عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Report Says Iran and US Reach Outline Ceasefire Deal After Latest Attacks

An Iranian girl walks next to an anti-US mural depicting Iran and US negotiations at a table, near the former US Embassy in Tehran, Iran, 26 May 2026. (EPA)
An Iranian girl walks next to an anti-US mural depicting Iran and US negotiations at a table, near the former US Embassy in Tehran, Iran, 26 May 2026. (EPA)
TT
TT

Report Says Iran and US Reach Outline Ceasefire Deal After Latest Attacks

An Iranian girl walks next to an anti-US mural depicting Iran and US negotiations at a table, near the former US Embassy in Tehran, Iran, 26 May 2026. (EPA)
An Iranian girl walks next to an anti-US mural depicting Iran and US negotiations at a table, near the former US Embassy in Tehran, Iran, 26 May 2026. (EPA)

The United States and Iran have reached an outline agreement to extend their ceasefire pending the approval of President Donald Trump, Axios reported on Thursday, after Iran targeted a US air base in Kuwait in the wake of US strikes on what Washington said was an Iranian drone operation.

According to the report by Axios, the two sides agreed on a 60-day memorandum of understanding to extend the truce and launch negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, but the plan still needed Trump's signoff.

There was no immediate confirmation of the report which prompted oil prices to reverse course and trade lower.

Trump has repeatedly said the end of the war is close but told media at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday he was not yet satisfied by the negotiations and that the ‌US was not ‌discussing easing sanctions, one of Tehran's demands.

US AND IRAN TRADE BLOWS

The latest attacks, while ‌limited, ⁠highlighted the fragility ⁠of negotiations to turn the tenuous early-April ceasefire into a lasting agreement to end the three-month-old war, which has killed thousands, and reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping route.

US Central Command said US forces had shot down five Iranian attack drones and struck a ground control station in the port city of Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a sixth. Kuwaiti forces had then intercepted a ballistic missile fired towards the country, which hosts a large US base.

"These actions were measured, purely defensive and intended to maintain the ceasefire," a US official, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about military operations, told Reuters ⁠earlier.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted the US base responsible for ‌an early-morning attack near Bandar Abbas airport and that any repeat would ‌lead to a "more decisive response", Tasnim news agency reported.

Kuwait condemned the attack and demanded that Iran immediately halt what it called ‌a serious escalation.

The violence, the second flare-up this week, coincided with Eid al-Adha holiday that is celebrated ‌across the region, where multiple countries have been caught up in the conflict triggered by US and Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28.

Mediator Pakistan said its foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, would meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on Friday, although the significance of his visit was unclear.

In Lebanon, which Iran says must be part of any overall peace deal, Israel said ‌it had begun striking infrastructure of Iran-backed Hezbollah in the southern city of Tyre and had carried out a strike in the capital Beirut.

The Lebanese army ⁠said a strike had ⁠killed one of its soldiers, while Israel, which has displaced hundreds of thousands of people with a push deep into Lebanon in pursuit of Hezbollah, said air raid sirens had gone off in its north.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

‘You Are Not Alone’ in Ebola Fight, Vows DR Congo-Bound WHO Chief

A man hangs an Ebola awareness banner in the Kigonze camp in Bunia, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on May 28, 2026. (AFP)
A man hangs an Ebola awareness banner in the Kigonze camp in Bunia, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on May 28, 2026. (AFP)
TT
TT

‘You Are Not Alone’ in Ebola Fight, Vows DR Congo-Bound WHO Chief

A man hangs an Ebola awareness banner in the Kigonze camp in Bunia, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on May 28, 2026. (AFP)
A man hangs an Ebola awareness banner in the Kigonze camp in Bunia, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on May 28, 2026. (AFP)

The WHO's chief pledged to do "everything in my power" to help conquer a deadly Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as he headed to the African nation on Thursday.

In lengthy message to the Congolese people, the World Health Organization's director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus insisted that "together, we will overcome this outbreak".

According to its latest figures, up to May 24, the WHO has recorded 10 confirmed and 223 suspected Ebola deaths in the DRC since the outbreak was declared on May 15, out of more than 1,000 confirmed and suspected cases.

The WHO has warned that the true spread of the outbreak, thought to have circulated under the radar for some time, is likely much wider.

