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Australia Secures US Missiles Amid Supply Concerns

A Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is flown as part of a display on the opening day of the Farnborough International Airshow 2026 in in Farnborough, south-west of London, on July 20, 2026. (Photo by Toby Shepheard / AFP)
A Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is flown as part of a display on the opening day of the Farnborough International Airshow 2026 in in Farnborough, south-west of London, on July 20, 2026. (Photo by Toby Shepheard / AFP)
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Australia Secures US Missiles Amid Supply Concerns

A Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is flown as part of a display on the opening day of the Farnborough International Airshow 2026 in in Farnborough, south-west of London, on July 20, 2026. (Photo by Toby Shepheard / AFP)
A Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is flown as part of a display on the opening day of the Farnborough International Airshow 2026 in in Farnborough, south-west of London, on July 20, 2026. (Photo by Toby Shepheard / AFP)

Australia said on Thursday it would buy long-range missiles for its fighter jets from the United States, announcing an Aus$736 million ($518 million) deal that is smaller than a multi-billion-dollar sale approved in March.

The missile sale to Pacific ally Australia comes as US lawmakers have raised concerns over the depletion of missile stockpiles because of the war in Iran.

Defense Minister Richard Marles said Australia would purchase up to 450 of Lockheed Martin's AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missiles for the air force and become the first country outside the United States to use the new air-to-air missile.

"These missiles will be installed on all of our fighter planes. That is, our Super Hornets, our Growlers and our F-35s, and they will be operating on those platforms soon," Marles told reporters in the northern city of Darwin during a multinational war game.

According to AFP, he did not specify when the missiles would be delivered and his office did not comment on why the Aus$736 million purchase was smaller than the sale approved by the US Congress.

Lockheed Martin Australia said it could not comment.

A US foreign arms sales notification to Congress by the US Department of Defense in March said Australia had requested 450 missiles in a package also including test services costing US$3.16 billion.

The notice cited Australia's strategic location in the western Pacific as contributing significantly to regional stability.

An analysis by the US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) think tank last week said US stocks of key Patriot and THAAD air defense missiles had been slashed by the Iran conflict, creating a "risk for US readiness to fight a war against China in the western Pacific”

The Washington Post reported on Thursday that US President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had clashed over munitions shortages, particularly long-range guided missiles and interceptors.

The White House denied the report, with Trump insisting on social media that the United States has a vast supply of munitions and threatening anyone who leaked information about weapons stockpiles with jail terms.

Even before the Iran war, missile manufacturers were facing global shortages of key components because of the prolonged conflict in Ukraine.

Australia has said it will spend up to Aus$36 billion over the next decade to establish domestic manufacture of guided weapons through partnerships with global companies including Lockheed Martin.

It said on Thursday it had successfully tested a domestic rocket motor in partnership with French defense firm Thales as part of a program to overcome a shortage of the critical missile component.

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World

Iran Hangs 2 Men on Charges of Violence During Protests

People shop at Tajrish Bazaar in northern Tehran, Iran, 30 September 2026. Iran is facing an economic crisis as the conflict between the US and Iran continues. (EPA)
People shop at Tajrish Bazaar in northern Tehran, Iran, 30 September 2026. Iran is facing an economic crisis as the conflict between the US and Iran continues. (EPA)
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Iran Hangs 2 Men on Charges of Violence During Protests

People shop at Tajrish Bazaar in northern Tehran, Iran, 30 September 2026. Iran is facing an economic crisis as the conflict between the US and Iran continues. (EPA)
People shop at Tajrish Bazaar in northern Tehran, Iran, 30 September 2026. Iran is facing an economic crisis as the conflict between the US and Iran continues. (EPA)

Iran executed two men Wednesday over what it said was their role in violence during nationwide anti-government protests in January, state media reported.

IRNA, citing the judiciary, said the men took part in unrest in the northeastern city of Mashhad that left four security officers dead.

The judiciary said the men confessed to the violence, including setting fires and damaging public property. It also said one confessed to stabbing a member of Iran's paramilitary force.

Iran’s Supreme Court upheld the sentences before they were carried out Wednesday morning.

The unrest began Dec. 28 amid anger over Iran’s collapsing currency and worsening economy and quickly spread across the country. Iranian authorities responded with a deadly crackdown.

Dozens of Iranians have since been executed in connection with the protests, according to state media in Iran.

Executions aren't uncommon in Iran, where rights groups say the accused are often tried in secretive courts based on forced confessions extracted through torture.

World

Israel PM Says Pilot of Rerouted Flight Tried to Crash Plane

flydubai 15 anniversary special livery - File photo
flydubai 15 anniversary special livery - File photo
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Israel PM Says Pilot of Rerouted Flight Tried to Crash Plane

flydubai 15 anniversary special livery - File photo
flydubai 15 anniversary special livery - File photo

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that the pilot of a Tel Aviv-bound flydubai flight had tried to crash the plane and kill its passengers, after the aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.

Passengers gave a similar account of the incident on board, describing a fight for control after the plane suddenly plummeted, losing around 17,000 feet of altitude in the span of a minute, according to the Flightradar24 website.

Flydubai said all the passengers -- of whom 166 out of 174 were Israeli, according to media reports -- were safe, adding that the reasons for the altercation were unknown.

AFPTV images later showed another flydubai plane carrying the passengers touch down at Tel Aviv airport, hours after their initial flight was diverted to Saudi Arabia's Tabuk.

"During the flight, as they approached the country, one of the pilots stabbed the other pilot, and apparently tried to crash the plane with everyone on board," Netanyahu said in a video message.

