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French Citizen Olivier Grondeau Freed after Imprisonment in Iran, Macron Says

A demonstrator holds a photograph of Olivier Grondeau at a Paris gathering in support of French nationals jailed in Iran, February 1, 2025. Sebastien Dupuy, AFP
A demonstrator holds a photograph of Olivier Grondeau at a Paris gathering in support of French nationals jailed in Iran, February 1, 2025. Sebastien Dupuy, AFP
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French Citizen Olivier Grondeau Freed after Imprisonment in Iran, Macron Says

A demonstrator holds a photograph of Olivier Grondeau at a Paris gathering in support of French nationals jailed in Iran, February 1, 2025. Sebastien Dupuy, AFP
A demonstrator holds a photograph of Olivier Grondeau at a Paris gathering in support of French nationals jailed in Iran, February 1, 2025. Sebastien Dupuy, AFP

A French citizen imprisoned in Iran for over 880 days has been freed, French officials said Thursday.

The release of Olivier Grondeau comes as France and the rest of Europe try to pursue negotiations with Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program.

US President Donald Trump meanwhile has sent his own letter to Iran's 85-year-old Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to jumpstart talks. Trump is also pressuring Tehran over its support of Yemen's Houthi extremists as the American military has launched an intense new campaign of airstrikes targeting the group.

French President Emmanuel Macron wrote online that Grondeau had been freed. He offered no immediate details of what led to Grondeau’s release, though it came on Nowruz, the Persian New Year, when Iran has released prisoners in the past.

Jean-Noël Barrot, France's minister for Europe and foreign affairs, posted a picture online of Grondeau smiling aboard what appeared to be a private jet. On his lap appeared to be a picture of the pop star Britney Spears, something the official did not acknowledge in welcoming Grondeau's release.

“We will tirelessly continue our efforts to ensure that all our compatriots still held hostage, including Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, are in turn released,” Barrot wrote.

Macron also raised the case of the other two French nationals held in Iran.

“Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris must be freed from Iranian jails,” he wrote. “My thoughts are with them and their families today.”

The Iranian government did not immediately acknowledge Grondeau’s release. Such releases of Westerners in Iran typically come in exchange for something. Early this week, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said that France had arrested an Iranian women who supported Palestinians, but said Tehran was still trying to gather more details about her case.

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Pakistan Launches Deadly Strikes in Afghanistan

Pakistani soldiers patrol the scene where a police officer was killed in the line of duty during an attack on a polio vaccination campaign team, in Chaman, Balochistan province, Pakistan, 06 February 2026. EPA/AKHTER GULFAM
Pakistani soldiers patrol the scene where a police officer was killed in the line of duty during an attack on a polio vaccination campaign team, in Chaman, Balochistan province, Pakistan, 06 February 2026. EPA/AKHTER GULFAM
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Pakistan Launches Deadly Strikes in Afghanistan

Pakistani soldiers patrol the scene where a police officer was killed in the line of duty during an attack on a polio vaccination campaign team, in Chaman, Balochistan province, Pakistan, 06 February 2026. EPA/AKHTER GULFAM
Pakistani soldiers patrol the scene where a police officer was killed in the line of duty during an attack on a polio vaccination campaign team, in Chaman, Balochistan province, Pakistan, 06 February 2026. EPA/AKHTER GULFAM

Pakistan said Sunday it launched multiple air strikes targeting militants in neighboring Afghanistan, where the government reported children were among dozens of people killed and wounded.

The overnight attacks were the most extensive since border clashes in October killed more than 70 people on both sides and wounded hundreds.

Islamabad said it hit seven sites along the border region targeting Afghanistan-based militant groups "in the aftermath of recent suicide bombing incidents in Pakistan".

The military targeted the Pakistani Taliban and its associates, as well as an affiliate of ISIS, a statement by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said.

Afghanistan's defense ministry said "dozens of innocent civilians, including women and children, were martyred and wounded" when strikes hit a madrasa and homes in Nangarhar and Paktika provinces.

An AFP journalist in Nangarhar's Bihsud district said residents from around the remote and mountainous area joined rescuers in one village, using a digger and shovels to search for bodies under the rubble.

Afghanistan's defense ministry said it will "deliver an appropriate and calculated response" to the Pakistani strikes.

