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Good morning and welcome to the Sunday edition of Morning Wire, where we give you the weekend rundown to get ready for the week ahead. Today, a look at how resignations and firings have depleted the FBI and Justice Department, how nature has rebounded in Chernobyl's radioactive landscape, and animal welfare activists tried to gain entry to a beagle breeding and research facility in Wisconsin. 

But first, President Trump says U.S. negotiators will be in Pakistan on Monday for talks with Iran. 

UP FIRST

President Donald Trump listens in the Oval Office of the White House, Saturday, April 18, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Trump says US negotiators will be in Pakistan on Monday for talks with Iran

President Donald Trump said that U.S. negotiators will head to Pakistan on Monday for talks with Iran, lifting hopes of extending a ceasefire set to expire this week even as Washington and Tehran remain locked in a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz. The prospect of talks on the horizon, which Iran did not immediately confirm, came as ships remain unable to transit the critical waterway amid threats from Iran and a U.S. blockade on ships heading to and from Iranian ports. Read more. 

TOP STORIES

Tourists walk past a banner with President Donald Trump hanging on the Department of Justice, Feb. 27, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul, File)

Resignations and firings have depleted the FBI and Justice Department. They’re scrambling to rebuild

The FBI and Justice Department are scrambling to rebuild a depleted workforce after a wave of departures over the past year, with leaders easing hiring requirements and accelerating recruitment in ways that some current and former officials see as a lowering of long-accepted standards. The FBI has turned to social media campaigns to attract applicants, offered abbreviated training for candidates from other federal agencies and relaxed requirements for support staff seeking to become agents, according to people familiar with the changes and internal communications seen by The Associated Press. Read more. 

Chernobyl’s radioactive landscape is testament to nature’s resilience and survival spirit

On contaminated land that is too dangerous for human life, the world’s wildest horses roam free. Across the Chernobyl exclusion zone, Przewalski’s horses — stocky, sand-colored and almost toy-like in appearance — graze in a radioactive landscape larger than Luxembourg. Four decades on, Chernobyl — which is transliterated as “Chornobyl” in Ukraine — remains too dangerous for humans. But the wildlife has moved back in. Read more.

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IN OTHER NEWS

Activists attempt to gain entry into Ridglan Farms beagle breeding and research facility on Saturday, April 18, 2026, in Blue Mounds, Wis. (Owen Ziliak/Wisconsin State Journal via AP)

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Animal welfare activists: Hundreds trying to storm Wisconsin beagle research facility met with rubber bullets and pepper spray

Lyrid meteor shower: The Lyrid meteor shower is visible now and peaking soon. Here’s how to spot it

Religion: Pope Leo XIV heads to Catholic shrine in Angola that was a center of African slave trade

Political campaigns: Billionaire Steyer’s spending binge dwarfs rival campaigns in California governor’s race

Immigration: Son of 85-year-old French widow home after 16 days in US immigration custody says she needs rest

Racing record: A humanoid robot sprints to victory in Beijing, beating the human half-marathon world record

American Film Institute Academy: Eddie Murphy receives life achievement award by AFI, drawing standing ovation at star-filled tribute

Celebrity obit: Nathalie Baye, French actor known for her warmth and versatility, dies at 77

Be Well: You can put beef tallow and salmon sperm on your face. But should you?

Today in History: In 1775, the American Revolutionary War began with the Battles of Lexington and Concord

WATCH

Cuba: Lights out in Havana’s nightlife after US oil blockade

Weather: Powerful winds and reported tornadoes rip through the Midwest, leaving heavy damage but no deaths