Category: World

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Service members are trying to find ways out early after anger over Iran war: ‘It’s been a mess’

U.S. service members are increasingly looking for ways to leave the military early rather than participate in President Donald Trump’s Iran war, a report has alleged.
Almost 3,600 people, including at least 1,665 civilians, have been killed so far by the joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes against Tehran that began on February 28, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency.
Many soldiers have taken to calling the 24-hour GI Rights Hotline run by the nonprofit Center on Conscience and War to express their concerns and frustration, NPR reports.
Counseling director, Bill Galvin, told NPR he has noticed a sharp uptick in calls over the past month.
open image in galleryServing members of the U.S. military are increasingly anxious about the Iran war and many are seeking means of ducking out early, rather than fight in a conflict they do not believe in, says the the Center on Conscience and War (Reuters)The bombing of a girls' school on the first day of the war, which left 165 civili..

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Army out on streets and national holiday: How Pakistan is gearing up to host US-Iran peace talks

Islamabad entered a state of lockdown on Friday as Pakistan’s capital prepared to host high-stakes negotiations to end the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Army and paramilitary personnel guarded the roads around Serena Hotel, the venue of the talks, as police beefed up security across the city. On Wednesday, the luxury hotel’s management had asked its guests to check out by 5pm as the government had requisitioned the property for an “important event from this evening until Sunday”.
Pakistan’s political and military leaders achieved a major diplomatic breakthrough by mediating a ceasefire between the US and Iran early on Wednesday. The ceasefire was declared less than two hours before the deadline on US president Donald Trump’s threat to obliterate a “whole civilisation” if Iran did not open the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime route that usually carries a fifth of the global supply of oil and gas.
Although the truce was immediately threatened by Israel’s deadly strikes on Lebanon which k..

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World

Trump says Iran’s handling of Strait of Hormuz is ‘not the agreement we have’

Trump says Iran's handling of Strait of Hormuz is 'not the agreement we have'12 hours agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleJoel GunterJerusalemAFP via Getty ImagesIsrael launched a blitz of air strikes on Lebanon on Wednesday, hitting over 100 targets in 10 minutesUS President Donald Trump has accused Iran of doing a “very poor job” in its handling of oil passing through the pivotal Strait of Hormuz, arguing it was “not the agreement we have”.
The comments reflect the fragile nature of the ceasefire agreement, with reports showing conflicts on what was included in the accord.
It came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his government was to begin direct talks with Lebanon, focusing on the disarmament of Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group, and establishing peaceful relations.
A US State Department official confirmed it would host a meeting next week in Washington “to discuss ongoing ceasefire negotiations with Israel and Lebanon”.
Lebanese officials..

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Ceasefire or no ceasefire, the Middle East’s reshuffling is not yet done

Ceasefire or no ceasefire, the Middle East's reshuffling is not yet done15 hours agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleJeremy BowenInternational editorBBCThe best hope for the ceasefire talks in Pakistan is that both the United States and Iran have strong reasons to call a halt to the war. The biggest obstacle to their success is a total absence of trust, no discernible common ground and the fact that Israel, America's full partner in the war, has hugely escalated its onslaught on Lebanon.
US President Donald Trump is already speaking about the war in the past tense. He has declared victory and needs an exit. Not only does he have a state visit from King Charles in the diary for later this month, followed by a summit with China's President Xi Jinping in May, there are midterm elections in November. With America's summer holiday season looming, Trump also needs petrol prices to fall back to where they were before he went to war. Royal visits, summits and elections do..

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Israel bombing Lebanon jeopardises the peace deal with Iran – and all our futures are at stake

Israel bombed Lebanon so intensely on Wednesday that witnesses, and the wounded, told The Independent it felt like they had unleashed a “ring of fire” on the capital, Beirut, and an “earthquake” across the rest of the country.
Over 100 targets were hit in just 10 minutes, according to Israel’s count. More than 250 people were killed and over 1,000 injured, according to the Lebanese Civil Defence. They are still digging bodies out of the rubble.
This “absolute massacre”, as it was described by a renowned British conflict surgeon in a Beirut emergency room, does not just impact Lebanon.
It is already jeopardising the future of a long-awaited and deeply fragile truce between the US, Israel and Iran. A truce which hangs in the balance.
This deal, this resolution to a global nightmare, is desperately needed for the civilians chewed up in the violence – and for us all.
It is not just about the worst disruption to global energy supplies in history, shuttered airports bringing movement around..

