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Lebanon PM Says Won’t Allow Country to Be Dragged into New Conflict

Smoke and flames rise from a building after an Israeli airstrike in Ain Qana village, in southern Lebanon, 02 February 2026. (EPA)
Smoke and flames rise from a building after an Israeli airstrike in Ain Qana village, in southern Lebanon, 02 February 2026. (EPA)
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Lebanon PM Says Won’t Allow Country to Be Dragged into New Conflict

Smoke and flames rise from a building after an Israeli airstrike in Ain Qana village, in southern Lebanon, 02 February 2026. (EPA)
Smoke and flames rise from a building after an Israeli airstrike in Ain Qana village, in southern Lebanon, 02 February 2026. (EPA)

Lebanon's prime minister said Tuesday he will not allow his country to be dragged into a new conflict, after Hezbollah warned any attack on its Iranian backer would be an attack on the group.

"We will never allow anyone to drag the country into another adventure," Nawaf Salam said during the World Governments Summit in Dubai, in response to a question about comments made by Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem last week.

Qassem had responded to American threats of military action against Iran, saying: "We will choose at that time how to act... but we are not neutral."

Salam said Hezbollah's decision to enter the Gaza war in support of its ally Hamas had "very big" consequences for Lebanon and that "no one is willing to expose the country to adventures of this kind".

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Arab World

Arab League, Arab Parliament Condemn Closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque

A view of the Aqsa Mosque is pictured in Old City of Jerusalem on March 6, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
A view of the Aqsa Mosque is pictured in Old City of Jerusalem on March 6, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
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Arab League, Arab Parliament Condemn Closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque

A view of the Aqsa Mosque is pictured in Old City of Jerusalem on March 6, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
A view of the Aqsa Mosque is pictured in Old City of Jerusalem on March 6, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)

The General Secretariat of the Arab League expressed deep concern over the continued measures by the Israeli occupation authorities to close Al-Aqsa Mosque to Muslim worshippers, particularly during the holy month of Ramadan, considering this a violation of freedom of worship and an infringement of the historical and legal status quo of the holy sites in the city of Jerusalem.

In a statement issued Thursday, the General Secretariat stressed that Al-Aqsa Mosque holds a special religious and historical status for Muslims around the world, and that any measures restricting access to it or hindering the performance of religious rituals there could lead to an escalation of tensions and undermine efforts to achieve calm and stability, SPA reported.

The Arab League called on the international community and concerned organizations to assume their responsibilities to protect the holy sites and preserve the historical and legal status quo in Jerusalem, stressing that respect for holy sites and freedom of worship are fundamental to maintaining stability and enhancing prospects for peace in the region.

Also, the speaker of the Arab Parliament Mohammed bin Ahmed Al-Yamahi condemned the Israeli occupation's ongoing measures that close the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Haram Al-Sharif to Muslim worshippers, particularly during Ramadan. He described these actions as violations of the freedom of worship and an infringement on the historical status quo in occupied Jerusalem.

Al-Yamahi stated that restricting access to Al-Aqsa Mosque is a troubling escalation that provokes Muslims globally and reflects efforts to alter the city's Arab and Islamic identity. He emphasized that the Al-Aqsa Mosque, covering 144 dunams, is exclusively for Muslim worship.

He warned that such restrictions would heighten tensions in the region and expressed concern over violations at the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron. He called on the international community, including the United Nations, to protect the holy sites in Jerusalem and ensure respect for the historical status of Islamic and Christian sacred sites.

Arab World

Iraq to Keep Crude Output at 1.4 million bpd amid Hormuz Tensions, Oil Minister Says

Technicians working at the Majnoon oil field in Basra, Iraq. (Reuters)
Technicians working at the Majnoon oil field in Basra, Iraq. (Reuters)
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Iraq to Keep Crude Output at 1.4 million bpd amid Hormuz Tensions, Oil Minister Says

Technicians working at the Majnoon oil field in Basra, Iraq. (Reuters)
Technicians working at the Majnoon oil field in Basra, Iraq. (Reuters)

Iraq will keep crude oil production at around 1.4 million barrels per day, Oil Minister Hayan Abdel-Ghani ​was quoted as saying on Thursday, less than a third of the level before the US-Israeli conflict with Iran.

According to the state news agency, the minister said that 200,000 bpd is being transported by truck through Türkiye, Syria, and Jordan ‌and that ‌Iraq has put in ​place ‌a ⁠plan ​to manage ⁠the current disruptions.

Oil production from Iraq's main southern oilfields, where most of its oil is produced and exported, has plunged 70% to just 1.3 million bpd, sources told Reuters on March 8, as the country ⁠is unable to export via the ‌Gulf due to ‌the war.

The drop in ​production and exports ‌is set to strain Iraq's already fragile finances ‌as the state relies on crude sales for nearly all public spending and more than 90% of its income.

Under pressure to mitigate ‌the losses, the oil ministry has asked the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) if ⁠it ⁠would pump at least 100,000 bpd from its state-managed Kirkuk oilfields to Türkiye's Ceyhan port, sources told Reuters on Wednesday. The ministry said the KRG has not yet responded to the request.

Abdel-Ghani was quoted as saying on Thursday that Iraq will sign an agreement on exporting oil through the Ceyhan pipeline, but he did not ​give further details. 

Arab World

51 Crew Rescued, 1 Dead after Attack on Tankers Off Iraq

An oil tanker burns after being hit by an Iranian strike in the ship-to-ship transfer zone at Khor al-Zubair port near Basra, Iraq, late Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo)
An oil tanker burns after being hit by an Iranian strike in the ship-to-ship transfer zone at Khor al-Zubair port near Basra, Iraq, late Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo)
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51 Crew Rescued, 1 Dead after Attack on Tankers Off Iraq

An oil tanker burns after being hit by an Iranian strike in the ship-to-ship transfer zone at Khor al-Zubair port near Basra, Iraq, late Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo)
An oil tanker burns after being hit by an Iranian strike in the ship-to-ship transfer zone at Khor al-Zubair port near Basra, Iraq, late Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo)

More than 50 crew members were rescued after an attack on two oil tankers in Iraq's territorial waters, Farhan al-Fartousi of the port authorities told AFP.

Fartousi, from Iraq's General Company for Ports, said "all crew members of the two tankers were rescued," adding that the 51 workers were in good condition.

The attack killed at least one crew member, an Indian national.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Thursday they had struck a Marshall Islands-flagged ship, which they claimed was US-owned, in the north of the Gulf.

The vessel, Safesea Vishnu, came under attack March 11 while operating near Basra, India’s embassy said.

The remaining 15 Indian crew members were evacuated and are safe, the embassy added.