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US Navy Intercepts 'Massive' Shipment of Explosive Material Bound for Houthis

A shipment of weapons seized by the US Fifth Fleet last year (archive)
A shipment of weapons seized by the US Fifth Fleet last year (archive)
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US Navy Intercepts 'Massive' Shipment of Explosive Material Bound for Houthis

A shipment of weapons seized by the US Fifth Fleet last year (archive)
A shipment of weapons seized by the US Fifth Fleet last year (archive)

The US Navy's Fifth Fleet said on Tuesday it had intercepted a fishing vessel smuggling "massive" amounts of explosive material while transiting from Iran along a route in the Gulf of Oman that has been used to traffic weapons to Yemen's Houthi militias.

US forces found over 70 ton of ammonium perchlorate which is commonly used to make rocket and missile fuel as well as explosives, the Fifth Fleet said in a statement.

"This was a massive amount of explosive material, enough to fuel more than a dozen medium-range ballistic missiles depending on the size," said Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US Naval Forces Central Command, US 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces.

"The unlawful transfer of lethal aid from Iran does not go unnoticed. It is irresponsible, dangerous and leads to violence and instability across the Middle East," he added.

The intercepted vessel had four Yemeni crew members and also carried 100 tons of urea fertilizer, which is used in agriculture but also for making explosives, the Fifth Fleet said.

US forces sank the ship on Sunday in the Gulf of Oman as it was a "hazard to navigation for commercial shipping" and its crew were handed over to the Yemen coast guard, it added.

Last December, the Fifth Fleet seized a cargo of assault rifles and ammunition from a fishing vessel that it said were believed to have originated in Iran to supply the Houthis.

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World

US House Speaker Says 'Nothing to Hide' in Epstein Files

File Photo by The AP news
File Photo by The AP news
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US House Speaker Says 'Nothing to Hide' in Epstein Files

File Photo by The AP news
File Photo by The AP news

US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson said on Sunday he believed the approaching vote on releasing Justice Department files related to Jeffrey Epstein should help put to rest allegations that President Donald Trump had any connection to the late sex offender's abuse and trafficking of underage girls. "They're doing this to go after President Trump on this theory that he has something to do with it. He does not," Johnson, the Republican leader in the House, said on the "Fox News Sunday" program, Reuters reported.

"Epstein is their entire game plan, so we're going to take that weapon out of their hands," Johnson said of Democrats. "Let's just get this done and move it on. There's nothing to hide." Though Trump and Epstein were photographed together decades ago, the president has said the two men fell out prior to Epstein's convictions. Emails released last week by a House committee showed Epstein believed Trump "knew about the girls," though it was not clear what that phrase meant. Trump has since instructed the Department of Justice to investigate prominent Democrats' ties to Epstein. The battle over disclosure of more Epstein-related documents, a subject Trump himself campaigned on, has opened a rift with some of his allies in Congress. Trump late on Friday withdrew his support for US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, long one of his staunchest supporters in Congress, following her criticism of Republicans on certain issues, including the handling of the Epstein files.

In an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union" program on Sunday, Greene said she did not believe as-yet-unreleased files would implicate the president but she renewed her call for further transparency.

"I don't believe that rich, powerful people should be protected if they have done anything wrong," she said.

World

Iran's FM Says the Nation is No Longer Enriching Uranium at Any Site in the Country

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meets with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (unseen), in Beirut, Lebanon, June 3, 2025. (Reuters)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meets with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (unseen), in Beirut, Lebanon, June 3, 2025. (Reuters)
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Iran's FM Says the Nation is No Longer Enriching Uranium at Any Site in the Country

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meets with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (unseen), in Beirut, Lebanon, June 3, 2025. (Reuters)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meets with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (unseen), in Beirut, Lebanon, June 3, 2025. (Reuters)

Iran’s foreign minister on Sunday said that Tehran is no longer enriching uranium at any site in the country.

Answering a question from an Associated Press journalist visiting Iran, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi offered the most direct response yet from the Iranian government regarding its nuclear program following Israel and the United States' bombing its enrichment sites in June.

“There is no undeclared nuclear enrichment in Iran. All of our facilities are under the safeguards and monitoring” of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Araghchi said. “There is no enrichment right now because our facilities — our enrichment facilities — have been attacked.”

