The UK competition watchdog has launched a review of the artificial intelligence market, as it warned of threats from AI tools including the distribution of false or misleading information. This announcement comes as global regulators increase scrutiny of the technology, look at the underlying systems, and foundation models behind AI tools such as ChatGPT. The US vice-president invited the CEOs of leading AI firms to the White House on 5 April to discuss how to deal with the safety concerns around the technology in a week when hundreds of millions of pounds were wiped from the share price of UK’s education company Pearson after a US provider of online help to students revised its financial forecasts and warned ChatGPT was affecting customer growth. Global companies like Google, Apple and Amazon may have to pay penalties of up to 10% of their turnover as the Government gives its competition watchdog more power.

Ukraine’s call for more weapons and ammunition to bolster the defence of Bakhmut has grown louder. A year ago they fired all forty barrels of their rocket launcher in one go. Now they can only afford to fire a few at a time at Russian targets. They haven't got enough ammunition for their weapons but are still called on to provide fire support to Ukrainian forces desperately clinging on to the edges of the town, which Russia has spent months trying to capture. Russians are getting closer to their goal, but at enormous cost. On 1 May a top Ukrainian general said that over 20,000 Russian fighters have been killed in Ukraine since December. Some of the Ukrainian Grad missile supplies are coming from the Czech Republic, Romania and Pakistan. Ukraine is frustrated that it can't provide more support to their fellow fighters being killed in Bakhmut.

Germany’s last three nuclear power plants were closed on 15 April. Its car industry has been the market leader for decades. Now production of diesel and petrol engines will end, and gas and oil heating systems will not be installed in homes. Current prosperity, welfare, and economy are being run down and replaced with higher-grade technologies for which technical and personnel replacements are not readily available. Increasing chaos on the railways illustrates the incompatibility of political demands with the current state of infrastructure and the available staffing levels. The political agenda also fuels disruptive actions by climate activists and strikes in the public sector and in state-owned companies. Germany has been entrusted with much historically: the gospel of Jesus Christ, a country of poets and philosophers, a nation with economic stability. Pray for God’s purposes for Germany, not based on history's materialism but on #its God-given identity as a nation.

There is an awful silence hanging over the steep hill on which Vladislav Ribnikar elementary school sits. On 3 May, a 13-year-old entered the school, armed with two guns, and shot dead eight fellow students and a security guard. Six other children remain in hospital. The school is at the heart of this central Belgrade community, where streams of mourners are arriving, bearing flowers and soft toys. 24 hours after the worst school shooting in Serbian history, pupils from the next-door college stand along the street to stand in silence and remember those killed. ‘I am crushed’, says final-year school student Alex Oborina, 19, beside some of the handwritten notes left on the pavement. ‘We have failed as a society because this is something that should not happen to a 13-year-old. He should not be grabbing a gun and going into his school and shooting his friends.’ Alex seems to echo the sentiment everyone here feels. ‘This is probably the worst thing that has ever happened in my life. We need to use this as a stepping stone to rebuild.’

Violence against Christian women and girls continues to rise everywhere. Christian women are abducted and used as sex slaves. The 'honour' culture is used to shame and stigmatise victims of sexual or physical abuse, so victims are silent. Men attack with impunity because victims keep quiet for fear of dishonour to their family or community, so wrongdoing often goes punished. This, in turn, makes women and girls increasingly vulnerable to psychological violence. Rape victims are often viewed as sexually impure, making them vulnerable to rejection and limiting their future prospects. In many cultures, women do not hold the same value as men. This undergirds much of the persecution faced by our sisters. And in many cases, being a Christian means they are regarded as having even less worth. Open Doors’ vision is that every woman who is persecuted for her faith and gender is seen, valued, and empowered to reach her God-given potential.

Tens of thousands of Israelis gathered in Jerusalem in a show of support for the controversial judicial overhaul plan by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. Local media estimated that the event, which organisers had dubbed ‘The One Million March’, drew only about 80,000 people. It was sponsored by the Premier’s conservative Likud Party and its far-right coalition ally Otzma Yehudit faction. Among many who chanted ‘The people want judicial reform’ was justice minister Yariv Levin, who spearheaded the push for the overhaul. The nation has been gripped by unprecedented nationwide demonstrations against the deeply divisive plan since its unveiling 16 weeks ago. Mr Levin told demonstrators that ‘more and more people understand the need for the legislation. We are in an unusual situation. There is an atmosphere where people try to paint a picture of the elected government not representing the people. Today we are protesting to show that it does.’

The Pacific nation of Micronesia, with 100,000 people in 607 islands, is currently caught in a political tug of war. Its location makes it a key vantage point for foreign policy. Beijing hopes to gain influence in an area of strategic importance. Yet more important than its earthly political state is the eternal state of Micronesian souls. They largely identify as Christian but cultural influences appear in their religious practice, including animism, magic, narcotics, materialism, and ancestor worship. Nominalism is high among the protestant churches and there is much cronyism among the leadership. One estimate states that 99% of the pastors in Micronesia were appointed with no theological training. The Micronesian church has many challenges, including consumerism influences from America, high delinquency and suicide among the youth, Mormon missionary activity, and the low availability of Bible translations.

Sudanese passports are locked inside European embassies. Spain's foreign ministry urged people to obtain travel documents from the Sudanese authorities. Mohamed was waiting for his visa for a Spanish holiday when war erupted. He phoned the Spanish embassy to retrieve his passport. The receptionist asked, ‘Are you Sudanese or Spanish?' He said he was Sudanese, she immediately hung up. Mr Badawi works for a French company. His passport was at the French embassy and they refused to return it. There are many more trapped. 15.8 million people already needed humanitarian assistance before the conflict. Now the situation is dire. Water, food, fuel, and medical supplies are scarce. The UN and partners are working to reboot the humanitarian response. Also the toll on children and young people’s mental health is profound. Additionally, the cost of transportation out of the worst-hit areas has risen exponentially, leaving the most vulnerable unable to move to safer areas.