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Erdogan: Türkiye is Doing its Best to Prevent US-Iran Conflict

FILED - 28 May 2025, Azerbaijan, Lachin: Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during Lachin's trilateral summit of Azerbaijani, Turkish and Pakistani leaders. Photo: Turkish Presidency/dpa
FILED - 28 May 2025, Azerbaijan, Lachin: Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during Lachin's trilateral summit of Azerbaijani, Turkish and Pakistani leaders. Photo: Turkish Presidency/dpa
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Erdogan: Türkiye is Doing its Best to Prevent US-Iran Conflict

FILED - 28 May 2025, Azerbaijan, Lachin: Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during Lachin's trilateral summit of Azerbaijani, Turkish and Pakistani leaders. Photo: Turkish Presidency/dpa
FILED - 28 May 2025, Azerbaijan, Lachin: Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during Lachin's trilateral summit of Azerbaijani, Turkish and Pakistani leaders. Photo: Turkish Presidency/dpa

President Tayyip Erdogan said Türkiye is working hard to prevent US-Iran tensions from tipping the Middle East into a new conflict, as the two adversaries signal that disagreement over Tehran’s missile arsenal threatens to torpedo a deal.

Speaking to reporters on a return flight from a visit to Egypt, Erdogan added that talks at the level of the US and Iranian leadership would be helpful after lower-level nuclear negotiations due in Oman on Friday, according to a transcript of his comments shared by his office on Thursday.

Türkiye was doing its best to prevent an escalation, said Erdogan, who has spent years cultivating a close relationship with US President Donald Trump while expanding Ankara's diplomatic influence across the Middle East and beyond. Iran and the US remain at odds over Washington's insistence that negotiations include Tehran's missile arsenal and Iran's vow to discuss only its nuclear program, in a standoff that has led to mutual threats of airstrikes.

The ‌differences over the ‌talks' scope and venue have raised doubts whether the meeting would take place, leaving open ‌the possibility ⁠that Trump could ‌carry out a threat to strike Iran.

Asked on Wednesday whether Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei should be worried, Trump told NBC News: "I would say he should be very worried. Yeah, he should be." He added that "they're negotiating with us" but did not elaborate.

After Trump spoke, US and Iranian officials said the two sides had agreed to shift the talks' location to Muscat after initially accepting Istanbul.

But there was no indication they had found common ground on the agenda.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Thursday that worries about a further escalation in conflict with Iran characterized his talks during a trip to the Gulf region.

He urged Iran to end what he called aggression and enter into talks, saying Germany would do everything it could ⁠to de-escalate the situation and work towards regional stability.

"In all my conversations yesterday and today, great concern has been expressed about a further escalation in the conflict with Iran," he said during ‌a press conference in Doha.

China meanwhile said it supported Iran's legitimate right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy and opposed ‍the "threat of force and sanction pressure."

China would continue to promote the proper resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue, Liu Bin, China's assistant foreign minister, told Iran's deputy foreign minister in Beijing, the Chinese ministry said.

Tensions are high across the region as the US builds up forces there, and regional players seek to avoid a military confrontation that many fear could escalate into a wider war.

TRUMP WARNED OF 'BAD THINGS' IF NO IRAN DEAL AGREED

Iran says the talks must be confined to its long-running nuclear dispute with Western powers, rejecting a US demand to also discuss Tehran's missiles, and warning that pushing issues beyond the nuclear program could jeopardize the talks.

But US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said ⁠on Wednesday that talks would have to include the range of Iran’s ballistic missiles, its support for armed proxy groups around the Middle East and its treatment of its own people, besides nuclear issues. Iranian sources say the US is demanding Tehran limits the range of Iran's missiles to 500 km (310 miles).

Tehran's regional sway has been weakened by Israel's attacks on its proxies - from Hamas in Gaza to Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen and militias in Iraq - and by the ousting of Iran's close ally, former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

While the talks were originally set for Türkiye, Iran wanted the meeting to take place in Oman as a continuation of previous talks held in the Gulf Arab country that had focused strictly on Tehran's nuclear program, a regional official said.

Iran says its nuclear activities are meant for peaceful, not military purposes, while the US and Israel have accused it of past efforts to develop nuclear weapons.

The diplomatic efforts follow Trump's threats of military action against Iran during its bloody crackdown on protesters last month and the deployment of more naval power to the Gulf.

The US has sent thousands of troops to the Middle East, as well ‌as an aircraft carrier, other warships, fighter jets, spy planes and air refueling tankers.

Trump has warned that "bad things" would probably happen if a deal could not be reached, ratcheting up pressure on the Iranian Republic.