"I want to be with you in these moments. And I want you to know that you are not alone," Tedros said in the message posted on X, having earlier said he was on his way to the DRC.

"Ebola is now back. This time, the outbreak is hitting Ituri province the hardest," he said, with more than 90 percent of cases in the conflict-torn northeastern province.

"I know how frightening that is."

Tedros said he would be going to Ituri's capital Bunia, "and doing everything in my power to help you. I will not be managing this from a comfortable office far away."

- 'Declare a ceasefire' -

The UN health agency's chief said the affected areas were already dealing with malaria, hunger, insecurity and now Ebola. "It is not fair, and I will not pretend otherwise," he said.

According to Tedros, the Ebola response would be built on Ituri's in-built resilience.

"We do not come to Ituri with only medicine and expertise. We come to join a community that already knows how to fight for its survival," he said.

Tedros fears insecurity in the eastern DRC, which has been plagued by conflict for three decades, is making it harder to contain the outbreak.

He urged the warring factions to give health workers the space to save lives.

"Conflict and displacement make everything harder," he said.

"I am making a direct appeal to all warring parties in this region: please, declare a ceasefire.

"People are dying from Ebola who do not have to die. Children are sick. Families are suffering. No cause, no conflict, no grievance is worth condemning innocent people to death from a preventable disease."

- Fear and silence -

No vaccine or treatment exists for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which is behind the current outbreak.

However, Tedros said the spread of the virus could still be prevented by early care in treatment centers.

And he vowed that the authorities would help ensure loved ones are buried in dignity and safety.

He urged young people to help break "the fear and the silence that allow this virus to spread".

Tedros said he was no stranger to Ebola outbreaks in the DRC, recalling that from 2018 to 2020, he visited North Kivu province -- the epicenter of that outbreak -- 14 times.

In that crisis, "trust grew slowly, then more quickly. People came forward. And together, we managed to contain the outbreak," he said.

This is the 17th recorded Ebola outbreak in the vast central African country of more than 100 million people.

"Together, you have overcome every single one before," said Tedros.

"We will get through this one too."

World

UN Condemns ‘Dangerous Escalation’ in Ukraine War

Commuters sit in a bus driving past a heavily damaged building following Russian strikes near the Lukianivska metro station in Kyiv on May 27, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
Commuters sit in a bus driving past a heavily damaged building following Russian strikes near the Lukianivska metro station in Kyiv on May 27, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
TT
TT

UN Condemns ‘Dangerous Escalation’ in Ukraine War

Commuters sit in a bus driving past a heavily damaged building following Russian strikes near the Lukianivska metro station in Kyiv on May 27, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
Commuters sit in a bus driving past a heavily damaged building following Russian strikes near the Lukianivska metro station in Kyiv on May 27, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)

The United Nations rights chief warned Thursday against a "dangerous escalation" in Ukraine, and Russia's threats to ramp up attacks, urging both sides to return to the negotiating table.

"I strongly urge restraint. Resume negotiations and end the suffering," Volker Turk said in a statement.

His appeal comes days after one of the worst combined missile and drone attacks on Kyiv since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than four years ago.

It was the latest in a string of large-scale attacks by Russia in recent weeks.

The UN rights office said 815 civilians had been killed and 4,174 injured in Ukraine in the first four months of 2026 -- a 21-percent increase in civilian casualties over the same period last year.

"As if all these casualty figures weren't horrifying enough on their own, following these attacks, Russian officials have publicly threatened to increase attacks across Kyiv," Turk said.

"International humanitarian law demands that parties to a conflict take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian harm," he said.

"These are not simply suggestions or recommendations, but binding obligations carrying legal responsibility for those involved."

His office also pointed to an attack by Ukrainian armed forces on an educational complex in the occupied city of Starobilsk on May 21-22, in which Russian authorities say 21 people were killed and 44 injured.

"The UN Human Rights Office has conducted a thorough review of publicly-available information, which indicates that the educational facilities were operational at the time of the attack and that civilians -- many of them students -- were killed or injured," it said.

Eighteen of those killed were women, it said, adding that attacks by Ukrainian armed forces had also killed and injured civilians within Russia itself.

Turk called on both Russian and Ukrainian authorities to conduct "prompt, independent, and effective investigations and hold those responsible accountable".

