It’s been another tiring week of global news. The Iran war continues to drag on with no peace in sight. US President Donald Trump keeps oscillating between issuing threats and assurances. Some days, he notes he’s close to attacking the Islamic Republic. Other days, the US president states that the US is on the verge of making a deal with Tehran. Amid this conflict, which is nearing its third month, Trump seems to be mulling a new conflict; this time, closer home — in Cuba. The Trump administration has indicted 94-year-old Raúl Castro, the former Cuban president, for an incident dating back to 1996. He’s also raised the spectre of a military intervention in the island nation. This week, we also saw Russia’s Vladimir Putin travel to China to meet Xi Jinping, a few days after the Asian giant laid out the red carpet for Trump. The back-to-back visits led many analysts to draw comparisons between the two leaders — Putin and Trump — and their rapport with Xi. And after the hantavirus scare, the world is grappling with Ebola after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo a “public health emergency of international concern”, with cases now confirmed in neighbouring Uganda. If you have missed the big stories this week, do not fret. We cover it all in our weekly roundup. 1) China seems to be the hotspot of the world. Days after Donald Trump visited the Asian nation for a summit with Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin too made his way there for a two-day visit. On the surface, Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s back-to-back summits with Trump and Putin looked similar, with formal handshakes in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, enthusiastic greetings from flower-waving children, and marching columns of soldiers with gleaming bayonets. But the visits also revealed how different China’s relationship is with the two countries. While Trump sought to stabilise ties with China, Putin’s trip was aimed at deepening its strategic partnership with Beijing. During the visit, Putin and Xi revived talks on the Power of Siberia 2 (POS-2) project, a proposed 2,600 km natural gas pipeline that would carry Russian gas from western Siberia through Mongolia to China. Why does this matter? Here’s more on it. 2) We live in a time of war. The Russia-Ukraine conflict drags on. The US-Iran battle doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. Amid this situation, concerns of a US-Cuba war emerged. This came after the US formally charged Raúl Castro, the brother of Fidel Castro, in the 1996 downing of two American planes. Four individuals died in the incident — three Americans — and triggered the most intense crisis between the two nations since the Cold War. The spectre of a US-Cuba conflict also emerged after Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued threats of military action against Cuba. While Rubio called Havana an “issue of national security”, Trump told reporters that US presidents have considered intervening in Cuba for decades, but that it looks like he will be “the one that does it”, adding that he would be “happy” to do so. Iran's IRGC head Ahmad Vahidi speaks during a press conference in Tehran, Iran. File image/Reuters 3) While Trump has raised concerns of a Cuban military operation, he still has to contend with Iran. Tehran’s negotiations with the United States continue, but it is expected to only get more difficult with General Ahmad Vahidi, the head of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, taking reins in this matter. That’s because Vahidi, who is heavily sanctioned by the West and linked to terror attacks in Argentina, represents Iran’s most extreme faction that has sidelined Tehran’s moderates, including those leading the current negotiations with the US. Here’s more on the hardline general, here. Red Cross workers disinfect Rwampara general hospital before handling the body of a person who died of Ebola, as aid agencies intensify efforts to contain a new Ebola outbreak involving the Bundibugyo strain, in Rwampara outside Bunia, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of Congo. Reuters 4) It’s not just a time of war, but also a time of disease. After the hantavirus outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda as a “public health emergency of international concern”. The UN health agency notes that there have been 600 suspected cases and 139 suspected deaths so far. Many are worried that the current outbreak could spread across the globe, prompting nations to step up surveillance. But where’s the vaccine? Will it help to stop this outbreak from spreading? Read our full explainer to know more. 5) The US witnessed yet another shooting this week. Two teenage gunmen opened fire at the Islamic Center of San Diego, killing a security guard and two staff members before being found with fatal self-inflicted wounds in a nearby vehicle. Police say one shooter’s mother had earlier reported him missing, suicidal, and in possession of stolen firearms from her home. The attack is being investigated as a hate crime after authorities found a lengthy manifesto praising previous mass shooters. What do we know of the gunmen? What about the victims? People wait in hopes to see Stephen Colbert outside the Ed Sullivan Theatre after the taping of the final episode of the "The Late Show" in New York. "The Late Show" frontman Stephen Colbert has hosted the final edition of the 33-year-old US cultural institution, after it was cancelled by CBS as the network courted President Donald Trump. AFP 6) Here’s another interesting news from the US. Stephen Colbert, the famous late-night TV host, bid adieu to the show on May 21 after CBS cancelled the famous franchise. The incident shines a spotlight on the many feuds that US President Donald Trump has had with the hosts. From Jimmy Kimmel to Colbert and even Seth Meyers, the US president has engaged in a battle of words with them all. Here’s our deep dive on this. 7) This week, Pakistan’s cultural capital Lahore, also witnessed a big change. Many of the streets in the city returned to their older Hindu, Sikh, Jain, and colonial names. For instance, Sunnatnagar reverted to Santnagar, Maulana Zafar Ali Khan Chowk has become Lakshmi Chowk, Mustafaabad is now officially Dharampura, Sir Aga Khan Chowk has reverted to Davis Road, and Bagh-e-Jinnah has become Lawrence Gardens. But what’s behind this transformation? Our explainer has it all. That’s it from us for this week. Did you like what you read? Then this is the page to bookmark.