Category: 2. Middle East

Iraq’s top Shiite Muslim cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani warned against targeting Iran’s leadership and said that the Iran-Israel war could plunge the whole region into chaos.

Sistani said in a statement Thursday that any targeting of Iran’s “supreme religious and political leadership” would have “dire consequences on the region”.

He warned that such action against the Shiite-led Islamic republic could spark “widespread chaos that would exacerbate the suffering of its (the region’s) people…

Israel increasingly appears eager to oust the clerical leadership that has ruled Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution but is taking a gamble given the Iranian opposition is divided and there is no guarantee new rulers would be any less hardline, analysts say.

By striking targets other than nuclear or ballistic facilities, such as Iran’s IRIB broadcaster, expectations have grown that Israel has goals beyond degrading Iranian atomic and missile capabilities and eyes removing supreme leader…

Israel’s defence minister said Thursday that Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei “can no longer be allowed to exist”, just days after reports that Washington vetoed Israeli plans to assassinate him.

The comments from Defence Minister Israel Katz came after the Soroka Hospital in the southern city of Beersheba reported 40 people injured following a fresh salvo of Iranian missiles.

“Khamenei openly declares that he wants Israel destroyed — he personally gives the order to fire on…

The UN refugee chief on Thursday announced that more than 2 million Syrians have returned home since December, Anadolu reports.

“Over two million Syrian refugees and displaced have returned home since December—a sign of hope amid rising regional tensions,” UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Filippo Grandi wrote on X.

Stressing that he is on his way from Lebanon to Syria for World Refugee Day, Grandi reiterated the need for a “political solution”…

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel issued a warning on Wednesday about rising tensions in the Middle East, accusing Israel and the US of endangering global stability, Anadolu reports.

“World peace is in danger. Israel and the US are dragging humanity toward unforeseeable consequences with the Zionist aggression against Iran,” Diaz-Canel wrote on X.

He called for urgent international mobilization to prevent further escalation, saying: “I urgently call for…

US President Donald Trump discussed the Iran-Israel conflict with Pakistan Army chief Gen. Asim Munir at the White House, with the two sides emphasizing resolving the hostilities, the military said on Thursday, Anadolu Agency reports.

“A detailed exchange of views also took place on the prevailing tensions between Iran and Israel, with both leaders emphasizing the importance of resolution of the conflict,” said a statement from International Services Public…

ANKARA — Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is expected to travel to Turkey this weekend amid the ongoing war between Israel and Iran, according to a Turkish Foreign Ministry source.

Araghchi is expected to attend a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul on Saturday along with over 40 of his counterparts, the source told journalists on Thursday. Among the other attendees are Saudi Arabia’s Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Qatar’s Sheikh Mohammed bin…

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Israel is suffering “many losses, painful losses” from Iranian attacks, according to The Times of Israel, reported by Anadolu Agency.

Netanyahu thanked US President Donald Trump for “standing by” Israel’s side, in his daily video statement.

“We are in continuous communication, including last night — we had a very warm conversation,” he added.

Regional tensions have escalated since…

Russian President Vladimir Putin said early Thursday that Iran is not seeking military support from Moscow despite escalating tensions with Israel, downplaying the possibility of a military alliance between the two countries, Anadolu reports.

“Iran is not asking us for any military assistance,” Putin said during a meeting with international news agency executives in St. Petersburg.

“Even when we offered to jointly develop air defense systems in the past,…