World

Iranians Are Back Online After a Monthslong Shutdown but Still Face Heavy Restrictions

An Iranian man uses his phone, after a reported reopening of international internet access, in Tehran, Iran, May 27, 2026. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters
An Iranian man uses his phone, after a reported reopening of international internet access, in Tehran, Iran, May 27, 2026. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters
TT
TT

Iranians Are Back Online After a Monthslong Shutdown but Still Face Heavy Restrictions

An Iranian man uses his phone, after a reported reopening of international internet access, in Tehran, Iran, May 27, 2026. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters
An Iranian man uses his phone, after a reported reopening of international internet access, in Tehran, Iran, May 27, 2026. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters

Iranians began to regain internet access on Wednesday after authorities ended a monthslong shutdown. But users said service was slow and spotty in some areas, with apps like YouTube and Instagram heavily restricted, as they were before the cutoff began during nationwide protests in January.

Authorities justified the outage as a military imperative after the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28. Their decision to lift some restrictions this week came as negotiators appeared to be closing in on a more permanent truce. But many Iranians feared access could be cut off again at a moment's notice.

Internet tracking company Netblocks said Iran’s connectivity, which measures the ability of devices to connect to the internet, is at around 86% of capacity from before the cutoff. Internet analysis firm Kentik said internet traffic, which measures the amount of data transferred and is a good illustration of usage, was at around 40%.

Amir Rashidi, an Iranian cybersecurity analyst, said there were still widespread disruptions. "It's too early to say the shutdown is over," he wrote on X.

An unprecedented shutdown

Iran’s roughly 90 million people have been cut off from the internet for most of 2026, one of the world’s longest and strictest national shutdowns. Young people with online careers saw their incomes evaporate. Job losses and the closure of online businesses added to the war's steep economic costs.

The cutoff made it difficult for Iranian families to communicate through months of unrest and war. At some points, phone lines were also cut off, though they were later restored.

A woman living in Tehran said that for months she was barely able to speak to her sons living abroad. She couldn't believe authorities had restored access, saying she had assumed they would find some justification to prolong the outage.

A taxi driver said service was restored but weak. He expressed hope it would improve so he could use messaging apps with family and friends. Both spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

Prices spiked during the shutdown, with residents in Tehran at times paying around $7.50 per gigabyte. Prices are back down to around $2.25 for 30 gigabytes, roughly where they were before the protests.

Even then, Iran tightly controlled access to popular social media sites, leading many to rely on virtual private networks, or VPNs. The cost of those workarounds soared during the shutdown, making them unaffordable for many as the economy was battered.

A slow return to service

Businesses have started reappearing online, announcing their return with posts on sites like Instagram and Telegram.

A gamer and tech influencer in the central city of Isfahan said the shutdown had caused him to lose a lot of his audience on YouTube and Instagram, where he had spent years building up a large following.

"All my views and interactions are way down. I’ve been erased from the algorithm," he said in a voice note sent by WhatsApp, adding that his internet connection was still slower than before the shutdown.

"The situation is such that many content producers have had their income reduced to zero, have moved on to other jobs, or have been forced to sell their equipment to survive," he said. He spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.

Iran claimed the shutdown was a wartime necessity

Iranian authorities first shut down the internet in January during mass anti-government protests that were eventually stamped out in a violent crackdown. Thousands of people were killed and tens of thousands detained.

That cutoff was just starting to ease when the government imposed a complete internet blackout after the start of the war, when US and Israeli strikes killed Iran's supreme leader and other top officials.

The government faced criticism for the prolonged shutdown, which caused even more harm to an economy devastated by inflation, strikes on key industries and a US blockade on Iranian ports.

The internet cutoff cost an estimated $30-40 million daily, with indirect losses likely twice that much, a member of Iran’s Chamber of Commerce, Afshin Kolahi, told a local newspaper last month. About 10 million people have jobs that depend on internet connectivity, according to Communications Minister Sattar Hashemi.

Iranians still had access to a national net, but that has a far narrower reach, and users complained of poor service and heavy censorship. Senior government officials are given SIM cards granting them access to the global internet. Under pressure, the government expanded access to SIM cards to some professions during the shutdown.