Lebanon said Israeli strikes hit near Beirut's main airport road on Tuesday, as the UN Security Council held an urgent meeting after three peacekeepers were killed in the south. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said his country's military would occupy a swathe of southern
U.S. news site Al-Monitor announced the abduction of news correspondent Shelly Kittleson, noting a U.S. official said that the State Department is working with the Iraqi government to secure Kittleson's release
March 31 (Reuters) - Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said on Tuesday that his country will stay out of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran unless Syria is subject to aggression and has no diplomatic solutions. "Unless Syria is targeted by any party, Syria will remain outside any
Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war: - Pope hopes Trump will end war - Pope Leo XIV said he hoped US President Donald Trump was looking to end the war in the Middle East and called for a halt to the violence. "I'm told that President Trump recently stated
Netanyahu said in a recorded statement that Iran still has the ability to threaten Israel, but 'can no longer threaten our existence.' In June 2025, the PM said Israel 'had removed two immediate existential threats' and declared a 'historic victory'
WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - The White House said on Tuesday that the U.S. military was prepared to thwart any attacks by Iran, responding to threats by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps against U.S. companies in the region. "The United States military is and was
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy, March 31 (Reuters) - Pope Leo urged U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday to look for an "off-ramp" to end the Iran war, in a rare direct appeal from the pontiff as the regional conflict expands. "I'm told that President Trump has recently stated that
Opinion polls show Turks turning to Erdogan as a steady hand during the war, even as the country's finances remain fragile.
By Ali Sawafta and Pesha Magid RAMALLAH/JERUSALEM, March 31 (Reuters) - Palestinians in the occupied West Bank voiced fears on Tuesday that their jailed relatives could be hanged without due process after Israel adopted a new law making the death penalty the default sentence
We are deeply alarmed by the kidnapping of Al-Monitor contributor Shelly Kittleson in Iraq on Tuesday. We call for her safe and immediate release. We stand by her vital reporting from the region and call for her swift return to continue her important work.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz sparked controversy during the visit, later clarifying his remarks on the potential return of Syrian refugees after warnings that a mass departure could have serious economic consequences
King Charles III on Tuesday hosted Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at Buckingham Palace as the former Islamist rebel leader made his first official visit to London and met with Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The UK monarch held an audience with Sharaa on Tuesday afternoon,
FIFA president Gianni Infantino told AFP Tuesday that Iran "will be at the World Cup" and will play their group matches in the United States as scheduled, despite the Middle East war. "Iran will be at the World Cup," Infantino said at half-time as Iran beat Costa Rica 5-0 in a
Iran players and team officials posed with photographs of children killed in the Middle East war before their friendly match against Costa Rica in Turkey on Tuesday. Every Iran player held a photo during the national anthem before their 5-0 victory near the city of Antalya.
The State Department said a suspect taken into custody by Iraqi authorities had ties to Kataib Hezbollah.
GENEVA, March 31 (Reuters) - The U.N. rights chief on Tuesday urged Israel to repeal a law making death by hanging a default sentence for Palestinians convicted in military courts of deadly attacks, saying the legislation violated international humanitarian law. "It raises
By Phil Stewart WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth declined on Tuesday to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to NATO's collective defense, saying that would be up to President Donald Trump after key European allies refused to stand with the United States
BEIRUT, March 31 (Reuters) - Three U.N. peacekeepers were killed this week in southern Lebanon, making the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah one of the deadliest chapters for a peacekeeping mission whose decades-long mandate expires this year. The U.N. Interim Force in
Iran's chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz has thrown the global economic system into turmoil, yet Israel, which launched attacks on Tehran alongside the United States, has emerged as a rare exception. Since Israel and its US ally started the Middle East war on February 28,
Firms listed as potential targets included Oracle, Microsoft, Apple, Google, Meta, IBM, Palantir and Nvidia, while banking giant JPMorgan and UAE-based AI firm G42 were also listed.
