Category: 2. Middle East

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The UK government has insisted there is “no evidence” of genocide in Gaza as it faces a legal challenge over its continued involvement in the F-35 fighter jet programme, parts of which are said to be used by Israel in its onslaught on the besieged Palestinian enclave. Government lawyers made the claims at the opening of a high court case brought by Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq and the Global Legal Action Network, with support from Amnesty…

Pope Leo XIV, the first American to head the global Catholic Church, pledged today to make “every effort” for peace and offered the Vatican as a mediator in global conflicts, saying war was “never inevitable”, Reuters reports.

Leo, who was elected last week to succeed the late Pope Francis, has made repeated calls for peace in the early days of his papacy. His first words to crowds in St Peter’s Square were “Peace be with all you”.

He returned to…

Over 20 foreign nationals who themselves endured years of captivity in Iran on Wednesday urged Sweden to step up efforts to free a Swedish-Iranian citizen sentenced to death in the country, after he had a heart attack last week.

Ahmadreza Djalali, an academic who was sentenced to death in 2017 on espionage charges he denies, suffered a heart attack in Tehran’s Evin prison, his wife said Friday.

Djalali, 53, is among a number of Europeans held by Iran in what some countries including France…

US President Donald Trump held a meeting with Syria’s president in Saudi Arabia today, according to a Washington Post pool report, after a surprise US announcement it would lift all sanctions on the country’s new government, Reuters reports.

Despite concerns within sectors of his administration over Syria’s leaders’ former ties to Al-Qaeda, Trump said yesterday during a speech in Riyadh he would lift sanctions on Syria in a major policy shift.

The…

Air Canada announced yesterday that the suspension of flights to Israel is being extended until 8 September and will not be resumed on 8 June as previously expected, Anadolu reported.

The airline suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv last year.

Air Canada and major international airlines suspended flights to and from Israel in the wake of air strikes carried out by Yemen’s Houthi group targeting Ben Gurion airport on 4 May.

Polish airline LOT, Germany’s…

Israel today issued evacuation warnings for three seaports in Yemen after saying the Houthis had fired a missile towards it, according to Reuters.

It reported the missile launch while US President Donald Trump was on a visit to three Gulf states – Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

The Israeli army said the Ras Issa, Hudaydah and Salif ports were being used by the Houthi group. Israel had said earlier that it had intercepted a missile launched…

Yemen’s Houthi movement yesterday announced that it had launched a hypersonic ballistic missile targeting Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv. The group stated that the attack was conducted in solidarity with Palestinians and in protest against Israel’s military actions in Gaza.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree declared that the missile “successfully hit its target,” leading to widespread panic and a temporary suspension of…

France’s Foreign Ministry today summoned a senior Algerian diplomat to inform him that Paris was expelling Algerians holding diplomatic passports without visas in response to a decision by Algiers to expel 15 French officials, according to Reuters.

“France reserves the right to take additional measures depending on how the situation evolves,” the ministry said in a statement after summoning Algeria’s charge d’affaires.

It did not say how many people…