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WHO Chief Tells Tenerife People that Risk from Hantavirus-hit Ship 'Low'

Crew members of the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship, MV Hondius, wait their turns for a first interview with epidemiologists, during the voyage to Spain’s port of Tenerife, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo)
Crew members of the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship, MV Hondius, wait their turns for a first interview with epidemiologists, during the voyage to Spain’s port of Tenerife, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo)
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WHO Chief Tells Tenerife People that Risk from Hantavirus-hit Ship 'Low'

Crew members of the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship, MV Hondius, wait their turns for a first interview with epidemiologists, during the voyage to Spain’s port of Tenerife, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo)
Crew members of the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship, MV Hondius, wait their turns for a first interview with epidemiologists, during the voyage to Spain’s port of Tenerife, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo)

The WHO chief told the people of Tenerife Saturday that the risk to them from an arriving cruise ship hit with a deadly hantavirus outbreak was "low".

"I need you to hear me clearly: this is not another Covid," World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote in an open letter to the people of the Spanish island where the MV Hondius was expected to arrive Sunday.

"The current public health risk from hantavirus remains low."

The Dutch-flagged cruise ship was expected to reach waters off Tenerife at dawn, with Tedros also due on the archipelago to help coordinate the evacuation of around 150 people on board, The AP news reported.

Three passengers from the ship -- a Dutch husband and wife and a German woman -- have died, while others have fallen sick with the rare disease, which usually spreads among rodents.

The only hantavirus type that can transmit from person to person -- the Andes virus -- has been confirmed among those who have tested positive, fuelling international concern.

It has also sparked fears among people of the Canary Islands, with regional authorities having refused to allow the vessel to dock, deciding it will remain offshore while passengers are screened and evacuated.

- 'Serious' -

In his open letter, Tedros hailed the people of Tenerife for their solidarity and said he had thanked Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez personally for Spain agreeing to take on its "moral duty" and receive the ship.

"I know you are worried," Tedros wrote in his open letter.

"I know that when you hear the word 'outbreak' and watch a ship sail toward your shores, memories surface that none of us have fully put to rest. The pain of 2020 is still real, and I do not dismiss it for a single moment," he said.

Tedros acknowledged that the Andes strain of hantavirus "is serious".

"Three people have lost their lives, and our hearts go out to their families," he said, stressing though that "the risk to you, living your daily life in Tenerife, is low".

"This is the WHO's assessment, and we do not make it lightly."

An expert with the United Nations health agency was on board and had determined that currently "there are no symptomatic passengers", Tedros said.

He also highlighted that "medical supplies are in place" and stressed that Spanish authorities had prepared a "careful, step-by-step plan" for the evacuation.

According to that plan, he said, "passengers will be ferried ashore at the industrial port of Granadilla, far from residential areas, in sealed, guarded vehicles, through a completely cordoned-off corridor, and repatriated directly to their home countries".

"You will not encounter them. Your families will not encounter them."

- Deemed 'nearest port' -

The WHO chief insisted the request for Spain to receive the ship "was not made arbitrarily", pointing out that under International Health Regulations, "the nearest port with sufficient medical capacity must be identified to ensure the safety and dignity of those on board".

"Nearly 150 people from 23 countries have been at sea for weeks, some of them grieving, all of them frightened, all of them longing for home," he said.

Tedros said he was travelling to Tenerife to observe the evacuation operation personally, to "stand alongside" health workers and port staff, and to "pay my respects" to the island and its response.

"The WHO stands with you, and with every person on that ship, every step of the way," he said.

World

Frontier Airlines Plane Suffers Engine Fire, Reportedly Hits Pedestrian in Denver

Frontier airlines planes are parked at the boarding gates at Tampa International Airport in Tampa, Florida, US, July 19, 2024. REUTERS/Octavio Jones/File Photo
Frontier airlines planes are parked at the boarding gates at Tampa International Airport in Tampa, Florida, US, July 19, 2024. REUTERS/Octavio Jones/File Photo
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Frontier Airlines Plane Suffers Engine Fire, Reportedly Hits Pedestrian in Denver

Frontier airlines planes are parked at the boarding gates at Tampa International Airport in Tampa, Florida, US, July 19, 2024. REUTERS/Octavio Jones/File Photo
Frontier airlines planes are parked at the boarding gates at Tampa International Airport in Tampa, Florida, US, July 19, 2024. REUTERS/Octavio Jones/File Photo

A Frontier Airlines passenger jet abandoned its take-off for Los Angeles late on Friday after suffering an engine fire and reportedly striking a pedestrian on the runway at Denver International Airport, the airline and the airport said.

Denver ⁠International Airport said ⁠that a brief engine fire had been promptly extinguished by the fire department.

According to Reuters, Frontier said that smoke was reported in ⁠the cabin of the Airbus A321 and the pilots aborted takeoff.

The company said the flight was carrying 224 passengers and seven crew members, all of whom safely evacuated.

Neither the airline nor the airport gave details on ⁠the pedestrian ⁠who was reportedly struck. Frontier said it was investigating the incident and gathering more information in coordination with the airport and other safety authorities.

