was "now stopped in the water." The crew members were "safe and accounted for" and there was no mention of the source of the attack.

Data from the ship-tracking website MarineTraffic showed two container ships stopped off the coast of Iran near the Strait of Hormuz early on Wednesday: the Panama-flagged MSC Francesca and the Greek-operated Epaminondas. Both vessels had previously broadcast their positions in the Persian Gulf.The IRGC confirmed Wednesday that the two ships "were intercepted by the IRGC Navy and escorted to the Iranian coast." The IRGC added that the vessels "entered the area without proper authorization and allegedly tampered with their navigation systems.""Disrupting the order and safety of the Strait of Hormuz is our red line," the statement said.

The companies that own the ships did not reply to a CBS News request for comment on the status of the respective crews.

CBS News partner network BBC News and the Reuters news agency reported that athird shipwas hit by gunfire in the strait Wednesday, but the UKMTO did not confirm those reports to CBS News.

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The attacks come after PresidentTrump announcedthat the deadline for the fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran would be extended Tuesday, hours before it was due to expire, to allow for further peace talks.

The president said he granted the ceasefire after a request form Pakistan, which hosted the first round of talks, and he blamed Iran's "seriously fractured" government for the delay.Mr. Trump said he was giving Tehran more chance to "come up with a unified proposal."

"I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other," Mr. Trump posted on hisTruth Socialplatform Tuesday afternoon.Iran's semi-official news agency Tasnim reported Tuesday that Iran hadnot requested the extensionof the ceasefire.Mahdi Mohammadi, a senior adviser to Iran's parliament speaker, posted onXTuesday that the extension "means nothing," adding that the continuation of the "siege" is "no different form bombardment and must be met with a military response."He characterized Mr. Trump's ceasefire extension as "certainly a ploy to buy time for a surprise strike."Wednesday's attacks come after the U.S. fired on and seized an Iranian container ship over the weekend and boarded an oil tanker linked to Iran's oil trade in the Indian Ocean.

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byJastin Mags

in

April 24, 2026

At least 2 ships attacked in Strait of Hormuz as peace talks remain stalled

At least two ships have come under attack in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the British military, one cargo ship and one container ...

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Country Duo Neon Union Announce Breakup After 4 Years Together

Country duo Neon Union announced their split

NEED TO KNOW

• The pair released one studio album, earned an ACM nomination and performed at the Grand Ole Opry

• Both Leo Brooks and Andrew Millsaps expressed gratitude for their time together and plan to pursue new opportunities

Country music duo Neon Union is no more.

Neon Union members Leo Brooks and Andrew Millsaps announced that they’ve called time on playing music together in anInstagram postshared on Friday, April 24.

“After a lot of thought and consideration, we’re decided to go our separate ways,” they wrote in a joint statement. “This chapter of Neon Union is closing.”

Neon Union formed in Nashville in 2022, and they released their debut albumGood Yearsin January 2025.

They were nominated for New Duo/Group of the Year at the 2024 ACM Awards, and made their debut at the Grand Ole Opry in 2022. Two of their songs, “Beer Up” and “Bout Damn Time,” have been streamed more than 1 million times on Spotify.

Millsaps expressed gratitude to Brooks in a statement that called their time together as a duo “a very impactful and special chapter" of his life.

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“I love Leo, and he will always be my friend and brother,” Millsaps wrote. “I’ve done things I never dreamed possible, and made lifelong memories. Thank you to Red Street Records for the opportunity to put our music out to the world. We accomplished bucket list check marks that a small town boy from Mayberry could have only dreamed of. From an ACM nomination to the Grand Ole Opry Circle, I cannot express how lucky and blessed I am to have been part of this journey, but I am ready for the next one.”

He continued, “The closing of this chapter might be the end of one, but it’s the beginning of the next. I’m excited for what’s to come. To the Neon Union fans, I want to say thank you so much for all of your love and support.”

Brooks also shared a statement of his own, saying that “life is a journey” and he’s “just grateful for the ride.”

“I’ve learned a lot from Neon Union and had great times. Andrew will always be my friend and we will still write songs together,” he wrote. “Big thanks to the whole Red Street team, now it’s time to go wherever God leads me. Thank you to all of the NU fans, love y’all and here’s to the next chapter, cheers.”

