Middle East
US President Biden does not believe there will be 'all-out-war' in Middle East
U.S. President Joe Biden said he did not believe there is going to be an "all-out war" in the Middle East, as Israel weighs options for retaliation after Tehran's largest ever assault on its arch-enemy.
Israel strikes Beirut, south Lebanon
Israel’s military urged residents of more than 20 towns in south Lebanon to evacuate their homes immediately yesterday as it pressed on with incursions after suffering its worst losses in a year of fighting the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah.
Food aid to Gaza falls as Israel sets new rule
Food supplies to Gaza have fallen sharply in recent weeks because Israeli authorities have introduced a new customs rule on some humanitarian aid and are separately scaling down deliveries organized by businesses, people involved in getting goods to the territory told Reuters.
Iran warned Nasrallah of Israeli plot to kill him
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Hezbollah leader Syyed Hassan Nasrallah to flee Lebanon days before he was killed in an Israeli strike and is now deeply worried about Israeli infiltration of senior government ranks in Tehran, three Iranian sources said.
ISRAEL-HEZBOLLAH CONFLICT / Hezbollah losses strengthen Turkey against Iran: analysts
Israel’s onslaught against Hezbollah in Lebanon is reassuring for Turkey, which could seize the opportunity to strengthen its regional influence in the face of its rival Iran, analysts told AFP.
Iranian strike shows capability for greater scale
The Iranian ballistic missile attack against Israel on Tuesday was larger, more complex and involved more advanced weapons than the strikes in April, experts say, putting greater stress on missile defences and allowing more warheads to get through.
Iran says attack on Israel is over as fears grow of wider conflict
"Our action is concluded unless the Israeli regime decides to invite further retaliation," Iranian foreign minister said in a post on X early on Wednesday.
Iran confirms firing 200 missiles at Israel: state TV
Iran fired 200 missiles at Israel, state TV reported Wednesday, a barrage that Israel vowed to make Tehran "pay" for
US says Israel must protect civilians in Gaza
Israel has a responsibility to protect the lives of innocent people in Gaza, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said yesterday amid a growing outcry over Palestinian civilian deaths.
Gazans look for loved ones as blackout eases
Gazans searched for loved ones and heard news of family members killed as communications gradually returned to the enclave yesterday after a near total blackout as Israel’s troops and armour pushed into the Hamas-ruled enclave.
Israeli actions ‘may force everyone’ to act
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi yesterday said Israel’s ongoing bombardment of Gaza “may force everyone” to act in the latest warning issued by the Islamic republic since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Iran teen dies month after metro incident
An Iranian high school student died yesterday, nearly a month after falling into a coma in disputed circumstances on the Tehran metro, media in the Islamic republic said.
Erdogan calls West ‘main culprit’ behind Gaza ‘massacre’
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday called Western powers “the main culprit” behind the Israeli army’s “massacre” of Palestinians in Gaza.
KSA warns Israel on danger of ground ops
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry released a statement yesterday condemning any ground operations by Israeli forces that may threaten the lives of Palestinian civilians.
32 people killed, dozen missing
Kazakhstan said yesterday that 32 people were killed in a fire in yet another deadly accident in a mine owned by ArcelorMittal, with over a dozen still missing, in the Central Asian country’s worst disaster in years.
Can’t guarantee journos’ safety in Gaza
Israel’s military has told international news organisations Reuters and Agence France Presse that it cannot guarantee the safety of their journalists operating in the Gaza Strip, under Israeli bombardment and siege for almost three weeks.
Situation dire in ‘blacked out Gaza’
Gaza was largely cut off from the outside world yesterday as Israel rained more bombs from the air and suggested its long-promised ground offensive in the Palestinian enclave was underway.
Iraq dig unearths 2,700-year-old winged sculpture
A dig in northern Iraq has unearthed a 2,700-year-old alabaster sculpture of the winged Assyrian deity Lamassu, which was found largely intact despite its large dimensions.