The Vatican under fire
Donald Trump again attacked Pope Leo XIV overnight, claiming he "endangers many Catholics" with his criticism of the war in Iran. ANSA ↗ The Vatican responded through the words of Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin: "Leo continues on his own path — whether anyone likes it or not is another matter." TVN24 ↗The escalation comes two days before Marco Rubio's planned visit to the Vatican — the US Secretary of State is set to open talks with Leo XIV on Middle East policy. Gazeta Wyborcza ↗ The dispute was also picked up by Germany's main news broadcasts: ZDF heute notes that this is the most open clash between an American president and the Vatican in recent decades. ZDF heute ↗
Governments in turmoil
In Germany, the day before the first anniversary of Merz's government (which took office on May 6, 2025), the Bundestag took a harsh stock of its year. The so-called Schwarz-Rot — the alliance of the conservative CDU/CSU with the social-democratic SPD — emerged after last year's elections as a compromise, and Welt framed its outcome in a single sentence: "A ship without a helmsman." Welt ↗ That same afternoon the CDU/CSU faction re-elected Jens Spahn — the former health minister from the COVID era — as its chairman. Spiegel commented: "Merz will no longer be able to get rid of his faction leader." Spiegel ↗In Spain, two politically explosive moments occurred. First, a historic verdict in the so-called Dina case: commissioner José Manuel Villarejo, former head of the police's parallel espionage apparatus, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for distributing stolen content from the phone of Dina Bousselham — an assistant to Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias. The material was intended to politically damage the Podemos party. El País ↗ And in the shadow of the major case surrounding former transport minister and former organizer of the ruling Socialists (PSOE) José Luis Ábalos — under investigation for corruption in pandemic-era contracts — the conservative People's Party (PP) is demanding a reduced sentence for the accused businessman Víctor de Aldama, who has meanwhile offered himself to prosecutors as a cooperating witness. Pedro Sánchez's government accuses the opposition of a "pact." El País ↗
In Poland, the Supreme Court ruled that deputy prosecutor general Jacek Bilewicz, appointed by Tusk's government as part of an effort to clean up the judiciary after the era of the Law and Justice party (PiS), is exercising his office illegally. For Donald Tusk, this is yet another constitutional obstacle to his reform agenda. Rzeczpospolita ↗
Also read: Romanian parliament ousts PM Bolojan in no-confidence vote
Diplomatic jabs
The president of the Madrid regional government and leader of the conservative PP, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, took part in Mexico in a tribute to Hernán Cortés — the Spanish conquistador who dismantled the Aztec Empire in the 16th century — as a celebration of "mestizaje," the blending of Spanish and indigenous cultures. For part of the Mexican public, however, Cortés is instead a symbol of genocide. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum responded sharply: "Those who commemorate Cortés and his atrocities are doomed to defeat." El País México ↗ El Mundo ↗In Warsaw, Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned that current tensions in transatlantic relations threaten NATO. Also read: Tusk warns of NATO's disintegration, Poland refuses to take over troops from Germany Meanwhile in France, President Macron improvised a Charles Aznavour song in front of microphones during a visit to Armenia — ANSA made it the headline of the day. ANSA ↗
Hormuz falls quiet, but…
On Tuesday, Trump toned down his rhetoric — calling the war with Iran a "petit accrochage," a small skirmish. Le Figaro ↗ The Pentagon, however, painted a different picture directly from the briefing: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine tallied that since the April 8 ceasefire, Iran has fired on commercial vessels nine times, seized container ships twice, and attacked American forces more than ten times — though according to the administration the attacks "did not cross the threshold of resuming major combat operations." Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth added that the ceasefire "has not ended." Washington Post ↗ On Monday, American ships sank six small Iranian vessels near Hormuz that had approached commercial tankers. CNN ↗Berlin's analytical newsroom n-tv added a controversial angle with the headline "What's so great about the Tomahawk?" According to n-tv, Trump's refusal in April to supply Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles — which Kyiv could have used against military targets deep inside Russia — plays into Moscow's hands. n-tv ↗
Also read: Zelensky declares unilateral ceasefire and criticizes Russia's cynicism amid continued missile attacks
Domestic crises and tragedies
In Leipzig, Germany, a 39-year-old driver plowed his car into a group of pedestrians in the early morning. Two died, six were injured. The court had him preventively committed to a psychiatric facility, and prosecutors are investigating for murder. Tagesschau ↗ Spiegel ↗Italy's Garlasco case — the murder of Chiara Poggi 19 years ago — has returned to the forefront after the investigation was reopened. The new suspect, Andrea Sempio, announced through his lawyer that he will not respond to prosecutors on Wednesday. Open ↗
And at two in the morning, Slavonia in eastern Croatia was shaken. An earthquake measuring magnitude 4.1 on the Richter scale, with its epicenter 30 km northeast of Osijek — in the Kopački Rit — reached intensity V° EMS and caused damage across the border in the Serbian village of Bački Monoštor (Vojvodina), including a damaged Catholic church. Glas Slavonije ↗ Seismologist Krešimir Kuk of the Croatian seismological service noted that eastern Slavonia is among the less seismically active areas, but in 1964 it was shaken by a magnitude 5.6 earthquake near Dilj Mountain, which caused considerable damage. N1 info ↗
Europe lives on, too
In Germany, Deutsche Post announced a name change — from 2027 it will officially be called DHL, with the Post brand becoming its subsidiary. Tagesschau ↗ And Biontech, the German maker of the COVID vaccine and hero of the pandemic era, announced the closure of a branch and layoffs affecting thousands of people. Spiegel ↗And one nice thing that deserves its own sentence: Germany's public broadcaster ZDF today directly debunked a Kremlin disinformation narrative claiming that Ukraine's defense minister bought a luxury yacht with EU money. "No. Nothing of the sort happened," concludes ZDF's fact-check, which also traces the rumor's origin and its path through Russian networks. ZDF heute ↗
What hotinfo is watching
- Thursday, May 7: Marco Rubio arrives at the Vatican — the first in-person meeting since Trump's attacks.
- Schwarz-Rot's second year: how Spahn's mandate will play into Merz's coalition dynamics.
- The Ábalos case: an announced verdict in the most closely watched case surrounding Spain's ruling Socialists (PSOE).
- Mexico vs. Madrid: whether Sánchez's government will publicly reject Ayuso's gesture or stay silent — a diplomatic signal for the entire Latin American agenda.
- Slavonia: whether aftershocks follow and how damage to the Catholic church in Bački Monoštor (Vojvodina, Serbia) will be assessed.
- The ZDF method: whether other public broadcasters follow suit with direct debunking of Kremlin narratives — we're watching RAI, France Télévisions and TVP.