Both musicians were pursuing solo careers when they formed Neon Union. Brooks was previously a touring hip-hop bass guitarist who worked with Pitbull, according toThe Tennesseean.

“Some people pursue country music success as a solo thing,” Millsaps told the outlet in 2023. “But Leo and I are comfortable as a duo. We are humble and talented enough to realize the value of sharing the limelight.”

Read the original article onPeople

byJastin Mags

in

April 24, 2026

Country Duo Neon Union Announce Breakup After 4 Years Together

Country duo Neon Union announced their split NEED TO KNOW The pair released one studio album, earned an ACM nomina...

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Kacey Musgraves Opens the Doors to Her Childhood Home in Texas That’s Been in Her Family for '100 Years' (Exclusive)

Kacey Musgraves' childhood home in East Texas inspired her upcoming album Middle of Nowhere, out May 1

NEED TO KNOW

• The Grammy winner opened up about the "sacred" property that has been in her family for 100 years in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE

• Fans can explore the home in an immersive listing on Zillow, which Musgraves calls a unique way to honor her past

Kacey Musgravesis pulling back the curtain on a deeply personal part of her story that has shaped her into the artist she is today: her childhood home.

Ahead of the release of her new albumMiddle of Nowhereon May 1, Musgraves, 37, opened up about her family's historic East Texas abode and how it inspired her upcoming record during an exclusive interview with PEOPLE. Fans can explore her “sacred” abode through an immersive listing onZillow, which offers a unique glimpse of where Musgraves grew up.

“My special little place in Texas has just exponentially shaped who I am as a person,” Musgraves tells PEOPLE of the pink bungalow. “It's always this quiet and very simple place that I can return to in all the chapters of my life and really re-ground.”

The Grammy winner adds that whenever she's at her family's longtime property, she always encounters “reminders of who I really am” and various remnants of her childhood. She credits the inspiration that the property radiates to her ancestors, as they created a home there 100 years ago and it has been in her family ever since.

“There has been just so much human experience on those acres,” Musgraves reflects, noting that her family arrived at the property around 1909 and built a farmhouse.

While that house "sadly, unexpectedly burned down” in 2014, the “Deeper Well” singer says she was able to purchase the smaller house next to it, which has also been in her family for generations.

She notes that she's grateful she was able to “keep it in the family,” and later painted it pink in honor of her late grandmother. It also features other nods to her family's legacy, including the giant flag of Texas painted on the ceiling of the front porch.

“There's something about it that feels really sacred to me,” Musgraves adds of the serene property. “I think it was the intentions and the creativity and the love that was there for literal decades — over 100 years. It just feels like a really special place.”

Looking inside the property, Musgraves says it's a “really beautiful time capsule,” as much of the interior has remained untouched. She notes that she's hesitant to update certain things because she loves being able to step back into her childhood and be reminded of a more analog lifestyle.

“It's really hard for me to change it because it holds so many memories,” she says. “And it's not a house that a lot of people would walk into and go, ‘Oh, this is really nice.' It's imperfect. It's old.”

She recalls how they didn't have cable or internet growing up, and they only just got Wi-Fi “a few years ago.” There's also no dishwasher and no central heat or air conditioning.

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“It's super rudimentary,” she continues. “It really reminds me of just growing up being barefoot on that porch and singing to the trees before I ever had any kind of audience.”

The “Golden Hour” singer says the experience the home represents for her, as well as the small town that it's located in, is what inspired her new albumMiddle of Nowhere.Fans recently got a little preview of the upcoming record during Musgraves'performance at Coachellaon April 18.

Of the album's inspiration, she recalls how she was “meandering around town” one day with her friends when she noticed a sign that read, “Somewhere in the middle of nowhere."

Musgraves says she immediately found a song in that sign and it “ended up really shaping the ethos of the rest of the record.”

“It's just kind of this notion that I'm somewhere in the middle of nowhere and no one can reach me on my phone, and I'm totally fine with that. And even if I had service, I probably wouldn't call you back,” she tells PEOPLE. “I'm not lonely, but I'm totally fine being on my own. It's really coming from a place of confidence and freedom.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

As for why she wanted to partner with Zillow to share such a personal place, Musgraves says she is a longtime fan of the real estate platform.