The two countries have been locked in an increasingly bitter dispute since the Taliban authorities retook control of Afghanistan in 2021.

Pakistani military action killed 70 Afghan civilians between October and December, according to the UN mission in Afghanistan.

World

Trump Says Sending Hospital Boat to Greenland

US President Donald Trump (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump (Reuters)
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Trump Says Sending Hospital Boat to Greenland

US President Donald Trump (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump said Saturday he was sending a hospital boat to Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory that he has long coveted and threatened to seize by force.

Trump's rhetoric has ratcheted up tensions between the United States and Denmark, while putting the global spotlight on the Arctic as he insists mineral-rich Greenland is vital for US and NATO security against Russia and China.

He said the boat would treat many "sick" people in Greenland, without providing any details on who he was referring to or the number of people the vessel would help.

"We are going to send a great hospital boat to Greenland to take care of the many people who are sick, and not being taken care of there," Trump wrote in a social media post.

"It's on the way!!!," he added, according to AFP.

The post on his Truth Social platform carried an apparent AI image that depicted the USNS Mercy -- an 894-foot (272-meter) vessel that is typically stationed in southern California -- sailing toward snowcapped mountains on the horizon.

It was unclear if that was the actual vessel being sent to Greenland.

Trump said in the post that the ship would be sent in coordination with Gov. Jeff Landry (R-LA), who was named as Trump's envoy to the Arctic island in December.

During Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans this month, Landry posted an image of himself and two men at one of the city's famous balls, holding a flag of Greenland together.

"Great to host some of the wonderful people of Greenland," he wrote.

Earlier this week Denmark's King Frederik X visited Greenland, where he has long enjoyed popularity, as anxieties mount over Trump's interest.

Trump backed off repeated threats to seize the territory last month, after striking a "framework" deal with NATO chief Mark Rutte to ensure greater US influence.

World

Ukraine Strikes Ballistic Missile Producer Deep Inside Russia, Kyiv Says

Ukrainian firefighters work at the scene of a recent multiple Russian drone strike on a gas station in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, 09 February 2026. (EPA)
Ukrainian firefighters work at the scene of a recent multiple Russian drone strike on a gas station in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, 09 February 2026. (EPA)
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Ukraine Strikes Ballistic Missile Producer Deep Inside Russia, Kyiv Says

Ukrainian firefighters work at the scene of a recent multiple Russian drone strike on a gas station in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, 09 February 2026. (EPA)
Ukrainian firefighters work at the scene of a recent multiple Russian drone strike on a gas station in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, 09 February 2026. (EPA)

Ukraine hit a Russian plant manufacturing ballistic missiles in a missile strike in the remote Udmurtia region, the Ukrainian General Staff said on Saturday.

Ukraine said its forces attacked the plant manufacturing Russian missiles, including the short-range Iskander and intercontinental Topol-M, in Votkinsk, east of Moscow and about 1,400 km (800 miles) from Ukraine.

It said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app that the Ukrainian forces used ‌domestically produced ground-launched ‌Flamingo cruise missiles. The attack caused ‌a fire ⁠on the site, ⁠the Ukrainian military said.

Alexander Brechalov, the governor of the Udmurtia region in Russia, had earlier said a site there had been attacked overnight with drones.

"There has been damage and injuries as a result," Brechalov said in a video posted on the Telegram ⁠app. He provided no other details.

The airport ‌in Udmurtia's main city, ‌Izhevsk, and those in cities in nearby regions suspended ‌operations, the civil aviation authority Rosaviatsiya said.

The unofficial Russian ‌Telegram channel SHOT, which often quotes contacts in the security services, said residents in Votkinsk reported hearing at least three explosions and the humming of drones.

Russia uses its ballistic ‌missiles to reinforce its drone attacks on the Ukrainian energy infrastructure, knocking out electricity ⁠and heating ⁠supplies for millions across Ukraine during the cold winter months.

Ukraine is increasingly targeting military and energy infrastructure deep inside Russia. Kyiv says that hitting the weapons producers and the energy system that fuels Russia's military is the best way to gain leverage over its bigger enemy as the war enters its fifth year next week.

The Ukrainian military said it also hit a gas processing plant in the Russian Samara region. Russian officials in the Samara region issued no report of such an attack.