BBC News Briefing

25 March, 2026

Sofia has shoulder-length light brown hair and brown eyes and wears a green blouse.

Sofia Lotto Persio

Hello. An unnamed Iranian official quoted in state media has countered with five conditions a US proposal to end the war. My colleagues explain what we know. From Cuba, correspondent Will Grant speaks to pregnant women worried about giving birth during power cuts. And finally, explore the dig at a Dutch church that may hold Count d'Artagnan's remains.

TOP OF THE AGENDA

Iran rejects US 15-point plan as 'excessive'

Two women clad in black mourn at a grave. One of them kneels in front of the grave while holding a mobile phone. The other is sat on a chair. Red and white flowers are spread over the grave. Other mourners attend to other graves in the background

US-based rights group HRANA estimates the recent conflict has killed 3,291 in Iran, including 1,455 civilians. Credit: Reuters

Iran has rejected US President Donald Trump's reported 15-point plan to end the war, according to state-run Press TV. The report cites five Iranian conditions to end the conflict, including payment for war damage and reparations. The White House has not confirmed the contents of Trump's plan - published by Israel's Channel 12 network - only admitting to "elements of truth" in it. It is said to include a commitment from Iran not to build nuclear weapons and to reopen the strategically important Strait of Hormuz. While these developments indicate indirect contact and channels between the two sides, a deal may still be a long way off, writes security correspondent Frank Gardner.

Read Frank's analysis

GET UP TO SPEED

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UN approves landmark slavery resolution

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US jury issues verdict in social media addiction trial

Tech giants Meta and YouTube have been found liable for a woman's childhood social media addiction in a landmark trial.

More details >

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What to know >

NEWS FROM THE UK

Drug charges: The former Conservative MP and justice minister Crispin Blunt has been fined after pleading guilty to possessing illegal substances.

New boss: Former Google executive Matt Brittin has been confirmed as the BBC's new director general.

Archbishop of Canterbury: A congregation that included the Prince and Princess of Wales has attended Dame Sarah Mullally's enthronement.

AT THE SCENE

Havana, Cuba

Preparing to give birth in the dark

Indira Martínez, who has long black curly hair, smiles at the camera. She is sitting on a patio, the paint on the wall is peeling and a metal oil drum can be seen in the background. She is wearing a lime-green top and a thin chain around her neck.

Government statistics estimate there are around 32,800 pregnant women in Cuba at present.

Cuba's pregnant women are among those most vulnerable to the effects of the US-imposed fuel embargo. Many now worry about giving birth in the dark – hospitals have generators, but are struggling to source the fuel to run them – and about the future that awaits their children.

Will Grant, Cuba correspondent

Indira Martínez, who is seven months pregnant, has not been able to cook breakfast, or even make a cup of warm milky coffee, for days. "You must get up in the small hours when the power comes back on to cook whatever is available," she explains. Although she is irrepressibly good natured and smiley, it is clear that the difficult circumstances are grinding down Indira's resilience.

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She is increasingly fearful of the birth itself and cannot help but picture herself in labour inside a darkened hospital ward as the child is delivered by mobile-phone light. However, her fears extend beyond the pregnancy and into the life which awaits her daughter. "How am I going to tell her she has no prospects in life? Because she won't have any," says Indira with clarity and resignation.

Read full story

Plunged into darkness: Will films what it's like to walk the streets of Havana during a total blackout.

Watch: The extended power outages are causing Cubans' frustrations to spill out into rare displays of anger.

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