March 31 (Reuters) - Initial findings of a probe into the deaths of two Indonesian peacekeepers in southern Lebanon point to a roadside explosion striking their convoy, the United Nations peacekeeping chief said on Tuesday. The two peacekeepers with the UNIFIL force were killed
(Corrects typographical error in headline) March 31 (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is in the country but is refraining from making public appearances "for understandable reasons", the RTVI news outlet quoted Russia's ambassador to the country as saying on
By Maya Gebeily and Emilie Madi BEIRUT, March 31 (Reuters) - Lebanon is preparing for the possibility that hundreds of thousands displaced by Israeli strikes and evacuation orders will not return home in the long term, Lebanese social affairs minister Haneen Sayed said on
BERLIN, March 31 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz clarified on Tuesday comments he made about the return of Syrian refugees to their homeland after economists and politicians warned that a mass departure could have a serious economic effect. At a press conference
Fear for her son's fate kept Maisoun Shawamreh awake through the night in the occupied West Bank following the Israeli parliament's approval of a law permitting the execution of Palestinians convicted of deadly terror attacks. "The mothers of prisoners -- none of us slept last
Netanyahu told Newsmax that the U.S.-Israeli war is 'beyond the halfway point in terms of success' and warned that Tehran is 'pursuing nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them to American cities'
In the stands of Beirut's largest stadium, it is the shouts of children displaced by war that echo, not the songs of fans. Beneath the concrete steps, more than a thousand people fleeing Israeli bombs on Lebanon sleep in tents, including around 50 wheelchair users and people
JERUSALEM, March 31 (Reuters) - Israel will establish a buffer zone inside southern Lebanon and maintain control over the entire area up to the Litani River once the conflict with Hezbollah militants ends, Israel's defence minister said on Tuesday. "At the end of the operation,
BRUSSELS, March 31 (Reuters) - Israel's decision to pass a law making death by hanging a default sentence for Palestinians convicted in military courts of deadly attacks is 'very concerning' for the European Union, said a Commission spokesperson on Tuesday. "This is a clear
MOSCOW, March 31 (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that U.S. plans to unfurl regime change in Iran and Venezuela were aimed at gaining more control over oil and gas resources. Lavrov said the United States and Israel did not want normalisation
The vice president is considered unenthusiastic about military intervention in Iran. The White House believes, therefore, that the Iranians may trust him in negotiations. The White House: The Iranians are 'more reasonable behind the scenes'
GENEVA, March 31 (Reuters) - Discussions are under way for a U.N. investigation into the killing of more than 390 employees in the two-year Gaza war, the head of the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency said on Tuesday, making it the deadliest conflict in the body's history. "I
ROME, March 31 (Reuters) - Italy has denied permission for U.S. military aircraft to land at the Sigonella air base in Sicily before flying to the Middle East, a source close to the matter said on Tuesday, confirming a newspaper report.
JERUSALEM, March 31 (Reuters) - Israel is prepared for "weeks" more of fighting in Iran, a military spokesman said on Tuesday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an interview the war was "beyond the halfway point." Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told reporters
By Kentaro Okasaka, Uditha Jayasinghe and Lucy Craymer TOKYO/COLOMBO/WELLINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - Indonesia's leader visited Tokyo this week in Asia's latest flurry of fuel bartering efforts to offset crippling shortages caused by conflict in the Middle East, a key source
Iraq is home to ruins from some of the world's earliest civilisations, but teams led by international archaeologists have been forced by drone and rocket attacks in the Middle East war to cut short their expeditions. Archaeologists told AFP that some of the projects interrupted
US and Israeli strikes hit military facilities in central Iran, damaged a major religious site in the northwest and provoked power cuts Tuesday, after President Donald Trump threatened to blow up the country's oil and energy plants. Video footage verified by AFP showed at least
DUBAI, March 31 (Reuters) - People accused of spying or cooperating with "hostile states" could face the death penalty and confiscation of all assets under a recently enhanced law, an Iranian judiciary spokesperson said, a month into the war with the United States and Israel.
By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS, March 31 (Reuters) - European Union governments should prepare for a "prolonged disruption" to energy markets as a result of the Iran war, the bloc's energy chief has told countries' ministers ahead of an emergency meeting on Tuesday. In a letter to
BEIJING, March 31 (Reuters) - China's foreign minister and his Pakistani counterpart will discuss the situationin Iran during the latter's visit to China on Tuesday, China's foreign ministry said. The two countries have similar positions on major international and regional
Iran fired missiles across the Middle East on Tuesday as its capital was hit by fresh explosions, after US President Donald Trump threatened the country's key oil export hub, power stations and desalination plants. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump's partner in
March 31 (Reuters) - The Israeli military said on Tuesday that four of its personnel were killed and two wounded during combat in southern Lebanon. (Reporting by Enas Alashray and Yomna Ehab; Editing by Himani Sarkar)
By Alexander Cornwell, Trevor Hunnicutt and Yomna Ehab TEL AVIV/WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - Iran attacked and set ablaze a fully loaded crude oil tanker off Dubai on Monday, as President Donald Trump warned the U.S. would obliterate Iran's energy plants and oil wells if it
March 30 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump told aides he is willing to end the military campaign against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed and leave a complex operation to reopen it for a later date, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday,
Iran has denied shooting at its neighbor, but this is not the first time Iranian missiles have entered Turkish airspace
By Jasper Ward WASHINGTON, March 30 (Reuters) - The FBI said on Monday that an attack on the largest Jewish temple in Michigan earlier this month was an "act of terrorism" inspired by Hezbollah.