Asked what it would take for Iran to continue negotiations with the US and others, Araghchi said that Iran's message on its nuclear program remains "clear.”

“Iran’s right for enrichment, for peaceful use of nuclear technology, including enrichment, is undeniable," the foreign minister continued. “We have this right and we continue to exercise that and we hope that the international community, including the United States, recognize our rights and understand that this is an inalienable right of Iran and we would never give up our rights.”

Iran’s government issued a three-day visa for the AP reporter to attend a summit alongside other journalists from major British outlets and other media.

Iran’s Institute for Political and International Studies, affiliated with the country’s Foreign Ministry, hosted the summit. Titled “International Law Under Assault: Aggression and Self-Defense,” the conference included papers by Iranian political analysts offering Tehran’s view of the 12-day war in June, many seizing on comments from German Chancellor Friedrich Merz praising Israel for having done the “dirty work” in launching its attack.

“Iran’s defensive response was remarkable, inspiring, historic and above all, pure,” wrote Mohammad Kazem Sajjadpour, an international relations professor. “How can one possibly compare Israel’s dirty deeds to the noble and clean actions of the Iranian nation?”

Images of children killed by Israel during the war lined the walkway outside the summit, held inside the Martyr General Qassem Soleimani Building, named for the Revolutionary Guard expeditionary leader killed by a US drone strike in 2020.

But Iran finds itself in a difficult moment after the war. Israel decimated the country’s air defense systems, potentially leaving the door open to further airstrikes as tensions remain high over Tehran’s nuclear program.

World

Türkiye Proposed Joint Leadership for COP31 to End Hosting Standoff with Australia

President Tayyip Erdogan shakes hands with Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese before a MIKTA photo session amidst the G20 leaders' summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, November 15, 2022. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana/Pool/File Photo
President Tayyip Erdogan shakes hands with Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese before a MIKTA photo session amidst the G20 leaders' summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, November 15, 2022. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana/Pool/File Photo
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Türkiye Proposed Joint Leadership for COP31 to End Hosting Standoff with Australia

President Tayyip Erdogan shakes hands with Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese before a MIKTA photo session amidst the G20 leaders' summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, November 15, 2022. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana/Pool/File Photo
President Tayyip Erdogan shakes hands with Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese before a MIKTA photo session amidst the G20 leaders' summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, November 15, 2022. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana/Pool/File Photo

Türkiye has proposed jointly leading next year's UN climate summit with Australia, though the two sides have not yet reached an agreement and the discussions on the hosting standoff remain unresolved, Turkish diplomatic sources said.

Australia and Türkiye both submitted bids in 2022 to host COP31 and neither has withdrawn, leading to an attention-sapping impasse that must be overcome at this year's COP30 meeting currently taking place in Belem, Brazil.

The annual COP – or Conference of the Parties - is the world's main forum for driving climate action. The host matters because they set the agenda and lead the diplomacy needed to reach global agreements, Reuters reported.

The Turkish sources said Türkiye and Australia explored a joint presidency model during talks on the margins of the UN General Assembly in September, including sharing hosting duties for high-level meetings and jointly steering negotiations.

Those conversations created "a basis of mutual understanding", they said, but the proposal had not advanced.

According to the sources, later exchanges showed differing views on how a co-presidency could function within UN procedures.

Australian Energy Minister Chris Bowen travelled to Brazil on Saturday for COP30, saying a decision would be taken there and that Australia had “overwhelming support” for its candidacy.

Canberra says it wants to co-host with Pacific island nations to highlight the climate threats they face. The Pacific Islands Forum is backing Australia’s bid.

Türkiye, for its part, says its candidacy emphasises cooperation and inclusiveness and aims to put greater focus on financing for developing countries while showcasing its progress towards a 2053 net-zero emissions goal.

President Tayyip Erdogan expressed this view in recent correspondence with the Australian prime minister, the Turkish sources said, adding that Türkiye still believed “flexible formulas” could be developed through continued consultations.

At the same time, the sources said Türkiye was prepared to host the summit alone and assume the presidency if no agreement was reached.

The annual talks rotate through five regional groups, with COP31's host needing to be unanimously agreed upon by the 28 members of the "Western Europe and Others Group" bloc, which includes Australia and Türkiye.