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US, Türkiye Pledge to Deepen Their Defense Partnership

US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan pose for a photo as they attend a bilateral meeting, on the sidelines of the G20 leaders' summit in Rome, Italy October 31, 2021. (Reuters)
US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan pose for a photo as they attend a bilateral meeting, on the sidelines of the G20 leaders' summit in Rome, Italy October 31, 2021. (Reuters)
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US, Türkiye Pledge to Deepen Their Defense Partnership

US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan pose for a photo as they attend a bilateral meeting, on the sidelines of the G20 leaders' summit in Rome, Italy October 31, 2021. (Reuters)
US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan pose for a photo as they attend a bilateral meeting, on the sidelines of the G20 leaders' summit in Rome, Italy October 31, 2021. (Reuters)

The United States and Türkiye reaffirmed their strong cooperation as partners and NATO allies, pledging to further deepen and strengthen their defense partnership.

The announcement was made during the third meeting of the US-Türkiye Strategic Mechanism Dialogue held in Washington on Thursday.

US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Turkish Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sedat Onal attended the meeting.

Building on their steadfast partnership and previous discussions under the framework Mechanism, Washington and Ankara underscored their strong cooperation as partners and NATO allies and engaged in substantive dialogue on strategic global and regional issues and areas of bilateral cooperation, a US State Department statement said following the meeting.

Relations between the US and Türkiye have been strained in recent years due to Washington’s cooperation with Kurdish groups in Syria and its stance toward the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), as well as disagreements over Türkiye’s purchase of the Russian S-400 air defense system and Washington’s sanctions against Ankara.

In the statement, the US Department said the two sides reviewed the extensive, security, economic, cultural, and people-to-people ties that underpin the bilateral relationship, adding that both countries reiterated their commitment to promote peace and stability and to further deepen and strengthen their enduring defense partnership. 

They welcomed the recent growth in their bilateral trade relations and reconfirmed their mutual determination to advance their economic cooperation in every possible field. 

“The United States and Türkiye stand together in support of global public health as well as food and energy security,” the statement said, noting that the delegations also stressed their mutual efforts to work to promote energy supply, access, efficiency, and independence.

Both sides discussed political developments in the region and consulted on the importance of strengthening Transatlantic relations. 

They underscored the need to fight terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. 

The delegations reiterated their unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and discussed ways to deepen NATO coordination. 

“The United States welcomed Türkiye’s efforts to broker the Istanbul Black Sea grain deal for safe passage of Ukrainian agricultural goods in the Black Sea,” the State Department said.

It added that Washington and Ankara explored possible avenues of cooperation in various parts of the world, including the Middle East and Africa, and underlined the importance of promoting peace in the South Caucasus.

In October, US President Joe Biden and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan met in Rome and agreed to establish a strategic mechanism that promotes high-level dialogue and addresses issues on which Türkiye and the US do not fully agree, along with issues they are working on.

The Türkiye-US Strategic Mechanism was launched during a visit by US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland to Ankara in April.

On May 18, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and his US counterpart Antony Blinken met in New York for the inaugural meeting of Mechanism.

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World

Iran: Four Tankers Struck by Explosions in Strait of Hormuz

Iran: Four Tankers Struck by Explosions in Strait of Hormuz
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Iran: Four Tankers Struck by Explosions in Strait of Hormuz

Iran: Four Tankers Struck by Explosions in Strait of Hormuz

Four oil tankers were hit by explosions in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's military said on Thursday, adding that the vessels had ignored warnings and entered what it considers restricted areas of the strategic waterway.

Tankers are still facing attacks across the strait, despite a rebound in traffic and expectations of a de-escalation in the war between the United States and Iran that have been reflected in falling oil prices.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards Navy said two supertankers were disabled by explosions on Wednesday after they ignored ⁠warnings against using what ⁠it said was an "unauthorized route".

Reuters could not immediately verify the Iranian account.

The two vessels "exploded after hitting naval mines", Iranian state media reported, broadcasting what it said was video footage of the incidents.

