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Israeli Defense Minister Says No Need for Opposition Approval to Launch Strikes

World 25 June 2024, Jerusalem: Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz is pictured in Jerusalem. (dpa)

Israeli Defense Minister Says No Need for Opposition Approval to Launch Strikes

Israel's defense minister said Thursday that caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not need opposition permission to order fresh military operations…

World People walk past a television broadcast showing stock indexes and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in Taipei, Taiwan, 13 November 2026. (EPA)

US Lawmakers Summon Nvidia Ex-CEO After Affair with Suspected Spy

US lawmakers have called Jensen Huang, an architect of the artificial intelligence boom, to face their questions in December after the Nvidia ex-CEO quit over…

World Albert K. Barume, UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, speaks during a press conference in Sydney on November 13, 2026. (AFP)

Indigenous Rights in Australia ‘Embarrassing’, Says UN Envoy

Cases of Indigenous women shackled while giving birth and growing numbers of children in detention are "embarrassing" to Australia, the UN's special rapporteur…

World  Leftist party La France Insoumise (LFI) candidate in France's 2027 presidential election Jean-Luc Melenchon gestures as he delivers a speech during a campaign rally in La Souterraine on November 11, 2026. (AFP)

Israel Says Will Ban French Hard-Left Leader Melenchon from Entry

Israel said on Thursday it would ban French hard-left presidential contender Jean-Luc Melenchon from visiting after he vowed that if he were elected, French…

World US special envoys Steve Witkoff, right, Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump's son-in-law, left, and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speak to the media at the airport in Dublin, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026.(AP)

Kushner Says US Working Toward ‘Largest Prisoner Exchange’ of Russia’s War in Ukraine

US President Donald Trump's envoy and son-in-law Jared Kushner said on Thursday Russia and Ukraine agreed to expand the next round of talks to include European…


World Demonstrators flags of Iran and Lebanon during a protest against US military action in Iran near the White House in Washington, DC, on April 8, 2026. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)

Iranian Delegation Due in Islamabad ahead of US Talks

An Iranian delegation is expected to arrive in Islamabad late Thursday ahead of Pakistan-brokered talks with the United States, Iran's envoy said. Pakistan…

Asharq Al Awsat
World US President Donald Trump, flanked by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, speaks during a press conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC, US, April 6, 2026. (Reuters)

Trump Says US-Iran Talks Will Be Behind Closed Doors

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said talks on the Iran crisis would be held behind closed doors, and that "only one group of meaningful 'POINTS'" were…

World  France's Defense Minister Catherine Vautrin speaks during the press conference following the weekly cabinet meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris on April 8, 2026. (AFP)

France Unveils Rearmament Boost to Face Russia Threat

France is to ramp up explosive drone stocks by up to 400 percent by 2030, draft legislation showed Wednesday, as the country seeks to accelerate rearmament to…

World A general view of Kabul, Afghanistan, 06 April 2026. (EPA)

China Says Afghanistan and Pakistan Agree to Explore a ‘Comprehensive Solution’

China's government said that Afghanistan and Pakistan have agreed not to escalate their conflict and to "explore a comprehensive solution” after several weeks…

World People wave Iranian national flags as they gather at Enghelab Square following the US-Iran ceasefire announcement, in Tehran, Iran, 08 April 2026. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH

Pakistan PM Says US-Iran Ceasefire Violations Reported, Urges Restraint

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday that violations of the ceasefire between the United States and Iran "have been reported" and pressed…

Asharq Al Awsat
World FILED - 03 March 2026, US, Washington: US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with German Chancellor Merz at the White House. Photo: Kay Nietfeld/dpa

Germany's Merz Speaks with Trump after Iran Ceasefire, Sources Says

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz spoke with US President Donald Trump by telephone on Wednesday afternoon after the latter's ceasefire with Iran, two German…

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World An Iranian national flag is placed by the rubble of a collapsed building following strikes at Sharif University of Technology in Tehran on April 7, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) /

Iran Downs Israeli-made Drone above Town in South: State TV

Iranian forces downed an Israeli-made Hermes drone flying above the town of Lar in the south of the country on Wednesday, state television said, citing a…

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World An employee walks inside the facilities of an oil refinery in Vadinar, in the western state of Gujarat, India (file- Reuters)

India Withdraws Bid to Host Annual UN Climate Talks in 2028

India has withdrawn its offer to host the United Nations annual climate Conference Of the Parties (COP33) in 2028, two government officials familiar with the…

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World FILE PHOTO: A map showing the Strait of Hormuz, also known as Madiq Hurmuz, is seen in this illustration taken March 26, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Iran Could Open Strait of Hormuz in a Controlled Way ahead of Meeting with US, Senior Iranian Official Says

Iran could open the Strait of Hormuz in a limited and controlled way on Thursday or Friday ahead of a meeting between US and Iranian officials in Pakistan, a…

Asharq Al Awsat
World A drone view shows police officers and medics standing at the scene, after a gunfire was heard near the building housing the Israeli consulate, according to a witness, in Istanbul, Türkiye, April 7, 2026. REUTERS/Mehmet Emin Caliskan

10 Reportedly Detained in Türkiye Over Shootout Near Israel Mission

Ten people, including two wounded gunmen, were in detention Wednesday a day after a deadly shootout near the Israeli consulate in Istanbul, the state Anadolu…

