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France Investigates Reports of Drones Over Nuclear Sub Base

A picture taken on December 5, 2016 shows a nuclear submarine at the naval base in Ile Longue, western of France. (AFP)
A picture taken on December 5, 2016 shows a nuclear submarine at the naval base in Ile Longue, western of France. (AFP)
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France Investigates Reports of Drones Over Nuclear Sub Base

A picture taken on December 5, 2016 shows a nuclear submarine at the naval base in Ile Longue, western of France. (AFP)
A picture taken on December 5, 2016 shows a nuclear submarine at the naval base in Ile Longue, western of France. (AFP)

French prosecutors are investigating after drones were suspected to have flown over a nuclear submarine base on the Atlantic coast late on Thursday, a prosecutor in charge of military affairs in the city of Rennes said on Friday.

Jean-Marie Blin said overflights had been reported from around 7 p.m. (1800 GMT) on Thursday until 1 a.m. (midnight GMT) on Friday morning, with the bulk of the sightings occurring during the first couple of hours.

He denied press reports that gendarmes had fired at the suspected drones, but said they had taken "precautionary measures".

Drone flights, mostly of unknown origin, have been disrupting Europe's airspace in the past few months. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called the incursions "hybrid warfare". Russia regularly denies accusations that it is responsible.

The Ile Longue base in northwest France houses nuclear-powered submarines, according to the navy's website. Each is equipped with 16 ballistic missiles carrying several nuclear warheads.

Blin said the investigation was for now focused on verifying whether there really had been drones in the sky. "Some of the reports may be completely fanciful, others are much more serious."

He said the reports had come from different people on site, including gendarmes and military officers.

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World

Kremlin Says Putin’s Proposals on Iran Are Still on the Table

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a government meeting focused on the situation on the global energy market at the Kremlin, in Moscow, Monday, March 9, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a government meeting focused on the situation on the global energy market at the Kremlin, in Moscow, Monday, March 9, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
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Kremlin Says Putin’s Proposals on Iran Are Still on the Table

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a government meeting focused on the situation on the global energy market at the Kremlin, in Moscow, Monday, March 9, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a government meeting focused on the situation on the global energy market at the Kremlin, in Moscow, Monday, March 9, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered different options to mediate and ways to reduce tensions in the Iran ‌conflict and ‌these proposals ‌are still ⁠on the table, ⁠the Kremlin said on Tuesday.

Moscow is ready to provide any ⁠assistance it ‌can ‌to reduce the tensions ‌in the ‌Middle East, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

He declined ‌to provide additional details on the ⁠specifics of ⁠the "considerations" on Iran that Putin raised on a call with US President Donald Trump.

World

Türkiye Says US Patriot System Deployed to Boost Air Defense amid Iran War

A Turkish soldier stands guard as army and security personnel search a field after a piece of ammunition fell following the interception of a missile launched from Iran by a NATO air defense system, in Diyarbakir, Türkiye, March 9, 2026. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
A Turkish soldier stands guard as army and security personnel search a field after a piece of ammunition fell following the interception of a missile launched from Iran by a NATO air defense system, in Diyarbakir, Türkiye, March 9, 2026. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
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Türkiye Says US Patriot System Deployed to Boost Air Defense amid Iran War

A Turkish soldier stands guard as army and security personnel search a field after a piece of ammunition fell following the interception of a missile launched from Iran by a NATO air defense system, in Diyarbakir, Türkiye, March 9, 2026. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
A Turkish soldier stands guard as army and security personnel search a field after a piece of ammunition fell following the interception of a missile launched from Iran by a NATO air defense system, in Diyarbakir, Türkiye, March 9, 2026. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar

Türkiye said on Tuesday that a US Patriot air defense system was deployed to its southeast, near a NATO radar base, as part of steps by the alliance to boost air defenses in the face of missile threats from the Iran war.

It is being deployed to Malatya province, the location of the Kurecik NATO radar base, which provides vital data for the alliance ‌and helped ‌identify two Iranian ballistic missiles heading toward ‌ Türkiye ⁠over the last ⁠week, said Reuters.

Iran has said it is not at war with regional countries and denies explicitly targeting its neighbor Türkiye. Ankara has warned Tehran against firing any more missiles towards it and the two countries' presidents discussed the issue on Monday.

"In addition to ⁠the measures we take on a ‌national level, air and missile ‌defense measures by NATO have been increased. In that ‌framework, one Patriot System is being deployed to ‌Malatya to contribute to defending our air space," the defense ministry said.

It added that Türkiye would continue to evaluate regional developments and cooperate with NATO allies.

The deployment comes ‌amid reports that Washington is looking into redeploying its military assets, including Patriot ⁠systems, currently stationed ⁠in South Korea.

It was not immediately clear where the Patriot system or its batteries were being redeployed from.

Türkiye, an emerging leader in the global defense industry that has the alliance's second-largest army, lacks its own fully fledged air defenses despite development efforts, and has relied on NATO air defenses stationed in the eastern Mediterranean Sea in both missile incidents in the last week.

There is currently one Patriot system, from Spain, deployed in Türkiye as part of NATO defens es.

World

Israel’s Netanyahu Warns ‘We Are Not Done Yet’ in Iran

A person holds a sign supporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump during a gathering of Iranian community members showing support for Israel and the United States, outside the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles, on March 5, 2026. (AFP)
A person holds a sign supporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump during a gathering of Iranian community members showing support for Israel and the United States, outside the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles, on March 5, 2026. (AFP)
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Israel’s Netanyahu Warns ‘We Are Not Done Yet’ in Iran

A person holds a sign supporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump during a gathering of Iranian community members showing support for Israel and the United States, outside the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles, on March 5, 2026. (AFP)
A person holds a sign supporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump during a gathering of Iranian community members showing support for Israel and the United States, outside the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles, on March 5, 2026. (AFP)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Israel's military offensive against Iran was "not done yet", saying the operation was degrading Iran's clerical leadership.

"Our aspiration is to bring the Iranian people to cast off the yoke of tyranny; ultimately, it depends on them. But there is no doubt that with the actions taken so far, we are breaking their bones -- and we are not done yet," Netanyahu said during a visit to the National Health Command Center on Monday night, according to a statement published Tuesday.

Israel ‌is ahead of schedule in achieving its war goals in Iran, its ambassador to France said on Tuesday, adding that the operation aims to weaken Iran’s authorities to curb attacks beyond its borders and allow its people to shape their own future. 

"When we were asked at the start of this war about its duration, we said ‌it would ‌last a few weeks. ‌That ⁠hasn’t changed," Joshua Zarka told ⁠BFM TV. "We are ahead of schedule to achieve our war objectives." 

Zarka, formerly Israel’s lead diplomat on Iran, said the goals extend beyond ending Iran’s nuclear program. They include weakening the government to the point ⁠that its population can "take its fate ‌into its own ‌hands," and ensuring Tehran can no longer mount ‌attacks beyond its borders. 

Asked about the ‌appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei as the new Supreme Leader, Zarka said that if he follows his father Ali Khamenei's positions, he "would also be on ‌a list of those who should be eliminated." 

Israel has simultaneously launched ⁠major ⁠operations against Iran-backed Hezbollah after it struck Israeli territory. The Lebanese government has said it wants direct talks with Israel to halt the fighting, but Zarka argued that Beirut is not disarming Hezbollah. 

"At this stage, I’m not aware of any decision to enter negotiations to end this war," he said. "What would end it is the disarmament of Hezbollah — and that is a choice for the Lebanese government."