The US labor market picked up in March as employers showed signs of resilience amid the US-Israel war in Iran.
After an extraordinary contraction in February, employers added 178,000 jobs last month, ahead of economists’ expectations of about 70,000.
The unemployment rate fell to 4.3%, according to data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. In February, the economy lost 133,000 jobs, according to revised figures. Job figures for January were revised up, from 126,000 to 160,000. With revisions, total employment in January and February is 7,000 lower than previously reported. .
Previous data painted a mixed picture of the US labor market, which economists say has been in a static “low-fire, low-hire” state, where both layoffs and new hires are down.
Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that employers announced 217,362 job cuts in the first quarter of 2026 – the lowest total for that period since 2022. But hiring in February slowed to a six-year low, according to data released earlier this week, with dips seen in construction and leisure and hospitality.
US federal agents have arrested the niece and grandniece of the late Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani after the Trump administration’s top diplomat, Marco Rubio, revoked their lawful permanent resident status, officials said on Saturday.
Global approval of China surpassed the U.S. in 2025, the widest favorability gap between the two countries in almost 20 years, according to a new Gallup poll released Friday.
Iraqi authorities are continuing the search for American journalist Shelly Kittleson who was kidnapped March 31 on a busy street in central Baghdad, Reuters reported.
Two United Nations experts have called on Israel to immediately release Palestinian doctor Hussam Abu Safiya from detention following reports that he had been subjected to "severe torture". 
An Israeli soldier has shared a photo online in which he appears to use a blindfolded Palestinian man to advertise a private business.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has revealed that Ukrainian expert teams are actively working across the Middle East and Gulf region, assessing defense systems, advising governments, and laying the groundwork for long-term military cooperation.
As Department of Justice officials are working to acquire sensitive voter registration data from states and have recently disclosed a plan to share it with the Department of Homeland Security, a key privacy officer in DOJ's division tasked with enforcing civil and voting rights laws has resigned.Kilian Kagle was the chief FOIA officer and senior component official for privacy for DOJ's Civil Rights Division before leaving his post in recent days. His resignation has not been previously reported.
