Independent filmmakers in Iran face a fresh wave of repression and extreme economic hardship because of the war, risking choking off a mainstay of world cinema, industry insiders say. Despite heavy censorship and regular prosecutions, acclaimed directors from Asghar Farhadi,
Mojtaba Khamenei's order could further frustrate Trump and complicate talks on ending the US-Israeli war on Iran. Netanyahu has said he will not consider the war over until Iran's enriched uranium is removed
By Parisa Hafezi and Rami Ayyub DUBAI, May 21 (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Leader has issued a directive that the country's near-weapons-grade uranium should not be sent abroad, two senior Iranian sources said, hardening Tehran's stance on one of the main U.S. demands at peace
By Parisa Hafezi and Rami Ayyub DUBAI, May 21 (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Leader has issued a directive that the country's near-weapons-grade uranium should not be sent abroad, two senior Iranian sources said, hardening Tehran's stance on one of the main U.S. demands at peace
Pakistan's army chief was due in Iran Thursday, Iranian media reported, with Islamabad mediating as the Islamic republic examines a new US proposal to end the Middle East war. The expected visit by Field Marshal Asim Munir, a powerful figure with a growing role in Pakistan's
By Jana Choukeir May 21 (Reuters) - Israel faced mounting international criticism after its national security minister released a video showing detained Gaza flotilla activists kneeling with their hands bound following the interception of aid vessels in international waters.
At least four Iranian footballers and one of their entourage went to the US embassy in Ankara Thursday to submit visa applications for the World Cup, an AFP correspondent said. The squad arrived in Turkey's southern Antalya resort on Monday for a training camp ahead of the 2026
Hundreds of activists seized by Israel from a Gaza-bound flotilla were awaiting deportation on Thursday, as global outcry grows over their treatment in custody. More than 430 activists from countries around the world were in custody in Israel after they were detained at sea
By Rami Ayyub JERUSALEM, May 21 (Reuters) - Gaza flotilla activists who were detained by Israel and later pinned to the ground to the taunts of Israel's far-right police minister have been released from prison and will be deported to Turkey on Thursday, officials said. The
Wealthy countries topped their $100 billion annual climate finance goal for poorer nations for the third straight year in 2024, the OECD said Thursday, but questions are growing over their ability to meet a new larger pledge. Developed nations had long fallen short of their
By Feras Dalatey May 21 (Reuters) - Syria will attend the G7 summit in France next month as a guest nation and be represented by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, three sources familiar with the matter said, marking Syria's first participation in a summit of the group since the forum
The two spoke a day after Trump announced he was putting off renewed strikes, with Netanyahu arguing that a delay serves Tehran. Trump and Netanyahu had another call two days earlier, with the U.S. president saying he was likely to begin new strikes on Iran soon
May 21 (Reuters) - Iran has already restarted some of its drone production during the six-week ceasefire that began in early April, CNN reported on Thursday, citing two sources familiar with U.S. intelligence assessments. US intelligence indicates Iran’s military is rebuilding
May 21 (Reuters) - European Council President Antonio Costa on Thursday said he was "appalled" by the treatment of aid flotilla members attempting to enter Gaza by Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir. Video on Wednesday showed Israeli police forced activists who were aboard a Gaza-bound
By Jana Choukeir and Humeyra Pamuk DUBAI/WASHINGTON, May 21 (Reuters) - Iran said on Thursday it was reviewing Washington's latest position on ending the war after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested he was prepared to wait a few days to "get the right answers" from Tehran
SEOUL, May 21 (Reuters) - South Korea's presidential Blue House said on Thursday that some of its nationals who had been in held in Israeli custody had been released. Seoul, which had earlier expressed strong regret over Israel's seizure of an aid vessel bound for Gaza and the
The ongoing stalemate in talks between Washington and Tehran may lead President Trump to renew the war - contrary to his instincts ■ On the northern front, Israel's government refuses to hold a strategic discussion and commanders on the ground testify: 'Our mission is to bring
State Department cable cites risk to Trump's Gaza peace plan if bid proceeds. Palestinian mission has not commented; election for vice presidents set for June 2
By Humeyra Pamuk WASHINGTON, May 20 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's administration threatened to revoke the visas of the Palestinian delegation to the United Nations if the Palestinian ambassador refuses to end his candidacy for the vice presidency of the U.N. General
May 20 (Reuters) - The United States has removed Francesca Albanese, a U.N. expert on the Palestinian territories, from its list of sanctioned individuals, according to the U.S. Treasury Department website. The removal comes a week after a federal judge temporarily blocked
BRUSSELS, May 20 (Reuters) - The European Commission found the treatment of the Gaza flotilla activists shown in a video released by Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir is "completely unacceptable", a spokesperson said on Wednesday. "Every detained person must
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that talks with Tehran were "on the borderline" between a deal to end the Middle East war and a resumption of strikes on Iran. Trump has given conflicting signals since announcing on Monday that he had called off renewed attacks to give
The report comes hours after Trump said Iran talks were in final stages, and warned of attacks if deal fails • Trump said earlier this week he called off attacks on Iran in response to requests from several of Iran's Gulf neighbors
By Phil Stewart and Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON, May 19 (Reuters) - A U.S. military investigation into a strike at a girls' school in Iran has been "complex" given that it was located on an active Iranian cruise missile base but the probe is approaching its conclusion, a U.S.
