May 26 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday negotiating a deal with Iran could "take a few days," quashing hopes for an imminent end to the conflict a day after U.S. forces conducted what Washington called defensive strikes in southern Iran.
As Donald Trump pushes an expansive, unrealistic fantasy of mandatory Abraham Accords, the region's actual strategic architecture has fractured: Left without a reliable American protector, the Gulf states are facing a dilemma that could force them to redraw the map and look to
May 26 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that the Straitof Hormuz has to be open, "one way or the other", whenreferring to U.S strikes on Iran on Monday. "The straits have to be open, they're going to be open one way or the other, so they need to
Belgacem Haftar, son of eastern Libya's military chief Khalifa Haftar, touted in an interview with AFP what he called a push to make up for more than 40 "lost years" under slain ruler Muammar Gaddafi. After Gaddafi was killed during the 2011 revolution, Libya descended into
By Aftab Ahmed, Michael Martina and Saurabh Sharma NEW DELHI, May 26 (Reuters) - Foreign ministers from Australia, India, Japan and the U.S. will meet on Tuesday in New Delhi in an effort to regain momentum in the Indo-Pacific-focused group known as the Quad that critics say
A group of seven women and 12 children linked to Islamic State fighters are bound for Australia after years in Syria, the Australian interior minister said on Tuesday. The so-called "IS brides" are Australian nationals and left the Roj camp, controlled by Syrian Kurdish forces,
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Monday denounced the "appalling treatment" of activists aboard the Gaza-bound aid flotilla as "unacceptable," in a call with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, according to a statement. Last week, Israel's far-right National Security Minister
SYDNEY, May 26 (Reuters) - A group of seven Australian women and 12 children linked to the Islamic State militant group have made travel plans to return home, authorities said on Tuesday, in what would be the second such Australian group to leave a Syrian refugee camp this
OTTAWA, May 25 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Monday told Israeli President Isaac Herzog that the treatment of activists detained by Israel had been "appalling" and described the situation in Gaza as "catastrophic," Carney's office said in a statement. "The
The Israeli army intensified strikes in southern Lebanon on Monday, as two far-right Israeli ministers called for escalation including attacks on Lebanese capital Beirut. The airstrikes come as the United States and Iran seek to finalise the terms of an agreement to end the
The Israeli army intensified strikes in southern Lebanon on Monday, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered the military to escalate its offensive in an effort to "crush" Hezbollah. The airstrikes come as the United States and Iran seek to finalise the terms of
From Tuesday morning, communities on the conflict zone between Israel and Lebanon will face restrictions on public gatherings; Israeli officials said expanded strikes on Hezbollah targets are awaiting cabinet approval, as Netanyahu vowed to 'increase the intensity' of attacks
May 25 (Reuters) - Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has issued an order to reopen international internet access, Iranian state media reported on Monday, citing an official after a near-90-day blackout in the wake of the war against U.S. and Israel. The report cited the head
U.S. President Donald Trump said talks with Iran were going nicely and urged more Arab and Muslim states to sign up to the Abraham Accords, which aim to normaliזe ties between Arab and other Muslim-majority states and Israel
May 25 (Reuters) - The U.S. and Iran are discussing a plan to open the Strait of Hormuz about 30 days after the two countries reach a deal to end hostilities, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday citing a Middle East diplomatic source. Iran would proceed to clear mines from
At a busy Beirut centre, migrant volunteers stirred pots of okra soup and shaped balls of the African staple fufu, keeping food coming for those caught between the latest Israel-Hezbollah war. Here, Lebanon's migrant workers, among those hit hardest by the fighting, have
Iran on Monday executed a man on charges related to protests this year, the latest in a spree of hangings on political or security accusations since the start of the US-Israeli war with dozens more risking execution, rights groups said. Some three dozen men have been hanged on
Foza Yusuf, a senior figure in Syria’s Kurdish-led autonomous administration, said the May 24 parliamentary vote was structured to disadvantage Kurdish parties.
CAIRO/GAZA, May 25 (Reuters) - An Israeli airstrike on a tent in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday killed two people including a six-year-old girl and wounded 17 other people, including children, Palestinian health officials said. Medics said the Israeli airstrike on a tent
Trump says Saudi Arabia and Qatar 'should be the first to join' the Abraham Accords and warns that refusal would signal 'bad intentions,' as U.S. and Iranian officials move toward a preliminary deal centered on uranium disposal and reopening the Strait of Hormuz
By Huseyin Hayatsever ANKARA, May 25 (Reuters) - Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM Party condemned on Monday a court ruling that ousted the leadership of the main opposition CHP last week, calling a police operation to evict the leaders from the party's headquarters a "disgrace to
US President Donald Trump recast his bid for peace with Iran on Monday as an attempt to strike a grand bargain across the Middle East, urging Muslim-majority countries from the region and beyond to settle their disputes with Israel. In a lengthy social media post, Trump listed
Nine heritage sites have been added to list of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, which restored Syria’s membership last year after a 14-year suspension.