Iran's army later said two other tankers had hit mines on Thursday afternoon while sailing through the eastern Strait of Hormuz after ignoring ⁠warnings and disabling their radar systems, state TV reported. The tankers entered a restricted area and subsequently caught fire, it reported.

Earlier in the US-Israeli war with Iran, which began in February, the IRGC Navy announced its attacks on tankers. More recently, however, it has instead reported that vessels have caught fire after hitting naval mines while traversing the southern part of the strait, which it has declared an unauthorized route.

In several of those cases, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency (UKMTO) has said vessels had been struck by unknown projectiles.

The ⁠UKMTO said ⁠in reports on Thursday that a vessel was hit by an unidentified projectile about 14 nautical miles northwest of the UAE emirate of Ras Al-Khaimah on Wednesday while exiting the strait, causing a fire in its engine room.
Firefighting efforts were under way and all crew had been evacuated, it added.

At least 10 ships were hit in the first 10 days of November, after 37 attacks in October, which was the highest monthly tally since the conflict began in late February, according to data from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

World

Death Toll Rises to 8 in New York Building Collapse

Members of the New York City Fire Department and first responders work at the scene a day after a building collapsed in Brooklyn in New York on November 12, 2026. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)
Members of the New York City Fire Department and first responders work at the scene a day after a building collapsed in Brooklyn in New York on November 12, 2026. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)
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Death Toll Rises to 8 in New York Building Collapse

Members of the New York City Fire Department and first responders work at the scene a day after a building collapsed in Brooklyn in New York on November 12, 2026. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)
Members of the New York City Fire Department and first responders work at the scene a day after a building collapsed in Brooklyn in New York on November 12, 2026. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)

At least eight people died after a three-story building in Brooklyn collapsed at the edge of a construction site, New York City’s mayor said Thursday, as emergency workers searched for others still trapped.

Search crews peered into crevices in the rubble, pulling out victims and at least one survivor through the overnight hours. At least 17 people were injured, including three firefighters, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said. It's not clear how many more people might remain trapped.

The building gave way Wednesday afternoon while construction workers were digging at a neighboring lot, a city official said. The cause was still under investigation.

“We heard the boom and we all rushed outside and saw smoke and dust everywhere,” said Brigitte Anama, a hairstylist at a salon across the street.

Customers and stylists jumped up and ran onto the sidewalk that was engulfed in dust. Anama saw emergency workers pulling people from the site, including what appeared to be a child. “People were saying ‘Pray for the baby, pray for the baby,’” she said.

Two deaths were announced Wednesday and the others were confirmed Thursday. Authorities said late Wednesday that at least seven children were among the injured or dead.

“There are no words for a loss of this magnitude,” Mamdani posted on X. “My heart is with the families and loved ones of those we have lost, those who are injured and everyone grieving today.”

This was the second high-profile structural problem with a building in New York in the past five months. In July, several buildings in Manhattan were evacuated after support columns buckled inside a skyscraper that was formerly the headquarters of Pfizer.

Rescuers with dogs searched through the night Flatbush Avenue, a busy thoroughfare in Brooklyn, remained at a standstill Thursday morning as firefighters picked through the rubble.

Hundreds of firefighters and police officers wielding pickaxes and power saws worked through the night, clambering over the rubble, punching holes in the ruins to pull out dust-covered survivors.

Rescue dogs sniffed piles of twisted wood and brick that were dotted with brightly colored clothing and vinyl record albums. Two excavators removed large chunks of debris. Firefighters filled buckets with debris, passing them down a line.

Heavy rain was forecast for Thursday afternoon, and Fire Department Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore cautioned that could hinder search-and-rescue operations.

“It'll turn to mud,” she told WNYW-TV, vowing firefighters would work through the rain if necessary.

Much of the collapsed building, comprising apartments sitting atop ground-floor commercial space, wound up in a huge pile inside the adjacent construction pit. Another building that shared a wall with the collapsed structure remained standing, but its wall was shorn off, exposing the rooms inside, including a bedroom and closets filled with shoes and clothing.

On Wednesday night, firefighters pulled a pregnant woman from the rubble, hoisted her up on a stretcher and rushed her to a waiting ambulance. Other survivors were rescued as the night wore on, The Associated Press reported.

