Category: 2. Middle East

Israel carried out air strikes in southern Lebanon Friday after its defence minister threatened Beirut over new rocket fire, rattling an already fragile truce that largely ended more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah.

It was the second time rockets had been fired from Lebanon since the November ceasefire, and the second time the Iran-backed Hezbollah denied involvement.

“If there is no quiet in Kiryat Shmona and the Galilee communities, there will be no quiet in Beirut either,” Israel…

Israel made good on its threat Friday to strike Beirut after rockets were fired towards its territory, rattling an already fragile truce in Lebanon that had largely ended more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah.

It was the second time rockets had been launched at Israel from Lebanon since the November ceasefire, and the second time the Iran-backed Hezbollah denied involvement.

After the attack, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said: “If there is no quiet in Kiryat Shmona and the…

Australia’s competition regulator gave the go-ahead Friday for Qatar Airways to launch an alliance with Virgin Australia.

The decision clears Qatar Airways to cooperate for five years in an “integrated alliance” with the Australian carrier, in which it will take a 25-percent stake.

The pact would double flights between Doha and major Australian airports, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said.

The boost in Australia-Middle East flights would create “minimal, if any, public…

Saudi tailor Habib Mohammed’s shop once made ornate, hand-woven cloaks for royals, a time-honoured craft he is determined to preserve even as mass-produced garments flood the market, threatening his traditional business.

He makes “bisht”, a long gown which for centuries has been a status symbol, worn by kings and princes — and ordinary men — and could take a week of meticulous work to create.

Now, with cheap Chinese-made robes taking a bite out of his business, the 60-year-old tailor is…

Iran has sent a response to a letter from US President Donald Trump that called for nuclear talks and warned of possible military action if it refuses, its foreign minister said Thursday.

“This official response includes a letter in which our position regarding the current situation and Mr Trump’s letter has been fully explained to the other party,” Abbas Araghchi told the official IRNA news agency.

He added that the letter was delivered to Oman, which has served as an intermediary in the…

NEW YORK — US President Donald Trump withdrew on Thursday his nomination of staunch pro-Israel Congresswoman Elise Stefanik to serve as ambassador to the United Nations, a move that could help Republicans maintain their narrow majority in the House but will delay the filling of the ambassadorship. 

Trump said in a post on Truth Social that he asked Stefanik to remain in Congress, citing the Republicans’ “very tight Majority.”

“I have asked Elise, as one of my biggest Allies, to…

Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces vowed on Thursday there would be “no retreat and no surrender” and said they had “repositioned” forces, after rival army troops recaptured nearly all of central Khartoum.

From inside the recaptured presidential palace, Sudan’s army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, at war with his former deputy, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo since April 2023, had on Wednesday declared the capital “free” from the RSF.

But in its first direct comment since the army…

Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces vowed on Thursday there would be “no retreat and no surrender” after rival troops of the regular army retook nearly all of central Khartoum.

From inside the recaptured presidential palace, Sudan’s army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, at war with his former deputy, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo since April 2023, had on Wednesday declared the capital “free” from the RSF.

But in its first direct comment since the army retook what remains of the…

A US judge ordered Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday to preserve messages from a chat group used by top national security officials to discuss plans for an attack on Yemen’s Huthi rebels.

The ruling adds to the pressure on the White House after the Atlantic magazine revealed that its editor had been accidentally added to the group on the commercially-available Signal app.

Republican Trump has dismissed the scandal as a “witch-hunt” while attacking the Atlantic and its editor-in-chief…