“I'll be on tour and be like, ‘Oh, let's look at houses here. Am I moving here?' And you start imagining a different life in a different place. My therapist was like, ‘You need to stay off Zillow,'” the singer jokes. “I found my current house on Zillow, actually.”

Musgraves adds, “I just think it's a fun and unexpected medium to tell a story and sort of honor my past.”

To view Musgraves' childhood home in East Texas, check out the new listing onZillow.

Read the original article onPeople

byJastin Mags

in

April 24, 2026

Kacey Musgraves Opens the Doors to Her Childhood Home in Texas That’s Been in Her Family for '100 Years' (Exclusive)

Kacey Musgraves' childhood home in East Texas inspired her upcoming album Middle of Nowhere , out May 1 NEED TO KNOW ...

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Diddy's lawsuit over Peacock documentary is tossed out of court

Sean "Diddy" Combshas been dealt a loss in court with the dismissal ofhis defamation lawsuitover a Peacock documentary.

New York Supreme Court judge Phaedra Perry-Bond issued an order on April 20 granting NBCUniversal's motion to dismiss Combs' complaint, writing that his lawsuit "fails to establish" NBCUniversal was "grossly irresponsible in publishing the documentary," 2025's"Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy."

Perry-Bond added that "reliance on biased sources where a publication presents those sources' subjective views and personal experiences does not constitute grossly irresponsible conduct."

The judge noted the documentary's producers reached out to Combs for comment and included his attorney's denial that the rapper sexually assaulted anyone.

The documentary, the judge concluded, "demonstrates a carefully curated and nuanced approach." As such, "the court will not entertain [Combs'] second-guessing of editorial content."

USA TODAY has reached out to Combs' representative for comment.

"This is an important ruling that protects filmmakers and journalists by dismissing this meritless complaint as barred by New York law and the First Amendment," Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., an attorney for NBCUniversal, said in a statement provided to USA TODAY on April 22.

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"Making of a Bad Boy," which premiered last month, features candid interviews with Combs' associates over the years, including the Bad Boy Records founder's friend, bodyguard, makeup artist, intern and producer. Combs is also suing Ample Entertainment in the lawsuit.

Combs' lawyers claimed in his lawsuit that the documentary was evidence of NBCU "shamelessly capitalizing on the public’s insatiable appetite for content about Mr. Combs in the lead up to his criminal trial," arguing that the company and its streaming service "made a conscious decision to line their own pockets at the expense of truth, decency, and basic standards of professional journalism."

On July 2, following a nearly two-month trial, a12-person jurydelivered abombshell split decisionin Combs' case. They found Combs guilty oftwo counts of transportation to engage in prostitution– charges related to former girlfriendsCasandra "Cassie" Ventura Fineand"Jane,"who both testified. However, he was acquitted of the most serious charges, which were racketeering and two counts of sex trafficking.

Combs' lawyers are seeking tooverturn his convictionas he serves a50-month prison sentence.

Contributing: Edward Segarra and Jay Stahl

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support to survivors and their loved ones in English and Spanish at: 800.656.HOPE (4673) andHotline.RAINN.organd en EspañolRAINN.org/es.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Diddy dealt loss in court, 'Making of a Bad Boy' lawsuit dismissed

byJastin Mags

in

April 24, 2026

Diddy's lawsuit over Peacock documentary is tossed out of court

Sean "Diddy" Combshas been dealt a loss in court with the dismissal ofhis defamation lawsuitover a Peacock documentary. ...

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Russell Brand Confesses to “Exploitative” Consensual Sex With 16-Year-Old on Megyn Kelly Show Ahead of October Rape Trial

Brand admits sleeping with a 16-year-old at 30, calling it “exploitative” but consensual

Highlights

• He faces 7 charges: 3 rapes, 3 sexual assaults, 1 indecent assault; trial set for Oct. 12

• Brand labeled himself an “exploiter of women” and estimated sex with “thousands” of women

Russell Brandhas made a startling on-camera admission — acknowledging that he had consensual sex with a 16-year-old girl when he was 30 years old, while simultaneously framing the encounter as morally indefensible due to the power imbalance celebrity affords.

The 50-year-old comedian, actor, and podcaster made the confession during a Wednesday appearance onThe Megyn Kelly Show, the YouTube program hosted by the prominent right-wing media personality — and he didn’t mince words.

