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Rubio Says Progress Made on Iran

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on as he speaks with reporters during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers, in Helsingborg, Sweden May 22, 2026. Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Pool via REUTERS
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on as he speaks with reporters during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers, in Helsingborg, Sweden May 22, 2026. Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Pool via REUTERS
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Rubio Says Progress Made on Iran

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on as he speaks with reporters during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers, in Helsingborg, Sweden May 22, 2026. Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Pool via REUTERS
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on as he speaks with reporters during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers, in Helsingborg, Sweden May 22, 2026. Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Pool via REUTERS

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Saturday that some progress has been made on Washington's dispute with Iran and that the US might have "something to say" on the issue in the coming days.

"There's been some progress done, some progress made, even as I speak to you now, there's some work being done. There is a chance that, whether it's later today, tomorrow, in a couple days, we may have something to say," Rubio told reporters during his visit to New Delhi.

Meanwhile, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Saturday that Tehran was in the final stages of drafting a framework for a deal to end the war with the United States.

"Within a reasonable period of 30 to 60 days, the details of these points will be discussed and a final agreement will ultimately be concluded. We are currently in the process of finalizing these memoranda of understanding," he told state broadcaster IRIB.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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World

UK Unveils Sanctions against Sudan Gold Networks

The Britain's national flag flies next to the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, in London, Britain, March 23, 2022. REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/ File Photo
The Britain's national flag flies next to the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, in London, Britain, March 23, 2022. REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/ File Photo
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UK Unveils Sanctions against Sudan Gold Networks

The Britain's national flag flies next to the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, in London, Britain, March 23, 2022. REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/ File Photo
The Britain's national flag flies next to the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as Big Ben, in London, Britain, March 23, 2022. REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/ File Photo

Britain on Thursday announced sanctions targeting what it said are "illicit gold and finance networks" propping up rival factions in Sudan's devastating civil war.

The foreign ministry said the war-torn country's gold trade worth billions of dollars was helping finance "weapons procurement, military operations and the activities of armed groups".

The sanctions are aimed at 11 individuals and businesses suspected of being linked to the networks financing and supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the regular army, AFP reported.

The war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the RSF, that erupted in April 2023, has killed 200,000 people by some estimates and displaced upwards of 11 million.

"The people of Sudan continue to pay the price for a war fuelled not only by guns and fighters, but by illicit flows of gold and finance to fill the war chests on both sides," Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said.

Africa's third-largest country is one of the continent's top gold producers, and the state Sudanese Mineral Resources Company reported a "five-year high" in production of 70 tonnes in 2025.

The United Nations on Wednesday said the rival factions were profiting from control over the country's resources and that a "war economy" was sustaining the conflict.

The UK has previously sanctioned senior commanders of the RSF, who have also been targeted by the European Union.

On Tuesday, the European Council had said it was also boosting sanctions.

In measures designed to "curb sources of financing for the conflict," the Council said it would ban "the purchase, import or transfer if gold originating in Sudan."

World

UN Atomic Chief Slams 'Unacceptable' Killing at Ukraine Power Plant

A picture showing a side of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is controlled by Russia in southeastern Ukraine (Reuters - Archival)
A picture showing a side of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is controlled by Russia in southeastern Ukraine (Reuters - Archival)
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UN Atomic Chief Slams 'Unacceptable' Killing at Ukraine Power Plant

A picture showing a side of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is controlled by Russia in southeastern Ukraine (Reuters - Archival)
A picture showing a side of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is controlled by Russia in southeastern Ukraine (Reuters - Archival)

The United Nations atomic agency's head has denounced the killing of the chief engineer of Ukraine's Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in a drone strike Moscow has blamed on Kyiv.

The head of Russian nuclear giant Rosatom, Alexei Likhachev said on Wednesday that Aleksandr Yakovlev died when "a drone belonging to the Ukrainian armed forces" hit a service vehicle near the flashpoint power station. Ukraine did not immediately comment on the case.

International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi "condemns the reported incident which he says represents an unacceptable attack on the plant and its management, seriously threatening nuclear safety", the watchdog posted late on Wednesday on X.

"The IAEA calls for an immediate end to all attacks on or near nuclear sites and their staff," it added.

Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova had urged the agency to condemn the alleged "murder".

Likhachev said in a post on Rosatom's Telegram account that Yakovlev "devoted his entire life to nuclear energy and he died, in effect, at his combat post".

A driver was also killed in the attack, he said.

The Telegram accounts of the plant and Rosatom have never previously mentioned Yakovlev.

Normally, the plant's Moscow-appointed director Yuri Chernichuk, a former chief engineer at the plant, speaks publicly.

Russian troops captured the Zaporizhzhia plant in March 2022, shortly after Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The plant is the largest in Europe and its safety has been a recurring source of concern throughout the long-running conflict.

Both sides regularly accuse the other of carrying out strikes on the site, which is located in Enerhodar, on the banks of the Dnipro river, which marks the frontline in the area.

World

Trump Hails Release of US Citizen Held in Iran as 'Goodwill' Gesture

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, July 13, 2026, in Washington, as he signs executive orders. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, July 13, 2026, in Washington, as he signs executive orders. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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Trump Hails Release of US Citizen Held in Iran as 'Goodwill' Gesture

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, July 13, 2026, in Washington, as he signs executive orders. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, July 13, 2026, in Washington, as he signs executive orders. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

US President Donald ‌Trump has called the release of a US citizen held in Iran a "gesture of goodwill", even as conflict raged for a fifth night across the Middle East.

Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday that an American who was "wrongfully detained" under the Biden administration in 2024 had been allowed to leave Iran, Reuters reported.

"She is now safely outside of Iran, and ‌in good ‌condition. The United States of America ‌appreciates ⁠this gesture of Goodwill ⁠by Iran," Trump wrote.

Human rights attorney Jared Genser identified the American as Dena Karari.

"Dena is now safe and traveling back to the United States," Genser wrote on X, thanking Trump for his efforts to free her.

Iran has ⁠neither confirmed nor denied that ‌Karari has been released.

The ‌release came despite US military strikes across Iran aimed at ‌reopening the vital Strait of Hormuz ‌shipping lane, and amid escalating threats from Trump that he will bomb Iran's power plants, bridges and energy infrastructure.

Three US officials told Reuters that US ‌strikes aimed at forcing open the strait are also targeting Iranian military capabilities the ⁠US ⁠would want to destroy before executing more complex operations.

Iran has hit back with what it said were strikes targeting US bases in Kuwait and Jordan.

According to the New York Times, Karari, 53, is a resident of California. She had her passport seized as she visited relatives in the southwestern city of Shiraz in December 2024.

She was not detained, but was interrogated on various occasions by the authorities, the newspaper said, citing her lawyer, Genser.