US Presidential Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi have resumed direct contacts in recent days, Axios reported on March 16, citing sources. They said Araghchi sent text messages to Witkoff calling for an end to the US and Israeli war on Iran. Earlier, Drop Site News reported that, according to Iranian sources, it was Witkoff who sent the messages to Araghchi, and the Iranian Foreign Minister ignored them.

Afghan authorities said the Pakistani military carried out strikes on Kabul on the afternoon of March 16. Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid called the attack “a crime and an act of inhumanity,” AFP writes . Afghan authorities say a drug treatment center was hit, killing four people and injuring several others, the Associated Press reports . Pakistani authorities deny any involvement in the attack on the hospital.

Cuba experienced a complete power outage on March 16, the Associated Press reports, citing local authorities. The state-owned company Unión Eléctrica de Cuba said it had begun restoration procedures. The company noted that at the time of the shutdown there were no reports of interruptions in the operation of thermal power plants that were in operation. The Ministry of Energy and Mines said it had launched an investigation.

US President Donald Trump announced that White House chief of staff Susan Wiles was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. “She decided to take on this challenge right away rather than delay treatment. She has a fantastic team of doctors and her prognosis is excellent! During her treatment, she will be almost constantly in the White House, which makes me very happy as president!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on March 16.

We have made the simplest and most understandable instructions on how this technology works. Send it to everyone who doesn't have a VPN Telegram in Russia will be completely blocked. This means it's time for you to get yourself a VPN. We are sure: if you are in the Russian Federation, you should have a VPN on both your phone and your computer. It's as important and simple as brushing your teeth. This material answers the main questions about VPN as clearly as possible.

How social networks react to the start of telegram blocking Anastasia Barashkova / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA On March 16, 2026, the Kommersant FM radio station, citing IT experts, announced the beginning of a complete blocking of Telegram in Russia. This conclusion was made based on the sharply increased number of complaints about the work of the messenger. Earlier, sources from RBC and The Bell reported that the messenger would be blocked on April 1.

Russian news agencies pretended that the film “Mr. Nobody against Putin” simply did not exist John Locher / AP / Scanpix / LETA Pavel Talankin with an Oscar statuette Russian state news agencies completely ignored the victory of Mr. Nobody vs. Putin in the Best Documentary Film category in their Oscar coverage.

The intendant (artistic director) of the Salzburg Festival, Markus Hinterhäuser, has not responded to the Board of Trustees' proposal to extend his contract for another year, the Austrian newspaper Der Standard reports. Hinterhäuser had until noon on March 16 to respond. The festival's board of trustees is ready to terminate the contract with Hinterhäuser early. The final decision will be made at the council meeting on March 20. Hinterhäuser has been the festival's intendant since 2016.

State Duma deputy, deputy head of the Committee on Information Policy Andrei Svintsov faces expulsion from the LDPR faction because of his comments about the imminent blocking of the Telegram messenger. According to Vedomosti sources, LDPR leader Leonid Slutsky has repeatedly given the “final warning” to Svintsov and “called not to comment on anything.” According to the newspaper’s interlocutors, Svintsov could be deprived of his seat in the party at the faction meeting on March 16.

Actor and director Sean Penn missed the Academy Awards ceremony, where he was awarded the third Oscar of his career , because he traveled to Ukraine. On the night of March 16, at the 98th Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, Penn won the Best Supporting Actor nomination for his role in Paul Thomas Anderson's Battle After Battle. The award was accepted in his place by last year's winner Kieran Culkin, who said Penn was "unable or unwilling to attend" the ceremony.

The Gagarinsky Court of Moscow canceled the house arrest of blogger Lerchek (Valeria Chekalina) in connection with the cancer she was diagnosed with, TASS reported on March 16. The court suspended consideration of her case until the possibility of Lerchek’s participation in the process was resumed, the Moscow agency writes. Valeria herself was not present at the court hearing.

Over the course of two and a half years, the North Korean authorities have supplied millions of ammunition for the needs of the Russian army. This is written about by “Important Stories”, which, together with analysts from the British Open Source Center, gained access to documents on the movements of ships involved in transporting weapons from the DPRK to Russia.

The European Union imposed sanctions against nine Russian military personnel who “led their units while hundreds of civilians were killed, in some cases in brutal reprisals,” the EU Delegation to Russia said in a statement. “Troops under their command were also involved in looting, torturing and forcing civilians to clean up the bodies of dead Russian soldiers,” the EU said. The former commander of the Eastern Military District, Colonel General Alexander Chaiko, was sanctioned.

One thousand four hundred and eighty-second day. Sobyanin claims: Moscow has been attacked by drones for three days now, 250 drones have been shot down. No one saw the consequences of the attack Since February 24, 2022, Meduza has been broadcasting live about the Russian-Ukrainian war. We publish your letters every day because we are sure that we need to continue talking about the war. Share with us your thoughts about the war. What feelings are you experiencing?

In the Moscow region, a seventh grade student attacked a classmate with a knife after quarreling with him on the way to school, the regional prosecutor's office reports. According to media reports , the incident occurred in the village of Sverdlovsky, Shchelkovo district, Moscow region. Both parties to the conflict study at the school named after M. P. Marchenko.