“The plain fact of it is that in Europe and in the United Kingdom, where I’m from, the age of consent is 16, and I did sleep with a 16-year-old when I was 30,” Brand said. “But when I was 30, I was a very different person. I was a lot younger, and I was an immature 30-year-old.”

Brand quickly acknowledged that legality and ethics are not the same thing.

“Consensual sex, actually, with a variety of people when there is a strong power differential, because there is when you’re a famous man that has the ability to attract women that I had at that time, I think involves exploitation. I think it is exploitative. I recognize that my sexual conduct in the past was selfish and I did not apply enough consideration, barely any, I suppose, really, to how that sex was affecting other people,”he said.

The timing of the admission is impossible to separate from Brand’s mounting legal jeopardy. He was originally set to stand trial at London’s Southwark Crown Court starting June 16, but the trial — which will combine all seven charges brought against Brand in the last year — will now begin on Oct. 12. It is expected to last up to two months.

Brand, who faces three charges of rape, three allegations of sexual assault, and one charge of indecent assault, has pleaded not guilty on all counts. The charges involve six women who allege crimes took place between 1999 and 2009.

Among the most harrowing accusations: Brand is alleged to have raped a woman in a hotel room during a Labour Party conference in Bournemouth; one complainant alleges she was dragged into a male toilet and orally raped while working in television; another claims Brand grabbed her by the forearm in an attempt to pull her into a restroom; and it is further alleged that Brand pinned a radio station employee against a wall, kissing her forcibly before groping her.

OnThe Megyn Kelly Show, Brand appeared to frame his past behavior as part of a pre-spiritual awakening chapter of his life — one defined by addiction, excess, and what he now calls self-awareness in hindsight.

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“I was a fool before I lived in the light of the Lord,” he said in a prior social media statement. “I was a drug addict, a sex addict and an imbecile. But what I never was, was a rapist. I’ve never engaged in non-consensual activity.”

During the Kelly interview, theGet Him to the Greekactor later estimated he had sexual contact with “thousands” of women between the mid-1990s and 2015, describing his past self as “selfish” and an “exploiter of women.”

Brand opened the interview with a note of gratitude toward Kelly for the forum.

“Thank you, Megyn Kelly, for giving me the grace to address, in particular, your anger, which is entirely legitimate and recognizable,” he said.

The context around the 16-year-old admission is narrower than the larger criminal case, but it still reveals how Brand is framing his own conduct. In the U.K., the age of consent is 16, except where an adult is in a position of trust — such as a teacher, social worker, sports coach, or doctor — when the age of consent rises to 18. Brand’s statement does not challenge that legal threshold; instead, it focuses on the ethical question of whether fame and influence can turn a technically consensual encounter into something coercive in practice.

Brand has consistently denied any criminal wrongdoing. Former girlfriend Jordan Martin accused him of assault and abuse during a relationship in 2007. Comedian Katherine Ryan has also said she confronted Brand directly, calling him a “predator,” though she did not initially name him in public.

Those earlier accounts gained renewed attention following a joint investigation byThe Sunday Times,The Times, and Channel 4’sDispatchesin September 2023. The report detailed allegations from multiple women, including claims of sexual assault and emotional abuse between 2006 and 2013. One of the women said she was 16 at the time of an alleged relationship with Brand, while he was 31. Brand rejected those findings at the time, describing them as “astonishing, rather baroque attacks” and insisting all of his relationships “were absolutely always consensual.”

At his most recent court appearance in February — where he arrived wearing a tiger-print shirt and carrying a Bible — Brand told reporters he felt “blessed.”

His October trial at Southwark Crown Court will put that posture to its most serious test yet.

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byJastin Mags

in

April 24, 2026

Russell Brand Confesses to “Exploitative” Consensual Sex With 16-Year-Old on Megyn Kelly Show Ahead of October Rape Trial

Brand admits sleeping with a 16-year-old at 30, calling it “exploitative” but consensual Highlights He faces 7 cha...

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Iran’s exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi hit with red liquid while walking down street

Reza Pahlavi was splattered with red liquid inBerlinon Thursday, 23 April, after he left a news briefing during which he criticized the ceasefire between theUnited StatesandIran.