ANKARA, May 20 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told U.S. President Donald Trump in a call on Wednesday he welcomed the extension of a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, adding he believed contested issues between the sides could be resolved, according to the
NEW LONDON, Connecticut, May 20 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the United States may have to attack Iran even harder but will wait and see if a deal is reached, reprising the "either/or" rhetoric he has used since announcing a ceasefire six weeks ago.
By Jana Choukeir and Humeyra Pamuk DUBAI/WASHINGTON, May 20 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that negotiations with Iran were "in the final stages", while warning of further attacks unless Tehran agrees to a peace deal. Six weeks since Trump paused
SEOUL, May 20 (Reuters) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday said Israel had arrested South Korean nationals in international waters, calling the action “way out of line”. In a cabinet meeting, Lee said the South Korean citizens had been detained for reasons not
ANKARA, May 20 (Reuters) - Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will tell NATO foreign ministers this week that the next NATO leaders' summit, set for Ankara in July, should reaffirm the alliance's unity and integrity, a foreign ministry source said on Wednesday. • Fidan will
By Emily Rose JERUSALEM, May 20 (Reuters) - Israeli police on Wednesday forced activists who were aboard a Gaza-bound aid flotilla to kneel on the ground in rows with their hands tied behind their backs while a minister looked on, drawing criticism from foreign leaders and even
OTTAWA, May 20 (Reuters) - Israel's treatment of detained Gaza flotilla activists is "abominable," Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday, using unusually harsh language to condemn a close ally. Ottawa earlier said it would summon the Israeli ambassador to protest
JERUSALEM, May 20 (Reuters) - Israel moved closer on Wednesday to a snap election after lawmakers gave an initial nod to dissolve parliament, with opinion polls showing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would lose the first national vote since the 2023 Hamas attacks. Lawmakers
CAIRO, May 20 (Reuters) - Iran is seeking to establish a mechanism with Oman to ensure sustainable security in the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told state TV on Wednesday. He said Iran was ready to develop protocols for safe shipping
ANKARA, May 20 (Reuters) - Turkey said on Wednesday that Germany would send it a Patriot missile defence system for a six-month deployment from June to replace a system deployed as part of NATO measures in southeast Turkey to bolster air defences amid the war in Iran. In March,
By Nidal al-Mughrabi and Haseeb Alwazeer GAZA/CAIRO, May 20 (Reuters) - In a tent in southern Gaza, Najia Abu Lehia mourns not only her husband but also their failure to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, or Hajj, together before he died a year ago because of war and border
By Maayan Lubell JERUSALEM, May 20 (Reuters) - Israel's parliament approved a bill on Wednesday to dissolve itself, potentially bringing forward by a few weeks the next national election, which surveys predict Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will lose. WHEN IS THE BALLOT? An
By Tom Polansek and Julie Ingwersen TULIA, Texas, May 20 (Reuters) - Scott Irlbeck crouched in a field of stunted wheat plants in a parched stretch of West Texas and slipped his hand into a crack wide enough to swallow it. Last autumn, Irlbeck planted a crop that barely grew
Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war: - Oil down, stocks up - Oil prices fell five percent and stock markets advanced as Iran said it had allowed around two dozen ships to transit the Strait of Hormuz, easing concerns about the apparent impasse on ending the
Israel's far-right national security minister posted a video on Wednesday showing detained activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla kneeling with their hands tied and foreheads on the ground, sparking international condemnation. The video, shared on X by firebrand minister Itamar
Hamas is "the principal obstacle" to moving to the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire, the Board of Peace initiative created by US President Donald Trump said in its first report to the UN Security Council. In its findings, the group, established by Trump in January to oversee
More than $32 million was spent on the race, including $9 million from pro-Israel groups that helped Ed Gallrein defeat Rep. Thomas Massie after his high-profile clashes with President Donald Trump.
Baku’s ambassador says borders with Armenia will remain closed until Yerevan changes its constitution, hardening positions just weeks before a pivotal Armenian election seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s peace agenda with Turkey and Azerbaijan.
Ankara says the project would be faster and cheaper than alternatives, but rival routes could sharpen competition with Greece over eastern flank logistics.
Iran has jailed a former goalkeeper for the national men's football team after he published earlier this year a post deeply critical of then-supreme leader Ali Khamenei, his wife said. The Mizan news agency of the Iranian judiciary confirmed that Mohammad Rashid Mazaheri was