Iran Urges US to Drop 'Excessive Demands' to Reach Deal

In this handout photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry on February 26, 2026, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (L) speaks with Oman's FM Badr Albusaidi during their meeting in Geneva. (Photo by Iran's Foreign Ministry / AFP)
In this handout photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry on February 26, 2026, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (L) speaks with Oman's FM Badr Albusaidi during their meeting in Geneva. (Photo by Iran's Foreign Ministry / AFP)
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Iran Urges US to Drop 'Excessive Demands' to Reach Deal

In this handout photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry on February 26, 2026, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (L) speaks with Oman's FM Badr Albusaidi during their meeting in Geneva. (Photo by Iran's Foreign Ministry / AFP)
In this handout photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry on February 26, 2026, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (L) speaks with Oman's FM Badr Albusaidi during their meeting in Geneva. (Photo by Iran's Foreign Ministry / AFP)

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that in order to reach a deal, the United States will have to drop its "excessive demands", after the two sides held talks in Geneva.

In a phone call with Egypt's top diplomat Badr Abdelatty, Araghchi said "success in this path requires seriousness and realism from the other side and avoidance of any miscalculation and excessive demands."

Araghchi did not clarify what demands he was referring to, but Washington has pointed to Iran's ballistic missile program and has repeatedly described Tehran's uranium enrichment capability as a red line.

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Tehran had "already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they're working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America."

Also on Wednesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran is "not enriching right now, but they're trying to get to the point where they ultimately can", adding that Tehran "refuses" to discuss its ballistic missile program and "that's a big problem."

Iran has repeatedly said its missile program is part of its defensive capabilities and has ruled out abandoning uranium enrichment, insisting its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes.

Longtime adversaries Iran and the United States held their third round of Omani-mediated nuclear talks on Thursday in Geneva, seeking to avert military escalation as Washington expands its military build-up in the region.

Both Iran and Oman cited progress after the talks, with technical discussions scheduled for Monday in Vienna ahead of a fourth round expected next week.



Ocalan Says Laws Needed in Türkiye Peace Process

FILE - Youngsters hold a photograph of Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed PKK leader in Diyarbakir, Türkiye, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Metin Yoksu, File)
FILE - Youngsters hold a photograph of Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed PKK leader in Diyarbakir, Türkiye, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Metin Yoksu, File)
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Ocalan Says Laws Needed in Türkiye Peace Process

FILE - Youngsters hold a photograph of Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed PKK leader in Diyarbakir, Türkiye, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Metin Yoksu, File)
FILE - Youngsters hold a photograph of Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed PKK leader in Diyarbakir, Türkiye, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Metin Yoksu, File)

Jailed Kurdistan Workers Party leader Abdullah Ocalan said on Friday that peace-related laws were needed for a transition to democratic integration in Türkiye, in a statement read out a year after he called on his PKK to end its decades-old insurgency and disband.

Ocalan's call could be taken to endorse a roadmap, approved last week by a Turkish parliamentary commission, that urges legal reforms to run alongside the PKK's disarmament, even though details on implementation remain hazy.

"The transition to ⁠democratic integration necessitates laws of peace," Ocalan said ‌in a statement read ‌out by a senior figure in the pro-Kurdish DEM Party at ‌a press conference. The democratic society solution envisions a "legal ‌framework with political, social, economic, and cultural dimensions," he added.

The leaders of DEM, which has been closely involved in the peace process, said before reading Ocalan's statement that it was time for the ‌government to take concrete measures on issues including language, cultural and religious freedoms.

The PKK declared an ⁠end to ⁠its insurgency in May last year and its militants burned some weapons in a symbolic ceremony last July. A few months later it announced its withdrawal from Türkiye, and last week a militant source welcomed the parliament move but said there was still a lack of clarity.


US Authorizes the Departure of Some Embassy Personnel from Israel Due to Safety Risks

US Department of State (Asharq Al-Awsat)
US Department of State (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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US Authorizes the Departure of Some Embassy Personnel from Israel Due to Safety Risks

US Department of State (Asharq Al-Awsat)
US Department of State (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The United States has authorized the departure of some embassy personnel and their families from Israel due ‌to safety ‌risks, the ‌US ⁠embassy said in ⁠a post on X on Friday.

It said the US embassy ⁠could further ‌restrict ‌US government employees ‌and their ‌families from travelling to certain areas of Israel, Jerusalem's ‌Old City and the West ⁠Bank without ⁠advance notice, and advised US citizens to consider leaving Israel while commercial flights remain available.


Russian Drone Kills 2 in East Ukraine Home

Ukrainian soldiers take part in a final tactical exercise on the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, held at a British Army training camp in East Anglia, Britain, February 24, 2026. REUTERS/Chris Radburn
Ukrainian soldiers take part in a final tactical exercise on the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, held at a British Army training camp in East Anglia, Britain, February 24, 2026. REUTERS/Chris Radburn
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Russian Drone Kills 2 in East Ukraine Home

Ukrainian soldiers take part in a final tactical exercise on the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, held at a British Army training camp in East Anglia, Britain, February 24, 2026. REUTERS/Chris Radburn
Ukrainian soldiers take part in a final tactical exercise on the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, held at a British Army training camp in East Anglia, Britain, February 24, 2026. REUTERS/Chris Radburn

A Russian drone killed two people in a home in eastern Ukraine overnight in an area where Moscow's forces are pushing to capture more territory, local authorities said Friday.

The emergency services said the house was completely destroyed in the village of Pidserednie, in the northeast Kharkiv region.

They posted images of firefighters dousing flames billowing from the burning structure, reported AFP.

Rescue workers had retrieved the bodies of a man and a woman from under the rubble and one more person was wounded, they said.

Russian forces have been pushing to retake the nearby town of Kupiansk, which Moscow captured in 2022 but was later retaken by Ukrainian troops.