Turkish-Owned Ship Allowed to Pass Through Strait of Hormuz, Minister Says

A man walks along the shore as oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz, seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP)
A man walks along the shore as oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz, seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP)
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Turkish-Owned Ship Allowed to Pass Through Strait of Hormuz, Minister Says

A man walks along the shore as oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz, seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP)
A man walks along the shore as oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz, seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP)

A Turkish-owned ship that had been waiting near Iran was allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz after authorities received permission from Tehran, Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu said. 

In comments to Turkish media on Thursday that were released on Friday, Uraloglu said Ankara had declared the highest-level security warning ‌for the strait ‌and continued contacts with Iranian ‌officials ⁠regarding the situation ⁠of the remaining 14 Turkish-owned vessels there. 

"Fifteen ships (with Turkish owners) were there; we obtained permission from the Iranian authorities for one of them, which had used an Iranian port, and it passed," Uraloglu said. 

The ministry said the ⁠ship that passed the strait was ‌the Rozana. It added ‌that Turkish-owned vessels had a total of 171 personnel ‌in the area. 

The US-Israeli war on Iran ‌has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, leaving tankers and other ships stranded, which has stoked concerns about global energy supply. 

Separately, the ministry said Turkish ‌Airlines and Ajet had cancelled flights to Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Doha, Dubai, ⁠Abu ⁠Dhabi, Kuwait, Bahrain and Dammam until March 19, while flights to Iran were cancelled until March 20. 

Pegasus Airlines cancelled flights to Kuwait, Bahrain, Doha, Amman, Beirut, Iraq, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah until March 23, while cancelling Iran flights until March 28, it added. 

Turkish Airlines has added flights to Oman, it said, adding that 76 flights had been diverted to Türkiye since the start of the war on February 28. 



Iran Executes Two Men Convicted of Killing Police Officers during January Protests

The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
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Iran Executes Two Men Convicted of Killing Police Officers during January Protests

The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters, before the beginning of a board of governors meeting, in Vienna, Austria, March 1, 2021. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner

Iran has executed two men convicted of killing four police ‌officers ‌during violent ‌unrest in ⁠the central city ⁠of Isfahan in January, judiciary-linked news outlet ⁠Mizan ‌reported on ‌Sunday.

Mizan identified ‌the ‌men as Erfan Esfandiyari and Golmohammad ‌Mohammadi, adding that their ⁠death ⁠sentences were carried out on Sunday after a court process, according to Reuters.


Congo Says Number of Confirmed Ebola Cases Rises to 2,267, Including 893 Deaths

The entrance to the Ebola Treatment Center at Rwampara General Hospital stands unstaffed during a medical staff strike in Rwampara, Ituri, Democratic Republic of Congo, 13 July 2026. EPA/DIEUDONNE DIROLE
The entrance to the Ebola Treatment Center at Rwampara General Hospital stands unstaffed during a medical staff strike in Rwampara, Ituri, Democratic Republic of Congo, 13 July 2026. EPA/DIEUDONNE DIROLE
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Congo Says Number of Confirmed Ebola Cases Rises to 2,267, Including 893 Deaths

The entrance to the Ebola Treatment Center at Rwampara General Hospital stands unstaffed during a medical staff strike in Rwampara, Ituri, Democratic Republic of Congo, 13 July 2026. EPA/DIEUDONNE DIROLE
The entrance to the Ebola Treatment Center at Rwampara General Hospital stands unstaffed during a medical staff strike in Rwampara, Ituri, Democratic Republic of Congo, 13 July 2026. EPA/DIEUDONNE DIROLE

The number of confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo ‌has ‌increased to 2,267, ‌including ⁠893 deaths, government ⁠data showed late on Saturday.

The figure represents the ⁠total number ‌of ‌confirmed cases ‌as of ‌Friday, according to a situation report ‌that documented 86 new cases and ⁠29 ⁠new deaths in the previous 24 hours, Reuters said.


Southern China Braces for More Rain, Chongqing Landslide Search Continues

Rescuers work at the scene of a landslide in Pengshui County, southwestern China's Chongqing on Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP)
Rescuers work at the scene of a landslide in Pengshui County, southwestern China's Chongqing on Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP)
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Southern China Braces for More Rain, Chongqing Landslide Search Continues

Rescuers work at the scene of a landslide in Pengshui County, southwestern China's Chongqing on Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP)
Rescuers work at the scene of a landslide in Pengshui County, southwestern China's Chongqing on Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP)

China's ‌meteorological authority on Sunday issued a heavy rain alert for parts of southern China, following a warning a day earlier of mountain flood risks in areas like Chongqing and Yunnan and potential emergency evacuations in vulnerable places.

Cutting south China diagonally, the sprawling rain ‌belt stretches from ‌the southwestern province of ‌Yunnan ⁠to the Yangtze River ⁠Delta in China's eastern coast.

Rail authorities suspended some passenger trains on the Shanghai–Kunming railway on Sunday due to heavy rain, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

In Yunnan, ⁠several scenic spots including ‌the Tiger Leaping ‌Gorge were temporarily closed following heavy ‌rain over the weekend.

Parts of ‌southwestern Guangxi region, still recovering from the impact of Typhoon Maysak earlier this month, was bracing for a new ‌round of rain through Tuesday.

Hydrological authorities in Guangxi's ⁠Baise ⁠said some rivers rose by one to three meters (three to nine feet) over the past 24 hours, CCTV reported Sunday.

A rain-triggered landslide in a county in southwest China's Chongqing on Friday has killed eight people, while rescuers are still racing to find 34 people that remain missing.