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World Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy poses for a picture after an interview with Reuters, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine March 25, 2026. (Reuters)

Kyiv Calls for Ukraine Ceasefire After Iran Truce

Kyiv on Wednesday called on the United States to pressure Russia into ending its invasion of Ukraine, saying Washington's ceasefire agreement with Iran showed…

World  Pope Leo XIV speaks to the media on the US–Israeli conflict with Iran, as he leaves the papal residence to head back to the Vatican, in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, April 7, 2026. (Reuters)

Pope Leo Praises Iran War Ceasefire After Criticizing Trump Threat

Pope Leo on Wednesday praised the two-week ceasefire in the Iran war, hours after calling US President Donald Trump's threat against the population of Iran …

World Service members of the 154th Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces carry ammo before delivering it to a position of their brothers-in-arms, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near a front line in Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine April 6, 2026. (Reuters)

Russian Drone Damages Infrastructure at Ukraine’s Largest Danube Port

A Russian overnight drone attack on Ukraine's largest Danube river port, Izmail, damaged a port facility, Ukraine's regional development ministry said on…

World People walk past the portraits of French nationals Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris in front of the French National Assembly in Paris on July 3, 2025. (AP)

French Pair Back in Paris After Iran ‘Terrible Ordeal’

Two French nationals arrived in Paris on Wednesday after spending more than three years in an Iranian prison on espionage charges, with President Emmanuel…

World  A government supporter chants slogans during a gathering after the announcement of a two-week ceasefire with the United States and Israel in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP)

EU Welcomes US-Iran Ceasefire, Urges Efforts to Create Lasting Agreement

EU leaders on Wednesday welcomed the two-week ceasefire agreed by the United States and Iran. "I welcome the two-week ceasefire the US and Iran agreed last…

World Media wait outside Silverwater Correctional Complex after former Australian Defence Force soldier Ben Roberts-Smith was charged with alleged war crimes committed in Afghanistan, in Sydney, Australia, April 8, 2026. REUTERS/Hollie Adams

Former Australian Soldier to Remain in Jail on Afghan War Crime Charges

Australia's most decorated living soldier will remain behind bars after his legal team did not seek bail following his arrest over multiple alleged war crimes,…

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World  People enter an underground parking garage as sirens warn of an incoming missile fired from Yemen in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP)

Israel Opposition Leaders Slam Netanyahu Over Ceasefire with Iran

Israel's opposition leaders swiftly criticized the ceasefire with Iran on Wednesday, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of failing to achieve the war's…

World Former France's President Nicolas Sarkozy returns to the courtroom following a recess in his appeal trial over charges he sought Libyan financing for his 2007 election, at the Palais de Justice courthouse in Paris on April 7, 2026. (AFP)

Sarkozy Asserts his ‘Innocence’ Over Libya Funding

France's ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy on Tuesday told an appeal trial there was "not a single cent of Libyan money" in the campaign that saw him elected in…

World This picture taken and released by Taiwan's Central News Agency (CNA) on April 8, 2026, shows Kuomintang Chairperson Cheng Li-wen speaking to the press after a visit at the Sun Yat-Sen Mausoleum in Nanjing, in China's eastern Jiangsu province on April 8, 2026. (Central News Agency (CNA) / AFP)

Taiwan Opposition Leader Says China Visit to Sow ‘Seeds of Peace’

Taiwan's opposition leader, a proponent of closer ties with Beijing, said on Wednesday she hoped to sow the "seeds of peace" during a rare visit to China. …

World A man walks past a television screen showing a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test, at a train station in Seoul on April 8, 2026. (Photo by Jung Yeon-je / AFP)

North Korea Fires Multiple Ballistic Missiles Towards East Sea

North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles on Wednesday, South Korea's military said, hours after reporting an "unidentified projectile"…

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World President Donald Trump speaks with reporters during the White House Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House, Monday, April 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

US, Israel and Iran Agree to 2-week Ceasefire

Iran, the United States and Israel reached a tentative, two-week ceasefire Wednesday in the war that tore across the Middle East and disrupted the global…

Asharq Al Awsat (Washington)
World A view of the building which houses the Israeli consulate in Istanbul after three gunmen engaged in a shootout with security personnel near the building in Istanbul, Türkiye, 07 April 2026. (EPA)

Gunmen Attack Police Near Building Housing Israeli Consulate in Istanbul

Three assailants opened fire at police outside a building housing the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul on Tuesday, sparking a gunfight that left one attacker dead…

World United States Ambassador to the United Nations Michael Waltz speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting at United Nations Headquarters in New York, New York, USA, 07 April 2026. (EPA)

Russia and China Veto Watered-Down UN Resolution Aimed at Reopening the Strait of Hormuz

Russia and China on Tuesday vetoed a UN Security Council resolution aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz that had been repeatedly watered down in hopes…

World An Iranian flag lies amidst the rubble of a building of the Sharif University of Technology, which was damaged in a strike, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Tehran, Iran, April 7, 2026. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters

Deliberate Attacks on Civilian Targets ‘A War Crime’, Says UN

The UN rights chief decried Tuesday the "incendiary rhetoric" in the Middle East war, warning that deliberate attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure…