The big international news over the Easter weekend was Syria's announcement that it had retaken Palmyra from Islamic State.

Syrian President Basha al-Assad said the major advance would have been impossible without Russian President Vladimir Putin's help, specifically Russian air strikes. Mr Putin returned the sentiment.  

What does it all mean? It's an important and very significant setback for Islamic State, which has been losing territory but in essence, "Isis has lost a battle, but it has not necessarily lost the war".

2. Brussels web of terror extends to Italy

Belgian police carried out 13 raids on Easter Sunday. In Italy, police arrested an Algerian man they accuse of making false documents for the Brussels bombers.

Earlier, police in Brussels arrested a so-called freelance journalist suspected to be the man in the hat pictured in the CCTV image captured at Brussels Airport before Tuesday's twin blasts. Another terrifying aspect is that the Belgian cell may have actually been trying to launch a nuclear attack.

3. Sanders sweeps "Western Saturday"

Three more primaries and Bernie Sanders won them all, but rival and frontrunner Hillary Clinton still leads overall.

In a campaign moment you cannot script and can only conclude the gods are truly shining upon you, a bird landed on his lectern during a rally. The effect on his supporters is truly one that can only happen at an American political event.

Donald Trump has begun to elaborate what his foreign policy would look like in two extensive interviews with The New York Times. 

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks in Washington. Photo: AP

Implications for Australia - he sees less merit in sustaining a US presence in Asia and would use the United States' "tremendous economic power" and trade as a "bargaining chip" with Beijing to halt China's behaviour in the South China Sea.

For the wonks, the full transcript of the interview is here.

5. ​One million signatures to oust Malaysian PM

The ABC's Four Corners will carry Linton Besser's report into the corruption scandal plaguing the Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Besser's name will be familiar to you - he and his cameraman Louie Eroglu were detained in Malaysia and nearly charged for daring to ask Najib Razak about the $1 billion scandal that's plaguing his prime ministership. They were allowed to travel home, we suspect thanks to some high-level intervention. Their program airs Monday night. 

Here's a sneak peek of Monday's Four Corners - 'State of Fear: Murder and Money in Malaysia'. A story of intrigue, corruption and multiple murders, stretching from the streets of Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur, to Switzerland, France and the US as well as Hong Kong and Singapore, all the way to Australia's doorstep. #1MDBPosted by Four Corners on Wednesday, 23 March 2016

Fairfax's south-east Asia correspondent Lindsay Murdoch has also filed a story in relation to the scandal. He reports an influential group is trying to amass 1 million signatures to petition Malaysia's Islamic royalty to oust the PM.

6. Rudd's UN quest

And just to round up a very foreign-policy heavy edition of Double Shot, keep an eye on this story. Chris Mitchell, former editor of Rupert Murdoch's conservative broadsheet The Australian, revealed that former Labor prime minister Kevin Rudd asked him in November last year if the paper would endorse his bid to become United Nations Secretary-General.

So far, Mr Rudd has not confirmed he will run for the job, but everyone expects him to declare. As for this report, he says he doesn't comment on his private conversations with journalists. But he is an international busy bee. His Twitter account shows he's been in Hong Kong, Africa and China just in the past few days.

But his expected nomination puts current Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in a difficult position. If the former Labor leader were to run, would the Australian Liberal government support him?

The cabinet decision would essentially be up to Mr Turnbull and Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop, two people very much out of favour with the conservatives who think the "megalomaniac" Mr Rudd is the last person to fill incumbent Ban ki-Moon's shoes.

Perhaps senator Corey Bernardi's reticence stems partly from his own UN-junket coming up later this year.

That's it for me, hope you had a lovely Easter weekend. You can follow me on Facebook for more.