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French Foreign Minister Le Drian Held Talks with Iraq President Salih

Salih and Le Drian meet in Baghdad in January 2019. (Iraqi Presidency)
Salih and Le Drian meet in Baghdad in January 2019. (Iraqi Presidency)
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French Foreign Minister Le Drian Held Talks with Iraq President Salih

Salih and Le Drian meet in Baghdad in January 2019. (Iraqi Presidency)
Salih and Le Drian meet in Baghdad in January 2019. (Iraqi Presidency)

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian held "thorough and confident" talks with Iraq's President Barham Salih late on Thursday, wrote Le Drian on his Twitter page.

"Following on from the Baghdad conference of August 28 and the ministerial meeting in New York on September 21, I reaffirmed the support of France for Iraq and for regional dialogue," added Le Drian on Friday, without giving further details.

Iraq has become the playground of rivalries between Iran on one side and the United States on the other, with attacks against US forces and assassinations of Iranian and Iraqi paramilitary leaders.

Gulf Arab and Iranian officials had met in Baghdad on August 28 on the sidelines of a regional summit that Iraq hoped would encourage its neighbors to talk to each other instead of settling scores on its territory.

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Arab World

Lebanon President Calls for Israel Talks to Prevent Gaza-Style Destruction

A man stands as rescuers work at the site of Israeli strike, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israeli conflict with Iran continues, in Kfar Hatta in southern Lebanon, April 5, 2026. (Reuters)
A man stands as rescuers work at the site of Israeli strike, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israeli conflict with Iran continues, in Kfar Hatta in southern Lebanon, April 5, 2026. (Reuters)
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Lebanon President Calls for Israel Talks to Prevent Gaza-Style Destruction

A man stands as rescuers work at the site of Israeli strike, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israeli conflict with Iran continues, in Kfar Hatta in southern Lebanon, April 5, 2026. (Reuters)
A man stands as rescuers work at the site of Israeli strike, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, as the US-Israeli conflict with Iran continues, in Kfar Hatta in southern Lebanon, April 5, 2026. (Reuters)

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun reiterated on Sunday a call for negotiations with Israel, saying he wanted to spare his country's south from destruction on the scale seen in Gaza.

"It is true that Israel might want to do in southern Lebanon what it did in Gaza," Aoun said in a televised address, after Israel launched airstrikes and a ground offensive against Hezbollah, destroying several southern Lebanese villages.

"Gaza was destroyed, over 70,000 people were killed, and they eventually sat down and negotiated, so why don't we negotiate... until we can at least save the homes that have not yet been destroyed?" he added.

Arab World

Egypt Says It Held Calls with US Witkoff, Regional Counterparts

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty speaks during a joint news conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov following their meeting in Moscow, Russia April 3, 2026. (Pavel Bednyakov/Pool via Reuters)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty speaks during a joint news conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov following their meeting in Moscow, Russia April 3, 2026. (Pavel Bednyakov/Pool via Reuters)
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Egypt Says It Held Calls with US Witkoff, Regional Counterparts

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty speaks during a joint news conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov following their meeting in Moscow, Russia April 3, 2026. (Pavel Bednyakov/Pool via Reuters)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty speaks during a joint news conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov following their meeting in Moscow, Russia April 3, 2026. (Pavel Bednyakov/Pool via Reuters)

Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty held separate calls to discuss proposals for regional de-escalation with ‌US Envoy ‌Steve Witkoff ‌and ⁠regional counterparts including Iranian ⁠Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, the ministry said in a ⁠statement on ‌Sunday.

Egypt, ‌Türkiye and ‌Pakistan have ‌emerged as active intermediaries in the crisis, with ‌Islamabad recently hosting a meeting to ⁠discuss ⁠regional de-escalation and proposals to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Arab World

Hezbollah Says Targeted Israeli Warship with Cruise Missile

A man checks his phone on a beach as smoke rises from Israeli artillery shells on Qlaileh village, visible from Tyre city, south Lebanon, March 28, 2026. (AP)
A man checks his phone on a beach as smoke rises from Israeli artillery shells on Qlaileh village, visible from Tyre city, south Lebanon, March 28, 2026. (AP)
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Hezbollah Says Targeted Israeli Warship with Cruise Missile

A man checks his phone on a beach as smoke rises from Israeli artillery shells on Qlaileh village, visible from Tyre city, south Lebanon, March 28, 2026. (AP)
A man checks his phone on a beach as smoke rises from Israeli artillery shells on Qlaileh village, visible from Tyre city, south Lebanon, March 28, 2026. (AP)

Hezbollah on Sunday said it had targeted an Israeli warship with a cruise missile off the Lebanese coast, the first such claim by the group since the start of the Middle East war. 

In a statement, the Iran-backed group said it targeted the vessel 68 nautical miles off the Lebanese coast, claiming the warship was "preparing to launch attacks on Lebanese territory". 

The Israeli military told AFP when contacted: "We are not aware of it." 

Israeli warships have been used on several recent occasions to launch strikes on Lebanon.