Iran’s exiledCrown Prince, 65, appeared unhurt by the liquid, which covered the back of his blazer and neck, and waved to his supporters before departing in a car.

The incident occurred outside Germany’s federal news conference building.

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Police said the liquid appeared to betomatojuice.

The alleged perpetrator was immediately detained.

Pahlavi is the son of Iran's last shah, who was overthrown from power in 1979.

byJastin Mags

in

April 24, 2026

Iran’s exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi hit with red liquid while walking down street

Reza Pahlavi was splattered with red liquid inBerlinon Thursday, 23 April, after he left a news briefing during which he criticized the...

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Beneath Trump's ballroom legal case: A brief history of the White House bunker

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secrecy surrounding White House security makes details hard to come by, but President Donald Trump's court fight over his $400 million ballroom casts some light on an underground bunker at the site that has had a role in history.

Trump

The bunker emerged in the Trump administration's court fight against the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which is challenging the 90,000-square-foot (8,400-square-meter) ballroom project. Afederal appeals courtlast week permitted the president to continue with construction of the project at the site of the former East Wing, which wasdemolished last fall.

That ruling put on hold a lower-court judge's order blocking aboveground construction but exempted work to ensure the safety and security of the White House. The Republican administration’s appeal cited materials that would be installed to make a “heavily fortified” facility, including adding bomb shelters, military installations and a medical facility underneath the ballroom.

The bunker’s role in presidential history

The history of a bunker beneath the East Wing dates to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s presidency, when an underground bomb shelter was installed in 1942 after the United States had entered World War II. Beyond that, detail is obscured by secrecy resulting from concerns about presidential safety.

Garrett Graff, a historian and national security author, said the Presidential Emergency Operations Center beneath the East Wing was always intended to be for short-term use.

“The whole point of the sort of presidential evacuation and continuity of the presidency is you want to get the president out of the place where everyone knows that he is and get him into a place where people don’t know where he is,” Graff said.

Among the most high-profile flights to an underground bunker at the White House involve the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when Vice President Dick Cheney was taken there.

A Secret Service agent burst into the West Wing room,grabbed Cheneyby the belt and shoulder and led him to a bunker underneath the White House. “He didn’t say, ‘Shall we go?’” Cheney told NBC News years later. “He wasn’t polite about it.”

More recently,Trump was rushed to a White House bunkerin 2020 amid protests stemming from the death of George Floyd. At the time, there were chants from protesters at Lafayette Park that could be heard in the building, and Secret Service and law enforcement officers struggled to control the crowds.

Why a ballroom matters to a bunker

Matthew Quinn, deputy director of the Secret Service, wrote in court filings that it's important for the ballroom project to go forward for security at the White House.

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“An above-ground slab and topping structure is needed to ensure that key underground structures with a security purpose are properly protected and strengthened,” Quinn wrote.

He added: “Leaving the project site unfinished imperils the ability of the Secret Service to meet its statutory mission to protect the President.”

Trump last month offered a list of what’s being done to enhance security while the ballroom is built.

“The roof is droneproof. We have secure air-handling systems. You know, bad things happen in the air if you have bad people,” the president said. “We have biodefense all over. We have secure telecommunications and communications all over. We have bomb shelters that we’re building. We have a hospital and very major medical facilities that we’re building.”

The president took to social media tocriticize the lower-court rulingand said the underground portion wouldn’t work without the aboveground facility as well.

What's next in the legal battle over the ballroom

The National Trust for Historic Preservation hasargued that Trump overstepped his authorityby moving forward with the project without getting approval from key federal agencies and Congress.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leonruled in favor of the nonprofit groupat the end of March but put his decision on hold briefly while allowing underground work to continue. The administration appealed.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has a hearing for June 5 to review the case.

Taxpayer dollars will pay for the security aspects of the project, though Trump has said the ballroom costs will be covered by donations from wealthy people and corporations. He's said it's a long-overdue addition to the White House complex.

“The underground portion is wedded to, and serves, the upper portion,” the president said in a social media post.

What that means in practice is unclear and hinges in part on the outcome of litigation.

byJastin Mags

in

April 23, 2026

Beneath Trump's ballroom legal case: A brief history of the White House bunker

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secrecy surrounding White House security makes details hard to come by, but President Donald Trump's court fight ...

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