He said he spoke to an Israeli passenger who broke into the cockpit as the plane started to plunge and fought the pilot who was trying to bring down the aircraft.

"I salute these heroes," he added, saying "they prevented a major disaster".

The flight was rerouted to Tabuk "at 9:45 am (0645 GMT) and its captain and copilot were found to have injuries and were transported to hospital", a statement from the company operating the airport said.

- 'Out of control' -

Passenger Miryam Shira Ohayon said the plane was "pretty much out of control" after one of the pilots tried to stab the other while they were flying over Jordan.

"So the co-pilot tried to murder the pilot and basically carry out a suicide attack on the plane," she told reporters by speakerphone held up by her mother, who was waiting at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv.

"It was really on the way to crashing, and it was simply the resourcefulness of many people who took control of the co-pilot and neutralized him," she said, adding a doctor on board provided first aid.

"Other than the pilot, there were no injuries, but the bigger fear was really a crash, which is exactly what he was trying to do."

The airline later said it was another "on-duty flydubai crew travelling on the flight, who diverted and landed the aircraft safely".

- Like a 'rollercoaster' -

Describing the flight's sudden plunge, passenger Almog Italie told AFP said it was like "we were having very big turbulence, but there was no turbulence", likening it to riding a "rollercoaster".

But there was no "hysteria" among passengers, Italie noted, even as fighting erupted near the cockpit.

"The other passengers from the front took over control," he told AFP via video call from Saudi Arabia.

Israel's Kan public broadcaster and Channel 12 reported that the Israeli military had scrambled fighter jets after fears of a possible hijacking.

In a video from inside the plane that was reposted by Israeli social media users, one passenger -- blood dripping from an open wound on his head -- pleaded for assistance and said they were descending into Saudi Arabia, with which Israel has no formal ties.

"We are here during an attack on the plane. We just subdued the terrorists and are preparing to land," the man said.

"Anyone who can hear me, we need help."

- Bloodied T-shirt -

An AFP correspondent in Tabuk, where the plane landed, saw heavy security near the airport, with several police vehicles and an ambulance parked at the terminal.

Access to the terminal remained open.

In photos sent to AFP by one of the passengers, travellers, including children, were seen gathered in an airport lounge, with some sitting on the floor.

One man was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans stained with blood.

The incident comes months into a regional war that erupted in late February with US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

It also comes just ahead of Israeli elections due to be held at the end of October.

On Tuesday, Netanyahu said there were "indications" that Israel's enemies could try to attack ahead of elections, and was accused of "fear-mongering" by the opposition chief.

Following Wednesday's incident, Netanyahu said he had "instructed the security services to prepare for additional potential threats".

World

UK PM Says ‘Strong Indications’ Iran Involved in Airbase Incident

Police officers guard an area as roadblocks remain in place near RAF Fairford airbase, after police declared a major incident at the base and arrested several men on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act, who have since been released on bail, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, September 29, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Shepheard
Police officers guard an area as roadblocks remain in place near RAF Fairford airbase, after police declared a major incident at the base and arrested several men on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act, who have since been released on bail, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, September 29, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Shepheard
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UK PM Says ‘Strong Indications’ Iran Involved in Airbase Incident

Police officers guard an area as roadblocks remain in place near RAF Fairford airbase, after police declared a major incident at the base and arrested several men on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act, who have since been released on bail, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, September 29, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Shepheard
Police officers guard an area as roadblocks remain in place near RAF Fairford airbase, after police declared a major incident at the base and arrested several men on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act, who have since been released on bail, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, September 29, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Shepheard

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Wednesday said there were "strong indications" Iran was involved in suspicious activity at a UK airbase that triggered a major security incident this weekend. 

"There are strong indications that Iran played a part in what happened over the weekend at RAF Fairford," Burnham told the BBC, referring to Sunday's bomb scare near the airbase in southwest England, which is used by the US military in its war against Iran. 

"Of course it remains an ongoing, complex, and serious police investigation," said Burnham. 

Iran's embassy in London earlier said it "categorically rejects and strongly condemns" speculation it was involved in the incident, while Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on X that Burnham was "barking up the wrong tree". 

Police said on Tuesday that no explosives were found at the scene. The nature of the threat has not been explained by officials. 

Burnham's comments are the first official confirmation from UK authorities that Iran may have had a hand in the incident, which saw three white vans appearing to head towards RAF Fairford in the early hours of Sunday. 

A local resident who rang the police said she saw a group of masked men near the vans, which were blocking a road in a village next to the military base. 

- Growing confusion - 

The case was plunged into confusion when UK police released on bail five British men it had arrested on Sunday on suspicion of explosives and terrorism offences. 

After three days of investigations, including using a bomb disposal team, police said Tuesday they had found no explosives in the vehicles, but they had retrieved a "quantity of petrol". 

Then on Wednesday, The Times newspaper reported that the incident had been foiled after one of the five suspects tipped off the police before the group was apprehended. 

US President Donald Trump and his Secretary of State Marco Rubio had previously indicated that intelligence bodies were aware of the suspects and that a foreign state could be involved, but UK officials had not weighed in. 

"We have been waiting to confirm what we could say, but we can now confirm our belief that Iran played a part," Burnham told Sky News. 

Speculation was rife that Iran or another hostile state could have been involved, after Tehran previously warned London against allowing its military bases to be used by Washington. 

Britain gave the US the greenlight to use RAF Fairford for defensive strikes against Iran, drawing Tehran's ire and unease from some residents in the Gloucestershire countryside where the base is located.