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Ukraine-Russia war latest: Moscow threatens to attack Baltic countries allowing Kyiv to use airspace for drones

Vance accuses Kyiv and Moscow of ‘haggling over a few square kilometres’Moscow has threatened to attack countries in the Baltic that are allowing Ukraine to use their airspace to fly drones to attack Russia.
Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova issued the warning after Kyiv used drones to attack the Baltic ports of Primorsk and Ust-Luga, which are key to Moscow’s oil exports.
“If third countries have provided or are providing their territory for enemy drones to fly over, they must fully understand – and we are confident they do, because it has been explained to them – the risks they are exposing themselves to,” she said on Thursday.
Russian drones and aircraft have repeatedly violated European airspace, including fighter jet incursions into Estonia and unidentified drones flying over Copenhagen and Oslo airports.
The Baltic countries — Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania — are Nato members after gaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Britain's defenc..

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World

Israeli strikes in Lebanon ‘grave violation’ of ceasefire, Iran minister tells BBC

Israeli strikes in Lebanon 'grave violation' of ceasefire, Iran minister tells BBC3 hours agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleTinshui YeungWatch: Iran's deputy foreign minister speaks to BBC Radio 4's Today programmeAn Iranian minister has told the BBC that Israeli strikes in Lebanon on Wednesday constituted a “grave violation” of the US-Iran ceasefire agreement.
Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said Lebanon was covered by the two-week deal agreed on Tuesday – something the US and Israel dispute – and said the US must choose “between war and ceasefire”.
The Lebanese health ministry has said at least 203 people were killed on Wednesday in air strikes on what Israel called Hezbollah command centres and military sites.
Pressed on whether Tehran would likewise ask Hezbollah to stop firing rockets towards Israel, Khatibzadeh claimed the Iranian-backed militant group had “abided” by the ceasefire.
Hezbollah said on Thursday that it had fired at Israel overnight..

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Trump criticises Nato as alliance chief describes meeting as ‘very frank’

Trump criticises Nato as alliance chief describes meeting as 'very frank' 12 hours agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleBernd Debusmann Jr,White House ReporterandClaire KeenanReutersNato Secretary General Mark Rutte and US President Donald Trump during a bilateral meeting in Davos, Switzerland in January 2026.Donald Trump has again attacked Nato for not supporting the US in the Iran war, following a private meeting with its Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House.
In a post shared to Truth Social after the meeting, the US President said: “NATO WASN'T THERE WHEN WE NEEDED THEM, AND THEY WON'T BE THERE IF WE NEED THEM AGAIN.”
Meanwhile, Rutte has described his meeting to CNN with Trump as “very frank” and “very open”, despite clear disagreements.
Ahead of the talks on Wednesday, Trump had toyed with the idea of quitting the trans-Atlantic military alliance after several Nato countries resisted his calls to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz to ease rising globa..

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What we know about the two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran

What we know about the two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran Just nowShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleKelly Ng,Singapore,Khashayar Joneidi,BBC Persian, WashingtonandDaniel De Simone,JerusalemAFP via Getty ImagesThe provisional truce comes more than a month after the US and Israel launched coordinated attacks on IranIran and the US have agreed to a conditional two-week ceasefire, during which shipping traffic will be allowed through the Strait of Hormuz.
This comes more than a month after the US and Israel launched co-ordinated attacks on Iran, and hours after US President Donald Trump threatened “a whole civilisation will die tonight” if Iran did not reopen the Strait.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who has been mediating negotiations, said early on Wednesday that the ceasefire was effective immediately.
Here's what we know so far about the deal.
What have the US and Iran said?Trump said he had agreed to “suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period ..

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Ukraine-Russia war latest: Secret Ukrainian unit struck Putin’s shadow fleet from Libya, officials say

Putin ‘no longer has upper hand’ in war, says ex-CIA chiefA secret unit of Ukrainian forces launched attacks on a Russian oil tanker while operating in western Libya, officials in the north African country said.
In a suspected sea drone attack, Ukrainian forces hit the Russian-flagged Arctic Metagaz, carrying 61,000 tons of liquefied natural gas, causing it to suddenly explode in a massive fire early in March.
The oil tanker, part of Russia's so-called shadow fleet, was transporting oil in violation of international sanctions over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
It was badly damaged and its crew evacuated, leaving it to drift towards Libyan waters.
While Ukraine has not issued a direct comment on the Arctic Metagaz incident, it says Russia uses its oil export revenues to help fund the invasion, making its tanker fleet legitimate targets.
Earlier, ex-CIA chief David Petraeus said Vladimir Putin’s forces “no longer ha[ve] the upper hand” in the war with Ukraine.
He told CBS News:..

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