By El Tayeb Siddig, Nafisa Eltahir and Khalid Abdelaziz OMDURMAN, Sudan, May 25 (Reuters) - Farmers across Sudan say the hike in global fuel and fertilizer costs resulting from the Iran conflict will force them to cut back on planting this summer, restricting food production in
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson described the document under discussion as a 14-point framework agreement rather than a final deal.
WASHINGTON, May 25 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday it should be mandatory for countries including Qatar, Pakistan, Egypt, Jordan and Turkey to join the Abraham Accords en masse as part of an effort to reach a deal with Iran. Trump said he spoke on
By Saleem Ahmed ISLAMABAD, May 25 (Reuters) - More than 30 people died in a suicide bombing of a train in southwestern Pakistan on Sunday, officials said on Monday, in the latest attack claimed by separatist Balochistan militants. Two provincial officials, speaking on condition
By Steven Scheer and Maya Gebeily JERUSALEM/BEIRUT, May 25 (Reuters) - Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Monday called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resume bombing Beirut in response to increased explosive drone attacks by Hezbollah on Israeli troops and
The United States and Iran have both played down chances of a quick deal to end a war that has engulfed the Middle East and disrupted the global oil market. US President Donald Trump said Monday that a deal with Tehran would either be "great and meaningful" or there would be
By Liz Lee and Ethan Wang BEIJING, May 25 (Reuters) - President Xi Jinping hailed China's "unbreakable" friendship with Pakistan on Monday as he met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Beijing, seeking to deepen their "all-weather" partnership. Xi welcomed the Pakistani leader as
By Rami Ayyub JERUSALEM, May 25 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told confidants in private conversations that Israel has little ability to influence Donald Trump's decision-making on Iran as the U.S. president negotiates a deal in the nearly three-month-old
The U.S. president said countries involved in Iran cease-fire talks should 'immediately sign the Abraham Accords' and normalize ties with Israel, while Iranian officials stressed Tehran remains focused on ending the war rather than finalizing a nuclear deal
In Tehran, the prevailing view is that the U.S. president is willing to pay a high price for the appearance of victory. But Trump may enter the next phase of nuclear negotiations without guarantees, leverage or credible deterrence
Being in Mecca has been nothing short of blissful for Hassan Qadiri, where participating in the festivities of the hajj pilgrimage is a welcome relief after weeks of devastating war back home in Iran. Qadiri and his family took cover as intense Israeli and American bombing
May 25 (Reuters) - Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday that conclusions have been reached on many topics discussed in a potential memorandum of understanding with the U.S., but this does not mean Tehran is close to signing an agreement. The spokesperson, Esmaeil
Born to landless Indian farmers, Sunil Pooniya thought a job at sea would be his ticket out of poverty, instead his first voyage saw him diving into the ocean to escape a deadly attack driven by the Iran war. For hundreds of thousands of Indians, merchant shipping jobs are a
DUBAI, May 25 (Reuters) - Iran's top negotiator in talks with the United States, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, has been reelected as the country's parliamentary speaker, semi-official Fars news agency reported on Monday. (Reporting by Elwely Elwelly;Editing by Alison Williams)
Marco Rubio leads US foreign policy as diplomacy on Iran goes down to the wire, but he is also making time for cultural attractions as divergent as the Taj Mahal and the Village People. Rubio, who serves as President Donald Trump's secretary of state and national security
As diplomacy intensifies on ending the Iran war, top US diplomat Marco Rubio was spending Monday not in negotiations but at India's world-famous monument to love, the Taj Mahal. Rubio, on his first-ever visit to India, flew to Agra and spent 45 minutes at the Taj Mahal with his
Over 1.5 million Muslims began filling a vast tent city in the holy city of Mecca on Monday for an annual hajj pilgrimage carried out against the backdrop of hopes for an end to the war in the Middle East. The white-robed pilgrims on buses or on foot arrived at the sprawling
Over 1.5 million Muslims began filling a vast tent city in the holy city of Mecca on Monday for an annual hajj pilgrimage carried out against the backdrop of hopes for an end to the war in the Middle East. The white-robed pilgrims on buses or on foot arrived at the sprawling