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American media proprietor and philanthropist Ted Turner dies at the age of 87.
- Robert Edward Turner III (November 19, 1938 – May 6, 2026) was an American businessman, television producer, media proprietor, and philanthropist. He founded CNN, the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television, as well as television networks TNT, TBS, Cartoon Network, and Turner Classic Movies.
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American low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines ceases operations after entering Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
- Spirit Airlines, Inc. was an American ultra-low-cost airline headquartered in Dania Beach, Florida. The airline operated scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. In 2023, it was the seventh-largest passenger carrier in North America and the region's largest ultra-low-cost carrier. It ceased operations in 2026.
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A hantavirus outbreak on the cruise ship MV forces most of the remaining passengers to quarantine on board.
- In April 2026, an outbreak of Hantavirus infection due to the Andes virus was identified on the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius. On 1 April 2026, the ship left Ushuaia, Argentina. A passenger on board died from the virus on 11 April. His body was removed from the vessel in Saint Helena on 24 April, where his wife disembarked before dying two days later in a hospital in Johannesburg. A third passenger died on board. A British passenger was sent to Johannesburg for treatment, in critical but stable condition. Although the ship was docked at Praia, Cape Verde for three days, no one disembarked as local facilities were unable to handle a safe evacuation. After the Spanish Ministry of Health approved the vessel's arrival in the Canary Islands, it departed for Tenerife on 6 May, where the passengers are to be evacuated to their respective countries.
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Wu Yize defeats Shaun Murphy to win the World Snooker Championship.
- The 2026 World Snooker Championship (officially the 2026 Halo World Snooker Championship) was a professional snooker tournament that took place from 18 April to 4 May 2026 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. Staged at the Crucible for the 50th consecutive year, the tournament was the 18th and final ranking event of the 2025–26 snooker season. Organised by the World Snooker Tour, it was broadcast domestically by BBC Sport, in Europe by Eurosport, and globally by other broadcasters. The winner received £500,000 from a total prize fund of £2,395,000.
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In horse racing, Golden Tempo wins the Kentucky Derby.
- The 2026 Kentucky Derby (branded as the 152nd Running of the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve for sponsorship reasons) was the 152nd running of the Kentucky Derby. It took place on May 2, 2026, at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Golden Tempo won the race with time 2:02.27. As a result, Golden Tempo trainer Cherie DeVaux became the first woman trainer to win the Derby.
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J. Craig Venter, who led the first commercial sequencing of the human genome, dies at the age of 79.
- John Craig Venter (October 14, 1946 – April 29, 2026) was an American scientist, businessman, and genomics researcher. He is known for having led one of the first draft sequences of the human genome and led the first team to transfect a cell with a synthetic chromosome. Venter founded Celera Genomics, the Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) and the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI). He was the co-founder of Human Longevity Inc., and Synthetic Genomics.
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An explosion at a fireworks factory in Liuyang, Hunan, China, kills 37 people.
- On 4 May 2026, an explosion occurred at a fireworks factory operated by Huasheng Fireworks Manufacturing and Display Co. in Guandu, Liuyang, a county-level city administered by Changsha in Hunan, China. The blast occurred at about 16:43 local time in a workshop at the plant. At least 37 people were killed, 51 others were injured and one person remains missing.
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The Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party, led by Prime Minister Gaston Browne, wins an increased majority in the general election.
- General elections were held in Antigua and Barbuda on 30 April 2026 to elect members of the House of Representatives. The Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP) had held a slim majority of seats since the 2023 election, making further gains in Parliament following the election of Rawdon Turner and the unofficial floor walk of Anthony Smith. However, it also experienced losses in the 2025 Barbuda Council election and the 2023 St. Mary's South by-election. Besides the ABLP, the United Progressive Party (UPP) and the Barbuda People's Movement (BPM), as well as various other independents and minor parties were expected to contest.
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A partnership agreement between the European Union and Mercosur provisionally enters into force.
- The European Union (EU) and the South American trade bloc Mercosur reached a free trade agreement in principle in 2019. The planned deal was announced on 28 June at the 2019 G20 Osaka summit after twenty years of negotiations. Once ratified, both the EU and Mercosur will gradually reduce import duties on 91–92% of exports over a 15-year period, and increase import quotas for various products. The agreement provisionally applied on 1 May 2026.
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Iran war (ongoing)
- Since 28 February 2026, the United States and Israel have been engaged in a war with Iran and its regional allies. The conflict began when the US and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran, targeting military and government sites and assassinating several Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. The surprise attacks were launched during negotiations between Iran and the US regarding Iran's nuclear program. Iran responded with missile and drone strikes on Israel, US bases, and US-allied Arab countries in West Asia; and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global trade.
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Lebanon war (ongoing)
- Since 2 March 2026, there has been an ongoing war in Lebanon between Israel and the Lebanese Shia militant group Hezbollah. It is a resumption of major fighting in the Hezbollah–Israel conflict that began in late 2023, and is part of the wider conflict in the Middle East. The war has precipitated a still-developing humanitarian crisis, resulted in deaths of more than 2,600 people (both militants and civilians) from Israeli strikes in Lebanon and forced displacement of over 1 million (>20% of the country's population), and entailed the deployment of materiel and tactics that potentially constitute war crimes.
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Russo-Ukrainian war (ongoing)
- On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the existing war between the two countries that began when Russia attacked Ukraine in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thousands of military casualties and tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilian casualties. As of May 2026, Russian troops occupy roughly 20% of Ukraine. From a population of 41 million, about 8 million Ukrainians have been internally displaced and 6–7 million have fled the country, creating Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II.
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Sudanese civil war (ongoing)
- Since April 2023, there has been a civil war in Sudan between two primary factions of the country's military government. The conflict involves the internationally recognized government, controlled by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) under General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by General Hemedti, who commands the broader Janjaweed coalition. Smaller armed groups have taken part. Fighting began on 15 April 2023 following a power struggle within the transitional administration established after the 2021 coup. As of 5 February 2025, the conflict has forcibly displaced 12 million people, with 3.5 million fleeing the country as refugees, making it one of the largest displacement crises in recent history.
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