Bonsignore said the rescue teams were performing “dangerous and perilous” work. “Every move is choreographed,” she said.

World

Iran Pair Guilty of Spying on London-based Journalists 'for Tehran'

A seagull fly by the River Thames, near Westminster Bridge and the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, at the Houses of Parliament in central London on November 12, 2026. (Photo by Brook Mitchell / AFP)
A seagull fly by the River Thames, near Westminster Bridge and the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, at the Houses of Parliament in central London on November 12, 2026. (Photo by Brook Mitchell / AFP)
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Iran Pair Guilty of Spying on London-based Journalists 'for Tehran'

A seagull fly by the River Thames, near Westminster Bridge and the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, at the Houses of Parliament in central London on November 12, 2026. (Photo by Brook Mitchell / AFP)
A seagull fly by the River Thames, near Westminster Bridge and the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, at the Houses of Parliament in central London on November 12, 2026. (Photo by Brook Mitchell / AFP)

A UK jury on Thursday found two Iranian men guilty of spying for Iran's intelligence service, as a chief prosecutor said it showed Tehran's willingness to use "proxies" to target the regime's critics abroad.

Mostafa Sepahvand, 41, and Farhad Manesh, 46, carried out surveillance and reconnaissance on targets that included two journalists, a lawyer and a media production professional between August 2024 and March last year, with Sepahvand also prepared to commit physical attacks.

The men, who lived in London, had denied engaging in conduct likely to assist Iran's intelligence service but were found guilty by a jury at the capital's Woolwich Crown Court.

A third defendant, Shapoor Noori, 57, was cleared of the same charge.

The defendants were accused of visiting addresses linked to their targets, taking photos and videos, and using platforms such as ChatGPT to research them online.

"This was a calculated operation to spy on those critical of the Iranian regime," said Frank Ferguson of the Crown Prosecution Service's Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division.

"Sepahvand and Manesh were promised rewards to send intelligence back to contacts in Iran, and Sepahvand himself was willing to go beyond surveillance to commit serious violence against their targets.

"Cases like this show Iranian intelligence's willingness to use proxies to target the regime's critics abroad," the chief prosecutor added, according to AFP.

The prosecution said Sepahvand had intended to physically carry out a "violent attack" against at least one of the targets.

Those targeted for surveillance included journalists Kambiz Hosseini and Mojtaba Pourmohsen, who work for the London-based Farsi-language Iran International television news network, which Tehran has labelled a terror organization.

The third target was Jonathan Turner, a founder member of the group UK Lawyers for Israel. The fourth person has not been named.

Sepahvand claimed he had been coerced but prosecutors labelled his claims "bogus", describing him as a willing participant who was looking to be paid £150,000 ($200,000) and have a conviction for theft in Iran "fixed" in return for his actions.

In a transcript of a voice note read to the jury, Sepahvand said if the target was at the address given to him he would "finish him or her off".

Manesh and Noori were acquitted of engaging in surveillance and reconnaissance with the intention that serious violence against a person in the UK would be committed by others.

The case comes after the UK's interior minister Shabana Mahmood said that both Iran and Russia were "using proxies and thugs to do their dirty work on our shores".

The UK government in July banned the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a threat to national security, alongside an Iran-linked group accused of a series of attacks against the Jewish community.

In June, 22 countries, including the UK, United States and European nations, blamed the IRGC and its foreign operations branch, the Quds Force, for plotting against Iranian dissidents, journalists and Jewish communities.

The IMCR have claimed multiple attacks, including an arson attack in London against four ambulances of the Hatzola Jewish charity.

Last month, the British government again took aim at the IRGC, accusing it of being behind a major scare at a UK airbase used by the United States. Iran denied the claim.

The security incident at the Royal Air Force base of Fairford in southwest England in September involved a group of men in several white vans engaged in "suspicious" activity in the middle of the night.

The US Justice Department on Tuesday charged three men described as "Iranian operatives" with directing others to carry out numerous attacks and the Fairford "terrorist plot".

The United States, which had been using the base for its war in Iran, withdrew all its B-1 bombers from the site following the incident.