At least one passenger suffered a minor injury, ABC News reported.

World

Putin Attends Scaled-back WW2 Victory Parade

Russian servicemen march during the Victory Day military parade on the Red square in Moscow, Russia, 09 May 2026. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV
Russian servicemen march during the Victory Day military parade on the Red square in Moscow, Russia, 09 May 2026. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV
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Putin Attends Scaled-back WW2 Victory Parade

Russian servicemen march during the Victory Day military parade on the Red square in Moscow, Russia, 09 May 2026. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV
Russian servicemen march during the Victory Day military parade on the Red square in Moscow, Russia, 09 May 2026. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV

Russia held its most scaled-back Victory Day parade in years on Saturday due to the threat of attack from Ukraine, where victory for Moscow's forces has proven elusive more than four years into the deadliest European conflict since World War Two.

The May 9 parade on Red Square marks Russia's most revered national holiday - a time to celebrate the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany and to pay homage to the 27 million Soviet citizens, including many from Ukraine, who perished. Once used to show off Russia's vast military, including its nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles, the parade this year had no tanks or other military equipment rolling over the cobbles of Red Square.

Instead, weapons including a Yars intercontinental ballistic missile, the new Arkhangelsk nuclear submarine, the Peresvet laser weapon, the Sukhoi Su-57 fighter, the S-500 surface-to-air missile system and a host of drones and artillery were shown on giant screens on Red Square, and on state television.

Soldiers and sailors, some of whom have served in Ukraine, marched and cheered as President Vladimir Putin looked on, seated beside Russian veterans in the shadow of Vladimir Lenin's Mausoleum. North Korean troops, who fought against Ukrainians in Russia's Kursk region, also marched.

Reuters said fighter ⁠planes flew above ⁠the towers of the Kremlin and Putin made an eight minute speech, promising victory in the war in Ukraine which the Kremlin calls the "special military operation.”

"The great feat of the victorious generation inspires the soldiers carrying out the tasks of the special military operation today," Putin said. "They are confronting an aggressive force armed and supported by the entire NATO bloc. And in spite of that, our heroes march forward."

After Russia and Ukraine accused each other of violating unilateral ceasefires they had each declared over recent days, US President Donald Trump announced a three-day ceasefire from Saturday to Monday that was supported by the Kremlin and Kyiv.

The two sides also agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners. "I'd like to see it stop. Russia-Ukraine - it's the worst thing since ⁠World War Two in terms of life.

Twenty-five thousand young soldiers every month. It's crazy," Trump told reporters in Washington. He added that he would "like to see a big extension" of the ceasefire. There were no reports of violations of the ceasefire from either Moscow or Kyiv.

Russia, which invaded Ukraine in 2022, had warned that any attempt by Kyiv to disrupt Saturday's event would lead to a massive missile strike on the Ukrainian capital. Moscow told foreign diplomats that they should evacuate Kyiv staff in the event of such an attack.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy issued a tongue-in-cheek decree "allowing" Russia's May 9 military parade to proceed and saying Ukrainian weapons would not target Red Square. Security was tight in Moscow.

Reuters pictures showed soldiers with guns atop pickup trucks and roads blocked around the center of the capital, which along with the surrounding region has a population of 22 million.

After Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, the Red Army eventually pushed Nazi forces back to Berlin, where Adolf Hitler killed himself and the red Soviet Victory Banner was raised over the Reichstag in May 1945.

Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender came into force at 11:01 p.m. ⁠on May 8, 1945, marked as "Victory ⁠in Europe Day" by Britain, the United States and France.

In Moscow it was already May 9, which became the Soviet Union's "Victory Day" in what Russians call the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45. But this year's parade comes amid a wave of anxiety in Moscow about the ultimate outcome of the conflict in Ukraine.

The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, left swathes of Ukraine in ruins and drained Russia's $3 trillion economy, while Russia's relations with Europe are worse than at any time since the depths of the Cold War.

"The crisis is still deepening gradually, but any sharp movement can send the economy (and not only the economy) into a tailspin," jailed pro-war Russian nationalist Igor Girkin, who has criticized the Kremlin for its conduct of the war, said in a post on Telegram.

Girkin, a former Federal Security Service officer, used a naval analogy to say that Russia's leaders were more worried about being kicked out of their cabins than about a shipwreck.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov this week dismissed CNN and other Western media reports that Putin's protection had been intensified because of fears of a coup or assassination. Russian officials have dismissed reports of a coup plot as nonsense.

CNN cited an unidentified European intelligence agency as saying that Putin's former defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, was seen as a potential coup leader.

Security Council Secretary Shoigu, who attended an online meeting of the Security Council chaired by Putin on Friday, was at the parade on Saturday, sitting beside some of Putin's most powerful officials.